The Girl Who Disappeared Twice by Andrea Kane

What could be more tragic than having your twin sister kidnapped out of your shared bedroom when you were six years old? Having your own five-year old daughter kidnapped thirty-two years later. That’s the situation facing Judge Hope Willis, who goes to pick up her daughter from school one day only to be informed by those at the school that “she” already picked her up.

Given her high profile position as a judge, and her husband Edward’s as a controversial defense attorney with a prestigious firm, the local police and FBI descend on the case in record time. Not content with that, however, Hope calls in Forensic Instincts, a privately run organization that specializes in high profile and hard to handle cases.

Headed up by Casey Woods, a behavioral analysis specialist, the team also includes former Navy SEAL and FBI agent Marc Deveraux, and tech wizard Ryan McKay. Add to that mix intuitive – please don’t call her psychic – Claire Hedgleigh and retired FBI agents Patrick Lynch, who headed the investigation into Hope’s sister’s kidnapping thirty-two years ago, and Hero, an FBI certified human scent evidence bloodhound, and there is quite a full compliment of law enforcement on the case… but will it be enough to locate the missing girl before it’s too late?

The Girl Who Disappeared Twice was the first book by Andrea Kane I’ve read, and I certainly enjoyed it. I particularly enjoyed the team aspect presented by Forensic Instincts, which reminded me a bit of the Monkeewrench crew from P.J. Tracy. Though those who are frequent readers of the mystery-suspense genre may well figure out the end-game in advance, that in no way takes away from the wonderfully constructed story and engaging characters. A fast, enjoyable read, The Girl Who Disappeared Twice is the perfect book to toss in your bag for some beach or poolside reading this summer. — EAW

The Girl Who Disappeared Twice is available from Mira (ISBN: 978-0778329848).