Book Description
The Disappeared is a story of our times, of kidnap and rescue, of abuse and healing. It is the story of Stephen, a teacher whose love for the pupil who shares his dreams brings him face to face with ruin; of Sharon, the child of a feckless stepmother, and her criminal abusers; of Laura, the investigative high-flyer, now faced with rape and sexual slavery; of Justin, environmentalist and Heavy Metal fan, whose obsession with Muhibbah, rescued from forced marriage, spells disaster for them both.
It is the story of a police force fearful of charges of racism, and a social worker, Iona, expected to make a viable community from fragments that will not join.
With dizzying speed The Disappeared uncovers the chaotic underworld of a Yorkshire city, its characters eventually stumbling across one another in a single catastrophe. A victim may bring redemption: but who will it be?
It is the story of a police force fearful of charges of racism, and a social worker, Iona, expected to make a viable community from fragments that will not join.
With dizzying speed The Disappeared uncovers the chaotic underworld of a Yorkshire city, its characters eventually stumbling across one another in a single catastrophe. A victim may bring redemption: but who will it be?
Review
I received an eARC copy of this book from the publisher. Here is my honest review.
I'm not really sure how I'm going to rate this book, which is an odd place to be when writing a review. The plot was gripping although after the first two chapters, the point of view shifted to what seemed to be a completely unrelated story. Scruton masterfully wove three seemingly unconnected stories together. The plot was the best part of this book. The characters were interesting and the writing style (almost stream of consciousness and first person for Laura's character) was very different from what I typically read, which I found to be a nice change.
It was very violent in parts and human trafficking is a serious issue that is quite frankly difficult to read about.
I gave this book: ★★★
★ = I did not like it ★★ = It was okay ★★★ = I liked it
★★★★ = I really liked it ★★★★★ = I loved it
1 comment:
I've got a couple of books that fit into the hard to rank category as well. This does sound like a compelling book but with issues that difficult not an enjoyable read. Great review! I tend to be an escapist reader so I don't think this book is for me.
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