The Missing Half by Ashley Flowers

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⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ Book Review: The Missing Half by Ashley Flowers

👉 Grab your copy of The Missing Half on Amazon here (affiliate link)

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⚠️ Trigger Warnings

This book contains depictions of:

• Sexual violence & rape

• Graphic violence

• Alcohol abuse & addiction

• Cursing

• Death

If those are triggers for you, proceed with caution.

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First Impressions 🍹

I’ve read Ashley Flowers’s first novel, All Good People Here, and thought it was… fine. Not bad, not great. I gave it ⭐⭐⭐ (and blogged about it). So for The Missing Half, I kept my expectations low and level — which meant I was absolutely blown away. This book is a page-turner from the jump, and the ending? 🤯 I didn’t see a single twist coming. Also, I love when a title secretly tells you the twist. Brilliant. Just brilliant.

Easily a ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ read for me.

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📖 Spoiler-Filled Plot Summary

(⚠️ Spoilers ahead! Skip if you want to go in blind.)

Nic Monroe has been living in a fog ever since her sister Kasey vanished seven years ago. Kasey’s car was found abandoned on the side of the road, belongings inside, door open — the classic “missing woman” case. Nic, meanwhile, spirals into drinking, gets a DWI, and works at a kiddie party place (Funland).

Enter Jenna Connor, who lost her own sister Jules around the same time. The two team up, thinking maybe their sisters’ disappearances are connected.

Their investigation leads them through:

• 🌭 A barbecue joint where Jules once worked (next door to the record store where Kasey worked).

• 👀 Creepy manager Steve McLean, a known harasser and abuser.

• 🕵️‍♂️ Nic’s family friend/manager Brad, who turns out to have been having an affair with Kasey (!!).

• 🧩 Lauren (Kasey’s coworker), who finally admits she knew about the affair but was silenced by threats.

Piece by piece, the case unravels. Detective Aimes reveals that Jenna’s hair was found in Kasey’s car years ago. Then Nic discovers Jenna owns a gun and plans to confront someone…

And then comes the BIGGEST bombshell:

• Nic follows Jenna and discovers… Kasey is alive. 😱

• Jenna accuses Kasey of hitting Jules with her car and faking her own abduction.

• Nic, faced with a choice, protects her sister and kills Jenna with a hammer.

But then — plot twist number two:

• Kasey admits SHE didn’t kill Jules. Nic did.

• Flashback: drunk Nic hit Jules with her car, passed out, and Kasey covered it up. She staged Jules’s “abduction” and later her own disappearance to protect Nic.

In the present, Nic and Kasey dump Jenna’s body in the same swamp where Jules was left years ago. Nic reflects bitterly that both sets of sisters (herself + Kasey, and Jenna + Jules) are “reunited,” though maybe the wrong sisters survived.

Dark, brutal, and genius.

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What Worked for Me ✅

• Title tie-in: I love when a book’s title has hidden meaning, and here it was chef’s kiss (well… not chef’s kiss, but perfect 😉).

• Non-stop pacing: No filler, no fluff.

• Twists on twists on twists: Just when I thought I had it, nope. Wrong again.

• Messy characters: Nic is deeply flawed, and Kasey is no saint. Thank you, Ashley Flowers, for not making them “perfect victims.”

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What Didn’t Work for Me ❌

Honestly? Not much. If you like neat, happy endings, you might hate this book. It is bleak. It is dark. But for me? That’s what made it work.

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Final Thoughts 🌟

Ashley Flowers has officially redeemed herself in my eyes. All Good People Here was a 3-star read. The Missing Half? A solid 5/5. If you like psychological thrillers that don’t pull punches and leave you staring at the ceiling when you’re done — this one’s for you.

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📚 If You Liked The Missing Half, Try:

• The Housemaid by Freida McFadden (for twisty domestic suspense)

• The Couple Next Door by Shari Lapena (small-town secrets, family lies)

• Behind Closed Doors by B.A. Paris (unputdownable psychological thriller)