Missing Children
By Gerald Lynch
256 pages • ISBN 978-1-927426-80-7
When ten-years-old Shawn Thorpe suddenly vanishes on a museum outing, her family descends into turmoil. Her father, Lorne, a doctor, drinks and self-medicates – his increasingly bizarre behaviour driving his wife from house and thwarting the police investigation led by Kevin Beldon. Is the abductor one of Lorne`s colleagues? A member of the local community association? Or…? As the suspects being to fall by the wayside, Shawn suddenly reappears. She is unharmed. And she refuses to talk. Beldon and Dr. Thorpe, in an improbable alliance, sharpen their investigation to a fine point. But even as they hone in on Shawn`s abductor, more children go missing.
Gerald Lynch was born in Ireland and grew up in Canada. Missing Children is his fifth book of fiction, the third set in the Ottawa suburb of Troutstream, and preceded by the acclaimed novels Troutstream (1995) and Exotic Dancer (2001). He has also authored two books of non-fiction, edited a number of books, and published many short stories and essays and reviews. He has been the recipient if a number of awards for his writing, including the gold award for short fiction in Canada`s National Magazine Awards. He teaches at the University of Ottawa.
