Why Are We So Obsessed with Missing Persons Stories?

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It’s the not knowing, really, Isn’t it?. When we read mysteries and thrillers centered around solving a murder, we know the person is dead… but a missing persons case opens up a slew of psychological aspects to explore. There is no closure in cases of people disappearing. There is never an ability to mourn and move on because there is still a lingering flicker of hope. A character holding onto hope and simultaneously torturing themselves with endless possible worst-case scenarios is what really draws us into missing persons stories and what makes us resonate with them–empathize with the pain and grief of the family.

Not only can we deeply sympathize with the character searching for answers, we feel like we are a part of the search in perhaps a more urgent personal way than a character’s search for justice for a murder, say… or finding out who-done-it.  It seems as though in real life, once a high profile missing case goes viral, the general public feels like they are a part of it too, in a sense. Everyone has a theory or an opinion. Everyone is an online, armchair detective, and It instills fear–if it could happen to this everyday person, it could happen to my family.

This is probably most deeply felt by  marginalized groups of people because we have a collective history of throwing disproportionate amounts of resources to stories about young white women missing while countless other cases are dismissed in many ways. It begs the question: What criteria do national newsrooms use to decide which cases make the cut and become a headline?… but that’s a topic for another article, or maybe even for a thriller book, because it’s actually quite scary how many missing lives are swept under the rug.

Thriller authors write about what we fear the most, and so a well-crafted story of a beloved family member or friend vanishing is something we seem to perpetually have a big appetite for in fiction.

In novel form all of this is concentrated and dramatized, so the reader has enough separation from real life to safely go along for the ride, but the fear of the unknown still hits a nerve for most people.  The reality is that thousands of people go missing every year, and a few thousand unidentified bodies are found every year which is sort of staggering in this technological era, but is also likely why “into thin air” and “without a trace” stories have found themselves a comfortable home in crime fiction.

Here are several novels about missing persons, each with its own unique lens.

Then She Was Gone, by Lisa Jewell

When fifteen year-old Ellie Mack disappears, The police’s investigation never turns up any clues about what happened to her, but they believe she ran away. Her mother, Laurel, believes otherwise. After ten years, and after losing her marriage and disconnecting from her family, Laurel begins to try to piece together a life for herself without her beloved daughter. It’s only then that some shocking clues reveal themselves and draw her closer to the appalling truth about what really happened to her daughter.

This one is a real stunner. Jewell is one of my very favorite authors. somehow she has this unique ability to create a very unsettling and chilling story and yet make it touching and poignant…and still page-tuning and unputdownable. I find, even though it’s been a few years since I read this one, I still think about Ellie Mack, and I can’t really say that for many fictional characters, so that’s why it’s on the top of my list and has always stayed with me.

The Woman in Cabin 10, by Ruth Ware

Lo Blacklock, a journalist who writes for a travel magazine, was given an assignment on a small cruise ship with only a handful of cabins. What started as an exciting opportunity, turns horribly wrong as she witnesses a woman being thrown overboard.  The problem is, all passengers remain accounted for and so, the ship sails on as if nothing has happened, despite Lo’s desperate attempts to convey that someone is dead and something on this ship is terribly wrong.

This gives away how relatively new to thrillers I am, but this is one of the first thriller novels I ever read, and Ware’s work is part of what inspired me to try writing thrillers myself, so she holds a special place in my heart and on my bookshelf.

It’s twisty and atmospheric, and just when you think you’ve figured out what’s going on, something happens to make you second guess everything. It’s anything but predictable.

As a side note, do yourself a favor and listen to this one because Imogen Church’s narration is perfection.

The Couple Next Door, by Shari Lapena

Anne and Marco Conti seem to have it all—a loving relationship, a wonderful home, and their beautiful baby, Cora. But one night, when they are at a dinner party next door, a terrible crime is committed. Suspicion immediately lands on the parents. But the truth is a much more complicated story.

I especially love the way the title ties in. Is it the couple next door to you? Or are YOU the couple next door? This story explores deception and unraveling family ties, but what I loved most about it is that I never had a clue what the twist would be. I didn’t see it coming and It’s not all that often I read the big reveal–the big “who-done-it’ in the end and feel both genuinely surprised and very satisfied. This one had it all and was well crafted from beginning to end.

And Now She’s Gone, by Rachel Howzell Hall

PI Grayson Sykes is tasked to find a vanished woman, Isabel Lincoln, who is thought to have disappeared on purpose, so surely the boyfriend (who reported her missing) is hiding something. Grayson suspects abuse and knows firsthand what an abusive relationship is like, so she’s convinced that all is not what it appears. But the further she goes down the rabbit hole, the more unexpected and complex the story becomes, and as she digs into the secrets of Isabel’s life, Grayson’s own secrets unravel.

This author creates sharp and vivid images with smart, complex characters in the lead. This book takes you on a rollercoaster ride–wild, scary, and filled with twists you don’t see coming. When it finally comes to a halt at the very satisfying and unexpecting ending, the reader will not be disappointed. A writer to watch, in my opinion.

Spare Room, by Dreda Say Mitchell

Lisa is a young woman who has been told the physical scars she carries and the nightmares she suffers are from a tragic accident when she was young. She does not believe that’s true. The mystery keeps her anxious, depressed and struggling throughout her life. When she decides to rent a room  in an old house, she quickly learns that it’s not just any house. It has a dark history and equally sinister live-in owners. Then…she finds a suicide note seemingly written by the previous tenant, and that’s when this story catches fire as Lisa begins to understand this creepy place, this note, somehow relate to what happened to her all those years ago.

Perhaps not a true missing persons book, but the main character’s obsession to find out what happened to the man who stayed there before her is compelling and electrically charged from beginning to end. I love when reviewers say a book was ‘so hyped they expected to be disappointed when they read it themselves’..and then they’re still blown away. This book received many such accolades, and I concur that it’s a twisty, heart pounding gem of a book you won’t be able to put down.

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