✱✱ Book Review ✱✱ Missing Piece by Emma Snow

After years of battling insomnia, you'd think I would learn to avoid books and movies that will keep me away in the wee hours of the night. Apparently, that particular lesson hasn't taken hold just yet because I'm pretty sure that Emma Snow's first full length novel, Missing Piece, will have me looking over my shoulder and jumping at all those little noises that seem so loud when the house is silent.

They told her he was dead. They said she was safe. They lied.

Martha Coleman lost her childhood the day she was sexually assaulted by the man who was supposed to care for her, the notorious serial killer who came to be known as The Gamesman. Her only solace came from the fact she survived the fire at Beeches Care Home while he perished in the inferno.

It's been ten years but the memories of those months of sickening abuse have never faded. Martha tried to move on, finding a semblance of peace through her job at Helmsley Castle. But as she works hard to come to terms with the past, she receives a message that suggests not only is the killer still alive, he's coming after her.

As a storm begins to build around Martha, she finds an unlikely ally in Ben Robertson, loner and gruff heir of the castle, a man she refuses to fall for. Last time she was close to someone, it cost them their life and nearly destroyed her. She can't let that happen again.

But does she have a choice as a mutual tragedy bonds her to Ben? And what will happen when the Gamesman finally tracks down his missing piece?

Momma Says: 4 out 5 stars ⭐⭐⭐⭐

It isn't the creatures that go bump in the night that scare me, it's the living, breathing human "monsters" that get me every time and this one certainly got me. The chills start early in Missing Piece and continue to build as the story progresses to the heart-racing conclusion. The suspense here isn't about who the killer is, although there is some mystery surrounding a couple of characters, but it's more about what this madman will do next to claim his prize. Our villain is a master at striking fear in his victims as he goes about his quite single-minded quest letting nothing and no one stand in his way. The fact that Martha is living her life, carrying out her day to day, never knowing when or where her worst fear will strike lent an added layer to the creep factor that is prevalent throughout this tale. The only drawback was the final scene with The Gamesman felt a bit rushed. The build-up for the scene was gripping and exactly what I expect from a good thriller, but the conclusion was almost too easy, especially when you consider everything he's done to achieve his goal. Other than that small blip, I thoroughly enjoyed this one and would easily recommend it. We even get some romance between Martha and the troubled Ben.

Missing Piece is available for purchase at the following links.

Amazon
Barnes & Noble
Kobo
iBooks

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Momma😘

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