Dollycas's Thoughts
Author Gerry Schmitt is also known as cozy mystery writer, Laura Childs. Warning this is not a cozy mystery!
The story opens with Marjorie Sorenson at a doll show selling her "reborn dolls" (definitely not something I would buy). When Susan Darden shows her interest in the dolls she never could have imagined the terror that would follow.
Afton Tangler is a family liaison officer. She is assigned to a child abduction case, Susan and Richard Darden's case. It turns out to be a difficult case and she works very closely with Detective Max Montgomery and the FBI to find the baby and the kidnapper/s.
I was drawn into this book immediately. The story is told from multiple points of view and for me this made the story exciting and fast paced.
I liked our introduction to Afton. She is a divorced mom, raising her two daughters, who just happened to receive some impressive vehicles as part of her settlement. She is an intelligent woman with a stick to it attitude. She and Detective Montgomery work so well together. Afton hopes to be a detective someday and working with Max may be help speed up the process. I really enjoyed the way the investigated this case and followed the leads. Sometimes into very dangerous situations. The chief of police did give them a lot of leeway in this case leading me to think he knows more about Afton that we readers do at this point. I am anxious to see where these characters go in the future and excited to learn about their families and any past they may have.
The story does have a very creepy start and Marjorie is a really creepy person and so is her son. They really did make my skin crawl. After the first chapters it turns into more of a police procedural story but they are revisited throughout the whole book.
All of the characters are well written and realistic from the Dardens to their teenage babysitter and the other officers and agents. Even the over the top, pushy reporter, seemed just like a Fox broadcaster.
I loved that the story starts in Minnesota and that clues lead them to Wisconsin, and the way the law enforcement agencies worked together.
The author is off to a great start for this series. The main characters are engaging and the story was interesting with a edge of your seat ending. I am looking forward to book #2.
Author Gerry Schmitt is also known as cozy mystery writer, Laura Childs. Warning this is not a cozy mystery!
The story opens with Marjorie Sorenson at a doll show selling her "reborn dolls" (definitely not something I would buy). When Susan Darden shows her interest in the dolls she never could have imagined the terror that would follow.
Afton Tangler is a family liaison officer. She is assigned to a child abduction case, Susan and Richard Darden's case. It turns out to be a difficult case and she works very closely with Detective Max Montgomery and the FBI to find the baby and the kidnapper/s.
I was drawn into this book immediately. The story is told from multiple points of view and for me this made the story exciting and fast paced.
I liked our introduction to Afton. She is a divorced mom, raising her two daughters, who just happened to receive some impressive vehicles as part of her settlement. She is an intelligent woman with a stick to it attitude. She and Detective Montgomery work so well together. Afton hopes to be a detective someday and working with Max may be help speed up the process. I really enjoyed the way the investigated this case and followed the leads. Sometimes into very dangerous situations. The chief of police did give them a lot of leeway in this case leading me to think he knows more about Afton that we readers do at this point. I am anxious to see where these characters go in the future and excited to learn about their families and any past they may have.
The story does have a very creepy start and Marjorie is a really creepy person and so is her son. They really did make my skin crawl. After the first chapters it turns into more of a police procedural story but they are revisited throughout the whole book.
All of the characters are well written and realistic from the Dardens to their teenage babysitter and the other officers and agents. Even the over the top, pushy reporter, seemed just like a Fox broadcaster.
I loved that the story starts in Minnesota and that clues lead them to Wisconsin, and the way the law enforcement agencies worked together.
The author is off to a great start for this series. The main characters are engaging and the story was interesting with a edge of your seat ending. I am looking forward to book #2.
A wonderful debut to a new series starring Afton Tangler, a social worker working with the Minneapolis Police.
A baby is kidnapped in a brutal way, the perpetrator viciously hurt the baby sitter and stole a 3 month old baby girl from her crib on his mother's orders.
This is a scary, creepy story and I couldn't put the book down. I just had to see what was going to happen next. I am looking forward to the next book.
A baby is kidnapped in a brutal way, the perpetrator viciously hurt the baby sitter and stole a 3 month old baby girl from her crib on his mother's orders.
This is a scary, creepy story and I couldn't put the book down. I just had to see what was going to happen next. I am looking forward to the next book.
Little Girl Gone by Gerry Schmitt is An Afton Tangler Thriller novel (first book in series). Marjorie Sorenson has a table at the doll show at Skylark Shopping Mall. She is showing off her reborn dolls (which look just like real babies). Susan Darden is at the mall and admires Marjorie's creations. Marjorie admires the pictures of Susan's little girl, Elizabeth Ann who is three months old. That night Susan and her husband, Richard go out for the evening and leave Elizabeth Ann with a babysitter. Someone breaks in and takes the little girl (after attacking the babysitter). Afton Tangler is a community liaison officer for the Minneapolis Police Department. She is called in to handle the Darden's. Afton wishes to be a detective, but with her master's in social work made her perfect for the community liaison officer position (and she keeps hoping to get promoted when a spot opens up and she gets the experience needed for the position). When Afton ends up upsetting the Darden's, she works with Max on the case. Max Montgomery works with the Mutual Aid and Multi-Jurisdictional Squad (MAMJS). The two work the case to find little Elizabeth Ann and bring her back home. It is going to take a lot of hard work to find the little girl and her kidnappers but Afton and Max are more than capable of handling the task.
Little Girl Gone is a fast-paced suspense novel that is well-written. The reader is drawn into the story (a good thing) from the beginning. I liked the main character, Afton Tangler. She is a smart, hardworking, determined woman. Afton has an ex-husband and two kids (and now a new dog) and all the problems that go along with them. Max is a good counterpart for her in the book (40s, divorced twice, and two teenage boys). I enjoyed following Max and Afton as they worked to solve the case. I give Little Girl Gone 4.25 out of 5 stars. I would have enjoyed the story more if the culprit had not been revealed to us. Knowing the person responsible right from the beginning takes away some of the suspense or intrigue (that is the only thing that I did not like). I look forward to reading the next book in An Afton Tangler Thriller series.
I received a complimentary copy of Little Girl Gone from NetGalley in exchange for an honest evaluation of the novel. The comments and opinions expressed are strictly my own.
Little Girl Gone is a fast-paced suspense novel that is well-written. The reader is drawn into the story (a good thing) from the beginning. I liked the main character, Afton Tangler. She is a smart, hardworking, determined woman. Afton has an ex-husband and two kids (and now a new dog) and all the problems that go along with them. Max is a good counterpart for her in the book (40s, divorced twice, and two teenage boys). I enjoyed following Max and Afton as they worked to solve the case. I give Little Girl Gone 4.25 out of 5 stars. I would have enjoyed the story more if the culprit had not been revealed to us. Knowing the person responsible right from the beginning takes away some of the suspense or intrigue (that is the only thing that I did not like). I look forward to reading the next book in An Afton Tangler Thriller series.
I received a complimentary copy of Little Girl Gone from NetGalley in exchange for an honest evaluation of the novel. The comments and opinions expressed are strictly my own.
Cathy C. (cathyskye) -
This first Afton Tangler thriller is a hard-edged, engrossing read written by a woman better known for her cozy mysteries-- Laura Childs. Writing under her real name, she has created a good, strong cast. Single mother Afton Tangler is smart, intuitive, full of common sense, and known for driving two expensive cars that she got in her divorce settlement. She's partnered with veteran detective Max Montgomery, a man who sees how much potential this family liaison officer has. I was really impressed with their boss, Deputy Chief Gerald Thacker. Afton is a rookie; she makes mistakes and steps on the toes of some of her superiors. But whatever she does, she does it for the right reason. Thacker sees this and sticks up for her, and when Afton thanks him, his response is that he doesn't need to be thanked for doing the right thing. Now... how many superior officers can you remember doing that in the mysteries you've read? Not many, right?
No stranger to Minnesota winters, Schmitt pulled me right into the middle of a bone-chilling one, and she also taught me a thing or two about reborn dolls-- dolls that are made up to look as much like a newborn baby as possible. The author has crafted a good investigation. Not only did I learn some things, I appreciated how Schmitt showed that it is often the grunt work and just a tiny bit of intuition that can break a case right open.
Little Girl Gone is called a thriller for a reason. The bad guys are particularly creepy, the book's pace is fast, and it's a very scary scene when Afton confronts the kidnappers. It's good to see a writer try something different. I, for one, am looking forward to Afton's next case.
No stranger to Minnesota winters, Schmitt pulled me right into the middle of a bone-chilling one, and she also taught me a thing or two about reborn dolls-- dolls that are made up to look as much like a newborn baby as possible. The author has crafted a good investigation. Not only did I learn some things, I appreciated how Schmitt showed that it is often the grunt work and just a tiny bit of intuition that can break a case right open.
Little Girl Gone is called a thriller for a reason. The bad guys are particularly creepy, the book's pace is fast, and it's a very scary scene when Afton confronts the kidnappers. It's good to see a writer try something different. I, for one, am looking forward to Afton's next case.
