Missing is written in the time-honored tradition of a good-old spy thriller. It's a "who-done-it" intensified by the intrigue of a Middle Eastern hide-and-seek, and a frantic search for a stash of gold that may not even exist.
The plot questions whether Saddam hid millions of dollars in gold before his capture, why a suspicious cargo was loaded onto an airliner that was later reported lost over the Indian Ocean; and how that airliner subsequently ended up on a non-existent island in the middle of nowhere. In the midst of all these questions, is the issue of whether U.S. Agent Craig "Coop" Cooper will be able to find the sniper who almost took his life?