Book Review: No One Will Miss Her

Mystery/thriller fiction novel by Kat Rosenfield, published 2021

*Note that this review does contain spoilers*

A Big 'Ol Twist

After seeing a lot of hype surrounding this book and comparing it to Gone Girl, I was pretty excited to get the notification that the library had finally shelved it. Rosenfield's opening sentence, "My name is Lizzie Ouellette, and if you're reading this, I'm already dead," immediately struck me as a little banal. I plunged ahead though, and was entertained throughout, if not entirely satisfied.

Centering around several characters- the trailer trash Lizzie, who's innocence in her childhood is both heart wrenching and pure; the hateful, not-so-intelligent Dwayne who irritatingly grows up to become Lizzie's husband; the focused detective Bird that is overworked, yet wants so deeply to stand up for the brutally murdered "Lizzie;" and the stereotypically spoiled and deceitful rich couple, Adrienne and Ethan- No One Will Miss Her is an easy read that keeps you enthralled through Part 1 until the big twist.

And that twist is not something that I saw coming, though in retrospect there were several foreshadowing clues, such as the repeated mention of Adrienne's rose gold hair. Once the twist was revealed though, I had some lingering questions. 1) I'm no medical examiner, but wouldn't you notice if someone had glued on a mole?! Maybe not... 2) I'm on the fence about Lizzie getting away with the brutal murder, but even so, why would she choose to remain in Adrienne's house? I didn't understand that explanation in the story. 3) Her sleeping with Bird really didn't seem necessary and I was disappointed that it didn't end up adding to the plotline at all.

3 out of 5 Stars

Ultimately though, this was a well-written thriller that kept me continuing to turn it's pages for the last 2 days. I'd recommend it to anyone who enjoys a good plot twist, but just don't ask too many questions about the reasons behind some of it.