I loved this book, and that caught me by surprise! I had no idea who to suspect, and I had no idea what direction things would go, until the very end. And that's exactly how I like my suspenseful reads to be! It was really strange to read the plot backwards, but it ended up working for me, and just adding to the mystery. Also of note is that I didn't like any of the characters, but that didn't stop me from enjoying the book as a whole. Highly recommended!

I was initially confused by the disjointed and back and forth narrative, but it all makes sense if you keep chugging. I felt invested with the romantic aspects in addition to the mystery. *Thanks to Netgalley, the author, and the publisher for an ARC in exchange for an honest review*

When Nic goes home to help her brother out with her father, her past quickly comes back to haunt her. Her best friend disappeared suddenly and now the same thing is happening with another girl.

While I really enjoyed the story and seeing how the two missing girls were interlinked, the story written backwards was hard to follow sometimes. I had a hard time keeping the story straight when it came to timing and I felt like the author was only doing it because the big reveal about who killed who was in one of the first days. It was still enjoyable though but the timing thing threw me off so I rounded down to 3 stars from 3.5.

this is an interesting thriller that is told in reverse order about a missing girl that helps tell what happened to the main character.

From my blog: Always With a Book:

For someone who reads a lot of books in the suspense genre, I'm always looking for that one book that will stand out, that one book that will shake things up. Not that books that don't aren't good, but it's always a breath of fresh air when a book stands out and this one certainly does! So what makes it do so - it's told in reverse, and it's done very well!

I will say, I was a bit apprehensive going into this book knowing how it was going to work - how would I keep track of what had happened and how would it all work - with the story being told in reverse? But I needn't have worried. It starts in the present to set everything up, and then starts moving back from Day 15 to Day 1, slowly unraveling what has happened, and you ever so slowly get sucked into what is going on. And ever so slowly the suspense builds. It really is quite clever.

Nic has returned to Cooley Ridge because her father is ill. She left ten years ago after her friend, Corinne, disappeared. Now, ten years another girl has gone missing from the town - is it possible the cases are connected? Nic is convinced the cases are connected and is desperate to find out what happened.

I loved the way this story is told. It draws you in and you really have to pay attention. Every character has secrets as you get to know them, so you aren't sure who is behind the abductions and you are constantly changing your mind as to who you think might be the guilty party. It is such an addicting read and really gets under your skin the deeper you get into the story.

I thoroughly enjoyed this book for it's originality and suspense. It really kept me on my toes all the way through and the ending for sure shocked me - I definitely did not see that coming at all!

Actual rating 3.5 stars

I received an eARC of this book from the publisher via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

“Missing girls had a way of working their way into someone's head. You couldn't help but see them in everyone - how temporary and fragile we might be. One moment here, and the next, nothing more than a photo staring from a storefront window.”

I had a sort of fractured relationship with this book! at times I hated it and at time I loved it!

From the blurb:

t’s been ten years since Nicolette Farrell left her rural hometown after her best friend, Corinne, disappeared from Cooley Ridge without a trace. Back again to tie up loose ends and care for her ailing father, Nic is soon plunged into a shocking drama that reawakens Corinne’s case and breaks open old wounds long since stitched.

The decade-old investigation focused on Nic, her brother Daniel, boyfriend Tyler, and Corinne’s boyfriend Jackson. Since then, only Nic has left Cooley Ridge. Daniel and his wife, Laura, are expecting a baby; Jackson works at the town bar; and Tyler is dating Annaleise Carter, Nic’s younger neighbor and the group’s alibi the night Corinne disappeared. Then, within days of Nic’s return, Annaleise goes missing.

Told backwards—Day 15 to Day 1—from the time Annaleise goes missing, Nic works to unravel the truth about her younger neighbor’s disappearance, revealing shocking truths about her friends, her family, and what really happened to Corinne that night ten years ago.

So first of all my main problem with this book was the writing style, this book starts at day 15 and moves backwards through time to day 1.....at times I found this very confusing....also the actual writing just didn't sit well with me for some reason, it just felt off. I didn't really like any of the characters in this book, they were all horrible people, the story itself was not bad although being told backwards for me made it very slow and I found I skimmed read a lot of it, most of the way through this book I felt like it was going to be a 2 star read however towards the end when things start to get revealed it really started to pick up, the ending itself was full of plot points but I have to say I did enjoy it and didn't really expect the outcome to be what it was, my suspicions of what had happened and who done it went back and forth the whole book which I did like.

Hmmm would I recommend this book? that's a hard one, there were aspects that I liked about this and I appreciate that the author was trying to do something different with this genre and although I did enjoy it in places it was painfully slow and the format didn't quite work for me....so no probably not.

I'm sad to say that I didn't enjoy this book as much as I had hoped I would. I am a massive thriller/suspense fan and I also do love books or movies that are told in reverse, but this book was difficult to follow. I found a large portion of the novel to be pretty lackluster. It just fell flat for me.

I didn't feel any sort of attachment to the characters. I will admit that the ending did certainly surprise me, but I found it difficult to want to continue the book when after several chapters I still wasn't interested. I do feel that her writing has potential and will look towards reading her future works, but this book just wasn't for me.

This book truly lives up to the reviews. Great read, could not put it down!

The premise of this book is what had me from the start. However, the chronology was too much for me to wrap my head around. From reading other reviews, there are a lot of others who "got" this book, but I wasn't one of them. This one was a DNF for me.

All the Missing Girls is a thriller through and through. Being written in reverse really added an unusual twist. I found myself unable to put the book down, needing to find how new clues fit into the big picture of the story. I highly recommend digging into All the Missing Girls, especially if you find yourself being able to predict endings in thrillers. The backwards storytelling made it very difficult to predict how things were going to come together, which added a new element of suspense for me.

What are the elements an author uses to create suspense? One dramatic devise is to slowly release "clues" throughout the narrative leading up to a "big reveal" at the optimal climatic moment. The ultimate success of any thriller is when the reader is kept confused and clueless right up to the proper "ah ha" moment with a surprised "I didn't see that one coming". Failure results when the plot is either too obvious (I figured the ending out in the first couple of chapters of the book) or too erroneous (What the ???? This doesn't make sense.) In the mix is the author's artistry in creating the perfect "gimmick" as a means of imparting the necessary details.

In All the Missing Girls, the author, Megan Miranda, uses reverse chronology. Along with both an introduction and epilogue, the story counts backwards from day fifteen to day one of events with each chapter adding a bit of background about the details surrounding the disappearance of two girls, ten years apart. The story is told from Nicolette Farrell's point of view as she revisits her hometown of Cooley Ridge in the Smokey Mountains of North Carolina to help her brother Daniel in the care of their aging father who is at a facility. With his apparent encroaching demensia, it is time to repair and sell their no-longer-needed family home. Yet the process brings back old memories of the disappearance of her best friend Corinne after their celebration at the local fair following their high school graduation. The resulting accusations and recriminations from the local community led to Nic's flight from home and relocation to Pennsylvania. Yet her brother Daniel and pregnant wife Laura, along with her Dad, remained a link for her to touch base from time to time allowing an occasional reconnection with her high school sweetheart Tyler. Now, ten years later, she's engaged to Everett, a high end Philadelphia lawyer, and Tyler is dating Annaleise Carter. It isn't long though before Nic's world turns upside down when Annaleise turns up missing, rekindling all the horrors associated with the loss of Corrine. As the tale "progresses", Nic reveals specifics about both mysteries through her analysis of past events as she revisits the sites containing the ghosts of her past.

There were various problems inherent in this type of format. It was harder to keep track of events necessitating repetitions and calling for a quick read to keep the various particulars front and center. The opportunity for in depth character development was also hindered, since too much information would take away from the end result, especially since Miranda wanted to maintain a sense of mystery as we tried to figure out the guilty party. There were also a lot of dead ends left dangling as Nic's thoughts rotated from present to far past to recent past.

For me the results were muddled. None of the characters were particularly likable, especially the two victims, and even the townspeople were petty and judgmental. Outsider Everett was the only one who had my sympathy as he tried to do the right thing and ended up getting kicked where it hurts. The conclusion, while acceptable, didn't blow me away, but overall, a worthwhile read.

Three and a half stars and a thank you to Netgalley and Simon & Schuster for providing this ARC in exchange for an honest review.

This review is only for the audiobook. Told in reverse just does not work for me in audio. I have no idea at any given time where we are in the timeline. If I'm doing something else while listening (walking the dog, cross stitching - nothing particularly mentally consuming, but minor distractions) and miss the chapter break where it says what day we're on, I'm completely lost as to the chain of events. This could be a great book in print, but unfortunately it shouldn't be done in audio. Couldn't follow well enough to make any connection with characters beyond general frustration, nor could I follow the mystery because I didn't know where we were in the timeline.
FTC disclosure - I received an eARC from the publisher through NetGalley for review consideration. I checked out the audiobook from my library through Overdrive.

It’s been ten years since Nicolette Farrell left her rural hometown after her best friend, Corinne, disappeared from Cooley Ridge without a trace. She comes back to tie up loose ends and care for her ailing father, Nic is soon plunged into a shocking drama that reawakens Corinne’s case and breaks open old wounds long since stitched.

The decade-old investigation is focused on Nic, her brother Daniel, boyfriend Tyler, and Corinne’s boyfriend Jackson. Since then, only Nic has left Cooley Ridge. Daniel (Nic's brother) and his wife, Laura are expecting a baby; Jackson now works at the town bar; and Tyler is dating Annaleise Carter, Nic’s current neighbor in Cooley Ridge and she is the group’s only alibi the night Corinne disappeared. Then out of the blue within days of Nic’s return, Annaleise goes missing.

This story is told backwards, Day 15 to Day 1—from the time Annaleise goes missing, Nic tries to unravel the truth about her neighbor’s disappearance, revealing shocking truths about her friends, her family, and finally learns what really happened to Corinne that night ten years ago.

Though I enjoyed the book, this was too slow for me and I had to put it down and read something else more exciting!
it also go pretty confusing sometimes!

I got lost a few times in the timeline but it was still a compelling read. Teenagers. Star crossed lovers. South Carolina and New York. Juxtaposition of city and country. Guilt, ambition, drive, self discovery. Some enjoy time hops, and it works to some degree with this plot.

Thank you to NetGalley and Simon & Schuster for this free readers edition. In exchange I am providing an honest review.

Whoa. A story written backwards. It seems like that shouldn't be a new idea or an unusual idea but it is. And until the book was 2/3 read I didn't think the idea of writing the story backwards was working until all of a sudden it was.
Nic gets a call to come home late one night - perhaps it was actually early one morning. She reluctantly makes plans to go back home and help her brother take care of their Dad and the house. She's been back home a few times since she graduated but only for the quickest of visits. Too many memories linger, ones she's been trying to forget. But now she's back in her hometown for two months. And as much as she wants to shut the past out, the past wants to become present. A decade ago her best friend disappeared one night, never to be found. On her second night home in the present another girl disappears and nobody can find her. Whispers and rumors circulate the town and Nic feels she is at the center of all those whisperings. But you can't know what you don't know. Or can you?
Did Megan Miranda write the story backwards or did she write it forwards and then reorder the chapters to be backwards? Either way it was an engaging thriller. It was really interesting to read a story backwards because the chapters you are reading keep you kind of in the dark about certain behaviors, or things said - it's like it is all out of context, except not really. And then when you get to the chapters where all the threads start getting tied together everything falls into place - almost suddenly. Well done Megan Miranda, well done.

Excellent book. It was a real page turner. Kept me reading into the night.

This had such a unique way of telling the story--in reverse. However, I just couldn't get into it.

After being gone for years, Nicolette is going back to her hometown to help her brother deal with the growing responsibilities of caring for an aging father, a home in need of serious repairs and the daunting debts that are piling up. She needs to help him shoulder the burdens but going back to her hometown also means confronting the past.

When Nic left Cooley Ridge the disappearance of her best friend was still very much on everyone’s minds. There were suspects, Nic, her brother and high school boyfriend included, but despite the searches and interrogations Corrine was never found.

Once Nic arrives home and it’s as if she’s never left and the recent disappearance of a new girl will once again cast everyone in doubt and it’s as if the past is playing out all over again. Will Nic be able to deal with the suspicions and can she still trust those she has always loved?

Be prepared to pay attention in this book. The story is told chronologically backwards from Day 15 to 1 and then sometimes returning back to the present, this was clever but for someone like me who reads several books at once and/or puts aside books for a few days to read others, it wasn’t a smooth read. I liked the story and found myself very interested in finding out what happened to the girls but the style in which it was told wasn’t for me.

I'm surprised by how much I really enjoyed this book! I had expected it to be pretty good based on the reviews, but it was REALLY good. It's one of those books that I was upset when life got in the way and I wasn't able to keep reading. I honestly did not want to put it down. It's style is very interesting because it is written in a backwards timeline. She starts with the end and recaps the days in reverse order. I was hesitant and thought that it might be poorly done. However, it worked and was amazing! It might be easy for some to figure out what the "end" would be, and I started out trying to do just that - figure it out. But as I kept reading, I didn't care anymore. I just wanted to keep reading. The characters were interesting and I really liked them all. They had depth and I began to care for them all and their stories. Really good book. Quick read, but super enjoyable. It's the perfect "beach" read.

I read this as a possibility for my high school library. I don't think that teens will care about a 30 year old who has family issues. But--if they read Gone Girl and other thrillers like that, this one will satisfy.