I'm a big fan of Owen Laukkanen's novels, and have enjoyed every one so far.
In THE FORGOTTEN GIRLS, the sixth novel in his Stevens & Windermere crime series, his protagonists investigate a string of murders that have been committed along the High Line (a train route through the Rockies).
Great characters, a solid plot, and good pacing. This is another great addition to the series. If you're looking for a new series, give the Stevens & Windermere a try, and also check out Laukkanen's latest novels, too.
Recommended.

This book really hit the ground running and was interesting from the very beginning. There were certain parts that didn't make a lot of sense to me, but overall, it was a solid thriller.

I decided not to read and review this book, unfortunately. I lost interest in the title and description once I came around to reading it.

Thank you for the opportunity to read and review. Unfortunately I am unable to give you a proper review. I apologize for the inconvenience. I am just no longer interested to read this book. I appreciate the approval.

Though I liked the book, I made the decision at the time I finished not to review it on my site. Maybe in the future I will include it in a book list post or another article.

A young girl, a runaway, is found dead on the High Line train tracks in the Rockies. When two FBI-BCA come across the case, they realize something more sinister is afoot. Page-turning suspense. Highly recommend.

First of all, I really like how the story takes off almost immediately. The suspense is captivating and it had me hooked the entire time. I'm glad I had the time because I did not want to put t his one down, and read through it in a few nights. The story was thrilling and unique in its own little ways. I thought I was almost done, and was happily surprised that I had so much left over. Very exciting stuff here, and I would def recommend it.

Agents Kirk Stevens and Carla Windermere are part of a joint force between the Minnesota Bureau of Criminal Activity and FBI investigating violent crimes. In this entry the two head out to the northern Rocky Mountains when the body of a woman is discovered. The girl is a train hopper on the high line and as they start narrowing details a lucky break leads them to believe she was killed in another state which opens the door to the possibility of more victims.

Why no one reported or missed these women is the sad realization that they were runaways or prostitutes but Stevens and Windermere plan to find justice and put a stop to the killer known as The Rider.

The investigators aren’t the only ones looking for The Rider though. Ash, one of the runaways, did have a friend who had cautioned her and now this friend is also seeking justice for Ash.

Danger abounds with a killer on the loose and ice cold weather conditions threatening safety. Although I have not read any other books in this series I thought this one read well as a standalone. I enjoyed that the investigators worked well together and this had a good mix of suspense and setting details to make me want to continue with the series.

3.5 Stars

The Forgotten Girls is book six in a series by Owen Laukkanen that features agents Kirk Stevens and Carla Windermere.

A string of murders on the High Line. All young women. All of them constantly moving from place to place never setting down roots. Someone thought that no one would notice or even care that these women were dead.

But someone has noticed.

Ash knew she was taking a chance. Her friends told her not to do it. Especially not alone. Bad things could happen.

"You don't ever surf trains on the High Line"

But for Ash, time was of the essence. It had to be a quick trip so that left her no choice but the hotshot, the High Line. Only now she realizes just how bad of an idea it was. She's stuck in the frigid cold and the train has stopped. Dead tired and cold, Ash sees a light not far away, under a bridge. A fire. Fire means warmth, plus maybe food or something warm to drink. But it's also dangerous. She is alone and the fire means there's probably other riders around. But Ash is tough and in all the years she has been riding she's never had a problem. She isn't worried.

Maybe she should be...

Kirk Stevens and Carla Windermere of the joint FBI-BCA violent crime force have been working together for four years. They met by chance and since teaming up have worked cases including bank robberies, human trafficking, online predators and more.

Now their new case, a rash of killings on the High Line. The killer is picking women who are considered easily "forgotten" due to their way of living. These women often use the railway to get around. Someone is using this as well as the climate to their advantage. The harsh winter and the cold means the women aren't found right away. It also means evidence can be very hard to find. So someone definitely has a jump on Windermere and Stevens, but they won't let this stop them.

The book started off really strong. A very interesting and original plot. The author did a great job of describing the harsh, unforgiving climate. Told from multiple points of view. I enjoyed most of the viewpoints (the killers was especially interesting). I do wish I would have heard more from Stevens and Windermere as I had a hard time connecting with their characters. The story was suspenseful and thrilling and I was gripped and really wanted to see how it all played out.

When I first requested this book, I didn't realize it was part of a series but the awesome cover really grabbed me. I was a bit worried that I hadn't read any of the previous books in the series. Though it works fine as a stand-alone as the detectives are working a new case, maybe having read previous books would have helped me connect with the characters more. It's hard to know for sure.

All that said, I did enjoy this book, just not as much as I had anticipated. However, I've heard many good things about other books in this series, and it sounds like Stevens and Windermere have some very interesting cases. I can definitely see myself reading more from Owen Laukkanen.

Thank you to NetGalley, Owen Laukkanen, and G.P. Putnam's Sons for an advanced copy of this novel in exchange for my honest review.

Deep in the northern mountains of the United States, where winter is harsh and people are scarce, girls have been going missing for years. Many of them are Native American, some are prostitutes, some are runaways, some are small town barmaids, all are the kind of girls that could easily disappear without anyone noticing. Until now.

When FBI agents Windermere and Stevens get wind of the case, all they have is a dead girl, an unidentified runaway rail rider, and a gut feeling that there is something more to this than the one girl. Quickly, they find themselves chasing a serial killer, a failed Army Ranger who hates women, a loner who is an expert survivalist. And he’s about to give them a run for their money.

The premise of this book was enticing, but the cover was what really sold the deal for me. And who loves a good serial killer story? This girl does. Alas, the cover was the best part of the book.

The story is interesting, and it started off really well. Immediately, I was into it, drawn to the first girl who dies, wanting to know more about this serial killer who rides the rails trolling for victims. However, it wasn’t suspenseful enough for my taste, not gritty enough. The angst of the killer, the frustration of the agents, the fear of the victims, these are feelings that should have been palpable, but were not. After the first few chapters, it was easy enough to set aside at bedtime, and that isn’t what I expect from this kind of book.

The second thing is, it wasn’t really detailed or technical enough. Not enough FBI procedure, no focus on the serial killer’s motives, no profiler or psychologist involved. Ultimately, it was a soft approach, and while I’m sure there are plenty of readers who like that, I’m not one of them. Scare me. Thrill me. Disgust me. Make my heart race. Make me wonder what the hell is going on. Please.

For me, it was meh. Mo Hayder and Lincoln Child are more my speed.

Many girls and women died and forgotten many of the law enforcement barely looking into things only what was on the surface not knowing all these seemingly unconnected girls were taken down by a serial killer. Kirk Stevens and Carla Windermere are on the case and managed to find these connections and are working on the case before he strikes again. Meanwhile one of the girls who were taken down a friend of her seeks revenge to find her friends killer.

I really loved this book. It was suspenseful full of twists and turns with multiple point of views. Not only do you get the voice of the main detectives and the killers but also the victims voice before they become the killers prey and the friend who would pretty much put her life at stake to avenge her friend. Normally I wouldn't like there being so much perspective but in this case it really added so much depth for this book. It really was like jumping into this book when you get the voices of different characters around getting to know their difference perspective and the author did such an amazing job giving each characters their own voice. If your lookin for a romance then doing bother but if you are looking for a great mystery then your going to want to pick up this book. I normally am all for the romance but there was just so much going on with this book it didn't even need it. I loved the overall story it was pretty great I loved it. Now I'm curious to see the previous books and see what happens before this book.

When I requested this book from NetGalley to review, I didn't realize that it is the 6th in a series featuring Minnesota Bureau of Criminal Activities agent Kirk Stevens and FBI agent Carla Windermere. As a result, it took me awhile to understand these two characters and why they would be paired up. Nevertheless, the book enthralled me with its mile a minute action and short chapters that made the pages seemingly turn themselves.

Young women have been turning up dead for years along the northwestern United States, but no one ever connected the deaths, or even realized that they were murders until Stevens and Windemere get involved. They've noticed a pattern among the dead, always women from the fringes of society who wouldn't be missed, or whose death could be explained away as getting lost in the snow covered mountains. Train hoppers have known for years that there was a killer working the Northern Line, but no one ever believed them. Windermere and Stevens do, and realize that there is a very skilled serial killer out there - one who is comfortable in the wild and seemingly comes and goes at will. When one of the killer's victims survives, they get the information they need to really go after him.

This book is extremely suspenseful. It is told from multiple points of view; the agents, the victim who survived, a friend of another victim who is determined to get the killer herself, and the killer. Fast-paced, this book had me on the edge of my seat. Quite a good read!

Many thanks to NetGalley, the author, and G.P. Putnam's Sons for allowing me to read an e-ARC of this fine book.

"You don’t ever surf trains on the High Line."


The Forgotten Girls is a police/FBI suspense thriller.

A serial killer has been killing women for years. He uses the High Line train to pick his victims. His usual victims are women who nobody cares much for. They are either Native American Indians, prostitutes or runaways. He also takes advantage of the cold weather to hide his killings.

The novel starts with a runaway girl named Ash becoming one of his victims. Ash has made many friends with the people who use the trains as their transportation. Her friend Mila, who is another runaway, is devastated when she learns Ash has died. She can't believe it's an accident and she starts searching for clues in Ash's death. She soon learns there are whispers of a bogeyman who has been killing women for years. Mila knows she might die if she continues her search but she wants justice for her friend.

Two detectives are in charge of Ash's case. Agent Kirk Stevens and Agent Carla Windermere are part of the joint FBI/BCA violent crime force. They soon learn their current case might be related to other women found dead or going missing in the same area. Once they are sure they have a serial killer on their hands, the race to find him and save Mila begins.

I like the suspense The Forgotten Girls carried and there were a couple of scenes that had my heart beating fast. However, I thought the two detective characters to be too impersonal. I learned pretty much nothing about them. I'm not sure if there is more insight about them in the prior books but I wish I could have cared more for them in this one.

On the other hand, Mila's character had more depth. I really wanted her to find the killer but I was also thinking how dumb she was by thinking she could survive him. I was wishing her good luck because it was the only way to save herself from him.

The novel also provided us with the killer's POV. Those chapters were disturbing. He hated women and he enjoyed hurting them.

Overall, I thought the writing was good. I do want to read the next one in this series.

3/5 Fangs

A complimentary copy was provided by G.P. Putnam's Sons via Netgalley in exchange for an honest review.

Owen Laukkanen has developed a certain style with the Stevens and Windermere books. Sort of a cat and mouse game between an ordinary but intelligent criminal and one or more sets of police agencies or rival criminals. The Forgotten Girls is a bit of a departure from that formula, but Laukkanen proves he can write a straight up mystery thriller just as well as anyone.

Kirk Stevens and Carla Windermere are a bit of an odd pairing, representing the Minnesota BCA and the FBI, but they complement each other well. They also make for an interesting pair to follow. The Forgotten Girls starts when a murdered girl falls in their laps courtesy of a picture uploaded from a stolen phone. Stevens and Windermere quickly discover that they are on the trail of a serial killer that no one knew existed because the murdered girls are people no one really missed and for whom no one tried very hard to find out what happened to them. Many of them were girls who stole rides on trains, making the murders even more difficult to connect.

Along with Stevens and Windermere, the killer is being hunted by a young woman named Mila, whose friend Ash was one of the victims. The two agents are also trying to find her hoping she can bring them one step closer to catching their man. Stevens and Windermere are frustrated both because they are perpetually one step behind the killer and by weather which keeps them snowed in and out of communication with the outside world. Gradually the noose tightens around their quarry, but how many more victims will he claim before they get him and will Mila be one of them?

Stevens and Windermere are an interesting pair. Stevens is more of a puzzle solver interested in criminal’s motivation and guessing what the next step will be. Windermere, while clever herself, is more comfortable with action. Gone is the awkward sexual tension between them from the first few books which was really more uncomfortable than interesting. In its place is a fierce loyalty to one another that both helps them function as a team and raises the stakes when one or both of them are in danger.

The Forgotten Girls is another solid entry in the Stevens and Windermere series. The chase builds throughout the novel and the climactic standoff is tense and exciting. Laukkanen cleverly uses the winter elements to convey both danger and frustration. They hamper the police investigation as well as offer danger to the victims and opportunity for the killer. Recommended read.

I was fortunate to receive an advance copy of this book.

I didn't realize this was a series and I was a bit confused so I didn't finish. Thank you though!

The boogeyman is real! Forget all the folklore and nightmares you may have heard or dreamt. No, this boogeyman doesn’t lurk under your bed nor is he hidden inside your blackened closet. He’s known as The Rider. He lives to ride the High Line through the northern Rocky Mountains. He preys on women who are seeking the thrill of the train or looking to escape their current lives and perhaps begin anew.

If you think you can survive the High Line, you had better think again. The Rider doesn’t show any mercy. You couldn’t dream of a boogeyman more sinister than he? He not only lives to take your life, but he takes your soul. The thrill of the kill makes his heart pump harder and gives him the courage to kill again.

Unfortunately, several women had gone missing. But this was mere gossip or some old wives’ tale told to many young women to discourage them from taking off and getting on the High Line. Sure, many of these runaways had heard about women going missing, but of course, that was always someone else’s problem. That would never happen to them, right? Hmm, they couldn’t have been more wrong. On one very cold winter night up in the mountains, Ashley was one such young woman. She had heard about women getting themselves killed but she never dreamt it would happen to her.

That is, until some men working the railroad discovered her lifeless frozen body. Ashley was just one in many who had gone missing. No one seemed to care, or for that matter, it had gone unnoticed. But, as luck would have it, if you can call it that, Ashley had someone in the world who missed her friend. Mila was determined to find out what happened to her bestie. She knew when she hadn’t heard from her in a while, something awful had happened to her, and when she got word of Ashley’s death, it not only saddened her, it enraged her. She was damn determined to bring Ashley’s boogeyman to justice. But, how was she going to do this?

The FBI needed to find Mila. They knew she was the key to solving Ashley’s murder, but Mila didn’t want any parts of the legal system. She had been there and done that. There wasn’t any way she going to get caught by the Feds, of all people. Mila was on the run and on a mission. Windermere and Stevens, agents for the FBI thought the boogeyman rumors were just that, too—rumors, until strange activity showed up on a suspect’s cell phone that gave them pause. As they began to put the pieces of the puzzle together, the full picture wasn’t one you’d want to hang up to show the world. The Rider had been busy, and anything or anyone that got in his way, ended up dead.

As you read the journey of Agents Windermere and Stevens, you will be sitting on the edge of your damn seat quickly turning and/or tapping the pages to find out what is going to happen next? I sat there eagerly rooting for them to hurry up and find this man. It just seemed like the closer they got to The Rider, the further away he got. He continually slipped through the cracks and it made me angry. I couldn’t wait until they got their man.

Laukkanen is such an amazing author. I read another good book of his entitled, The Professionals. That book kept me on the edge of my seat as well. Laukkanen knows how to bring the suspense and keep your heart thumping for pages to come. What an exhilarating and exhausting read. I felt like I was in those mountains breathing that cold air and trying to outrun law enforcement. And then Laukkanen put you in the victim’s head space, and I quickly wanted to run away from the pages, but couldn’t manage to tear my eyes away long enough because I was intrigued to find out what was going to happen next. OMG, this was one hell of a nightmarish read!

Mello & June gives The Forgotten Girls five stars. If you love suspense and to be scared out of your wits, you’ve got to read The Forgotten Girls. It goes on sale, Tuesday, March 14, 2017 wherever books are sold. This is the one to read. My goodness, I had to remind myself to breathe. I hadn’t realized I was holding my breath scared for those poor women out there taking illegal train rides. Needless to say, the ending was Ah-ma-zing! This is a good read and make sure you pick up a copy! You will not be disappointed, but I advise you, this is not for the squeamish. You’ve been warned, Readers! Hurry up and get your copy! (chuckle)!

This is the 6th installment of Stevens/Windermere series. I haven't read the others in this series but that didn't seem to be too big of a detriment. The Forgotten Girls is about speaking for those who society doesn't seem to think count. The homeless, the runaways, the prostitutes. These are the women who have been disappearing for years and no one has figured out why. There are rumors of a ghost that hunts along the Highline, but the law just think its a myth. Stevens and Windermere discover the connection while a young runaway tries to find evidence to get revenge for her friend.

This book is more action driven than character driven but there aren't very many twists and turns. I wish there had been more suspense or twists to the story. Despite the story being predictable it kept me entertained and I felt it was a good read. I wish I had connected to the main characters a bit more but there wasn't much to connect with. I've heard that the other books by Owen Laukkanen are quite good so I may have to give this author another shot. Overall I enjoyed the book I just wish there had been a bit more to it.

This is one of those books I 1-clicked because of the cover, which I love. Bonus that the cover actually captures the main theme of the series. Yes, this story tracks a serial killer, who literally leaves a trail of frozen women in his wake.

I'll be honest, I didn't really connect with any of the detectives. But I will say that my rating is what it is because the story-line was very intriguing. I know next to nothing about the US Northwest other than it is remote. And that remoteness played a role in complicating things - lack of phone service, blizzards that hampered searches and covered evidence. All of those factors make it that much harder to catch the ghost rider.

I've read a number of serial killer themed books, but this one felt completely fresh. While the victims are the same, people no one will miss, how the killer operates and how he uses his surroundings to his advantage, were unique.

If there is one message in this book, it is:
Don't ride the High Line.
People disappear.

Because of the victims and the enviornment, the killer has gotten away with things for years. But that comes to an end with the death of two women. Slowly, the detectives put the pieces together. From there, it becomes a race to capture him before he takes his next victim.

While I could of done without some the overly descriptive scenery passages, I understand their purpose. The killer had an advantage over others and his quick thinking and years of experience help to extend the chase.

As a suspense lover, I'm always looking to find new authors in the genre. While this author is not new, they are new to me, and I'll definitely be checking out their other releases.

I would like to thank Netgalley and G.P. Putnam's Sons for generously providing this ARC in exchange for an honest review.

I didn’t realize that this book was the sixth in a series or else I probably would not have requested it. Luckily, it read as a stand alone so I really enjoyed it. I normally read romance so this thriller was a nice change from that. I loved how this book kept me on my toes and wondering how “The Rider” would be caught.

This story was told from multiple points of view which I both loved and hated. I would sometimes get a little lost on who was talking and go back to re read. I loved that I could see into what others were thinking at the time and it is kind of rare to have so many points of view from “The Rider” to the victims and to the FBI/law enforcement.

Surprisingly I learned from this book. Being an older reader, I know what “the cloud” is but I didn’t realize just how in depth it is and had to ask my teen about it. Makes you think twice.

If you are into thriller/murder mystery books this is one that you should definitely pick up. The scenery descriptions make you actually picture what they are describing. It takes you into the life of homelessness and those who surf trains to travel. I guess I didn’t know that people still did that and it was interesting to read about that.

Kirk Stevens is a special agent with the Minnesota Bureau of Criminal Apprehension (BCA) and his partner is Carla Windermere, who is an FBI special agent. Their latest case is the rape and brutal murder of a young runaway who was a train hopper. As they investigate, they discover there are more than 25 unsolved cases of women who had disappeared or had been raped and murdered along the train line in the Northern Rocky Mountains.

I liked this book. Though this is the sixth in the Stevens and Windermere series (I've read them all), it works as a stand alone. If you want to get to know Stevens and Windermere, you should read the previous ones to find out the history and dynamics between them because the author doesn't dwell on any of that in this story. I liked the writing style and found the storyline interesting ... I didn't realize there was a train hopping culture. It's written in third person perspective with a focus on the various characters, including the murderer. As a head's up, there is swearing.

The book is dedicated to the memory of the missing and murdered woman of Vancouver, BC's Downtown Eastside and Stevie Cameron's book, On the Farm, was used as background for this story.