The Disappeared

by M.R. Hall

Book Overview

Coroner Jenny Cooper takes on the corrupt establishment of England's investigative institutions, fighting a lone battle for justice.

• Format: Hardcover
• Language: English
• ISBN: 1439156980
• ISBN13: 9781439156988
• Release Date: December 2009
• Publisher: Simon & Schuster
• Length: 402 Pages
• Weight: 1.39 lbs.
• Dimensions: 1.2" x 6.6" x 9.5"

Customer Reviews

Wonderfull Debut

The unavoidable comparisons to Cromwell will begin no doubt. And while I've always enjoyed Patricia I also always found her characters and approach a little cold. Not resonating with human caring that transcended the clinical eye she applies to all murders (and yes I know we're talking pathologist here) but Jenny Cooper more than makes up for all that was missing in the Scarpetta stories. Maybe it's just me and everybody will pooh pooh my comments but I loved Jenny for her weaknesses more than her strenghts. M.R. Hall has a winner here and I'm looking forward to many more stories to dissect.

Absolutely splendid!

I very much enjoyed this crime novel by M.R. Hall, which is far more than a great story about terrorism and its consequences on a free society, in this case that of the UK. While it is indeed a gripping tale that features an original plot with an unexpected surprise at the end, The Disappeared operates on multiple levels, offering some incisive observations on how the increasing diversity of people and cultures within a population complicate our professional lives, as well as our social interactions. But the greatest strength of this novel is its complex and interesting characters. The hero, a local coroner named Jenny Cooper, has both positive qualities that make her admirable and serious flaws that make her pathetic. There are no stock characters here. All of them are very much authentic, with traits to praise and shortcomings to criticize. Alison, Jenny's assistant, is both a scold and a rock-solid colleague. McAvoy is seasoned and sexy while at the same time dessicated and dangerous. Even the minor characters, such as Jenny's ex-husband David, are fully fleshed out and obviously rendered with care. In addition to the fine characterizations, The Disappeared has many nice touches that enhance its credibility and its entertainment value. For instance, Jenny's jurisdiction lies in the Severn Valley, a region right on the border between England and Wales. M.R. Hall deftly evokes echos of the ancient enmity that continues to exist between the English and the Welsh. I found this of considerable interest since it mirrors the far more dangerous antagonism between the UK's first-generation Muslim citizens and its majority population today. Bottom line: The Disappeared is a superior read, particularly if you enjoy crime novels and thrillers.

Compelling, Complex Characters and Plot

The Disappeared combines the stories of a complex character with an intricate mystery of disaffected youth, familial love, terrorism, trust, and betrayal. The protagonist of the story, Jenny Cooper, is the coroner for Severn Vale, which is located on the border of England and Wales. Jenny is recently divorced, dating a man but unsure of her feelings, attempting to make a proper home for her sixteen-year-old son, and being treated for severe anxiety. Jenny's personal challenges create a multi-faceted, imperfect character that adds more layers of complexity to the difficult investigation she undertakes. After being approached by a grieving mother, Jenny calls an official inquest to see if two young Muslim students who have been missing for seven years should be declared legally dead. As soon as the investigation begins, Jenny is pressured to stop, first by her own officer and the local police, and then by British Security Services. The story deepens as the body of an unidentified young woman disappears from the morgue, the grieving mother is found dead, and Jenny begins to unravel what appears to be a conspiracy. The case, and Jenny's life, is furthered complicated by the appearance of a former attorney, McAvoy, who claims to have been set-up and sent to jail due to his involvement in the initial disappearance of the two students. Jenny is torn between the inside information he seems to offer, the danger his bad reputation represents to her, and her growing attraction to McAvoy. As the inquest continues and Jenny faces a choice between national security and surfacing truths beyond those necessary to formally declare the fate of the missing boys. Once the inquest is complete, her personal and professional lives are permanently changed and she develops the strength to begin looking for answers to questions in her own past. The Disappeared is a multi-layered, complex mystery with several inter-twined plot lines and many characters. M. R. Hall does a superb job of consistent and believable character development, and weaves the story strands to a satisfactory conclusion. I enjoyed that The Disappeared is a mystery requiring the reader to think and pay attention to the plot details, and the ways that M. R. Hall creates empathy for characters that are not always likable. I would strongly recommend The Disappeared most readers, and especially people who enjoy mysteries.

Well done & enjoyable

If you like a well-crafted story populated with realist people, this author deserves your attention. This is multi-layered story containing an excellent who-done-it while introducing a very realistic character. Jenny Cooper has a problem-filled life with challenges that cannot be ignored. This reality lifts the story above the run of the mill one-dimensional detective stories we often read. The story advances at a steady pace, pulling us into the seven-year old mystery. An enjoyable read that keeps your attention and makes you keep the author in mind.

An exciting story line

After six months on the job as the Severn Vale District coroner, Jenny Cooper concludes that very few corpses remain unidentified after forty-eighth hours in the morgue. Although she is working on a Jane Doe that has been their guest for over a week, her prime assignment is to decide whether two alleged radical Muslim college students Nazim Jamal and Rafti Hassam, who vanished seven years ago are dead. Her pre-inquest begins with Nazim's grieving hysterical mother Mrs. Jamal begging Jenny to provide closure for her. The authorities involved in the case insist the two young friends traveled to the Middle East to join one of the Islamic extremist groups that operate on both sides of the mountainous border between Pakistan and Afghanistan. Finding irregularities in the police report, she thinks the duo never left England though the pair obviously had ties with a radical Islam group. Jenny convenes an inquest in which neither the cops nor MI5 and CIA operatives cooperate; in fact they go way beyond just stonewalling her, which leads her to wonder what they are concealing. When Mrs. Hazim dies suddenly and the Jane Doe body vanishes, she wonders what she has wrought even while struggling with a divorce, her cantankerous teenage son, and her relationship with disbarred lawyer Alec MacAvoy. This exciting story line contains a strong inquest that with each clue expands in scope, but the plot is owned by the coroner who suffers from anxiety disorder and addictions caused by her mental illness. Ironically other characters are friendlier and much more charming, but readers will feel empathy only for the heroine and surviving relatives of the deceased. The Disappeared is a terrific coroner's inquest that at times reads like an espionage thriller as M. R. Hall provides a strong investigation. Harriet Klausner