The Vanishing of Katharina Linden [Kindle Edition]

In a nice small German town, young girls start disappearing. We experience the growing unease in town through the eyes of 11 year old Pia who is determined to unravel the mystery.
My summary may make this seem as a children's book on an adult topic. Actually, the suspense and adult writing style make it more suitable for both adults and older teenagers, who are less naive than Pia about the bad things that might happen.
This is actually a really good page-turner, far from being a generic pulpish thriller it is rather an endearing story that makes us reflect on how we perceived the world as a child, for example Pia's worry that her only real friend is the least popular boy in school, is more tangible than how she experiences the disappearances as something abstract, or an event from a cruel fairy tale. The story gets more intense, thriller-like towards the end.
The style is remarkably confident for a debut and utterly readable, with good dialogue, great filmic suspense, and several funny details (again often linked to Pia's perception), yet also poignant in the depiction of the slowly disintegrating marriage of Pia's parents: the father being a friendly level-headed German, while the British mother who never adjusted to life in Bad Münstereiffel being both manupilative and caring. This is actually a real city, and when you google it for pictures you may well conclude that the mother should do more effort to adjust, as it looks really nice. Another amusing detail is the sprinkling of a few German words throughout the text, and it's never a burden as the context or a short glossary at the end keep things clear - I think it adds character to the text. All the above make it an interesting and original work, that I think could well be translated to the screen.
In short, a recommended suspenseful book that strays from the beaten path.

The Vanishing of Katharina Linden By Helen Grant

An enjoyable read from end to end - full of rich details and beautifully written.
The setting seems to truly come alive, with references to local customs and folklore alongside a real sense of place - this is not a fictional location but so real that you can almost feel the stones of the old town.
The characters are a blend of both the traditional German townsfolk, reserved and presenting an outward face of civility while harbouring long held suspicions, fear and resentment, alongside a splash of Englishness that seems to throw both cultures into contrast.
Although a child at the time of the story, the main characters narrative is told from an adult perspective, looking back at the dark events that occurred in the quiet town. This allows the language of the story to be told in a more adult way with fascinating description and wonderful detail.
The story itself touches on a subject that is truly relevant today and highlights the fear that so influences parents views of our children's safety but as it is told from a child's perspective it is all the more frightening and dark. While the adult characters struggle with truth and justice, the children challenge their fears and seek more direct answers with terrifying consequences!

Let's hope there are more books from this talented new author!

Set in a small German town in 1999, this novel could be enjoyed by both teens and adults. Katharina is the first young girl to disappear in broad daylight on a chilly day in February. The atmosphere of unease is heightened when more girls vanish mysteriously and some of the townsfolk are keen to point the finger of blame at one eccentric individual.

The story is narrated by Pia, a bright ten year old who finds herself alienated at school when her grandmother dies in rather unconventional circumstances -

"My life would have been so different had I not been known as the girl whose grandmother exploded. And had I not been born in Bad Munstereifel. If we had lived in the city - well I'm not saying the event would have gone unnoticed, but the fuss would probably only have lasted a week before public interest moved elsewhere."

Poor Pia finds herself shunned by former friends and her only remaining ally is another pariah, StinkStefan. The two pair up and focus their attentions on discovering who is responsible for the abductions. At first they suspect faery or occult involvement but then they toe the party line and zoom in on the town gossips' preferred target, the unconventional Herr Duster.

Unusually, for a children's book, the writing is quite adult in style, very lyrical at times. There is an air of menace throughout the novel with frequent references to folklore in the style of the grim Brothers Grim rather than dainty Disney. Perhaps this fits in with the age of the narrator, Pia at 19 recalling the events of 9 years before and she reinterprets invents through a more adult viewpoint. The author has a great sense of place, vividly recreating the small town German setting complete with festivals and traditions. I do wish I'd been aware of the glossary of German words and phrases at the back of the book before I reached the end as it would have saved a lot of guesswork on my part! There is a lovely section where Pia spends time in England with her maternal grandmother and experiences the difficulties of being a stranger in a strange land. Indeed there are quite a lot of adult themes which would be beyond the average 12 year old's understanding, so yes, it's a book for more sophisticated teens and adults.

I really enjoyed this, Helen Grant's debut novel - it surprised me with its many layers and richness of language and Pia and StinkStefan are a memorable duo. I'm looking forward to her next novel The Glass Demon.