The Counting Game

Nolan’s twisty if overlong debut opens with a 13-year-old girl vanishing in the woods outside a small Irish town in 1995. Saoirse Kellough, the middle child of a family riven by tragedy, disappears while playing in the woods with her nine-year-old brother, Jack, who emerges too shaken to reveal that his sister is missing. The next morning, Saoirse’s absence sets off a manhunt that puts the village on edge; it’s the fourth disappearance of a girl in the same forest since 1975. Freya Hemmings, a Dublin psychotherapist with a background in childhood trauma, is brought in to consult on the case, working with Jack to uncover what happened. Nolan alternates narration duties among her large cast, but the most effective chapters are told by Freya and focus on how her demons mirror those of the Kellough siblings, who have been under the care of their aunt since their mother’s apparent suicide. Though the narrative picks up some steam the deeper Freya gets into her investigation, her slow march to the truth is likely to test readers’ patience. Still, fans of Irish crime fiction will admire Nolan’s regional detail and gift for atmosphere. Agent: Stacy Testa, Writers House. (June)