Book Review: Little Girl Gone by Gerry Schmitt

Little Girl Gone
Author: Gerry Schmitt
Series: An Afton Tangler Thriller (Book 1)
Publication: Berkley; Reprint edition (June 20, 2017)

Description: On a frozen night in an affluent Minneapolis neighborhood, a baby is abducted from her home after her teenage babysitter is violently assaulted. The parents are frantic, the police are baffled, and, with the perpetrator already in the wind, the trail is getting colder by the second.

As family liaison officer with the Minneapolis P.D., it’s Afton Tangler’s job to deal with the emotional aftermath of terrible crimes—but she’s never faced a case quite as brutal as this. Each development is more heartbreaking than the last and the only lead is a collection of seemingly unrelated clues.

But, most disturbing of all, Afton begins to suspect that this case is not isolated. Whoever did this has taken babies before—and if Afton doesn’t solve this crime soon, more children are sure to go missing . . .

My Thoughts: Afton Tangler works for the Minneapolis Police Department as a family liaison officer but somehow she finds herself deep in the investigation of a kidnapped three-month-old baby. Elizabeth Ann was kidnapped from her parents' home and her babysitter was assaulted. These residents of the posh Kenwood section of Minneapolis have lots of influential friends who keep pressure on the police department and the FBI to find their child.

Afton works with Detective Max Montgomery searching for clues and trying to find connections that will lead to the recovery of the child. Their investigation leads to a mistress for the husband and some sexual hijinks that led to him leaving one med-tech company for another which makes him somewhat suspicious. But the key clue comes from the wife who points to a woman she talked to at a doll show at the local mall. She gave the woman her phone number and showed her a picture of Elizabeth Ann. Unfortunately, the woman gave a false name and the doll show organizer can't help the police locate her.

This story is told from a few viewpoints. Afton's is the most common but we also hear the thoughts of the really creepy doll lady and her equally creepy and murderous son. The story has a wonderful setting. I am quite familiar with winter in Minnesota and the locales - Minneapolis, St. Paul, Cannon Falls, and Hudson, Wisconsin - where the bulk of the story takes place. And, as it happens, I'm writing this while waiting for the kind of snowstorm happening in the story.

I liked Afton as a character but thought it was pretty unlikely that she would get as involved in the investigation in real life. She has the dogged persistence that a good detective should have. She wants to be a police detective and is getting support and training from many of the others on the case.

This was a real page-turner. It is filled with action and danger and scenes that kept me turning the pages until the satisfying conclusion. Fans of police procedurals will enjoy this well-crafted tale.

Favorite Quote:

Ronnie drove to the end of the block and stopped. Put the car in Park, left the engine running. "You sure you want to do this?" he said. Ronnie didn't mind a little rough sex when he needed to get his gun off, but killing a woman? Then again, it might be interesting. Sort of a new...diversion.

I bought this one. You can buy your copy here.