In Last Seen, Cal and Faith Holden take their son, Cage, to a neighborhood carnival so he can prove his bravery to himself and his friends. The haunted house, known as the Chamber of Horrors, is filled with blood and gore, mock killers and ghosts, and a sense of foreboding that is palpable even to the reader. The chapter where Mofina walks this family through the Chamber is as intense as any I have ever read, and it honestly kept me on the edge of my seat until Cal and Faith exited....and then I waited.
My anxiety grew along with the Holdens’ when Cage never came out of the Chamber of Horrors. As the story progresses the carnival closes down the ride, the police and eventually the FBI are called in, and it becomes obvious that Cage has been kidnapped. Everyone becomes a suspect, even the parents, who have been experiencing marital problems are not exempt from suspicion. Cal is a journalist who attempts to use his connections to aid in the hunt for his son, and the reader feels his panic as he hits dead end after dead end.
Mofina, a journalist himself, brings a sense of reality to his narrative and uses his knowledge of his trade to keep the plot moving along. Last Seen is mostly a police procedural, and that is something that Mofina shines at, so this book is one that I can comfortably recommend.
- Beverly
Publisher - MIRA
Date of Publication - March 1, 2018