Review by Amanda. Missing Pieces by Heather Gudenkauf. 4 Tea Cups!

Missing Pieces
By: Heather Gudenkauf
Genre: Mystery/Thriller

Sarah Quinlan's husband, Jack, has been haunted for decades by the untimely death of his mother when he was just a teenager, her body found in the cellar of their family farm, the circumstances a mystery. The case rocked the small farm town of Penny Gate, Iowa, where Jack was raised, and for years Jack avoided returning home. But when his beloved aunt Julia is in an accident, hospitalized in a coma, Jack and Sarah are forced to confront the past that they have long evaded. 

Upon arriving in Penny Gate, Sarah and Jack are welcomed by the family Jack left behind all those years ago—barely a trace of the wounds that had once devastated them all. But as facts about Julia's accident begin to surface, Sarah realizes that nothing about the Quinlans is what it seems. Caught in a flurry of unanswered questions, Sarah dives deep into the puzzling rabbit hole of Jack's past. But the farther in she climbs, the harder it is for her to get out. And soon she is faced with a deadly truth she may not be prepared for.

Review by Amanda

My rating: 4 Tea Cups!!

Thank you Netgalley for the free copy in exchange for a honest review.

I am really torn on this review. I really, really enjoyed the novel and I couldn't put it down. However, there were some parts that made me angry and a lot of the novel seemed unrealistic. 

Sarah and Jack Quinlan have been married for 20 years. Jack's aunt suffers an accident and is in the hospital. Sarah and Jack return back to Jack's home town, Penny Gate, for the first time in over 20 years. Once in Penny Gate, Sarah begins to uncover secrets about her husband and his family. These secrets that have been buried for years, could threaten their marriage and the town of Penny Gate.

It is hard to believe that Sarah and Jack have been married for 20 years. They hardly spoke to each other and when they did, their conversations seemed really awkward. Also it seemed unrealistic that they didn't know about certain things. When Sarah was uncovering certain secrets about Jack, the secrets were common knowledge to most people in the community and it was the people of Penny Gate that told Sarah about these secrets. As well, it bothered me that Sarah didn't question Jack more. I would certainly question why my husband doesn't go back to his home town at all, even though all of his family is still living there. Did they not see his family for 20 years?!

Despite the above minor details, I found Missing Pieces to be a really entertaining read and a good mystery! I love it when mysteries get tied up in the end and there are no more questions left unanswered. I also felt that I got closure with all of the characters.

Missing Pieces is also very thought provoking. You have a husband that has hidden secrets from his wife for over 20 years. Which made me think of a variety of questions:

Should spouses know all of each other's secrets?

Can a marriage be successful if there are secrets?

What if the secrets have nothing to do with the spouse?

What defines a secret??

Overall, I think if other people know of this secret and if you are questioning if you should tell that secret, then yes you should probably tell that secret to your spouse. As Sarah discovered in Missing Pieces there is nothing worse then learning something about your husband from a stranger and then having that stranger say "Oh Jack didn't tell you that"?

Missing Pieces is a great mystery that had me guessing until the very end. The novel is very fast paced and I couldn't put it down!

Buy Links:
Amazon: http://www.amazon.ca/Missing-Pieces-Heather-Gudenkauf
B&N: http://www.barnesandnoble.commissing-pieces-heather-gudenkauf