FBI Special Agent Elsa Myers is very good at her job, but she doesn't know how to deal with her father slowly dying from cancer and demons from her past. She could take time off from work to spend more time with her dad at the hospital, but she knows working is the only way she can cope. It keeps her from dwelling on her memories. She is called to assist on a case. A teenage girl is missing. Elsa pushes her personal life to the side, intent on finding the missing girl before it's too late.

At first, I had a hard time identifying with, or liking, Elsa Myers. Elsa is an excellent investigator and she's driven to solve cases, especially those involving children. But she has some deep emotional scars and is pretty much emotionally unavailable. The story flips from the current investigation to flashbacks about Elsa's childhood frequently. At first, I found the flashbacks a bit annoying. But by the end of the book, those flashes of insight into her past helped me understand the character better. By the end of the book, I liked Elsa as a main character. The development of her character over the course of the story is quite complex. I liked how little bits and pieces about Elsa were revealed as she discovered and followed up on clues in the missing person investigation.

A Map of the Dark is the first book in The Searchers series. Book 2, Last Night, turns its focus to Lex Cole, Elsa's temporary partner in A Map of the Dark.

Karen Ellis is a pseudonym for crime thriller author Katia Lief. A Map of the Dark is the first book by this author that I've read. I'm definitely going to read more! I liked the character development and slow-build pacing. I saw one aspect of the ending coming...but wasn't quite sure how it would work in with the story. All in all, a very enjoyable crime thriller. It kept my attention from start to finish. I binge read this entire book in one afternoon. I couldn't stop reading!

I am looking forward to book 2. Lex Cole was a bit of a background character in book 1 because it focused mainly on Elsa and her past. I'm so curious about how his story will develop in the second book!

**I voluntarily read a review copy of this book from Mulholland Books via NetGalley. All opinions expressed are entirely my own.**

I received a free e-copy of A Map of the Dark (Searchers, #1) by Karen Ellis from NetGalley for my honest review.

This was a slow starter for me, but I definitely grew more interested as I went on. I can say the book focuses a lot on abuse and pain, suffering and lots of emotion. It is a tough topic to read but it is a great start to the terrific new series.

I loved this book and loved hearing the story from Elsa's viewpoint. The plot was well written and kept me interested throughout. I could not put it down!

This a story of an FBI agent named Elsa and her ability to handle her personal demons to search for missing children. While processing the impending death of her father, Elsa receives a call for help from a NYPD Detective, Lex, to help in his case of a missing teenage girl. They ultimately discover much more than a child abduction case and they work together to obtain a resolution. This book gives the reader glimpses of Elsa’s past struggles and the problems they present in her present life as well as her relationship with her sister and niece which are fraught with troubles. A bombshell in Elsa’s personal life is dropped at then end of this book and I’m glad to see this is the start of a series so I can hopefully see what happens to Elsa going forward now that she’s found a friend in Lex.

I was very glad that NetGalley offered the first book in the series along with the new release as I hate reading books out of order. Unfortunately, that now means I'm stuck reviewing both books when I could barely get through the first one. I purchased the audiobook, as I'm so behind with reviews that the only way to make a dent in the books I have to read is to listen to some of them while I'm driving and while I'm at work. The narrator may have been part of the problem as I just didn't care for her voice, but the biggest problem is that this book is brutal and I'm just not in the right mood to handle the violence. Trigger warnings here for self-harm and child abuse. Not having experienced the kind of trauma that leads to cutting (for which I am extremely grateful), I cannot speak to how well the author handled these scenes, but it felt a little "off".

The mystery of the missing girls is interesting, but I never really connected with any of the characters. I will say the author did a good job of building tension. I dreaded the flashback scenes because of the graphic abuse, and I dreaded the scenes from the POV of the kidnapped girls because I've watched way too many episodes of Criminal Minds and did not want to have to live through torture scenes. Obviously, I have one more book that I'm obligated to read, but once I get through that one, I doubt I will read another. I'm just a little tired of the gratuitous violence.

Very well written start to a new series with a strong female character. The story kept my attention and kept me up! Looking forward to more.

A riveting tale of a heinous crime. Elsa is struggling with the personal crisis of her father dying when she is called in on a kidnapping case. It stirs up memories she thought she had long buried. The story is twisted and intriguing. The characters are well created. The plot is well developed and has surprises that will leave your senses snared. It is a well written story that captures the psychosis of the criminal and the inner workings of the law enforcement tasked with tracking him down.

Great book, I really enjoyed reading this one. Thanks NetGalley and the publisher for the advance copy.

Thank you NetGalley for my advanced reading copy.
I LOVED this mystery introducing us to Elsa Myers! Her character is a complex one, with a deep background full of demons, and a terminally ill father she tries to make time for while solving the abduction case.
Three teenage girls are missing. Turns out this is a pattern for our killer, and Elsa and her partner for this case, NYPD Detective Lex, are on a mission to find him and the girls, especially once her niece becomes one of the abducted!
The pacing was tightly done, wound with family trauma, pain, and emotion. I thought this was a fantastic start to a series and I can't wait to read more.

A new series, the introduction of a new character, Elsa, an FBI agent whose background is a little murky since its not totally revealed in this this book which means that as the series goes more and more of her background will be revealed. At the moment you find out that it was an abusive one which makes her the perfect person to be in the field she pursued.

The case itself had a plot point that was kin of predictable and if you read a lot you could seen it coming. Book was intriguing enough of a character that I am definitely looking forward to the next one.

A Map of the Dark is a compelling police procedural, masterfully told, Richly drawn characters come alive through authentic dialogue and vivid description...and the story ends with a surprise that, in retrospect, makes perfect sense. I'm going to read everything I can by this author!

The first book in a new series featuring FBI Agent Elsa Myers. She knows how to find missing people and is working with the child abduction team. I think this series has great potential, but this one was a little predictable. Elsa's backstory seemed to overpower the rest of the story. I was able to predict a lot of what was happening and where the story would lead. I'm hoping that now we have the backstory out of the way, we can move forward in the next story and get a better mystery.

A Map of the Dark is the first novel in this series. It is a fast paced novel that follows Elsa, a special agent for the FBI who works in the in an elite unit that is tasked with tracking missing children. Elsa is at a delicate tipping point on her life. Her father, Roy, is in the hospital with terminal lung cancer and he has only been given a few months to live. She gets a call for a missing teenage girl named Ruby. A seventeen year old who disappeared unexpectedly after leaving her shift at a local coffee shop. Unclear if this is a runaway or a kidnapping, Elsa is called in to assist Lex Cole from the NYPD.

Early on very few clues arise to point to what happened to Ruby, but it soon becomes clear that Ruby did not just walk away from her life, someone clearly meant her harm. The deeper Elsa and Lex dig, the more they realize that this is no simple kidnapping, Ruby is part of a much larger, darker story, and the race is on the stop a ruthless serial predator.

The author weaves this tale in imaginative, vivid prose. The characters are vulnerable and damaged in their own ways. The story is an exciting page turner with twists and turns. A worthwhile thriller.

This was an interesting experience: I read this, the first book in Karen Ellis's The Searchers series, AFTER I had read the second book, Last Night. The point is, I enjoyed Book 2 enough to seek out Book 1. Both books feature FBI Special Agent Elsa Myers and NYPD Detective Lex Cole, with Book 1 focusing on Elsa and Book 2 prominently featuring Lex.

Elsa Myers is assigned to the FBI's Child Abduction Rapid Deployment team, and the book opens as she is called to leave her dying father's bedside to respond to a teenager's possible deduction. That same finely-honed tension between the deeply personal and consummately professional is a powerful element of this book and the one that follows. The books in The Searchers series are not thrillers so much as character-driven suspense stories.

Using a fairly common techniques, the author narrative unfolds in short, alternating sections. We see Elsa's conflicts, past and present, interspersed with brief chapters on teenage musings before and after abduction, and on the perpetrator's inner life. This device is rarely executed as effectively as Karen Ellis has done it here.

I liked the developing friendship between Lex and Elsa. I loved Lex's generous spirit and empathy with Elsa's demons. If you have a taste for fast-paced thrillers, I urge you to move into the slow lane for this one. You won't be sorry.

Thanks to NetGalley and Mulholland Books for this ARC.

Interesting thriller, which is loaded with twists and turns of two detectives on a case.
Highly entertaining.and fast paced.

Mysteries are my favorite reading, but this writer's style of writing lost my interest. She doesn't seem to understand punctuation and her sentences were all run on and on and on.

I received a free copy of this book from the author. I had the opportunity to review or not.

A Map of the Dark is a well-written, well-developed tale of a serial killer. The killer kidnaps young girls keeping them hidden until he decides to kill them. After one girl goes missing, the detective assigned to the case calls in help from FBI Agent Elsa Myers. Elsa’s reputation makes her one of the most effective searchers in the FBI. Together, Lex Cole and Elsa set out to find the girl.

As the search continues, more girls go missing and the team feel the pressure building as they realize time is running out. Ms. Ellis keeps you on the edge of your seat as she presents the search, the characters involved and how the detective and the agent work to solve the mystery. Who is kidnapping and killing the girls and why. I thoroughly enjoyed this book and am hooked on Ms. Ellis’s writing. I am looking forward to the next book in the series. If you enjoy mysteries, grab this one, it will grab you!

Very good mystery with a flawed heroine. This book was hard to put down. Elsa is an FBI agent and one of the best in locating missing kids. She finds herself caught up in a missing child case while dealing with her niece and a dying father not to mention demons from her past.

Can’t wait for more in this series.

I received a copy of this from Netgalley, in exchange for an honest review.

I really enjoyed this book, although I have to admit it stressed me out a bit, worrying about what was going to happen!

The plot is interesting - first, figuring out "whodunnit," but, more importantly, how to save the intended victim. The police involved were competent and insightful - while they made mistakes, they realized that and compensated for them, recovering quickly. It was a bit of a relief from so many police/mystery books, to not have to be suspicious of the police and their general competence, honesty, and dedication. Yeah, I confess, I get tired of being cynical about authorities!

I also liked the characters - very human. The teenagers who were friends of the kidnapped girl didn't tell what they knew, out of general "teenager-ness" and worry that they might get into trouble - and that seemed realistic. However, they eventually did come through. In fact, I thought Ms. Ellis did a good job of portraying teenagers in general in the book - often making bad decisions and yet showing some courage in the long run.

There was definitely suspense - particularly since it became pretty clear who the next kidnap victim was going to be. That didn't spoil anything, but rather ratcheted up the suspense.

I also very much liked Elsa, the FBI agent who is the main character. Certainly a person with her own issues to work through, but that makes her more interesting.

Overall, a good solid suspense novel. I look forward to reading the next book in the series!

This book is a great opener for more in a series. Realistic FBI/police procedural combined with just enough personal backstory. Others have described detailed synopses of the story line quite well so I will just say it's a book that holds your attention and has events you just don't see coming! Enjoy! I received this book as a complimentary copy for an honest review.The opinions expressed are my own.