The Night My Sister Went Missing

Reviewed by Mark Frye, author and reviewer for TeensReadToo.com

Carol Plum-Ucci is a phenomenal writer who mixes elements of thrillers, mysteries, and problem novels with great success. In her latest, THE NIGHT MY SISTER WENT MISSING, she covers familiar territory from earlier novels without costing the story a suspenseful edge or satisfying conclusion. With her usual cast of sympathetic characters, readers are drawn into the story and feel as if they have a stake in the outcome.

The narrator, Kurt Carmody, learns the details of his sister's disappearance while eavesdropping on an interrogation room at police headquarters. Although there were many people there when Casey Carmody vanished, including Kurt himself, each witness' testimony is show more limited by personal bias against the main suspect, Stacy Kearn. Stacy and her father appear to be guilty of several crimes as well as an assortment of inappropriate personality quirks. Yet readers are wise not to rush to judgment in the story. No one and nothing is as it appears, neither those under suspicion for Casey's disappearance nor those who rush to help her and claim innocence. Like her earlier novels, particularly THE BODY OF CHRISTOPHER CREED and WHAT HAPPENED TO LANI GARVER, Plum-Ucci creates a realistic sense of community guilt for the mysterious, tragic events in
the lives of teenagers. Those who are viewed as outsiders and are made to feel unwelcome suffer for the intolerance of others. This message rings through the novels closing chapters without overpowering the reader.

As in previous novels, the author tackles community myths and legends in order to show that there's usually a logical reason behind so-called paranormal events. Although the ghost of a suicide victim is given short-play in this novel, this subplot is engaging enough to leave the reader in doubt about the nature of Casey's disappearance until the novel's conclusion. There may be no better mystery writer in today's market for maintaining tension without sacrificing realistic endings than Ms. Plum-Ucci.

Five stars. Highly recommended. show less

Set in one night, the story begins with a frantic older brother in a police station after his younger sister has somehow fallen off a pier. All the youths from the local seaside town go to the abandoned pier to "hang out" (i.e. drink/party) at night and unfortunately one girl brought a tiny gun into the mix. Was his sister shot? Was she pushed? Did she jump and is this some prank?
The boy and his best mate (who happens to be the local sheriff's son) manage to wrangle their way into a hiding space behind the interview room. As the night goes on, they hear the accounts of their friends and they tally this up against what they actually saw. Who is lying? What is the truth?
A gripping tale from a master storyteller that will have you guessing show more right to the end. show less

A tiny pistol, passed from friend to friend at a party on an abandoned pier, suddenly fires, and Casey Carmody falls into the water below. Kurt, Casey's older brother, endures a seemingly endless night at the police station while the coast guard searches for his sister and his friends are questioned, one by one. Who was foolish enough to pull the trigger? Was the gunfire accidental or deliberate? Or was the whole drama one of Casey's practical jokes? And where is Casey--or her body--now? Dark secrets are revealed and petty jealousies rear their ugly heads as each eyewitness comes to the questioning room with his or her own version of "the truth."

Good, quick realistic fiction. The plot arcs wide from it's beginning point and leaves the reader with sense of sadness.

It is hard to connect to the charaters but I think this is purposeful. An underlying concept of the book is how hard it is know others when you don't really know yourself. And this sums up the journey that young people take as they leave their childhood behind.

Submitted by Victoria...
It was ok , although it almost seemed like in the beginning she was trying to hard to create a plot.
summary: A girl "falls" into a lake and everybody saw something different, the main question was who was right? You hear different stories from different people. Then they find out there is more than this mystery at hand.

Quick read, but the middle of the book was a little slow. A lot of time spent in the police station. But the beginning and ending are intriguing enough to read!

It seemed really dated already, with the main character talking about blogging all the time. I couldn't get into this one at all.