Solid Book Three Is So Different From Others In Series That It Can Serve As An Introduction. This book is very different than most third books in a series in that it is *so very different* from the first two that if two of the main characters didn’t also appear in the prior books, you would almost say these books weren’t in the same universe at all.
And yet, the book still absolutely works – and even works as a way of a more “real world” type introduction to these characters before you dive into the more paranormal-ish realism of the prior two books. Apparently several other Advance Review Copy readers didn’t realize this was Book 3 of the series – a series I’ve been reading since the beginning, though with on average 200 ish books read between reading installments of this series, even as I’ve read them all as Advance Review Copies myself – and they all claim that this book works well as a standalone, so there’s that perspective as well. 🙂
Overall, even with the toned down paranormal aspects here – and perhaps *because of* the toned-down paranormal aspects here, Mejia has crafted a particularly compelling missing person/ found family thriller that doesn’t bend your mind the way the prior two books do… but perhaps makes your pulse pound that much harder because of it. Particularly through one sequence late in the text, my own heart was racing enough that I actually glanced at my smart watch to make sure I was actually fine and didn’t need to call 911. Seriously.
In the end, truly a creative and compelling third book in the series that leaves open the possibility for more books without explicitly setting anything up, it will be interesting to see where Mejia chooses to go from here.
Very much recommended.
This review of The Whisper Place by Mindy Mejia was originally written on September 15, 2025.