Open Books Challenge 2026: About a Missing Person or Object

The Open Books Reading Challenge is a year-long reading challenge for people interested in pushing the boundaries of their reading. For full details of the program, please check-out our page at: https://www.rplmn.org/books-more/discover-more/open-books-reading-challenge

These are some ideas that fit the 2026 category "About a missing person or object."

Happy Reading!

Updated December 31, 2025
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The boy from the woods
Coben, Harlan
Stand-alone player
In the shocking thriller from the #1 New York Times bestselling author of Run Away, a man whose past is shrouded in mystery must find a missing teenage girl before her disappearance brings about disastrous consequences for her community . . . and the world. The man...
The last thing he told me : a novel
Dave, Laura
Audiobook
A 2022 Audie Award Finalist A Goodreads Top 20 Book of the Last 5 Years Don't miss the #1 New York Times bestselling blockbuster and Reese Witherspoon Book Club Pick that's sold over 5 million copies--now streaming on Apple TV+ starring Jennifer Garner! The...
The girl who was taken
Donlea, Charlie
Paper Book
The bestselling author of Twenty Years Later delivers a chilling thriller where nothing is at it seems and each reveal is more shocking than the last...right up to the jaw-dropping final twist. "A gripping thriller that will blow readers away." -Mary Kubica, ...
The missing half : a novel
Flowers, Ashley
Paper Book
NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER * Two women haunted by their sisters' unsolved disappearances band together in this captivating mystery from the author of All Good People Here and host of the #1 true crime podcast Crime Junkie. "A propulsive mystery with...
InvestiGators
Green, John Patrick
Ebook
The deceivers
Haddix, Margaret Peterson
Paper Book
The return of Ellie Black : a novel
Jean, Emiko
Ebook
A USA TODAY Bestseller | An NPR Best Book of 2024 | A Goodreads Best Thriller of 2024 In this "page-turning suspense novel, shrewd character study, and captivating mystery" (Stephen King) Detective Chelsey Calhoun's life is turned upside down when she gets the...
Then she was gone
Jewell, Lisa
Ebook
From the #1 New York Times bestselling author of The Family Upstairs and None of This Is True comes an "acutely observed family drama" (People) about the lingering aftermath of a young girl's disappearance. Ellie Mack was the perfect daughter. She was...
Trail of the lost : the relentless search to bring home the missing hikers of the Pacific Crest Trail
Lankford, Andrea
Ebook
From an award-winning former law enforcement park ranger and investigator, this female-driven true crime adventure follows the author's quest to find missing hikers along the Pacific Crest Trail by pairing up with an eclectic group of unlikely allies.  ​   As a...
The god of the woods
Moore, Liz
Paper Book
A NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER and ONE OF THE NEW YORK TIMES'S NOTABLE BOOKS OF THE YEAR A NEW YORK TIMES "BEST THRILLER" and "BEST CRIME NOVEL" OF THE YEAR PEOPLE MAGAZINE'S #1 BOOK OF THE YEAR "Extraordinary . . ....
The impossible fortune
Osman, Richard
Paper Book
#1 NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER * The unmissable new mystery in the Thursday Murder Club series from bestselling author Richard Osman, now streaming on Netflix Who's got time to think about murder when there's a wedding to plan? It's been a quiet year for the...
The president is missing
Patterson, James
Ebook
Don't miss the #1 New York Times bestselling thriller collaboration from the world's favorite author, James Patterson, and former President Bill Clinton. An "undeniably gripping ride through the hidden passageways of power and politics" that "moves like Air Force One."...
Middle of the night : a novel
Sager, Riley
Paper Book
THE INSTANT NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER In the latest jaw-dropping thriller from New York Times bestselling author Riley Sager, a man must contend with the long-ago disappearance of his childhood best friend--and the dark secrets lurking just beyond the safe confines...
Where'd you go, Bernadette : a novel
Semple, Maria.
Audiobook
Bernadette is a frightfully intelligent wife and mother whose intense allergy to Seattle specifically, and to people in general, has driven her to hire a virtual assistant in India to execute even her most basic tasks. Then her daughter, Bee, insists on a family trip to Antarctica as her reward...
Pretty girls : a novel
Slaughter, Karin
Paper Book
Lee Child says it's "stunning... certain to be a book of the year."   Kathy Reichs calls it "extraordinary... a major achievement." Jeffery Deaver says that "fiction doesn't get any better than this."   Gillian Flynn says of...
Anatomy of lost things
Stout, Shawn K.
Paper Book
A laugh-through-your-tears middle grade novel about what it's like to lose something precious. For fans of the Three Rancheros series by Kate DiCamillo. A necklace. A bugle. A lion statue. What do they have to do with each other? Absolutely nothing unless you're Tildy, Leon, or...
All the colors of the dark : a novel
Whitaker, Chris
Ebook
NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER * OVER ONE MILLION COPIES SOLD * From the author of We Begin at the End comes a soaring thriller and an epic love story that "hits like a sledgehammer . . . an absolutely must-read novel" (Gillian Flynn, author of Gone Girl). Read...
Bones at the crossroads
Williams, LaDarrion
Paper Book
NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER * In the sequel to the "unforgettable" (People), New York Times bestselling fantasy debut Blood at the Root, a Black teenager with magical powers returns to Caiman University only to find new dangers and new secrets. It's...
Gone before goodbye
Witherspoon, Reese
Paper Book
AN INSTANT #1 NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER  An unforgettable suspense novel that combines the storytelling talents of Academy Award-winning actor Reese Witherspoon and internationally bestselling author Harlan Coben. Gone Before Goodbye...
The lost bookshop
Woods, Evie
Paper Book
Pre-order Evie Woods' new book The Violin Maker's Secret now, out in February 2026! The Echo of Old Books meets The Lost Apothecary in this evocative and charming novel full of mystery and secrets. 'The thing about books,' she said 'is that they help you to imagine a...

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