The Missing Season by Gillian French | Book Review

2.5 of 5 Stars

"Mumbler, Mumbler, in your bed, Mumbler, Mumbler, take your head, Eat your nose,  Gobble your toes,  And bury you where the milkweed grows." 

The Missing Season is marketed as a young adult thriller novel with a hint of horror where children go missing every October at the hands of a mysterious monster named The Mumbler.

For me, this book didn't hit the mark because I am such a huge horror and thriller junkie. I really wanted to love this book as it seemed like the perfect storm for someone like me!

The main issues I have with this novel is that it read more like a YA contemporary novel rather than the thriller/horror novel that it seems to be marketed as. The Mumbler is just glazed over and never really fleshed out as a full scary monster, so I never feared it. While the characters were, one dimensional, and I didn’t feel connected to them. There is a romance subplot integrated into the novel, but it was very instalovey, and I couldn’t get on board with it.

Another factor that I wasn’t really a fan of was the writing style. Now I have never read any of Gillian French’s other novels, so I am not sure if this was just a one book kind of style or her regular writing style, but I was not a fan. It was choppy and confusing for someone who has dyslexia like myself. I kept having to reread sections of the novel for it to make sense to me. If you enjoy contemporary novels with a hint of something hiding in the darkness than I would check this book out but if you wanted to be scared in the middle of the night maybe try Stephen King.

Blurb Whenever another kid goes missing in October, the Pender kids know what is really behind it: a horrific monster out in the marshes they have named the Mumbler. That’s what Clara’s new crew tells her when she moves to town: Bree and Sage, who take her under their wing; spirited Trace, who has taken the lead on this year’s Halloween prank war; and magnetic Kincaid, whose devil-may-care attitude and air of mystery are impossible for Clara to resist.

Clara doesn’t actually believe in the Mumbler. But as Halloween gets closer and tensions build in the town, it’s hard to shake the feeling that there really is something dark and dangerous in Pender, lurking in the shadows, waiting to bring the stories to life.

WHERE TO FIND THE BOOK

AMAZON GOODREADS GILLIAN FRENCH’S WEBSITE