HBO Desperate Housewives. This is one of those books that requires a certain composure to be able to withstand – but for those with the fortitude, it will be quite fun and delicious indeed. One where everyone has secrets, a lot of them are dark, and some of them are the kind that tend to grab a lot of headlines when exposed, even when among fully consenting adults.
Spice level is maybe jalapeno or so, *maybe* a touch hotter, but it is more the exact scenarios of the spice that will test more people than the actual heat of it. So more like a very concentrated lemon suppository kind of heat than a “I’m breathing fire” heat. The kind of heat that (mostly) doesn’t *hurt* so much as make at least a lot, perhaps most, of people extremely uncomfortable.
The other things that will be difficult for some are the multiple perspectives combined with seemingly no real distinction between them – these are all similar people with similar enough backgrounds living similar enough lives, and the way they “speak” on the page doesn’t really differentiate themselves strongly, so it can be difficult at times to keep track of whose head we’re in at what point. Combined with a short documentary style interview paragraph or so at the beginning of each chapter, most often from still other perspectives, it can be a lot at times, even for such a short-ish (300 ish page) book.
But for those with the fortitude, this really is a strong, delicious book that has a lot to offer. It hits in some expected ways… and a few unexpected ones to boot. Torre knows what her readers will expect in such a situation and tale, and both gives and withholds these expectations to craft a story that is compelling for what it actually is. One where you could absolutely see even a lady reading this book with a strong maduro cigar as she lounges out on her back pool deck overlooking the 18th hole at a golf course, daring the fat asses playing through to ogle her knowing that she could ruin any of them in an instant. So, not exactly the “chilling poolside in Vegas with the girlfriends” vibe, yet also far from a girlboss thing as well.
Overall a strong book that will prove itself too strong for some readers – and that is perfectly ok for both the book and those readers who know themselves well enough to know they likely can’t withstand it. For those who do choose to take on the challenge though, please do leave a review yourself wherever you found this one.
Very much recommended.
This review of The Missing Ones by A.R. Torre was originally written on May 17, 2026.