‘Girl Missing’ by Tess Gerritsen
Apparently this was originally published years ago, when Tess Gerritsen was still a romance writer (which is something I had not known about her), and is the novel she considers to be her ‘bridge’ between romantic suspense and crime writing. I have to say, it’s a really good bridge. It’s got more romance than is normal in her crime novels, but not enough to be overly dominant and whilst it is a good romance, there’s a really decent plot in there as well, and quite enough to keep you pulled along even if you’re not so into the love story (which I was).
The plot is fairly basic - Kat Novak is a Medical Examiner, who is also female, beautiful, and has clawed her way out of a low income neighbourhood to get where she is today, although it’s never really explained how she did this. I kinda presumed by doing really well at school and getting scholarships and a lot of part time jobs (plus debt) to get through medical school, but it must have been tough and there’s no back story which explains it. Still, there’s no reason why you need a back story for being smart and determined, which I guess she was. Oh, and Novak is her married name. Her maiden name was Ortiz, and I think she was meant to be half Irish, half Hispanic, as a vague point of interest.
Anyway, Kat is working the night shift when a body comes into the morgue; a young woman who has been found dead of an overdose from some mysterious drug. She has no ID and only a matchbook with a phone number scrawled on it. From there, conspiracy, murder, and romance with a very hot millionaire ensue.
I enjoyed it. The hero wasn’t nearly as alpha male as most romance novel heroes and I thought he and Kat had some good chemistry. The mystery aspect was well handled and plausible and I never felt like Tess Gerritsen was cheating or resorting to crazy coincidence.
Definitely recommended, and I’d make a special mention to romance fans who aren’t normally sure about thrillers and thriller readers who don’t do romance. It offers the best of both worlds quite nicely.
The plot is fairly basic - Kat Novak is a Medical Examiner, who is also female, beautiful, and has clawed her way out of a low income neighbourhood to get where she is today, although it’s never really explained how she did this. I kinda presumed by doing really well at school and getting scholarships and a lot of part time jobs (plus debt) to get through medical school, but it must have been tough and there’s no back story which explains it. Still, there’s no reason why you need a back story for being smart and determined, which I guess she was. Oh, and Novak is her married name. Her maiden name was Ortiz, and I think she was meant to be half Irish, half Hispanic, as a vague point of interest.
Anyway, Kat is working the night shift when a body comes into the morgue; a young woman who has been found dead of an overdose from some mysterious drug. She has no ID and only a matchbook with a phone number scrawled on it. From there, conspiracy, murder, and romance with a very hot millionaire ensue.
I enjoyed it. The hero wasn’t nearly as alpha male as most romance novel heroes and I thought he and Kat had some good chemistry. The mystery aspect was well handled and plausible and I never felt like Tess Gerritsen was cheating or resorting to crazy coincidence.
Definitely recommended, and I’d make a special mention to romance fans who aren’t normally sure about thrillers and thriller readers who don’t do romance. It offers the best of both worlds quite nicely.