Such a great, twisty novel for any lovers of plot-twists! I really found the narrative easy to follow but it still kept my guessing and had me on the edge of my seat! I highly recommend to any lovers of mystery novels

A Very Intense Child Abduction Novel

The novel opens with Allison Krueger being offered a ride to school by someone she knows just before her school bus crests a hill. Allison never makes it to school. The sheriff, Jax Turner, is sitting in his sheriff's vehicle on the beach. He is holding his gun and contemplating ending it all because his life has been a failure since his daughter died ten years earlier. He is about to act when his dispatch radio informs him about a missing teenager. He tries to hand it off to his deputy, but he is reminded that his deputy is on vacation. He responses to the call. Hopefully, it won't take long so he can finish what he came to the beach to do.

The main storyline is centered on the investigation that that branched out like the tenacles of an octopus. Where Allison Krueger lives is rural, but right next door is a commercial farm. Three potential viable suspects work or live on that farm are identified. Other illegal activities are discovered that could be motive in the abduction. Then, the stonewalling begins first from the farms manager, then a viable suspect's father who also the city commissioner who already is at odds with Sheriff Turner. Next, his investigation starts to interfere with an FBI investigation that is headed by his ex-wife. Lastly, Sheriff Turner finds a connection with a 25-year-old abduction and murder investigation with which he was involved. The author weaved these threads into an intense and captivating novel that kept me engaged with the novel all the way to the end.

Sheriff Turner starts the novel on that beach in a pit of despair that he has been digging for ten years. His despair also has affected his performance as the sheriff. He has survived by the people working for him have covered for him. Through the novel, the reader will see how Sheriff Turner struggles with this issue. A protagonist pulling a 180 is common, but what I liked about this one was how he handled his inexperienced deputies during this investigation. Sheriff Jax’s interactions with his returning experienced deputy, the city commissioner and his wife added more insight into his character. The B-storyline enriched my reading enjoyment of this novel.

For the aspects that some readers find so objectionable that they will stop reading a novel, first there are not any intimate scenes. The level of vulgar language is minimal, while it is more rude language. There is some violence described in the more edgy as it occurs, but this level of violence is quick than action. For me, these aspects not an issue at all for me and, I suspect, would be for most readers.

What I enjoyed most about this book, was what I call a literary tsunami because after it occurred, my entire understanding of what has happened was washed away by this twist. My largest problem was that the complexity of the investigation may turn some readers off before it captures their attention. This book does require more engagement than an action/adventure novel. There were not any loose ends in the main storyline at the end of this novel. There are plenty of B-storyline threads that can continue in further novels. This is the first novel by this author that I have read. I do not rate an author until after reading a second novel, but I am interested in reading further books or series by this author. I enjoyed reading and recommend reading this novel. I rate this novel with four stars.

I received a free prepublication e-book version of this novel through NetGalley from Level Best Books. My review is based only on my own reading experience of this book. I wish to thank Level Best Books for the opportunity to read and review this novel.

👮Book Review🐟
Hidden Pieces
By: Mary Keliikoa
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️/4 stars

Great suspenseful read! I figured some it out about 3/4th's through but it's still crazy how it all ends up.

Sheriff Jax Turner has lost his daughter, his marriage, pretty much everything he has to live for. Contemplating suicide one day, he gets a call about a missing schoolgirl. 25 years ago he had another missing child case that has haunted him since. He can't fail again.

As the investigation proceeds, Jax finds out that the missing girl's (Allison) aunt actually lost her life in a prior abduction which makes this feel too coincidental. When Allison's backpack is found in the backseat of a convicted sex offender's car, things take a turn in the investigation.

When the Sheriff starts to piece together what has happened it is pretty shocking and honestly kinda made me mad! Many twists and turns and just when you think you know... you don't! 🤣

Published October 25, 2022

Thank you @netgalley and @levelbestbooks for this ARC in exchange for my honest opinion!

While Detective Jax is fighting a personal battle, the loss of his child to cancer and his failed marriage - there's kidnap that happens and shakes the whole town. No one seems to know who took Alison that morning when she was waiting for her school bus. Her own mother also happens to be a prime suspect until Jax is reminded of another kidnapping that took place long time ago and one girl was killed.

This was an interesting read but the ending was a bit rushed.

Thanks to Netgalley, Mary Keliikoa and Level Best Books for approving the ARC in exchange for an unbiased review.

This one wasn't for me. It started out fairly strong but as the story progressed there were too many things that went conveniently unnoticed (or unaddressed in the narrative) and, in the end, the plot twists were too gimmicky and implausible for this reader. This is the first book in a proposed new series, I wish the author well in her endeavors but I don't think that I will be revisiting this series in the future.

This mystery seems to get mixed reviews, but I really enjoyed it. The sheriff, Jax Turner, is right on the edge of ending his own personal torment when a call comes through on a missing child, and it just barely drags him back to his old detective skills and a chance at redemption. The setting is small town coastal Oregon, and both the setting and a previous child abduction play large roles in the story. The cast is fairly large, but much of the story is a police procedural, so a sheriff has to do some thorough questioning, and there are many avenues of enquiry to pursue, people to question and lovely red herrings, all making for a complex and satisfying storyline. This would make a fabulous discussion for a book club arguing over clues and suspects (there were quite a few) and believability, especially considering the reviews. Jax is a sympathetic character who evolves through the story, very gradually pulling himself out of his deep despair to resurrect his necessary skills with a renewed sense of self. The rest are a mixed bag of personalities who come and go as fast as the kidnapping theories, and you'll never be quite sure who to trust. Good stuff.

Included in my top ten list of crime fiction for 2022 on the DorothyL listserv.

Hidden Pieces is an exciting mystery thriller that follows story of the detective tracking down a missing girl from a small town, while having to confront his unresolved pain and trauma from his daughter’s death and previous unresolved cases. Are there points where there are gaps in plot? Sure, but the book is a quick and fun read nonetheless.

Thank you netgalley for the ARC in exchange for an honest review.

Fantastic book! I finished it in one day. I couldn't put it down because I needed to know what was going to happen next. I can't wait to read more from this author.

This is a new to me author and I have to say I am looking forward to reading more by this author! I loved this book

3.5 ⭐️‘s
3.5⭐️‘s
There were many “pieces” to this story and what started a bit slow picked up steam along the way. Sheriff Jax Turner has lost a lot in his lifetime and is on the verge of losing himself as well when a young girl goes missing. He vows not to lose her as well. With a sketchy neighbor, a mom that seems uninterested, a dad that’s since married and divorced someone else, and a stepmother that has a brother with mental health issues, there’s a whole plethora of suspects, but as the days go by will Allison be found before it’s too late? Thank you to Level Best Books and NetGalley for an ARC of this book.

This is the first book I have read by Keliikoa and I really liked most of it. I became engaged right away with the opening scene of Sheriff Jax, despondent enough to contemplate suicide yet forced back into the responsibility of his job by a dispatch from his office. That scene was a great way to hook this reader.

The title of the book is apt given that, as the investigation by Jax continues, facts from the past as well as current relationships are reluctantly revealed. It is like hidden pieces of a puzzle coming together. I liked Jax's commitment to finding the lost girl, even when it meant alienating powerful people or irritating his ex-wife. He was not going to lose this girl, no matter what it took.

There were some good twists at the end. While I appreciated most of them, I did think the final identity of the abductor was stretching my ability to believe a bit. Except for that unreasonable aspect of the final resolution, I thought the novel was well written.

I received a complimentary egalley of this book from the publisher. My comments are an independent and honest review.

We open on Sheriff Jax Turner who, after losing his young daughter, followed by his marriage, feels he has nothing left to live for. An incoming call postpones his end as he discovers that a local girl, Allison, has gone missing. As a heartbroken father would, he becomes so emotionally involved in the case, it's as if he could bring his daughter back if he could just find Allison. The case starts to feel very familiar, as Jax reminisces about a cold case from 25 years ago, where two sisters were kidnapped, and only one returned. So many twists and turns, I loved the author's writing style and I never would have expected this ending! I was sucked in from the beginning and truly took my time enjoying this one! Already looking forward to the next book in the Misty Pines series!

A fantabulous psychological thriller! From the start, Mary Keliikoa chisels a story that will take you on a roller coaster ride, a story that is filled with twists, turns, edge of your seat moments and characters that come to life with each page turn.

Following Sheriff Turner as he looked for the pieces to the puzzle, was an intense time! I felt like I was an actual part of the story, feeling his depression, feeling his need to find a missing girl before it’s too late, uncovering more and more in a rush to find the victim…..and the person behind it.

This is definitely a 4★ ride you don’t want to say no to! It will leave your mind in pieces trying to put this puzzle together. By the end, you’ll be ready for another mind blowing, thrilling mystery from this talented author!

* I received a complimentary copy of this book from the Author/Publisher and was under no obligation to post a review, positive or negative.*

This was my first from Mary Keliikoa and it won’t be my last! I loved her take on a small town mystery with long buried secrets coming up in the present. I can’t wait for the next in the series!

I love a thriller that keeps me on my toes but easy to follow and Hidden Pieces did just that for me. The characters were written well and I loved the change in POV. I didn’t really like how Jax went about the investigation at first, he seemed quick to judge, but given his past I can understand why. The beginning may be a little bit of a slow burn but it picks up and ends in an adrenaline rush. The ending wasn’t rushed and took me by surprise. I thought I had it figured out and looking back at the story once everything was revealed it all made sense.

Thank you @mary.keliikoa.author @netgalley and @suzyapprovedbooktours for the gifted copy.

Wow! The opening scene of Sheriff Jax Turner contemplating taking his own life put me on edge, and Mary Keliikoa let me teeter there the whole book.

A call comes in to Jax that Allison, a teen girl, is missing, and he isn’t about to let this one slip past him; he has lost too much in life.

When Allison’s backpack is found in the car of a sex offender, but no trace of the girl, Jax is afraid time may be running out. The case is even more complicated as Allison’s ex-stepmother, Elana had been abducted as a child with her sister. Elana made it out alive her sister did not, and the killer was never found.

Although the pace is not hurried, the tension continues to rise. This deals with past traumas, grief as well as mental illness. I’ll be very interested to see where this series goes.

Thank you @suzyapprovedbooktours and @mary.keliikoa.author for a spot on tour and a gifted ebook.

Wow! I stayed up way too late to finish this book because I simply could not go to sleep without finding out how it ended. Sheriff Jax Turner was an incredible character - - such a good guy who was broken for many reasons at the beginning. A compelling case in their small community was exactly what he needed. What a case it was! I don’t want to share any spoilers but if you enjoy a good psychological thriller you will NOT want to miss this one. It gave me Silent Patient vibes which was an all time favorite for me.

I don't know, I liked it but I didn't. It was interesting, I liked the plot, it just seemed ongoing at times, the procedural part was also interesting. The ending was expected but still good.

Though I had high hopes for this book, it didn't quite stick the landing. Perhaps because its the first in the series, so I'll give it some grace. Jax is a likable character with a hard and devastating past, searching for meaning and redemption. I was drawn in and enjoying the book until worked out the twist/reveal mid way through.

Still...thank you NetGalley for this ARC!

Misty Pines was the perfect setting for this story to take place in with its gloomy and murky, small town energy. The majority of the story is told through Sheriff Jax Turner’s POV, which allows us a really deep look into his thoughts and emotions while he’s attempting to solve the town’s most recent missing child case.

I loved trying to solve this mystery along with Jax and Elena while I was reading, and seeing which of my theories were correct or totally off base! In a small town where everybody knows everybody, it can be surprisingly difficult to track down a potential serial killer/ kidnapper.

I’m definitely looking forward to reading additional books in the Misty Pines series!