The Nowhere Girls is a cold case, crime thriller. FBI Agent Nikki Cassidy has returned home to visit David Monroe in prison. On this 15th anniversary, her sister’s killer has an agenda of his own and Nikki is the key.
Bottom line: The Nowhere Girls is for you if you like serial killer crime thrillers where the past is the key to the present.
Listen to the first chapters here or wherever you find Mysteries to Die For podcast
Two strengths of this story lie in the complexity of the crime and the pacing of its reveal. As indicated in the backcover synopsis (i.e. not a spoiler) the crime here is the kidnapping and murder of not one young girl but several. It begins with the cold case investigation of the murder of Caitlin, Nikki’s sister, 15 years ago and is ramped up with the disappearance of another 13-year-old, Natalie, on the anniversary of Caitlin’s disappearance. While revisiting the site where her sister’s body was discovered, Nikki and team find another body – this one from a girl who disappeared from other state. That element of cross state boundaries enables Nikki to be officially assigned to the case and her team to come in. The evolution of the mystery is deliberately paced and satisfying with nearly every chapter counting.
This is the first in the Nikki Cassidy series with the next two already released. I have not read the others in the series. For a first story, Nikki is well developed. Readers can see from early on how her greatest strength is also her greatest weakness. Nikki is one of those characters wo has an abundance of confidence in her own judgement and abilities. This gives her the steadfastness to stick to a case where others would have turned away but also causes her to make poor and selfish decisions where other people pay the consequences.
The supporting cast in this story are largely the characters associated Caitlin’s murder including the convicted killer, his wife/lawyer, and the ME and prosecutor at the time. The characters are distinctly drawn, making it easy for me to both remember and differentiate them.
The logic of the mystery holds up reasonably well when looked at from back-to-front. But. There is no evidence laid out in the story leading to the Big Bad. Instead, the Big Bad self-reveals in the culmination. While this leads to a wrap-up that is satisfying to the reader, ultimately Nikki didn’t solve the mystery.
When we look at how the main character, Nikki, drove the story, there are mixed results. Nikki is focused on the cold case of her sister’s murder while there is an active hunt for missing 13-year-old Natalie. Understanding that Nikki has convinced herself there is a connection between Caitlin and Natalie, there is no sense of urgency on Nikki’s part to find Natalie. After the first interview with Natalie’s parents, she is focused on what happened 15-years ago. Nikki drives the cold case investigation, yes, but not the missing person in imminent danger.
Readers will enjoy this crime thriller best if they go into it with the expectation of a cold case crime thriller rather than a missing person thriller. The discovery that there is a serial killer and answers to Caitlin’s murder are the central story; the search for Natalie is not.
The dynamic storytelling, dramatic pacing, and satisfying ending make THE NOWHERE GIRLS great entertainment for lovers of crime thrillers.
The Nowhere Girls was released from Bookouture and is promoted by Partners In Crime Tours and is available from AMAZON LINK and other book retailers.
MEET Dana Perry
Dana Perry is a New York City author who writes mystery thrillers under the pen names of Dana Perry and R.G. Belsky. He is an award-winning author of crime fiction and a journalist in New York City. As Perry, he writes crime thrillers including the Nikki Cassidy series. As Belsky, he has has published 21 novels—all set in the New York city media world where he has had a long career as a top editor at the New York Post, New York Daily News, Star magazine and NBC News. He is a contributing writer for The Big Thrill magazine and BookTrib.
www.RGBelsky.com/dana-perry-books
About Partners In Crime Tours
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TG Wolff 