Missing Sam by Thrity Umrigar
Published by Algonquin Books
Publication date: January 27, 2026
Genres: Book Clubs, Fiction, Contemporary, Mystery, Suspense
Bookshop
It’s the July 4th weekend when Ali‘s wife Sam goes missing on her early morning run in their upscale Cleveland Heights neighborhood. Her disappearance sets in motion events that keep Thrity Umrigar’s new novel, Missing Sam, at a slow burn over the mystery, but ignites a blaze in the response the community has to the situation.
Aliyah Mirza is a U.S. citizen, a Muslim whose parents escaped from Afghanistan before she was born. She owns a highly successful interior design firm. Samantha, a professor, is her wife. They live comfortable lives with friends throughout the community. The night before Sam’s run, the couple had a big fight after a party when Sam was unhappy over Ali’s flirtation with a friend. It ended badly so when Sam is gone in the morning, Ali is unconcerned and later, only mildly annoyed because they have company arriving that evening. By the time she contacts the police it’s been over 24 hours. It’s this mistaken belief in how long to wait before contacting the authorities regarding a missing person that is the beginning of Ali’s battle to get Sam back.
This is not just a thriller because Umrigar’s talents go far beyond creating suspense. She quickly sifts the details into Missing Sam that one might find in any marriage—a flirty spouse, jealousy, flaring tempers, but within the framework of a marriage between two women, one of whom is brown. Ali is the suspect and her initial missteps only make it easier for people to hide their small-minded phobias under a blanket of concern. Umrigar gives voice to a wide cast of characters on both sides of the compassion spectrum, not allowing an easy shrugging off of any one person as “too extreme”. Instead, the story is divided into four parts encompassing points-of-view from the morning of Sam’s disappearance to the aftermath.
For mystery/suspense readers there is plenty to love in this story, but there is also the “something more”, the thoughtfulness that Umrigar brings to the societal and personal aspects of all her books. It may be her first mystery novel, but I highly doubt Missing Sam will be her last and I’m here for it.
If you haven’t read Umrigar before I highly recommend all of her books. Honor is one of my favorites.
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*I received a free copy of this book from Algonquin in exchange for an honest review.*
Glad you vetted this novel for me and liked it. I have read several of Umrigar’s other novels so I will likely get to this one. It slightly reminds me of A Great Country by Shilpi Somaya Gowda. hmm.
I haven’t read this, but it sounds like it needs to go on my TBR!