Review of THE GIRL WHOSE LUCK RAN OUT by Gayleen Froese (New Release)

 3 Stars

Ben Ames, a former police officer, is now a private investigator living and working in Calgary.  Kimberly Moy, a university student, has gone missing, and her sister Lauren hires him to find her.  Just as Ben begins his investigation, Jesse, his ex, now a rising rock star known as Jack Lowe, comes back into his life and ends up helping Ben on the case. 

There are two narratives, the missing person case and the relationship between Ben and Jesse.  At times there is more focus on the latter; not only do the two men need to discuss their breakup, but Jesse also suffers from depression and struggles with the pressures of stardom.  Unfortunately, this romance storyline takes attention away from the investigation.

For a mystery, there is not a great deal of tension or suspense.  There is not a lot of action and, except for the predictable climax, Ben is never in any danger, though there are obvious attempts to suggest that a couple of visits with possible suspects could be dangerous.  I dislike the overused trope of the incompetent/ reluctant police investigation which makes its appearance.  It is not difficult to identify the villain of the piece since there are few suspects.  Furthermore, the ending comes very quickly, and the confession is just too convenient. 

Kimberly’s actions are not convincing.  At the end, Ben dreams an alternate version of events, and it describes exactly how I would have expected someone in her situation to have behaved.  Having Kimberly use Fibonacci sequencing and doodles just doesn’t seem authentic either.  And Jesse can solve both so easily? 

I appreciated that the book is unapologetically Canadian.  The author is obviously very familiar with the setting, and there is no attempt to disguise it as a fictional American location. 

Ben and Jesse are both appealing characters.  They are not perfect, but they are decent human beings.  I can certainly imagine the two of them working together on future cases.   I especially loved their dialogue; sometimes it is witty and sometimes it is serious and poignant.  The secondary characters, Luna and Kent, are clearly delineated, and they are obviously positioned to be helpful in this and future cases. 

This is a light, easy read.  Though flawed in some aspects, it is entertaining – a good choice to pack for a summer holiday.