Book Review: The Trap by Catherine Ryan Howard

Format: Hardcover

Pages: 300 pages

Published: August 1, 2023

Publisher: Blackstone Publishing

Genre: Mystery & Thriller, Crime

Synopsis:

One year ago, Lucy’s sister, Nicki, left to meet friends at a pub in Dublin and never came home. The third Irish woman to vanish inexplicably in as many years, the agony of not knowing what happened that night has turned Lucy’s life into a waking nightmare. So, she’s going to take matters into her own hands.

Angela works as a civilian paper-pusher in the Missing Persons Unit, but wants nothing more than to be a fully-fledged member of An Garda Síochána, the Irish police force. With the official investigation into the missing women stalled, she begins pulling on a thread that could break the case wide open–and destroy her chances of ever joining the force.

A nameless man drives through the night, his latest victim in the back seat. He’s going to tell her everything, from the beginning. And soon, she’ll realize: what you don’t know can hurt you …

Watch out; I have a new author on my “must-buy” list. Catherine Ryan Howard returns with a twisty and compelling thriller that will hook readers from beginning to end.

In Howard’s latest, Lucy is trying to discover what happened to her sister, Nicki, who disappeared a year after a night out with friends. It is the third Irish woman to vanish suspiciously in many years. Not knowing what happened to Nicki has made Lucy’s life a living hell. So she decides to devise a plan that either gives her the answers she desperately seeks or leads her deeper into a nightmare. The Trap also has two other perspectives: a civilian in the Missing Person’s Unit helping investigate these disappearances and a nameless man who adds horror and chill to the narrative as he talks to his latest victim in the back seat of the car.

There’s so much packed in this fast-paced mystery. I don’t know how Howard creates these complex puzzles full of twists and turns. The story’s pacing’s appropriately constructed and just the right amount. As soon as you come to the end of the chapter, you are hit with a surprise that makes you want to read the next chapter and then the next and before you know it, you’ve reached the end of the book and left with a stunned look. With her amazing stories, Howard takes readers on a rollercoaster ride that leaves them shocked and satisfied. She did that with 56 Days and Run Time; again, Howard can add another winner to her ever-growing repertoire.

Howard talks about how Real events inspire the Trap in the author’s note. From the 1980s, there was a string of high-profile disappearances of Irish women, called by the media The Vanishing Triangle. These unsolved disappearances inspired The Trap, and after reading this novel, it will make you want to look more at the subject. I love books that make you want to go beyond what you read and do more research independently.

I can go on and on about this book, but this is something you have to read for yourself. Thriller and mystery fans will love the rollercoaster ride Howard takes you on. The Trap is another unputdownable thriller that is a must-read for 2023. It’s one of my favorite reads this year, and I am sure it will become one of yours.

P.S. You will also feel guilty for watching Jurassic Park instead of reading the novel, which I think was Howard’s diabolical plan all along.

Thank you Blackstone Publishing for an advanced copy in exchange for an honest review.