The Lost Girls of Rome by Donato Carrisi

Oh, goodness. This was a busy, busy weekend. I did manage to squeeze in some quality reading time with Donato Carrisi's latest, though. This was a whopper of a read!

Sandra's husband has been dead for over five months now but she's done everything she can to avoid dealing with the loss. As an investigative journalist, his work sent him all over the globe. At the time of his death he was supposed to be in Oslo, or at least that's what he'd told her. Why then was his body discovered in Rome? Unable to bear the thought that he could have been hiding something, Sandra has yet to even go through his bags from the trip. But a call from Interpol finally prompts her to do so propelling her into an investigation that she believes may have led to her husband's murder. 

The Lost Girls of Rome is a testament to plotting brilliance! From the very start there are so many threads of story that it seems almost impossible they'll all connect. But connect they do and in a way that I'd bet even the most savvy mystery and thriller reader will never predict! The Whisperer easily landed Carrisi on my favorites list but I think The Lost Girls of Rome still managed to surpass my expectations.

First you have a medic whose sister was kidnapped. The prologue begins with a call to a remote estate and a dying man with the words "Kill me" written on his chest. Near his body, one of the only clues to the medic's sister's disappearance.

Next you have Marcus and Clemente investigating the home of a missing girl. The girl may be tied to the medic's missing sister and the man from the beginning but it's Marcus's job not only to determine how but to hopefully find the missing girl.

Then you have Sandra, a cop whose husband's recent death was ruled an accident. As mentioned above, he was secretive about where he really was on his most recent job and Sandra has put off dealing with everything associated with his death.

And finally you have the hunter, a mysterious character stalking a mastermind criminal able to hide seemingly in plain view.

I won't give anything else away but I will tell you that like Carrisi's debut, The Whisperer, The Lost Girls of Rome is exceptional and extremely dark! And like it's predecessor, this latest also has a number of clever twists.

The Lost Girls of Rome is translated from Italian by Howard Curtis. As translations go, both this title and Carrisi's previous one are outstanding. Really an all around highly recommended read in my opinion, especially if you like your thrillers dark and twisty!

Rating: 5/5