The book then covers the negotiations between Israeli Prime Minister Yitzhak Rabin and Syrian President Hafez al-Assad, as well as the emergence of the 1993 Oslo Accords.

He proceeds to the diplomatic fallout from the assassination to the election of Benjamin Netanyahu as prime minister, followed by several chapters dedicated to the negotiations on the 1997 Hebron Agreement.

"[1] Samuel W. Lewis reviewed the book for Foreign Affairs, praised it as "a major contribution to the diplomatic history of the twentieth century" that described the Arab–Israeli negotiations in "exquisite detail", but added that it was not a page-turner.

[2] In The Washington Post, Glenn Frankel found the history "an epic and tragic tale" that offered revealing profiles of a multitude of Arab and Israeli leaders.

"[5] The Nation called the book a "comprehensive and fascinating memoir" but also stated that "The Missing Peace raises serious questions about the soundness of the Israel-first school of which Dennis Ross is a prominent member.