Finding Sophie by Imran Mahmood

An emotionally powerful novel, beautifully written and technically clever novel, from an author who knows the theatre of the courtroom and the heart of a parent. As the title suggests, the aim of the story is the hunt for a couple's missing teenage daughter as they feel frustrated by the lack of progress by the police.

Ultimately they take things into their own hands. They are suspicious of a local man who appears odd and never opens his front door, and are convinced that he has something to do with their daughter's disappearance somehow. The distraught parents attempts to  access him become more desperate. This isn't going to end well.

The story opens with a scene at the Old Bailey, so we know that someone ends up in the court that deals with the most serious of crimes. The other chapters alternate between the mother and the father, showing how they attempt to cope with the situation, their despair, their nightmarish state of mind.

​However, the real thriller aspect appears towards the end when the location is solely the Old Bailey. The intricacies of the legal process, the smart barristers and the cultivated plotting by the protagonists, lead to an exciting and unpredictable ending. Complex and human, this is a very talented author whose work is exemplary. Recommended.

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Published by Bloomsbury Publishing, Raven Books on 14 March 2024.
​Advance review copy supplied by the publisher.

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