This was less informative than I expected. There are no significant updates on this case and the writing was difficult to follow at times. I appreciated the authors close involvement in the case, as he was there at the very beginning, but I also felt that he added too much information about his personal life/career.

It was saddening to see how easily Lauren Spierer was able to go missing, it could very easily happen to any young woman on a night out. My heart goes out to her family.

"College Girl, Missing" recounts the haunting 2011 disappearance of Lauren Spierer.

With every page, the reader is drawn deeper into the gripping narrative. Through meticulous investigative journalism, Shawn Cohen unveils the unfathomable pain endured by Lauren’s family and friends, as well as the many theories and dead ends surrounding the case. Sadly, despite exhaustive search efforts and countless leads, the truth remains elusive. As someone unfamiliar with the case surrounding the disappearance of Lauren Spierer, this is a solid read.

Many thanks to NetGalley and Sourcebooks (non-fiction) for the opportunity to read and review "College Girl, Missing" before its publication date.

Skillfully Blending Elements of Suspense and Unexpected Revelations.

College Girl, missing by Shawn Cohen is a compelling narrative that draws readers in from the very first page. Lauren Spierer vanished when she visited friends. She walked to a bar. She was right there... until she was gone.
Shawn Cohen takes readers on a painful, twisted journey to find out what really happened when Lauren Spierer vanished in 2011. Cohen unearths a truck load of new evidence in this heart wrenching mystery, which shatters impenetrable walls of silence. Cohen refuses to give up and doggedly pursues those who may have been involved in a sinister crime.
Cohen masterfully navigates the mystery surrounding the disappearance of a college student, skillfully blending elements of suspense and unexpected revelations. The novel explores themes of trust, relationships, and the relentless pursuit of truth. The author did get new students of Lauren to talk and there was much more current information given to him. 
Cohen sheds light on what really happened the night Lauren was never seen again. This book is the heartbreaking story that every parent dreads, and my heart goes out to Lauren's family and the pain they have endured all these years. This adding an emotional depth to the story. Thanks to NetGalley and to the publishers of this book for giving me a free advance copy of the book to preview and I am leaving this review voluntarily.

College Girl, Missing, recounts IU student Lauren Spierer's disappearance after a night of partying in Bloomington. The first third of the book offers a timeline of the days and hours prior to Lauren's disappearance, with a detailed reconstruction of her movements based on evidence and surveillance footage not available to the wider public. In the remainder of the book, the author recounts his work as a journalist covering the initial months of the police investigation, and his attempts to take up the search a decade later after the case went cold.

Reading this book was a strange experience, characterized by unease and skepticism. I moved to Bloomington five years ago, but the primary events leading up to Lauren's disappearance took place within a few blocks near campus that I'm only passingly familiar with. Many of the key locations had been renamed or gone out of business before I moved here, so I had a difficult time tracking Lauren's last known movements. Cohen's detailed recounting of Lauren's heavy drinking and drug consumption that night were also emotionally difficult to read, especially placed within context of her heart condition (which made substance use of any kind dangerous to her) and prior disciplinary measures indicating a pattern of problematic drinking. I admit that I struggle thinking about the nationwide attention given to the search for Lauren, as it seems most likely that the night of her disappearance ended with some sort of accidental death by overdose, and the young men in her company panicking and disposing of her body.

Although Cohen acknowledges the role "missing white woman syndrome" played in the media frenzy surrounding Lauren's disappearance, I didn't find that caveat particularly satisfying because the book does not offer much new information to illuminate what happened to Lauren. The largest accomplishment of Cohen's reporting is making successful contact with the young men who last saw Lauren that night, who had retained lawyers quickly after her disappearance, offering only limited public comments and minimal support to the investigation. Despite successfully making contact with them, Cohen's subsequent conversations with the men elicit only limited comments and lead to circumstantial evidence that is only vaguely suspicious. In the absence of a "smoking gun," this book vaguely gestures towards a common (if unsubstantiated) consensus that these men might have been involved in Lauren's disappearance, but it does not offer insights that move toward a more satisfying answer.

Lauren was a college girl who disappeared on June 3 2011 after and evening of partying and drinking. It goes back over the events that happened from her going to a friends apartment , to a bar to walking home with a friend to her apartment and then back out. And that is where she disappeared. It tells the story of the attempts whether it be press, a questionable police dept , private investigators to find out what happened. There are also a bunch of change stories and confusion based on the drugs and alchohol. . I found this to be a good deep dive into this case that I saw on the news and plenty of dateline type shows. How does a girl disappear. And what happened to her? Well written book that you wish would have had a happy ending or at least some kind of ending. But unfortunately it remains unsolved.

I received a free copy of, College Girl, Missing, by Shawn Cohen, from the publisher and Netgalley in exchange for an honest review. Lauren Spierer, a college student in Indiana goes missing, after partying on night. Lauren has never been found and nobody has been charged with anything. Yes Lauren made some bad decisions as young people do, but she didnt deserve to disappear. The first part of the book was decent, but then the author talked about himself, and I did not care for the second half of the book at all.

Wow. I couldn’t put this book down. I’ve wondered what happened to Lauren since she went missing, but didn’t know all of the details. Shawn did a wonderful job telling her story in a concise, yet detailed way. It left me feeling frustrated because I just wish one person could have helped her, but also hopeful this book may reignite interest in her case? I still hope Lauren walks into her parent’s home one day, and I also pray for closure. She was just a college kid like so many of us, but she didn’t come home.

True crime lovers, you’ll want to read this one. Put it on your TBR now. Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for the ARC in exchange for an honest review!

I receive this book as an eARC from netgalley in exchange for an honest review.

I understand what the author was going for with this book but it did not accomplish that. there is nothing new presented here than what you can find online about lauren. I feel for her family and I hope that one day her body is found and the mystery of what happened can be solved. but writing a book accusing who you think did it and trying to put pressure on them to share what happened is not how you are going to achieve that goal. I overall was not impressed and it left much to be desired from a true crime novel.

This is a story of a young college girl who, after a night out of partying goes missing.this book follows what happens after she goes missing from the notes and details of the journalist. This book is well written and kept me interested. It is a true story and sadly one that seems to be a common occurrence in college towns across the country. If you like true crime stories and Dateline Mysteries, you are sure to enjoy this book.

This book was heartbreaking and sad, yet seemed very well researched both in 2011 and even now in 2024. Being a year younger than Lauren and pretty interested into true crime i was so surprised that i had never heard of this case in 2011.

Thank you to NetGalley for the advanced copy.

This was an exceptionally fast read for me and like many, I still have so many questions... I was semi familiar with the story but didn't know the specific details or main players.

I was immediately hooked and I think the author did a great job by including lots of 1:1 and direct quotes from Lauren's family and acquaintances who were with her the night of her disappearance. He still found a way to weave his opinion in throughout but it didn't *feel* biased.

One pro was that everything was thoroughly researched and I liked how the author has been involved with the case since the very beginning.

One thing that was confusing throughout was the use of POI's last names. I found myself backtracking quite a bit to remind myself who was who and who was involved in which part of the night in question.

Overall I enjoyed it and would recommend to a true crime reader.

A special thank you to NetGalley and SourceBooks for allowing me to read an ARC of this book for my honest review!

This book was a 3/5 stars for me. I’m very torn on how to feel. This case has been special to me for years and feels personal as my sister went to the same college and it is my home state. I was so excited to be able to read this! In my opinion, there were several pros and cons to this book.

Pros: There was some new information per se in terms of exclusive interviews with POI. The family is close with the author and gave their blessing for this book to be written, which is a huge plus for me. I also appreciated that there were exact quotes throughout the book, which eliminates the possibility of “twisting of words” even if the author included his own opinion.

Cons: This needs some editing. It was getting very confusing reading about Rosenbaum and Rossman at the same time, and I am familiar with the case. The author continued to included his own comment or side remark following a quote that was just odd and came off snarky. Overall, this book should have been about Lauren’s story and her story only. All of the facts about the author himself and what he went through sounded like he was venting to a therapist instead of writing about a true crime case.

I’m glad that I got to read this, but not entirely sure that I would recommend it. I think the author had good intentions, but it didn’t come out quite right.

Thank you to the publisher and NetGalley for this ARC!

This book, I was hoping, would shed some much needed light on a case like this - a case that's a little neglected, really needs the attention and the time of day, and that remains unsolved. Unfortunately, I think the content of the book got a little sidetracked. I was really disappointed with the way that this book approached the content of the disappearance, and I was a little confused about the focus on the author himself.

The other thing that really got to me was the focus on the other parties who the author seemed to imply might know more than they were letting on. There was very little to suggest that they had much awareness of what happened in this case, and I was hoping that if the author was going to make comments on the value of leads in the case, it would be of substance, but unfortunately that was not the case. I just feel like this book could have been a lot more respectful, and a lot better for all those involved.

This was a very informative read on the disappearance of Lauren Spierer. I really learned many more valuable details that I hadn’t known before. It’s unfortunate that her family still doesn’t have the answers they desperately need. If only those young men would open up about what really happened that fateful night. I hope with the release of this book someone may step forward and reveal possible important information in the case. I definitely recommend this book for anyone that would like to learn more about the case.

Thanks to Sourcebooks and NetGalley for the ARC copy of this book!

This was a surprisingly quick read, and it left me feeling... unsatisfied. It was lacking substance, and part of that is simply that even after 10+ years there is still so much we just don't know.

No matter what happened, it's tragic. But I have a real problem with true crime writers/podcasters etc getting upset when people lawyer up. Like yeah, it wasn't super helpful, but think about it this way - if it was your brother, nephew, cousin, what would you tell him to do? You'd tell him to get a lawyer and never take a polygraph. That's what all of true crime and cases of wrongful convictions have taught us.

Also, we know that memory is fickle as hell. (Studies have shown you can make stuff up and make people "remember" it if you push hard enough.) Not to mention if trying to recall something from over a decade ago when you were intoxicated. I understand they don't have much to go on, and that they assume these guys are just lying, but not remembering is also a real possibility.

Again - whatever happened, it's tragic. Sadly it seems equally likely that the students' first hunch (her passing out in a dumpster that was subsequently emptied early morning) seems just as likely as the worst case scenario they've been pursuing based on lack of evidence.

Lauren Spierer went missing on June 3, 2011. She interacted with so many people that evening that it seems incomprehensible that someone doesn’t know more than they are letting on.

I wasn’t aware of this case at all, so all of this is brand new information for me. But if you know this case then most of it will be a recap with a few new things towards the end.

I like that the author, Shawn Cohen, has been on the story since the beginning. Also, I truly appreciate the relationship/friendship that he has developed with Lauren’s family. I hope that this book sparks renewed interest into Lauren’s case and that it can finally be solved for her family.

Thank you to NetGalley and Sourcebooks (nonfiction) for the advanced copy of this book!

I had no idea about this incident as i am not an us resident. so it was all new to me and i had hoped it would be intriguing enough to keep me hooked but reading this felt like reading different conspiracy theories with no concrete proof...like going around in a circle with no exit in sight. That being said, my heart goes out to the family who still hold out some hope of their daughter's return...all this goes on to show how safe girls and women are even in a developed country like America. Lauren deserved so much better...

There was nothing remarkable or stand out about this story as far as true crime goes. I didnt love it and I didn’t hate it. It was your running of the mill missing persons mystery.

The disappearance of Lauren Spierer from the University of Indiana is not a case I was previously familiar with, and this account, written by a journalist from Lauren’s hometown who reported on the disappearance as it happened, promised a detailed examination. It also specifically promised never before released information.

The first problem, and entirely out of the author’s control, is there are so many similar names! Rohn, Rossman and Rosenbaum were the young men with Lauren on the night she went missing; Diekhoff and Dietl are a police officer and private investigator, respectively. A ‘character’ list would have been helpful to keep names straight. Additionally, considering events took place in walking distance, I’d have appreciated a map and a timeline.

This book promised new information but I couldn’t figure out what might be new, almost 13 years later. So little is known and any conclusions are speculation. I listened to a few podcasts after reading, to try to answer this question and perhaps the new information is that Lauren’s parents were honest about her drug use and drinking – it seems this was hidden at the time and any mention was labelled an attack and victim-shaming.

Finally, this book is not well-written. I found myself rereading sentences to try to make sense of them, as well as puzzling over phrases like: ‘the bar Lauren frequented on the night of her disappearance,’ or ‘found missing’.

I shouldn’t need to state that my low rating has nothing to do with either the case nor the victim, and everything to do with how the author presents the information. It eventually became clear with my post-reading research that there was no significant new information or insight and, sadly, the author seemed to be attempting to cash in on a tragedy to improve his scandal hit image.
Thank you, NetGalley.

I'm an avid true crime reader so it's not surprising that I would request to read this book. This was a new story as I had not heard of this tragedy when it occurred. On that note it kept me reading. However, this book reads more like a podcast than a typical true crime story. The downside of that is it fails to deliver what the author attempts to achieve in writing it in the first place. If you are unfamiliar with the story, as I was, their is nothing here that you couldn't find with a Google search. Thanks to Netgalley, author and publishers for an advanced copy in exchange for my honest opinion.