All Good People Here by Ashley Flowers (2022)

All Good People Here by Ashley Flowers (2022)

The debut novel from the host of the Crime Junkie podcast.

Laura’s Rating: 2.5/5 Stars

Plot: Margot Davies was six when her friend and neighbor January Jacobs went missing and was discovered in a ditch hours later. Twenty years later, Margot is a journalist in the big city but returns to care for her ailing uncle. When another young girl goes missing, Margot feels like history is repeating itself and it’s her mission to save this girl before it’s too late.

Analysis: I’ll start by saying that the writing was decent and the characters were interesting. Beyond that, I don’t have loads of praise.

I feel like the main case is pretty much a ripoff of the JonBenét Ramsey case, down to the age of the little girl. This makes it less interesting because it feels like a recycled scenario. The concept of a career woman returning to her small hometown to uncover the truth about a mystery also feels like it’s been done before. The book was fine, just not very original.

My real problem: The ending. Cliffhanger is not the right word. It felt unfinished and unsatisfying. All Good People Here  was an okay thriller, but the plot felt too familiar and the end was disappointing.