Thank you to the author, publishers and NetGalley for providing me with a digital ARC copy of this book. #TheMissingHalf #NetGalley

How would suddenly losing your sister affect the course of your life? For our main character, Nic, her life has been off-course since her older sister, Kasey, disappeared seven years prior. When she is approached by Jenna, whose sister, Jules, disappeared in a similar fashion a couple weeks before Kasey disappeared, Nic is reluctant to get involved. But Jenna wants to reinvestigate the girls' disappearance, and convinces Nic to join in. As they work together, they discover long-hidden secrets, and form a bond. But their investigation leads to an unexpected conclusion. A solid read.

I really enjoyed this one. It was well paced and thought out. The characters, the plot and the twists were great. This is the second book by the author and I definitely think this one was better. This one didn’t feel like a copy of an already true crime story. The main character goes through a lot of emotions throughout but the growth is a good addition to the story. Without giving anything away a second book to this would be great to see where the main characters and others end up.

It's the second book I read by Ashley Flowers, and though it is better than the first one, I still think she tried too hard with the plot twists. Some of them were predictable, and the end of the book felt kind of rushed and not thought through, especially coming from someone who "deals" with crime as her main job. Overall, the book was entertaining, and it kept me hooked because I wanted to see where it was going, but it wasn't a favorite.

Nic’s life went off the rails the night her sister Kasey disappeared. Kasey’s car was found abandoned along the side of the road miles from home. Shortly before Kasey went missing, Jenna’s sister also disappeared. Her car was also left at the side of the road. The police think the cases might be related, but their investigations went nowhere. Seven years after the disappearances, Jenna convinces Nic to team up to try to find out what happened to their sisters and who was responsible.

Nic’s struggle to move on from Kasey’s disappearance is heartbreaking, but understandable. Her life seems frozen in place in the same job she had in high school, still drinking too much, and making poor decisions.

Dang! This one really blew my mind. I was not prepared for the ending. 🤯 it’s best to go into this one with as little knowledge as possible so you don’t see the twists and turns coming. The plot is tight and well executed and the pace is steady. There were numerous red herrings that kept me guessing. This is a fantastic thriller that will keep readers on the edge of their seats until the very end.

Thank you Penguin Random House and NetGalley for the e-arc. The Missing Half publishes May 6.

Two missing women, where are they? Two sisters trying to find out what happened to their loved ones. This story will keep you on the edge of your seat. Once you think you have it figured out, Ashley Flowers sends the story in a different direction. 5 stars!!!

This was an engrossing quick read with surprising plot twist all the way through. Each of the characters is flawed, but earn the reader's empathy. loved it!

I could not put this one down. Two girls disappear within a couple weeks of each other and years later their 2 sisters team up to decide to finally figure out what happened to them.

I did not expect the ending at all. I suspected tons of different scenarios throughout the book, but what really happened surprised me. I think this book was very well written. It was very exciting and I really enjoyed it.

Surprise endings can sometimes be cheesy or feel rushed and forced. This one was done beautifully and I felt like this exact story could be something that happened in real life.

Thank you to netgalley for this free advance copy in exchange for an honest review.

The book was suspenseful to the very end. A page turned keeping you guessing until the very end.
Ashley Flowers is a thriller writer to watch.
The sisters of two girls gone missing 3 weeks apart brings them together to figure out who took the girls. When you think you have it figure out you don't. Keeps you on the edge of your seat while feeling nostalgic.

This book really sucked me in. This was my first Ashley Flowers, and I really enjoyed her writing style. Very easy to read. The storyline was interesting and entertaining. The ending blew my mind but seemed awfully abrupt. Overall a good read

Ashley Flowers does not disappoint with her endings! I was sad because at first the ending started going in a direction I didn’t like and then it took another right turn and when in a completely different direction from what I hoped it be. I threw me for a loop. I love Ashley’s writing style and the pacing of her books. This was a win for me.

Thank you to NetGalley for this great ARC!

When I came across this title, I was truly excited to see that Flowers was writing another book. I really enjoyed her debut novel, All Good People Here, and have listened to her podcasts, like Crime Junkie and Supernatural, for years. However, reading through The Missing Half, I was a little disappointed. Let's get into it.

Pros:

The story starts with a strong hook that piques your interest and eventually ties back into the ending, making everything come full circle, which I really enjoyed. Additionally, the ending had a twist within a twist that I didn’t expect, which was the highlight of the whole story. The surprise element added a lot to the experience.

Beyond the plot, which had a solid foundation, Flowers did a great job at making you dislike the right characters—something that is always important in a suspense novel.

Cons:

I found that, although the premise was interesting, I wasn’t itching to get back to it. I would read it if I was bored, but I wasn’t excited to return and uncover what happened next. I attribute a lot of this to the writing style, which I will get into soon.

The suspense, though good, didn’t really pick up until around chapter 36 or 37, which felt too late in the book. With only two scenes before chapter 37 making me go "OMG," I felt like there was something missing.

Additionally, there were valiant attempts at misdirection throughout the novel, but at times, it felt like Flowers was trying <i>too<i> hard to lead us in the wrong direction. The misdirection was overkill in some places, though, fortunately, the twist at the end was still effective.

Some more personal cons...

The alcoholism subplot didn’t really fit for me. Nic is an alcoholic, and I think Flowers included that to help tie the story together, but I don’t think it was necessary to make her entire character revolve around it. Especially considering that her mother is also an alcoholic, it felt like there should have been a moment where Nic truly comes to terms with it. There is a brief scene of her pouring wine down the drain, but since she had already tried to stop drinking a couple of times throughout the story, it didn’t feel like a final resolution to that part of her narrative.

Additionally, there were a couple of scenes throughout the book that didn’t add much to the story. They felt unnecessary and drawn out—clear attempts at adding depth, but unfortunately, they just didn’t land effectively.

Speaking of the writing...

Going back to Flowers' debut novel, I listened to <i>All Good People Here<i> on audio, and I think if I had done the same with this book, it would have improved my overall experience immensely.

However, when you’re physically reading a book (rather than listening to it), you naturally pay more attention to the writing itself, and honestly, I had some qualms about the writing in this story. Here are some things I noticed:

There are quite a few run-on sentences structured like "this and this and this" instead of "this, this, and this," which affects the book’s flow.

Some of the tenses are inconsistent, and there were several awkward sentences or missing words that took me out of the reading experience.

Formatting issues (maybe just personal preference) with the text messages in the story— the font wasn’t distinct enough from the rest of the text, making it difficult to differentiate when a character was reading a message versus when they were simply narrating.

The writing overall felt a bit elementary and stilted in places.

Since I received an uncorrected proof through NetGalley, I do believe that post-corrections, this book will shine a bit brighter. However, as it stands, there were still quite a few things that needed fixing to improve readability.

Final Thoughts:

Through it all, I did enjoy the story and really liked the ending. <i>The Missing Half<i> had strong elements that made the highs really high and the weak elements that made the lows really low. It didn’t fully deliver on the suspense or writing quality I had hoped for, but again, I am attributing this largely to the fact that I read the uncorrected proof version.

Focusing just on the story itself, with further editing, this book has the potential to improve significantly.

As it stands, disregarding the glaring writing mishaps, I would rate this a 3/5. I’m taking off a star because I wasn’t eager to get back to it the entire time, and another for the elementary writing style, which I don’t think will be fully resolved even after final edits.

It’s a good story, and it is entertaining with a great ending—just nothing groundbreaking or especially memorable.

I liked this book so much that I immediately picked up Ashley Flower's other book as well. It's about two women who start working together to investigate the separate (but possibly related) disappearances of their sisters that happened several years ago. I was not expecting the twist ending and was very surprised and satisfied!

Ashley Flowers' The Missing Half is a fast-paced thriller that grabbed my attention from the start and didn’t let go. The main character, Nic, is a whirlwind of determination and emotional baggage, making her an incredibly engaging lead. After her sister goes missing, Nic has been stuck in a spiral of self-destructive behavior, and when a new character, Jenna, appears, she shakes Nic out of her funk and forces her to confront the past. The dynamic between these two women adds a layer of complexity to the story, highlighting themes of grief, guilt, and survival. Nic’s unapologetically flawed nature made her feel all the more real, and her journey to find justice for her sister is what really drives this book.

The plot is a twisty ride, full of unexpected turns that kept me on edge. There are some moments that might feel a bit predictable, but the emotional weight of the characters and their actions more than made up for it. The suspense is woven seamlessly with the personal stakes, so the mystery isn’t just about who did it, but also about how deep the lies run. If you enjoy mysteries with morally gray characters, dark secrets, and high emotional stakes, The Missing Half will definitely keep you hooked from beginning to end. Definitely recommended for anyone who loves a compelling, character-driven thriller!

Unexpected reveals, rethinking everything you thought you knew to be true, unbreakable bonds between sisters. This book has it all.

I enjoyed Ashley Flowers first book, also set in small town Indiana, so thought I would give this one a try. She does not shy away from the rough edges of the strip mall/cornfield lifestyle, nor does she romanticize it as so many writers less familiar do. Nic's life was turned upside down when her sister went missing several years ago, and ever since she's been stuck in the same pattern, not growing or changing, with the door shut firmly on memories of her sister and using alcohol and monotony to dull the pain of losing her. When Jenna, whose sister also went missing around the same time, shows up in her life she jolts her back to reality with passion and anger. The characters in this book are great - definitely not necessarily likeable but understandable. I love books where women are allowed to be awful. This book was compelling with an unexpected (at least for me) resolution. Definitely read this if you liked Flowers' last novel, or if you are looking for a suspenseful mystery with morally grey characters, or if you grew up in rural Indiana like me and like seeing it represented in fiction.

3.5 rounded up. Interesting twist at the end. Something about this one didn't hit me as well as the first novel, but it was still a good read.

i have extremely mixed feelings on this one! i loved ALL GOOD PEOPLE HERE so this was a highly anticipated read for me.

my initial first impression after the first few chapters was that the writing was a little off. it was almost too "predictable" and/or "straightforward" for a thriller. i craved more from the writing -- it seemed a bit elementary.

the story itself, while it was a page-turner, some things were way too outlandish. there were some plot holes that I wish had been worked through but there were a few times i just had to roll my eyes. the FMC was basically insufferable so i felt like i spent a lot of my time reading, extremely frustrated with her character. i enjoyed most of the twists even though i saw most of them coming.

what i did enjoy:
-most chapters ended on a "cliffhanger" encouraging the reader to keep going
-definitely a popcorn thriller, addicting
-Grand Rapids setting
-sisterhood theme

i think i'm settling on 3 stars for this one -- again i have very mixed feelings!

thank you so much for allowing me to be an early reader!! i will continue reading whatever Flowers writes.

This started a little slow but quickly picked up pace and became the ideal thriller. I thoroughly enjoyed this thrilling thriller!

Not only is this book a dark and twisty thriller, but it also is extremely thought provoking. It's heart-wrenching and begs the question of just how far will we go for family. Filled with tons of shocking twists. The characters are well developed and the mystery well executed. I read this in one sitting it was that good. The ending was unexpected and satisfying as well as emotional. This will surely be a 2025 hit and one that is not to miss!

Thanks to NetGalley and Random House Publishing Group - Ballantine | Bantam for a digital ARC in exchange for my honest review.

I could not put this book down. Ashley Flowers definitely improved from her first novel to this one. It showed in the storyline, the pacing and not trying to mash too many true crime inspirations together. This felt cleaner and more cohesive, from start to finish. I also think she listened to reader feedback from her first novel (which had a very open-ended ending) and smartly corrected how she wrapped this one up. There were plenty of twists and turns in this one, which I didn't see many of things coming. I raced through this so I could find out what what exactly was going on, both in the past and the present. I look forward to whatever Ashley writes next!