Publication Date January 27, 2026

I am certain I have read at least one book by Thrity Umrigar, but can’t remember a THING about it…which won’t be the case with her latest, Missing Sam, which I just read (thanks to Algonquin Books and NetGalley for providing a copy in exchange for this honest review).

The story sounded like a good basis for a “thriller” — a young woman named Ali, living in Ohio with her wife Sam(antha) in an upper-middle class suburb of Cleveland, wakes after an evening spent partying and arguing to find that Sam has gone for their morning run alone. Expecting her return at any time, Sam finally reports Sam missing and is met with suspicion and scrutiny by first the police, then Sam’s college level students, and finally by newspeople and a ton of wackos on social media. They had always felt secure in their “bubble” and not the object of overt scorn, ridicule, whatever—but Ali is a Muslim woman of color who has grown up experiencing both covert and overt racism, misogyny, and xenophobia. At first fearful about Sam’s safety, she also experiences anger and frustration…

The first part of the book focuses on the disappearance and mystery around Sam and Ali. The second part (SPOILER ALERT!) revolves around Sam’s return, and is filled with the struggles around a lesbian couple living in suburbia. As the story goes along, the focus moves to today’s political climate, and the danger faced by same-sex couples encountering both psychological and physical danger, and for Ali there is the added issue of being brown and queer in America in the 2020s.

So as it went along it morphed from a thriller into a look at social, political, interpersonal, career, and educational issues exploding across the U.S. It can be enjoyed from a variety of perspectives, and I get the criticisms that it wasn’t what some readers expected. My response is “oh well, perhaps your expectations are the issue here, rather than the examination of the situation these women faced.” I enjoyed it, and appreciate the author’s skill.Four stars.