Interesting premise. Charlie is the only one who insists that he had a brother, Liam, who went missing on his birthday the year before. Every trace of Liam is GONE from their house and from the minds of everyone else. Only his best friend, Ana, believes him. When Charlie sees some clues around the house he is more determined to find the truth. His mom is suffering from depression. Strange vivid dreams about a family struggling in Ireland and then in America haunt him. Charlie keeps digging to get to the truth and bring his brother home. ( )

Charlie O'Reilly was an only child. It therefore made everyone uncomfortable when he talked about his little brother.

With this great hook begins a story of love, loss, regret, forgiveness, and eerie, supernatural mystery. Charlile remembers Liam so clearly - his favorite foods, how he used to mess up Charlie's comics, Liam's irritating nickname for him -- but no one else has any recollection of him, and the more Charlie insists, the deeper the goes the wedge that is driving his family apart. Only Ana, Charlie's best friend, steadfastly believes him, though she has no memory of Liam either. Then two things happen: Charlie and Ana meet Jonathan, a young and wise volunteer coach of their baseball team, and Charlile starts having vivid dreams where he is a boy named Kieran undertaking the grinding, dangerous journey to America with his family after enduring unimaginable loss in Ireland during the Great Potato Famine. The fates of Liam, Kieran, Charlie, Ana, and Jonathan are intertwined in a creepily magical way.

It took me some time to get into the book, particularly once the dreams started happening, as they seemed like such a random distraction. Once the action really got going I could not put the book down. Other reviewers have wondered how the themes of guilt and forgiveness would resonate with middle grade readers. I wonder the same thing. The book was published in 2019, so I guess we shall see.

Well written, well-drawn characters, many interesting, original touches. I'm not sure that a story that revolves around guilt and forgiveness will be all that riveting to middle graders. If you've read Neil Gaiman's Coraline, the plot will feel a little familiar. ( )

The Missing Piece of Charlie O’Reilly is a tale about love, loss, family and friendship while highlighting the healing power of forgiveness for ourselves and others. It has just the right mix of mystery, fantasy and spookiness to keep me on the edge of my seat the entire time I read this book. Ms. Ansari did an amazing job writing this story. I found this book to be a powerfully written tale that grabbed my heart-strings and still hasn’t let them go!

I received this book for free. A favorable review was not required and all views expressed are my own. Thank you to Ms. Anasari, Walden Pond Press and Edelweiss for the opportunity to read and review this book. ( )