The Last Time She Saw Him

Reporter Julia Gooden, the smart, relatable heroine of journalist Haseldine’s uneven debut, needs a break from her job at a Detroit newspaper. She finds peace at her vacation home on Lake St. Clair, Mich., with her two sons, Will and Logan. On the 30th anniversary of the 1977 disappearance of her brother, Ben, two-year-old Will is taken from his bed; the clues left are shockingly similar to those left at the scene of Ben’s abduction. In addition to recruiting the help of ex-boyfriend Det. Ray Navarro and estranged husband David, Julia decides to take matters into her own hands. In the next 24 hours or so, Julia manages to have a press conference, illegally search a suspect’s home, help search 30 acres of property, sit in on two interrogations, make a prison visit to someone who may have information about Will, and more. This improbable sequence takes credibility away from what is, for the most part, a competently written thriller—at least until the gruesome final showdown, which borders on the ridiculous. Agent: Priya Doraswamy, Lotus Lane Literary. (July)