REVIEW: A Map of the Dark

A Map of the Dark
Author: Karen Ellis

FBI Special Agent Elsa Myers is very good at her job, but she doesn't know how to deal with her father slowly dying from cancer and demons from her past. She could take time off from work to spend more time with her dad at the hospital, but she knows working is the only way she can cope. It keeps her from dwelling on her memories. She is called to assist on a case. A teenage girl is missing.  Elsa pushes her personal life to the side, intent on finding the missing girl before it's too late.

At first, I had a hard time identifying with, or liking, Elsa Myers. Elsa is an excellent investigator and she's driven to solve cases, especially those involving children. But she has some deep emotional scars and is pretty much emotionally unavailable. The story flips from the current investigation to flashbacks about Elsa's childhood frequently.  At first, I found the flashbacks a bit annoying. But by the end of the book, those flashes of insight into her past helped me understand the character better. By the end of the book, I liked Elsa as a main character. The development of her character over the course of the story is quite complex. I liked how little bits and pieces about Elsa were revealed as she discovered and followed up on clues in the missing person investigation.

A Map of the Dark is the first book in The Searchers series. Book 2, Last Night, turns its focus to Lex Cole, Elsa's temporary partner in A Map of the Dark.

Karen Ellis is a pseudonym for crime thriller author Katia Lief. A Map of the Dark is the first book by this author that I've read. I'm definitely going to read more! I liked the character development and slow-build pacing. I saw one aspect of the ending coming...but wasn't quite sure how it would work in with the story. All in all, a very enjoyable crime thriller. It kept my attention from start to finish. I binge read this entire book in one afternoon. I couldn't stop reading!

I am looking forward to book 2. Lex Cole was a bit of a background character in book 1 because it focused mainly on Elsa and her past. I'm so curious about how his story will develop in the second book!

**I voluntarily read a review copy of this book from Mulholland Books via NetGalley. All opinions expressed are entirely my own.**