My Child is Missing is the eighteenth book in Lisa Regan’s Josie Quinn series. After eighteen books, I can say with confidence that the series is still going strong. In My Child is Missing, Regan treated her fans to a page turning, captivating and suspenseful read.
The little girl’s bright blue eyes are wide with fear, her hair tousled, her tears making tracks in the dirt smudged across her cheek. Curled tight in a tiny ball, it’s as if she wants to hide away forever. “He took her!” she cries. “He took my sister!” When a desperate mother calls Denton police department to report her children missing, Detective Josie Quinn races to investigate. Sixteen-year-old Kayleigh and her little sister Savannah went for a walk in the woods but never came home. They are good girls and know not to go far, say their frantic parents. Kayleigh always looks after Savannah and brings her home safely. Until now… Even as she vows to bring the sisters home safely, Josie’s blood runs cold: because they are not the only missing children. Rumors are spreading about the legend of “The Woodsman”: when pairs of children go into the woods, The Woodsman takes one of them and only one comes out alive. With local teenagers daring each other to walk into the woods at night in pairs, Josie knows that nobody is safe from the hysteria sweeping Denton. Little Savannah Patchett is soon mercifully found alive, alone and terrified, but she tells Josie “The Woodsman has taken my sister”. All Josie’s leads seem to reach dead ends: her team traces Kayleigh’s scent to a dank, dark cabin in the woods, but the owner has an alibi and there is no evidence that Kayleigh has been inside. When Josie persuades Kayleigh’s classmates to talk, she learns that Kayleigh herself had a secret boyfriend whose identity is a mystery. Josie is desperate to track him down and to work out if he could hold the key to solving the case. Then Josie’s worst fears come true: another pair goes missing and one of them is found dead soon after. Another teenage girl, lying straight and still, a halo of blood surrounding her beautiful blonde hair. Josie knows that the legend of The Woodsman is nothing more than a story, but the truth is far more horrifying… With Kayleigh still out there somewhere and the TV news filled with stories of a serial killer at large, how far will Josie have to go to find the killer before more innocent lives are lost? I received this book for free in exchange for an honest review. This does not affect my opinion of the book or the content of my review. This post contains affiliate links you can use to purchase the book. If you buy the book using that link, I will receive a small commission from the sale.
Title: My Child is Missing
Author(s): Lisa Regan
Series: Detective Josie Quinn #18
Also in this series: The Innocent Wife , Close Her Eyes , Face Her Fear, Her Dying Secret , Remember Her Name
Published by Bookouture on September 8, 2023
Pages: 365
Genre(s): Mystery
Source: Publisher
Format: eArc 
Purchase: Amazon|Audible
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Series Rating: 
This instalment centres around the legend of The Woodsman, ‘Two go in the woods, but only one comes out’. Talk of the legend is circulating through schools, which further intensifies when sixteen-year-old Kayleigh Patchett went missing. She and her sister, Savannah, went into the woods, but only Savannah returned unharmed. The question on everyone’s mind is where is Kayleigh? Did the Woodsman take her? Is she still alive?
Search after search and Josie and her team were no closer to finding Kayleigh. Meanwhile, another pair of teens, a male and female, went missing, with only the male returning alive. As Josie and her team investigates, damning information which place two of the victims in a bad light surfaced. Josie is confident she knows the identity of the perpetrator, if only she could find the evidence to support her theory.
The story pulls the reader in, and in doing so, one feels a part of the investigation. It’s interesting to note that readers so get a preview into the thoughts of the perpetrator. This, however, provided no clues as to their identity. While reading, several theories came to mind, one of which proved to be right. Traversing through the maze of clues increased the tension and kept the reader on pins and needles.
The aftermath from the tragedy in Close Her Eyes weighed heavily on Josie and her team. The memories stirred up bittersweet feelings. However, as the story progresses, each slowly came to a place of acceptance, thus kicking the healing process into gear.
Fans of police procedurals and crime fiction will want to start this series sooner than later.
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About Lisa Regan
Lisa Regan is the USA Today and Wall Street Journal bestselling author of the Detective Josie Quinn series. Lisa is a member of Sisters In Crime, International Thriller Writers, and Mystery Writers of America. She has a Bachelor’s Degree in English and Master of Education Degree from Bloomsburg University. She lives near Philadelphia, Pennsylvania in the U.S. with her husband, daughter, and Boston Terrier named Mr. Phillip.
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Reading this book contributed to these challenges:
Wonderful review, Nadene. I think this will be my series to read in. I have a few of them already (audible purchases), so will do a mixture of read and listen. I know I will love it after all the great comments I have seen.
This is a series I’d really like to read but it’s a bit daunting with 18 books. But I will get to it at some point.
Ooo, another series I should try. I like the way you describe how you were really pulled into the investigation.
I love this series. I just finished reading the 13th book, The Drowning Girls. I’m trying to get caught up…but she keeps writing more! ;D
18 books is a lot. I’m glad the series is still going strong. This sounds good.
I came in late to the series, but I am loving it. I plan to pick up the previous books.
Great review. This series sounds interesting. Glad you liked it.