Editorial Content for Every Missing Girl: A Kendall Beck Thriller

The action kicks off on the very first page of EVERY MISSING GIRL, the second entry in Leanne Kale Sparks’ thriller series featuring Kendall Beck. Kendall is an FBI agent in Colorado who tracks down missing children and attempts to uncover child-trafficking rings. It's pretty horrifying work, and now her good friend, Detective Adam Taylor, has a personal stake in their latest case. His niece, Frankie, has disappeared after playing in a kids’ hockey game.

Interestingly, the novel doesn’t start with Kendall investigating any specific missing children until an attempted robbery at a local convenience store results in a double homicide. The culprit brought along a girl who turns out to be a missing child, and Kendall begins looking into what happened to her. She suspects that the child was kidnapped by a trafficking ring, and she's trying to figure out who is involved to prevent more children from being harmed. Several are rescued before they can be sold, but Frankie is still missing.

"[T]he dialogue and the way that Sparks narrates from both Kendall and Adam’s points of view allow us insight into their thoughts and feelings. The nonstop action will make you want to read the novel straight through."

Sparks keeps the suspense and tension high, measuring the time after Frankie’s abduction in hours, minutes and seconds. We are often reminded that unless a child is located within a fairly short time, they are unlikely to be found alive. Adam is frantic with worry, and as Sparks clearly shows, it affects his ability to be professional and detached while participating in the investigation. We also see how even small inconsistencies in testimony draw the attention of those looking into the disappearances, and it helps us understand how any lies --- even omissions --- can be harmful to a case. Adam must deal with evasive family members of his own, which leads to wasting time investigating what might turn out to be something completely irrelevant.

There is a lot to keep track of, including the found children, the suspects and the different directions in which the investigations are leading. I had to go back a few times to make sure that I understood who each character being investigated was. Never explained was how the actual kidnapping of Frankie took place. Still, the dialogue and the way that Sparks narrates from both Kendall and Adam’s points of view allow us insight into their thoughts and feelings. The nonstop action will make you want to read the novel straight through. Because of Sparks' ability to help us connect with Frankie, just from what we are told about her, we genuinely care about her and are rooting for her to be found safely.

It's not all tragedy, though, as some humor is interspersed throughout the book. You will learn so much about child trafficking and understand why it's so important that those in the travel industry, especially flight attendants, are aware of the signs and are able to identify possible young victims. Thrilling and informative, with characters we like, EVERY MISSING GIRL is the welcome continuation of a series that you will want to keep reading.