🧩 ARC Review 🧩

Star Rating: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
Spice Rating: 🌶️🌶️

I don’t typically gravitate toward suspense novels because of my anxiety, but Catherine Cowles’ writing is so captivating that I couldn’t resist.

The story centers around Ridley, a true crime podcaster who visits Shady Cove, convinced a serial killer may have claimed his first victim there. Enter Colt, the local sheriff, who isn’t thrilled about Ridley digging into the past and reopening painful memories for the people of his town. However, Ridley is determined to uncover the truth, and as she delves deeper into the case, Colt finds himself drawn into her investigation in unexpected ways.

The slow-burn hate-to-love chemistry between Ridley and Colt was absolutely magnetic! The suspense had me hooked from start to finish. The twist with the villain completely blindsided me. 😅

And the side characters? I adored them! They were some of my favorites. Overall, If you’re a fan of true crime, podcasts, and romantic suspense, this book is a must-read. Catherine seamlessly blends all these elements into one of my new favorite romance novels she’s written.

Thank you to @catherinecowlesauthor & @netgalley for my eARC of All the Missing Pieces 💜

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murder mystery is my jam, like i will legit fall asleep watching shows like that on tv, so i inmediatly applied for the arc and i got it—  thank godness i didn't whitdraw the request.

if you've ever read one of her books, then you know the fmc will spend her book getting threats, and finally she will probably have a major preblem as soon as you hit the 90% mark—  which we did, and i enjoyed like always. the characters are really well written, and i didn't feel like i was missing something whilst reading it.

however, even though i know catherine cowles' style, i'd hoped this one were a bit different. i loved the dinamic between the mc's, although the switch from 'enemies' to lovers felt a bit too insta for me. the main problem i had with the plot is that i found myself getting distracted from the mysterious aspect of the book with all the over the top cheesy dialogue i had to read.

if you don't mind all that, this is a book for you. i mean, the romance is there, the drama is there, and specially, the mystery is there, so i encourage everyone to grab this one and enjoy it!

also, credit where credit is due, the cover of this book is stunning, and one of the first thing which drew me to adding in to my tbr.

Thank you NG, Catherine Cowles and the publisher, Sourcebooks Casablanca, for giving me the opportunity of reviewing this book.

Catherine Cowle is a master at weaving a romantic suspense.

All the missing pieces follows Ridley, a true crime podcaster chasing the demons from her twin sister’s unsolved case. During her investigation she meets Colt, a small town sheriff who is chasing his own demons. Together they find that there may be a link between them that neither could predict.


While I enjoyed the premise and plot of this novel, I just didn’t feel that spark between the characters. I was itching for something deeper. I really enjoyed the Sparrow Falls Easter eggs that were laid in here.

This is one of my favourite Catherine books to date. Ridley and Colter had so much tension and chemistry. I loved the podcast element of the story and the overall mystery plot line. I was enthralled the entire time.

Catherine Cowles is one of my tried & true authors and are you even kidding me with this book? I loved the unique twist as the FMC & MMC being the “investigators” initially as opposed to one of them starting as one of the victims which is typical of CC’s books.

This book was everything. No notes. All the vibes. 10/10 recommend.

Look if Catherine Cowles writes it I will read it. This one felt like the first time we really got a female heroine who was like actually I know what I'm getting into here and I will kick ass. Ridley is so strong and so determined. I loved her! and bless Colt's poor traumatized heart he just wants everyone to be okay and here comes the beautiful girl who just won't stop kicking the hornet's nest. This book is small town romantic suspense with twisty turns. It's got a great cast of small-town characters and enough mystery and romance to keep you up all night turning the page. I'm not a true crime girl, but I would tune in weekly for Ridley's podcast!

Let me preface by saying that Catherine Cowles is one of my favorite authors. This one, however, was not my favorite of her books. I'm struggling to really nail down what didn't quite work for me with "All the Missing Pieces", but I think it ultimately boils down to the fact that I was craving more? Everything felt sort of half-baked, like there wasn't a super clear direction for things, so it all felt a little incomplete. I think both Ridley & Colt's backstories were well done, but almost repetitive? Which then left me wanting more development plot-wise, instead of relying on the trauma. I don't know if I'm fully articulating this well, but I just wanted more. I will still read Catherine's books, and probably the rest of this series, this just was a bit of a miss for me.

Wow. Wow. Wow. I truly don’t know how I come on here and tell you this is my new Catherine Cowles book every time I finish one, but here we are. This is our classic CC but elevated in a way that I know this book will instantly blow up. The characters are people you instantly want to be best friends with. Strong, resilient FMC who has been dealt the worst hand in life but has truly never given up the meaning of living. And a closed off small town sheriff trying to keep everyone he loves safe but is only just existing. Two people who meet and learn from each other what it’s like to breathe again. While the stakes are higher this time with Ridley’s true crime broadcast has brought her to small town Shady Cove where a serial killer she suspects is here. With a race against the clock we watch Colt and Ridley try to track him down, while also battling how they feel for each other. And the webs that have weaved them together.

The writing was absolutely beautiful and captivating from the prologue to the hard earned epilogue. This book had the unique ability to move you and change your viewpoint and outlook on life afterwards.

My new favorite book of Catherine’s. Her writing in this book just hit different, I think it was some of her best yet. The mystery of it all had me guessing until the last few chapters. Colt & Ridley’s chemistry was some of the steamiest/best scenes I’ve read of CC’s. I didn’t want to put this one down!

Omg Catherine does it again!!

First, thank you so much for the arc!!

I have an amazing time reading Colt and Ridley’s story!!

What to expect:
✔️Small town romance
✔️grumpy/sunshine
✔️spice
✔️podcaster/sheriff
✔️suspense
✔️banter

Such a perfect mix of romance and twisted surprises. Amazing character build up with banter that had me giggling and smiling. Highly recommend adding this one to your 2025 TBR!

(4.5/5 stars) Catherine Cowles officially just got a new fan because this small town romance between a true crime podcaster and a town sheriff was such an addictive read!

All The Missing Pieces is my first book that I've read by Catherine Cowles, and I ate it up. This book follows Ridley, the host for a true crime podcast, who became a podcaster after the disappearance of her twin sister. Channeling the devastating loss into something positive, Ridley travels across the country in her van covering cold cases. Ridley ends up in Shady Cove where she meets Colt, the town sheriff, who doesn't like her poking around into a cold case that's personal to him.

What to expect:
🌸 Small town romance
⛰️ 1st person, dual POV
🚐 True crime podcaster x town sheriff
🌸 Mystery & romantic suspense
⛰️ Grumpy x sunshine
🚐 Standalone

I love the balance between romance, suspense, and mystery within this book. I tried my best to guess the ending and couldn't, so I love that this book wasn't predictable.

I'll definitely be reading more of Catherine's work in the future!

A sincere thank you to NetGalley and Sourcebooks Casablanca for the eARC ahead of its January 7, 2025 release date.

All the Missing Piecces
Catherine Cowles
Pub: 1/7/25
5☆

I have been counting down the days since the moment Cowles uttered the words “three-legged cat”.

All joking aside, this has been one of my most anticipated reads and Cowles did not disappoint! Ridley a.k.a. Taser of douchebags and tamer of or ornery brothers and Colter “lawman” Brooks’ story exceeded all of my expectations. The mystery, the humor, the romance, the cat! OMG THE CAT! Tater might just be my new favorite pet character.

I loved every single bingy moment of this book. Cowles brings out ALL the feels in this one. She has you literally crying one moment and laughing the next. And in usual CC fashion the true villain was not at all who I thought it was going to be.

What I loved;
💜 Romantic Suspense
💜 Grumpy x Sunshine
💜 Enemies To Lovers
💜 True crime Podcast
💜 Chaos/Lawman
💜 Princess Tater - Tooth Hugs
💜 Meeting New Friends & Seeing Old Friends

“Colt, you helped me find all the missing pieces. Even the ones I didn’t realize I needed.”

Thank you so much to Catherine Cowles, Sourcebooks Casablanca, and NetGalley for the gifted copies!

As someone who loves a good true crime podcast, I absolutely loved reading a book that featured a true crime podcaster as a MC. And while I wasn't accurate with the villain, the villain was on my suspect list this time at least.

Ridley and Colt both have their own traumas and pasts they are trying to work through. But when Ridley shows up wanting to work on a case that involves Colt's sister he isn't so keen on her being in town. But as Ridley starts digging and finding links to his sister's case and her sister's disappearance, things start happening.

This is definitely a dislike/hate to lovers situation and I loved that Ridley stood her crowd. And Ridley has a cat name Tater that dare I say was a great star of this book and probably my favorite pet character of any book ever? Tater served with some laughs and reminded me so much of a cat I once had. And I really enjoyed the side character so much!

📚 All the Missing Pieces
✍ Catherine Cowles
📖 Romantic Suspense
⭐4/5
🌶️ 🌶️

🙏 Thank you to Sourcebooks Casablanca, NetGalley and the author for an advanced copy of All the Missing Pieces. All opinions are my own.
◾
🎯 What I loved: Though Catherine Cowles uses a pretty similar format in all of her books, they all have a great build to the whodunnit where there are multiple potential perpetrators and All the Missing Pieces really kept me guessing the killer until the last possible second. There was a nice enemies to lovers plot with some great banter on top of the mystery so this was really a best of both worlds book. I enjoyed the podcast backdrop and that the specific crime that Ridley was investigating wasn't actually her own and that while the survivor was central to the story, she wasn't necessarily the protagonist which felt a little different than many of Cowles' other books. The way this all came together was satisfying and I liked Shady Cove. Although this is listed as a standalone, I can easily see Cowles turning this into a series and have my favorite characters for the other books already picked out!

🙅‍♀️ What I didn't: I've said it before and I'll say it again: I find the use of nicknames awkward and the ones in this book (Law Man and Chaos) were bizarre and overused. Other than that, this kept my heart racing and had me rooting for the main characters to connect and solve their cases and I'd definitely recommend it.
◾
Read if you love:
*stories centered around investigative podcasts
*enemies to lovers
*small town romance/thriller
*law enforcement MMC
*interconnected crimes slowly unraveling
◾
See also: Ashes of You, Indigo Ridge, Stinger

OMG!! This book was all and more of what I have come to expect from Catherine Cowles books.

I absolutely love her writing and her romantic suspense stories. She draws you in with engaging characters and a storyline that just keeps you turning the pages!!

This book was no different!! Definitely worth the read and one of my favorites by this author!!

If you love a story that has the best plot and just the right amount of spice then this is one you NEED to add to your TBR when it comes out in January!!

Catherine never misses but this one!!! Instantly became one of my absolute favorites by her.

I loved following Ridley along as she tried to figure out what happened to her sister. The banter between her and Colt was top tier. I loved the push and pull. Their chemistry felt so natural within the story, and I loved them together sooo much.

Every CC book I’m convinced I’ll FINALLY guess whodunnit but alas….. I was wayyyy way off again lol. The twist in this one may be my favorite yet! I love romantic suspense but this one had the extra murder mystery aspect that was a little different and so.. fun. All the stars ⭐️

Thank you to NetGalley for providing this digital ARC.

5⭐️

This was fabulous, the author was able to present some very challenging and emotional topics in a respectful way. As a true crime podcast listener and sucker for a grumpy sunshine romance trope this book truly hit everything for me.

I absolutely LOVED this book! There were so many wonderful things. The mystery and suspense were intriguing, interesting and held my attention from start to finish. The characters were very well developed. They could have jumped off the page. The romance between Ridley and Colter was organic and developed realistically. They had pet names for each other and normally that annoys me, but it just fit these characters. The character motivations, back stories and arcs fit perfectly for the story. The emotion was deep. I could feel what both the heroine and hero were feeling through the authors words. This was my first book by this author and I can not wait to go back and read her backlist. I enjoyed this book so much that I read it and then listened to it in audio. This is a fantastic romantic suspense and I highly recommend it! It was one of my favorite books of 2024. Huge thanks to Netgalley and Sourcebooks media for allowing me to read and review this book.

CATHERINE DOES IT AGAIN OMG!! Ahhh, I absolutely loved this book so so much! I was literally hooked from the very first page, and she had me hanging on the edge of my seat the entire time! I didn’t want to put this one down, and I love Ridley & Colt so much! And Tater & Bowser! This was amazing & I could not get enough.

✨✨✨ ALC Review ✨✨✨

Tropes:
Small town romantic suspense
Town sheriff / true crime podcaster
Grumpy sunshine
Touch her and 💀
Enemies to 🖤

5⭐️
3🌶️

🎧 Narrators:
Andi Arndt and Sebastian York