Before She Disappeared by Lisa Gardner @LisaGardnerBks @hillatious @BrilliancePub

Frankie Elkin is a middle-aged recovering alcoholic on a mission. She travels from town to town looking for missing persons no one else is trying to find. All of her worldly goods fit into one suitcase and she doesn’t do long lasting relationships but it isn’t because she has problems connecting with people. This time, she’s in the Mattapan neighborhood of Boston, looking for missing Haitian teen Angelique Badeau. It’s not clear if she went away willingly or if she’s being held against her will.

What immediately comes to mind is the question of why Frankie is the way she is, which is somewhat revealed slowly through the course of the story. She’s smart and resourceful, able to insert herself into communities where she obviously doesn’t belong but quickly making “friends.” The Haitian neighborhood didn’t embrace her initially but Frankie’s honesty and authenticity is hard to ignore. And, she’s the only one still looking for Angelique.

The story is filled with richly developed characters and I was immersed in the Haitian culture, gaining insight into the issues they confront and their strong will and resilience. The investigation into Angelique’s disappearance took lots of twisty turns and my instincts about who was behind it all was somewhat right but not completely. Hillary Huber is one of my favorite narrators with a sultry voice that quickly became synonymous with Frankie. She’s one of the reasons I chose the audio version and it was such a great decision. I enjoyed this story and Frankie, even though I still have a lot of questions about her. But, I’m ready to go along with her noble quest and hope in the process she ends up finding herself.

Book Info

• Release Date: January 19, 2021
  
• Series: Frankie Elkin #1
• Narrator: Hillary Huber
• Audio Length: 12 hours, 7 minutes
• Publisher: Brilliance Audio

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(Thanks to Brilliance Audio for my complimentary copy. All opinions are my own.)