The best thing about this novel is the main character: formerly abused as a girl, the now-woman is depicted incredibly realistic, a drunkard and medication abuser, depressive, chaotic, with relationship issues, totally marked by her past.

The plot was interesting, the secondary characters added up to the story, the atmosphere was heavy - exactly like it should be, considering what happened and what is happening now. The pacing was ok, a little dragging maybe in the middle part, but overall the suspense was well dosed and the ending was satisfactory.

However, I had are some issues too, but I’ll mark them so as not to spoil the experience of those who didn’t read the novel.
ATTENTION! SPOILERS: What I cannot understand is how the heck could her mom do that; and, if she did it, how did she fail to go to the police a week/a month later, when she got sober enough to realize that the fucker held her daughter captive?! And how the detective failed to squeeze from her mother the identity of the kidnapper, even though she practically lived in his house for days?! Yeah, all these elude me and I think of them as weak spots in the plot.

Well done for a debut. 3.5★

When she was ten years old, Ella was abducted and held for three years. She escaped, but her captor was never found. For a decade, she's lived under a new identity and watched reports of missing girls, wondering who took her place in that basement. Now Olivia Shaw has vanished. Ella (who now calls herself Lainey) can barely take care of herself. My heart was absolutely breaking for Lainey. The book doesn't reveal many details about her captivity. Her current life is frightening enough. She's hanging by a thread even before she's dragged into the investigation of Olivia's disappearance. No one seems to understand that she can't help the missing girl, or herself.

Twenty-three-year-old Laine is an active member of a conspiracy theory message board. She watches the news, the missing children flyers, waiting for someone else to disappear like she did. That’s because her name used to be Ella–back before she was kidnapped and held captive. Even though the man who took her has never been found, there’d never been another missing girl who matched a description like hers until Olivia Shaw goes missing. Despite Olivia living a completely different life than Laine had lived when she was younger, Laine is sure that the disappearances are linked. She just needs to convince the police–and remember who had taken her all those years ago.

Desperate for information, and to put the missing pieces of her own memory and case back together, Laine reunites with the cop-turned-detective who originally found her after she was freed. With time running out, and pressure from the police and Olivia Shaw’s parents on, Laine feels like it’s up to her to figure out what happened to Olivia Shaw–and why she, and Laine, were taken in the first place.

Laurin’s writing style is not just captivating, but easy to read, making this book impossible to put down. While not quite in the same realm as Paula Hawkins in terms of style, Girl Last Seen is an excellent choice for fans of Girl on the Train.

Set to the dark, rainy backdrop of Seattle, Girl Last Seen is full of dark twists and turns the reader will never see coming.

Girl Last Seen is a mystery/thriller involving two missing girls set thirteen years apart. One escaped and moved on with her life only to be pulled back into things when a girl that bears a striking resemblance to herself goes missing. Could it be the same captor? The story is filled with twists and turns, while the suspense remains present. The characters are all gritty making them intriguing to read about. The ending is outstanding, really picking up the pace. It's shocking this is only a debut novel. Readers of thrillers will want to check this out.

I thought it would be fitting to start my review off with this lovely quote, one that I think carries a lot of weight—

“No two persons ever read the same book.” ― Edmund Wilson

Here’s to hoping Mr. Wilson’s words ring true—that every other reader has a completely different experience with this book than I did. Or that they find the wherewithal to toss it aside and move on; something my sense of obligation, tied to the review copy I received, just wouldn’t allow me to do. I really must be a glutton for punishment.

Some readers tend to cut an author a break when they see the word 'debut', but I have to be honest, I’m not one of them. In no way would I ever accept that five-letter word as an excuse for the messy plot and mediocre characters that I forced myself to spend the last few weeks with (yes, it took me several weeks to get through this book!). I’m surprised Girl Last Seen landed itself a spot on bookshelves in this state, considering how poorly structured and poorly written this book actually is.

Within the first few chapters, I could tell this wasn’t going to go well for me. There was something mundane about the author’s writing—it lacked personality and that oomph that typically accompanies what I consider to be a great book—those that deliver the reader’s high necessary for a binge session. In fact, for me, with this book, it was the complete opposite. When I set this down for any length of time, I never felt that urge to get back to it. It was more of a forced activity.

Aside from the author’s writing itself, it was the plot and the structure of the story that caused the most problems, for me. Overcritical or not, I have certainly never read a traditionally published book with as many plot holes, underdeveloped characters, and blatant disregard for reality, as this one. And I'm not referring to the altered reality the author tried to create with the pill-popping junkie at the center of it all. I'm talking about the nonsensical aspects of this story—things that didn’t add up or weren’t researched enough by the author. I guess, at the end of the day, the excuse can be thrown out that this is a work of fiction, but in my eyes, if you’re going to try and sell an investigation or the closed adoption scenario, put in the time and effort to do the research. Make it believable. Not only did this story feel thrown together, but it was riddled with convenience, lacked polish and was all tied together with an uninspired ending.

Bottom line—there was nothing I enjoyed about this book, nor would I ever even consider reading another one from this author. At the end of the day though, this is just the opinion of one reader, who frequently lives in the minority, so if the synopsis grabs you, give it a chance and draw your own conclusions.

Girl Last Seen by Nina Laurin is about two missing girls taken 13 years apart from each other. Olivia Shaw is 10 years old and hasn't been seen since she disappeared. Lainey disappeared 13 years prior but was found along the side of the road three years later. Does Olivia's disappearance have anything to do with Lainey's? If so, how? Can the mystery be unraveled before Lainey self destructs from her destructive behavior? Read and enjoy!

Crazy, crazy ending. This one had me very confused at times, due to the main character, Ella/Lainey. She was a very strange bird, but I guess I would be also if I had been abducted and held captive for 13 years.

That being said, I enjoyed reading the book. And the ending blew me away. Definitely recommend!

Thanks to Grand Central Publishing and Net Galley for providing me with a free e-galley in exchange for an honest, unbiased review.

I would like to thank Nina Laurin, Grand Central Publishing and Netgalley for giving me this book for my honest review.
Review By Stephanie
4 Stars
Ten years ago Ella was found walking alone on a road, she has been missing for three years. She was kept in a basement and endure such horrible abuse that no child should ever have to deal with. Sadly she was unable to lead the police to who held her prisoner the monster never caught.
Fast forward to present Ella now goes by Lainey is living a hard life. She mixes drugs and alcohol to keep some what sane. Then a ten year old girl goes missing from her school and Lainey thinks she knows who the kidnapper is........
WOW THIS BOOK!!!! The story is a true poo your pants book! I was glued to my kindle! I needed to know the connection between Lainey/Ella to the ten year old missing girl. I also wanted to know if the abductor would be finally uncovered! And let me tell you when I found out everything I was like OMG!!!!!
Nina Laurin's writing was amazing! Like I said above I was glued to my kindle due to her twisted plot and raw characters! I was floored when I found out that this was Nina's debut book! I love reading amazing debut novels so that way I can follow their writing journey! I can not wait for her next book!

In “Girl Last Seen” by Nina Lauren, we meet Ella (Lainey/Laine). Thirteen years ago she went missing only to turn up three years later. Since then her life has taken the turn for the worst. Now another girl has gone missing and the connection between them cannot be ignored. What happens next is Ella’s journey to prove not only her innocence to a cop she has never forgotten but to herself as well.

I received a copy of this book through Net Galley and this is my honest review.

Two missing girls. Thirteen years apart.
Olivia Shaw has been missing since last Tuesday. She was last seen outside the entrance of her elementary school in Hunts Point wearing a white spring jacket, blue jeans, and pink boots.

I force myself to look at the face in the photo, into her slightly smudged features, and I can't bring myself to move. Olivia Shaw could be my mirror image, rewound to thirteen years ago.

If you have any knowledge of Olivia Shaw's whereabouts or any relevant information, please contact...

I've spent a long time peering into the faces of girls on missing posters, wondering which one replaced me in that basement. But they were never quite the right age, the right look, the right circumstances. Until Olivia Shaw, missing for one week tomorrow.

Whoever stole me was never found. But since I was taken, there hasn't been another girl.

And now there is.



* * * * *



There are times when you want to escape reality where all the rough edges are smoothed and there are other times when you want those edges. GIRL LAST SEEN is a mystery where all the rough edges were left in place.



Set in Seattle where gray skies and drizzle are the norm, this gritty mystery will keep you entranced. The main character is an addict who had been kidnapped and held by a pedophile when she was just a child. Lainey managed to escape but now she feels responsible for Olivia who had just been kidnapped.



I really enjoyed this book. It's gritty and does a wonderful job of showing the life of an addict without the rose colored glasses that we so often reach for. While I have never been an addict, I have had friends and family members who have struggled with that disease and I appreciated being able to see through their eyes for a bit.


I really think that my readers who enjoy gritty mysteries will enjoy GIRL LAST SEEN. I probably wouldn't recommend it for younger readers because there are scenes of drug use, violence as well as using sex to pay for drugs.


*** I received this book at no charge from NetGalley in exchange for a fair and honest review. All opinions expressed within are my own.

Girl last seen, by debut author Nina Laurin, is a deeply disturbing thriller that keeps you on edge as you become lost in a maze of twists, turns and a whole lot of emotion.

Laine is at the center of this thrilling book. Kidnapped at age 10, she’s held captive by a depraved pedophile for 3 years. 10 years later she’s struggling through life trying to cope with the severe trauma she’s suffered; typically through the use of prescription drugs and alcohol. She’s utterly destroyed.

This girl gets no breaks! Prior to her kidnapping she’s neglected by her junkie mother and after her captivity she’s thrown into an institution becoming a faceless ward of the state. Being a poor girl with no support and no family to speak of the police didn’t make much effort to find her captor. She simply isn’t seen as important enough to spend a lot of resources on.

She’s doing the best she can but her constant anxieties follow her around like a dark shadow she can’t quite shake without “help”. Then one day Laine sees a photo of a missing 10 year old girl named Olivia Shaw who seems to bear some resemblance to her. Her world is suddenly turned upside down as dread begins to seep into her mind. Is her captor involved or is she just being paranoid?

Sean Ortiz, the cop assigned to Olivia’s case, was the one who found Laine 10 years prior. There is an immense amount of pressure to find Olivia because unlike Laine’s case Olivia’s is high-profile. He has a hunch that there’s a connection between Olivia’s abduction and Laine’s. He has no choice but to track down and question Laine, but he’ll have to face some demons of his own when he sees her again.

Sean carries around guilt when it comes to Laine. He’s fully aware that the effort the police put into Laine’s case was minimal and can’t help but feel he let her down. Now he has to ask her for help to find Olivia and he knows he’s asking a lot. When Laine sees Sean again she’s overwhelmed but despite her fears she agrees to help bringing her face to face with her past.

As the investigation continues Laine is progressively becoming more fragile. She’s trying to cope with the added anxiety and is growing more paranoid by the day. Coupled with drugs she’s heading towards a breakdown. BUT is her paranoia warranted?

The author doesn’t hold anything back! Through Laine’s troubled eyes I see what she sees, felt what she felt and it’s visceral! The emotion is so honest and messed up. I not only question the characters motives but Laine’s very account of what she’s experiencing and learning about the case. Some very uncomfortable questions arise that keep her constantly on edge. I fell into a downward spiral with her as she struggles with her memories, anxiety, new found obsession with Olivia’s case and cocktail of prescription drugs. I was so eager to see what happened next!

The overall character development is very well done. Laine was endearing and willing to try her best to fight her own fears. Even at her most vulnerable there was a piece of her that just wouldn’t give up. I could not, however, connect with Sean. I couldn’t quite put my finger on what kind of person he was.

In terms of plot, there were minor moments when I felt that parts of the story were moving in an interesting direction and then left hanging without tying up loose ends. It almost felt like the author wasn’t a hundred percent sure which direction to go with the story. That’s what kept me from giving full ratings. But it was minor so didn’t detract too much from the story. Regardless, fabulous debut novel with a wonderfully satisfying ending that wasn’t what I expected.

Raw, gritty and fast paced, Girl Last Seen is a highly enjoyable read that will keep the “who dunnit” lovers eagerly flipping those pages to see what happens next. Nina Laurin is definitely an author to watch out for and I look forward to future books!

Ten years after she was found, Lainey learns that a ten-year-old girl has gone missing. The girl resembles her, so she knows she was taken by the same kidnapper. Lainey was held by him for three years from the time she was ten. However, the police contact Lainey to help them because of her connection to the girl: she's her birth mother. Lainey has to use her unique position to help find Olivia Shaw while also finding her own kidnapper. 

This is an original thriller with many twists and turns. It reminded me of the stories in the last few years of girls being held captive for many years.

This story also demonstrates the different media coverage that cases get, depending on who the missing child is. Lainey's story wasn't as popular because her mother was in jail, whereas Olivia's family is very wealthy so they had a lot of media coverage.

I really liked this thrilling novel!

3.5/5

Girl Last Seen gave me a Gillian Flynn feel. I know, I know...every thriller ever is marketed as the next Gone Girl. But it actually made think of her other books- Sharp Objects and Dark Places more. I thought this book was well carved out and kept me intrigued; but sometimes these thrillers are just too hard to believe at the ending, ya know?

So the premise is that Ella Shaw, the main character had been kidnapped thirteen years ago. The kidnapper was never found, and now Ella struggles with what happened to her. Sadly, Ella lives a rough life, and doesn't have a support system to help her rehabilitate back into her life. She turns to drugs and low level jobs. She's doing her thing, living her crappy little life until she is consulted on another kidnap victim. Olivia Shaw looks just like Ella did back then, and she thinks the same kidnapper took Olivia because of that.

As the details of her own kidnapping return to her, Ella looks at herself as a possible suspect. Could she have done something to Olivia? The police are suspicious as well.

While I enjoyed reading this book, some of it was just a little too out there, never could happen. However, it made for a good binge read!

Thank you to Grand Central Publishing/NetGalley for the ARC in exchange for a honest review!

3.5 stars

I have always been interested in stories about missing people. So of course after reading the description for GIRL LAST SEEN, I knew I had to read it.

Two missing girls. Thirteen years apart.

Ella/Lainey/Laine has seen so many missing posters over the last ten years. She studies them closely. But this one is different. The missing girl looks very similar to how Lainey looked 13 years ago. They never caught the man who kidnapped her and she didn't think he had replaced her...

Until now.

"Olivia Shaw, Age ten, missing for one week tomorrow"

After seeing the poster it's all she can think about. Running on a loop in her head "Olivia Shaw, age 10, last seen...."

Laine works two jobs, trying to make ends meet. Her evening job is as a bartender in a strip-club. She's working and notices one of the patrons is blatantly staring at her. It starts to creep her out. She's about to tell him off but then he calls her by name. It takes her a moment to place the familiar voice. Then she remembers....it's Detective Sean Ortiz with the Seattle PD. As soon as she realizes who he is, her first instinct is to flee. He gives chase catching up to her easily and wants to know why she ran. She doesn't know what to tell him as she's not sure why she ran either. She wonders what he wants from her.

"Laine...this is about a missing girl"

And then he proceeds to tell her something else that she did NOT see coming.

They need Laine's help and she wants to help, but she's not sure how. She doesn't remember anything more about her time in captivity or her kidnapper.

I have to say I was really pulled in by the beginning of this book. However, about halfway through I started having trouble with a few things. I know that all characters won't be likeable all the time. But everyone seemed unlikable. For one thing there aren't a lot of characters in the book and I was having a hard time connecting with any of them. Of course I felt sorry for Laine....the girl hasn't caught a break her whole life. She's addicted to drinking and drugs which after everything she'd been through isn't surprising. But some of her decisions were frustrating beyond belief. As time went on I did start to feel more for her and I was definitely engrossed in the story and what was happening.

There was also something about Detective Sean Ortiz that put my teeth on edge. I had a really hard time liking him. I found him inconsistent...which of course characters can be, but some of his actions as a detective and a man both baffled and angered me.

However, I was still intrigued and wanted to know what was going to happen. Laine is determined to help the Shaw family find their daughter, even if it means putting herself in danger.

What secrets is Laine still hiding? And the missing girls parents seem to have secrets of their own.

Where is Olivia?

The book started off really good. The plot had me intrigued. Then it sort of lagged from the middle on. However, the action definitely picked up again in the last few chapters. In fact at that point I had a hard time putting it down. So I am glad that I stuck with it.

Thank you NetGalley and Grand Central Publishing for providing an advanced copy of this book for me to read in exchange for my honest review.

I'm not sure what it is at the moment, but I seem to be reading A LOT of books about missing girls and women. Particularly those held captive for a period of time. Perhaps the very popular Room by Emma Donohue made the topic more palatable for public consumption, or perhaps they've always been out there and I'm just stumbling over a heap all at once.

The third straight book I've read on the subject, Girl Last Seen by Nina Laurin is - as it happens - about the disappearance of two girls. Many years apart. 

This book opens with the escape of Ella Santos from her captor, who's held the 13 year old for three years. We next meet her a decade later, where she lives in anonymity under a pseudonym (Lainey) assigned to her many years earlier.

We soon learn Ella was the child of a fairly disinterested mother and it took a while for anyone to actually notice that she'd gone missing after her mother was imprisoned. It made it hard therefore, for investigators to understand when and where she was taken. And given her family background and how little the 13 year old could share on her release about her masked captor, investigators perhaps looked a less less fervently than they might have otherwise done.

It's now ten years later and newly-missing Olivia is from a wealthy family and a world away from the child Ella was. There are similarities though (although for me drawing the link was a bit of a stretch other than the physical similarities between Olivia and Ella) so Lainey's spidey senses are tingling.

There were a few surprises in this book - and they weren't necessarily just the whodunnit kind. They actually helps link the two cases so it becomes obvious they're somehow connected. We don't learn a lot more about Lainey's own kidnapping and time spent with her captor, but she finally confronts her past and it's something she needs to do - not to mention heightening the intrigue for we readers.

There's an interesting dynamic between Lainey and Sean, one of the investigators - one who saw the damaged 13 year old she once was and looks beyond her current bravado. I actually liked that Laurin wasn't tempted to have Lainey turn her life around completely and the young woman is obviously still struggling with her history. She works two jobs to make ends meet but is dependent on an array of pharmaceuticals to get her through the day. Her addiction only increases as she deals with the anxiety of police scrutiny and media attention.

Similarly Olivia's parents and detective Sean Ortiz are complex enough that we're not sure we can completely trust them. It adds to the suspense, along with the unexpected revelations thrown in along the way.

Of course, as the links between the cases become more obvious it seems likely that Lainey may again be in danger, but (at the same time) may also be the only one who can help Olivia... so I couldn't put this down and read it in a sitting.

10 years after she manages to escape her captor, Laine sees another kidnapping and knows it is the same man. She has spent the past decade watching, waiting for him to strike again so that she can hopefully track him down and revenge her own kidnapping and 3 year imprisonment. But life isn’t that simple for Laine. She struggles with drug abuse, violent temper, and an inability to socialize normally. None of this is surprising given what she has survived. But it made her character somewhat of a cliché. The writing is good. The twists are great and well placed. The first one was 10% of the way in to the book, letting you know this isn’t going to be an easy ride. Probably because I am a jaded over-reader of the genre, I picked up on the first clue to the kidnapper, but luckily Ms. Laurin was still 2 steps ahead of me and I followed her all the way to the end!

I decided to bump the rating up on this to 4 full stars, just because this is the author's debut novel. While this book isn't without it's problems, it is still a very strong start and I have a feeling her second book is going to be even stronger.

Here's what I liked:
-Ella/Lainey was the best developed character. She drew the short end of the stick in life and has the scars to prove it, both external and internal.
-While the plot wasn't necessarily fresh, it did draw me in
-I thought the ending provided some nice closure and I'm glad it wasn't the complete fairy tale ending-this was one I could get behind.

Here's where things went wrong for me:
-Ella/Lainey may have been the best developed character, but it doesn't mean I liked her very much. I was hoping for more from her than the stereotypical pill popping, binge drinking, low self-esteem protag who continually makes poor choices.
-With such a short list of characters to choose from, it wasn't too hard to zone in on the antagonist. Once I figured out who it was, I was hoping for more backstory on why.
-The pace of the book was off for me. It was too slow of a build up and at times I really wanted to skip ahead. Once the antag was revealed, the pace completely picked up, but by then the book was almost over.

Still a strong start to what I think is going to be a very successful career for this new author. I look forward to seeing what comes next!

ARC provided by NetGalley

Well looks like I found a new author to stalk this year. First of all thank you for allowing me to read this early, I am honored. Excuse me tho while I "GOOGLE" the author and purchase her other books.

"I've barely been able to leave a mark on my own life."


Girl Last Seen had a great blurb and I couldn't wait to read it. Unfortunately, I was unable to connect with the main character Ella Santos. She spent most of the story being high on drugs or coming down from them. I have no idea how she was able to piece anything together when she was never really lucid. Don't get me wrong, I like characters with flaws. I need characters who are imperfect to be able to root for them but in my mind, Ella was just dull. She made hasty decisions and then she was surprised by the outcome of her choices.

Saying that the story had a good premise. Ella was kidnapped when she was ten years old. She was kept by a monster for three years. She was able to escape and was found by cops who recognized her and took her to get the medical attention she needed. Ten years later and now Ella has changed her name to Laine and she's working as a bartender.

When Oliva Shaw goes missing, Ella can feel it in her bones, her kidnapper and rapist is back. She's positive he has Olivia and when Sean Ortiz, a cop from her past, comes calling, she knows she has to help Olivia. Too bad Ella can't remember anything about her captor.

As I said before, the story had good components. I liked the plot, I just couldn't connect with Ella. Also, the end left me unsatisfied. I was expecting a different closure.

Cliffhanger: No

2/5 Fangs

A complimentary copy was provided by Grand Central Publishing via Netgalley in exchange for an honest review.

This is a great book! There are so many plot twists and turns. And the characters are some of the most real characters I've ever encountered. Raw. Gritty. Real. The story is dark. The characters are dark. And it worked so well. I was kept on the edge of my seat trying to sort it all out and was shocked when it all came to light.