rounded up from 4.5 stars
First book in series: 4.75 stars

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Thank You to NetGalley and Hera Books for this ARC!!

All around Albuquerque, New Mexico, young women are going missing, seemingly vanished into thin air. With no link between the victims, Detective Alyssa Wyatt is quickly plunged into a horrifying case with no obvious clues. And when Jersey Andrews, the best friend of Alyssa’s teenage daughter, Holly, joins the list of vanished girls, the case becomes personal.

As the first tortured body of a young girl appears, abandoned on the streets, Alyssa is forced into a frantic hunt to track down the killers – before more innocent women lose their lives.

I haven't read the first book in the series but it really doesn't matter. This is an extremely dark book which addresses a serious crime that exists in our society. We get to read the ordeal the missing girls face in captivity and it becomes extremely difficult to control your anger and disgust. However their grit and determination will swell your heart with pride.

Overall a great book with interesting characters which keeps you on the edge till the end!! ( )

In this book, the second in the series, Detective Alyssa Wyatt and her partner, Cord, tackle the genuine horror of sex trafficking of underage girls. When her daughter's friend also goes missing in the Albuquerque, New Mexico area, it becomes personal for Alyssa, who is a tough but caring investigator who has no trouble doing whatever is necessary to rescue victims and bring the perpetrators to justice. This one was a fast-paced, nail-biter that was hard to put down. Definitely worth the time invested. ( )

The Toybox by Charly Fox
Detective Alyssa Wyatt #2

Well, the book description is correct…I stayed up till 3:30 to finish this book and then had trouble getting to sleep once in my bed. This was a book I will not forget any time soon. Gripping, gritty and gruesome this story is one that though not one hundred percent explicit left no doubt that the missing girls had more to deal with than anyone ever should have to bear.

What I liked:
* Alyssa Wyatt: this female lead character is one to admire. She has both feet on the ground, is a good leader, works well with her team, is compassionate and so much more. She is in a stable marriage with children she loves and cares for. She is…normal.
* Cord Roberts: job partner to Alyssa, he too is normal. A good man, happily married, good team player and someone I want to get to know better, too.
* Alyssa’s family: all seem to be normal (hear the repetition?) I am so ready for crime stories with people in charge that I can relate to
* The writing: plot, pace and writing were excellent
* That I was grabbed immediately then could not put the book down till the wee hours of the morning
* The issue of human-sex trafficking was presented in a way that was real and made me think about how to prevent it…
* That there was a happy ending for some

What I did not like:
* Knowing that human trafficking and sex-slaves really exist in this world and that there is so little regard for the plight of these people
* The entitled hands-off parents some of the girls had in their lives
* The evil amoral abusive people in the story – wanted to see them all experience exactly what they were so willing to do to the women they tortured
* Knowing that I missed the first book in this series – will have to see if I can find and read it soon

Did I enjoy this book? Yes, though the subject matter was not always easy reading
Would I read more by this author? Definitely!

Thank you to NetGalley and Hera Books for the ARC – This is my honest review.

5 Stars ( )