I was given an ARC from NetGalley in exchange for an honest and independent review.
This was an intriguing read with a steady pace which kept me hooked. There were no massive twists and turns in the first half of the but just a slow burning plot which slowly revealed facts. In the second half of the book the pace and intensity increased dramatically as all became more clear. The characters are excellently portrayed and very credible.
A good book.
4 ****

Wow, I think I am in shock. This is Lisa Jewell, but not as we know her! Gone is the women's fiction a la 'Ralph's Party'. What we have here is a family drama crossed with a psychological thriller. And it is gripping!

I don't want to say too much about this book because I don't want to spoil it, but this book looks at how grief affects a family after the disappearance of one of the children. It's quite a twisted book - not for the feint hearted at times - but it is thrilling. It gets under your skin. And it is very poignant. I finished it just before bedtime and I was like 'woah, I might be to disturbed to go to sleep now'. And I'm still thinking about it now, the next morning. I'm not sure what I am going to read next but it is going to have a lot to live up to!

I feel this book would be a good book club choice. More like this please Ms Jewell!!

Thank you for the opportunity to read this book. It is without a doubt the best book I have read in a long time. The storyline was brilliant. It was heartbreaking and sad. Very well thought out and written. It's one of those books that will stay with you forever. Brilliant writing.

A brilliantly worked story which keeps you involved to the tear jerking end.

Then she was gone is a book that I've literally raced through in a few hours, it's not very fast paced but I literally had to find out the outcome of Ellie and Laurels story. It's set in different parts and chapters are written from the point of view of various characters, each pushing the story forwards to its heart wrenching conclusion.

Bloody brilliant! I'd worked out the twist by about halfway but it really didn't matter. Fantastic plot, believable character​s that you genuinely care about and really well executed. Very enjoyable.

Awesome read! Kept me intrigued and the suspense built expertly as the story progressed. Loved this book. 5 star read!

I read this book in a day, couldn't put it down despite the tragic storyline and the suspicion that things were going tragically wrong. Another Jewell from Lisa.

Lovely flow to this book, it didn't take me long to read it! It was definitely fascinating and although it was a little predictable there was enough to keep you guessing and stay engaged.

Laurel and Paul's studious daughter goes missing; completely out of character but she is never found.  Years later Laurel begins a new relationship which doesn't quite turn out to be all it first appears to be.

Then She Was Gone isn't a crazy book, it's pretty plausible, which makes it even more worrying.  There's a lot to be said about your gut instinct with people!!

A well thought out and fabulously written little book.  A solid 8 out of 10. Check out more of her stuff too, I'd realised I'd read a number of her other books too.

Really gripping. I didn't guess the ending but I like that! Engrossing read.

I like Lisa Jewell and have enjoyed all previous books by this author. Jewell prefaces this book with a statement that this may be the most bizarre book she has ever written and she isn't far wrong. She also says that she had quite a strong steer from her editor once she had submitted her draft and made changes as a result of that. So I looked forward to reading Then She Was Gone and initially the story drew me in and I was interested and intrigued by both the characters as well as the storyline. The book has a contemporary feel about it which is pleasing.

However as the story unfolded and the book starts to flip between romance and horror, I found it entirely bizarre and at times quite unbelievable. The ending felt a bit rushed, as if there were some loose ends that needed to be tied up, so "let's expedite by bumping off some of the characters that we're not sure what to do with". I will read Lisa Jewell again but I was not convinced by this book, it doesn't really know what it wants to be, despite the author's best efforts to grasp the "women as villain" genre. I'd have wrapped it up as a love story, with justice served where it was needed, instead of killing people off.

I had never read any Lisa Jewell novels before this one although I knew her name. On the strength of 'Then She Was Gone' I shall certainly read more of her work. The story concerns the impact of the disappearance of 15 year old Ellie on her family and others not so immediately connected. There are several narrators but this is not in any way confusing. It is a gripping tale with well drawn characters, all of whom have their flaws, making them all the more plausible. A touch of reality is brought in with reference to the BBC series Crimewatch doing a reconstruction of Ellie's disappearance. Relationships are not straightforward and one of the most effective is that between Laurel, Ellie's mother, and her own mother, a side but important character.
In the acknowledgements Lisa Jewell refers to the help and advice she received from her editors to improve the story and I now wonder what the first draft was like and would love to read it as well. This really is a well-crafted tale which will appeal to many and would make a good tv series.

Then she was gone is a real page turner. I was hooked until I'd finished it. Well written, disturbing, good twists.... it's got it all.

Lisa Jewell never fails to delight. A powerful novel, that is hard to put down - a mixture of happy and sad, frightening and amusing.
The tale of a dearly loved daughter, missing for ten years, interwoven with newly discovered love and confused lives, with intriguing flashbacks. I would thoroughly recommend this as a truly good read, but have the tissues ready.

Absolutely fantastic! 5/5! Please see linked review from my blog http://chaptersandchaos.wordprrss.com

Thank you to the publishers and Netgalley for your advance e-copy in return for an honest online review.

This is everything that you want in a psychological thriller.

Ten years ago Laurel’s 15 year old daughter Ellie vanishes into thin air. Laurel, as any mother would, struggles to cope. Her marriage falls apart and she becomes emotionally detached from her other two children.

Then she meets and falls in love with Floyd, whose 9 year old daughter Poppy bears a startling resemblance to Ellie. In fact Floyd also bears more than a passing resemblance to Laurel’s ex-husband Paul. Paul and Floyd even wear matching socks on their first meeting, and Paul also picks up that Floyd is just like him.

But Laurel is in love and happy, and while she sees nothing wrong in the similarities she cannot shake the feeling that something is wrong. Parts of her family appear to agree with her – her son’s girlfriend Blue rings Laurel to tell her warn her that Floyds colour ‘Aura’ is wrong and that he is not the man he seems to be. Laurel dismisses Blue’s warnings but she still cannot shake that niggling feeling that something is not right here.

For me the penny dropped about half way through the book. I did work it out but this did not stop me going devouring the book to find out what happens,

This is a novel about obsession, secrets and lies. There are not many characters in the book and the viewpoint is mostly Laurels, although some chapters are voiced by other characters. Ellie is lovely and her story upset me. One character is just so sick and twisted that I was left at the end with absolutely no sympathy for them. They got their comeuppance. And it’s not often I end a thriller with nothing but contempt for the villain.

I definitely recommend this novel, and actually cried at the end.

THEN
She was fifteen, her mother's golden girl. She had her whole life ahead of her. And then, in the blink of an eye, Ellie was gone.
NOW
It’s been ten years since Ellie disappeared, but Laurel has never given up hope of finding her daughter.
And then one day a charming and charismatic stranger called Floyd walks into a café and sweeps Laurel off her feet.
Before too long she’s staying the night at this house and being introduced to his nine year old daughter.
Poppy is precocious and pretty - and meeting her completely takes Laurel's breath away.
Because Poppy is the spitting image of Ellie when she was that age.
And now all those unanswered questions that have haunted Laurel come flooding back.
Pre-order here at Amazon
This is one of those books that stays with you long after you have finished reading it. It is so heart breaking beyond belief and every page, every chapter has you hanging on its every word. Lisa Jewell has a knack of captivating readers with real life extraordinary characters.
Laurel has been grieving for her missing daughter for 10 years. Her charming beautiful Ellie Mack disappeared and Laurels family fell apart, her marriage in tatters and she is only existing, just about. When Floyd enters her life Laurel starts to piece her life back together but all is not what it seems. Their relationship opens questions that Laurel had long since stopped looking for answers for.
The awful Fate that Ellie Mack suffered is horrendous and tragic but poignant in its own right. The character's are complex and entangled and each and every one brings an unforgettable narrative to the novel. Then She Was Gone is in my opinion Lisa's best novel yet. It is imaginative and remarkably penned. I read it in 4 days whilst on night duty. That is how much this book grips you. Stunning work as always. 5*'s for the moving and heartrending story of Ellie Mack.
Then She Was Gone is published by Cornerstone at Random House, UK and is out 27th July

Where do I start?! This is the best novel I have read this year. Lisa Jewell is one of my favourite authors and so I was really excited to read her latest work.
It was very unusual, but as always the characters were well developed and you really felt you knew the main character. I particularly like that by the conclusion all the loose ends were tied up.
The novel was well paced and easy to follow. It isn't a complex plot, yet very satisfying. I really think Jewell's writing has matured considerably over the last few novels and has broken away from chick lit. I can't wait for the next book!

Absolutely the best book I've read in a long time.
I had no idea where this story would take me and the twists and turns were fantastic.
I did figure out the identity of Poppy quite early on but I dont think this was meant to be a huge surprise for the reader.
This story takes you on a journey through one families heartbreak and loss of their daughter to the mystery of her disappearance and what actually happened to her. It's told from different perspectives and I found Ellies perspectives so heartbreaking. It really tugged at my emotions and I found myself right there with her through her ordeal until the very last second.
The end was gut wrenching. I won't give too much away but this was story was a true page turner and I cannot wait to read more by this author.