Finished: "Lost" by Michael Robotham

Finished: Lost by Michael Robotham, 2006, 0385508662

Very, very good. Detective Inspector Vincent Ruiz wakes up in the Thames hallucinating that the yellow buoy his arms are wrapped around is Marilyn Monrow. Ruiz has been stricken with trauma-induced amnesia and has to find out why he was in the river, missing his Glock, and has a massive rifle wound in his thigh.

Ruiz is in trouble with his boss after a boat covered in bullet holes and blood is found drifting on the river. Ruiz is suspected of foul play and faking amnesia to avoid investigators. The only clue Ruiz has is a photo in his wallet of a seven year old girl whose disappearance he investigated three years ago – and whose convicted murderer sits in prison. Ruiz works his case with the help of a psychiatrist friend and his memory returns in sharp bursts filling in gaps of the mystery. Ruiz finds that the girl may be alive and he was following a ransom demand to the child's mother.

Lost is a real good book. I was left guessing what happened to the girl until the end. The ending itself could have been better since some parts of the plot I wanted to know more about are unreconciled.

The author's website lists one author novel by him and the book jacket says he co-wrote autobiographies. Lost was sold as Drowning Man in the UK.