When Did We Lose Harriet? (Review)

 When Did We Lose Harriet? is a book whose title intrigued me from the beginning.  I was excited to choose this book for a fun review.  Suspense is great fun for me, and I do like cozy mysteries.

A teenager named Harriet has been missing for weeks, but no one seems to care.  Though she lives with her aunt and uncle, they have not even reported her missing.  The teens and staff at the teen center where she hangs out seem to be thankful she is gone.

When MacLaren (also known as Mac, Clara, and mistakenly called Laura by some who don't listen) visits Montgomery, Alabama, she finds something that needs to be returned to Harriet.  This begins her long and thorough search for Harriet.

No one misses Harriet.  No one seems to really care that she is missing.  It's sad really, but author Patricia Sprinkle fabricates a realistic tale of why this lonely girl is not missed.  Repeatedly while reading, I was just so moved and saddened at how realistic this story of an unloved girl who went missing.

One thing I really liked about the book was the cross-racial relationship that developed between MacLaren and Josheba.  They became very close...and yet neither had had a black/white good friend before-just acquaintances.    I thought their relationship was written about with tact and honesty.

I wish I could only say good things about this book, but the n-word was used.  Just once, but still.  Other than that, When Did We Lose Harriet? was a fabulous book, and if you like a bit of mystery, I highly recommend it!  I can't wait to read more of Patricia Sprinkle and MacLaren Yearbough Mysteries.

Thank you, Zondervan, for providing the book for review purposes.