Nicole Trope gets me every time.
She’s so clever at writing these type of chilling jaw dropping dramas. This one didn’t let me down.

It’s about Malia who went for a pint of milk, looked around and her child was gone, missing. Next thing she knows she’s surrounded by Police.

Zachary is missing.

It’s a race against time, it’s a cat and mouse type of scenario however it’s got depth to it and things that come out that left me astounded.

I’ve not read a “missing child” kind of book for ages so this made a change for me to see that some authors really know how to bring in they’re audience. This author really does that

EXCERPT: Malia is certain that if she can pinch herself hard enough she will wake up from this nightmare. She came to the 7-Eleven for milk, and now her baby is missing and she is surrounded by police. The sun's heat increases minute by minute and assures her that she is, indeed, in hell.

ABOUT 'FORGOTTEN': In a single day, a simple mistake will have life-altering consequences for everyone involved.

A moment of distraction, an unlocked car and a missing baby. How on earth could this happen?

All Malia needed was a single litre of milk and now she's surrounded by police and Zach has disappeared.

Detective Ali Greenberg knows that this is not the best case for her, not with her history - but she of all people knows what Malia is going through and what is at stake.

Edna is worried about the new residents at the boarding house. She knows Mary would turn in her grave if she knew the kinds of people her son was letting in.

And then there is someone else. Someone whose heart is broken. Someone who feels she has been unfairly punished for her mistakes. Someone who wants what she can't have.

What follows is a heart-stopping game of cat-and-mouse and a race against the clock. As the hours pass and the day heats up, all hope begins to fade.

MY THOUGHTS: Nicole Trope writes family dramas like no one else. She has my heart pounding, then stopping, my breath caught in my throat. At one point I felt like I had been punched in the gut, all the breath just went wooshing out of me.

Forgotten encompasses so many issues including mental health, gambling addiction, and child abuse all neatly tied into one tense and riveting story which is told from the viewpoints of four women: Malia, the mother of baby Zach who is abducted from his car seat; Ali, the detective who has a young child of her own; Edna, the elderly and childless resident of a boarding house; and Jackie, newly released from prison also resident in the same boarding house as Edna.

Forgotten is a hard-hitting, fast paced read that kept me engrossed from beginning to end. All the emotions get an airing with this read!

⭐⭐⭐⭐.5

#Forgotten #NetGalley

I: @nicoletropeauthor @allenandunwin

T: @nicoletrope @AllenAndUnwin

#australianfiction #contemporaryfiction #crime #detectivefiction #familydrama #mentalhealth #suspense

THE AUTHOR: Nicole Trope went to university to study Law but realised the error of her ways when she did very badly on her first law essay because-as her professor pointed out- ‘It’s not meant to be a story.’ She studied teaching instead and used her holidays to work on her writing career and complete a Masters’ degree in Children’s Literature. After the birth of her first child she stayed home full time to write and raise children, renovate houses and build a business with her husband.
The idea for her first published novel, The Boy under the Table, was so scary that it took a year for her to find the courage to write the emotional story.
She lives in Sydney with her husband and three children.

DISCLOSURE: Thank you to Allen and Unwin via Netgalley for providing a digital ARC of Forgotten by Nicole Trope for review. All opinions expressed in this review are entirely my own personal opinions.

For an explanation of my rating system please refer to my Goodreads.com profile page or the about page on sandysbookaday.wordpress.com

This review is also published on Twitter, Amazon, Instagram and my webpage

This book was written from the perspective of two different mothers, both at different times in their lives. One is overwhelmed by her three children and less than helpful husband and the other is recently released from prison having lost everything. The detective working the case has suffered a huge loss and has had a baby which she has recently left to start back to work. This book touches on so many emotions felt by mothers at different stages of having a child. There's anxiety, mental illness, guilt, and so many other things going on. I worried about the baby through the whole story, would he survive, would he get back to his mother, would he be ok? Another page turner by Nicole Trope!

Omg talk about a roller coaster read wow this book kept me on the edge of my seat threw out I just couldn't put it down this writer keeps you hooked and once your hooked your not letting go I found this book thrilling the characters were fantastic and well thought out and the little clues all the way threw keep you guessing until the end this book stays with you long after you close the book this book is well worth the read I promise you wont be disappointed

Wow! I had my heart in my throat the whole time. That was an intense, harrowing read. Totally believable read, you could understand why Marlia did what she did with the baby – not wanting to disturb the peace of a sleeping child. With no support from hubby, she was desperate and at her wits end. Truly an amazing read and will read more of Nicole Trope books

I really struggled with Forgotten. I persevered as I hate not reading books to the end but I was just not enjoying it so I gave up. Sorry not for me.

The opening chapter of this book took me back 30 years when I had three children of the same ages and all I thought thank goodness I survived that and thank God for the milkman!! Then the story took a turn that is every mothers nightmare, your baby goes missing because you made a mistake. What follows is the harrowing story told through four female voices. This book is such a good emotional read which will stay with you long after the last page.
This is my first book by Nicole Trope but it will certainly not be my last. I have already recommended it to friends and family and will continue to do so. Thank you Netgalley for the chance to read this.

I have read a lot of Nicole Trope’s books and this is definitely my favourite so far! Every mother’s nightmare and something all of us have done at least once. This book kept me up, turning pages at speed, desperate to see Zach returned to Malia.
All the characters were well drawn and still held some surprises which shakes things up again when you are sure that they are going to continue behaving as you expect them to behave.
My favourite character, was surprisingly; Edna. I am very glad that whatever else happened, she had her happy ending!

I devoured this book in a couple of days--it kept me guessing, and I got really attached to the characters. I'd highly recommend it to anybody who likes suspense novels set in a domestic type setting.

As a huge fan of Jodi Picoult, I began reading this with a little trepidation. How would this measure up to the author they were claiming Nicole Trope wrote like? This absolutely lived up to the promise. Heartbreaking drama, adrenaline filled uncertainty, and something that could happen to any stressed out undersupported mother. It hits you right in the heartstrings.

A harried mother with 3 kids under the age of 10 with a hardly there father, makes one split second wrong decision, diverts her attention away from the baby sleeping in the car and all is lost.. The baby goes missing and there are no working cameras to capture this horrifying moment. And truths are revealed

Nicole Trope has written this story with the mother as the main character with all others playing their own part to add to the story

This is a fast paced novel, with good amount of intrigue and all the female characters play a strong role, the mother, the police inspector, the kidnapper, and the informant.

As every book which claims to be a psychological thriller with more or less the same story, this book too does what it claims, but with a strong police woman who steals the show.

There is not much intrigue in the story as the kidnapper also has a story line running along with the mother and police woman. Nicole Trope basically deals with the psyche of each woman and the reasoning behind their action.

It’s easy to judge people and condemn their actions but looking at the world through their eyes brings new outlook.

There are a few niggles like minimal intrigue, better police work and a newer concept which I would liked from the esteemed author but the book works as it is too.

*thank you to NetGalley and Allen & Unwin for a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review*

3 stars.
While I enjoyed most of this, expecually the parts about Ali, Malia and her family, I found the rest of the narrative voices a bit boring. Parts of them were good and I get why they were used, but they did not jold my interest. Though, I am still glad I read this and I would recommend it. I kept wondering if they would find Zach alive and there were parts that I read so fast because I just wanted to know what happened next. I can see why some say shes similar to Jodi Picoult,so if you enjoy her books im sure you will also enjoy this one.

5* Harrowing Stars

From the first page anxiety presents itself and just when you think it could not get any worse it escalates into full blown panic and becomes every mother/parents worst nightmare.

This story has it all, mental illness, selfishness, angst and addiction and when under pressure the truth comes out!

This story is told from 4 female voices, each having their own chapter and going between their past and present. I enjoyed this perspective as it gave us the background to these women and contributed to a well flowing story.

This was a fast paced anxious read! It was very well written and realistic, and the characters were very believable. I especially enjoyed Edna, she was a, “breath of fresh air”, in this nail-biting read. You will be captivated throughout this page-turner of a read.

The epilogue was perfect and rounded up the story perfectly.

This was my first read by Nicole and I will definitely be reading her stories again.

Thank you NetGalley, Allen & Unwin and the author for allowing me to read and review Forgotten.

Wow! This book was definitely a day in a mother's worst nightmare... how one small decision can change everything. Perhaps during a pregnancy is not the best time to read a story about a baby being abducted, but once I started I couldn't not go on. The story is fast paced and yet it manages to pull on all your heartstrings and literally had me crying at times. It is also really well written and as a Jodi Piccoult fan I will highly recommend this book to others who enjoy her type of stories as this one is right up there with the best of her's. So good! I will definitely look for more books by Nicole Trope. She's got me hooked!

Thanks to Net Galley & Allen &Unwin for an ARC of this book in exchange for a review.
This book is about four woman.
Malia, who leaves baby Zach in the car as she pops into the shop with her other two children to buy milk, when she returns to rhe car little Zach is missing,
Ali, who is one of the detectives investigating the missing baby and who lost her first child to sudden infant death.
Jackie, who has recently been released from prison having been found guilty of the manslaughter of her infant daughter and
Edna who is a widowed pensioner living in a rented room in a boarding house.
This is an emotional story told by all four woman about the urgent hunt to find and return baby Zach to his mother and family and the pages turn themselves.

This is the third novel by Nicole Trope I have read and I have to say this was just as good as the others. There are plenty of stories out there about children being snatched but this one is an interesting change, although perhaps not the best I have come across, as it shifts between the family of the stolen baby and the woman who stole him. There are characters you will warm to, a lonely old woman called Edna being amongst them, and those you don't and I was really driven to race towards the conclusion to discover whether or not a happy ending would pronounce. All in all sound 4* read.

This was a really gripping thriller, with lots of twists and amazing characters. I thoroughly enjoyed this and will be eager to read others by Nicole in the future

I loved this book... the second I've read from this author.. I couldn't put it down!!!! So wonderful!!!

I found this a really tense and well written book - I could feel the heat rise and tension build as we neared the conclusion of the read.
I found the older lady a little irritating and not quite as developed as some of the other characters, but it was overall an excellent read.

La chiamano "la Jodie Picoult australiana", Nicole Trope, e a ragione; anzi, benché siano passati molti anni dalla mia ultima lettura di un romanzo dell'autrice americana, posso affermare di apprezzare maggiormente la Trope per il realismo più spiccato e la capacità di dar vita a personaggi che sono piccoli universi, tanto minuziosa è la loro caratterizzazione.
Universi femminili, a dire il vero, perché in Forgotten, così come in Blame, sono le donne a farla da padrone, mentre gli uomini restano per lo più sullo sfondo, importanti a volte ai fini della storia, ma mai protagonisti.

Nucleo di questo romanzo è il rapimento di un bambino, Zach, che la madre, Malia, ha lasciato per qualche minuto in auto mentre si affrettava a comprare il latte per i due figli maggiori. Una donna immeritevole, ingrata, incauta... molti sono i commenti che potrebbero fioccare a causa del suo gesto - che è, sì, senza dubbio quanto meno poco saggio - eppure sin dalle prime righe della storia la Trope ci descrive una donna stressata, oberata dal lavoro, lasciata sola da un marito di cui non abbiamo ancora letto la parte peggiore, una donna, insomma, in cui qualunque altra potrebbe immedesimarsi, o che almeno potrebbe essere profondamente capita.

La scomparsa del bambino apre il sipario ancora su altre donne, Jackie che l'ha preso, Ali che lo cerca, Edna che lo guarda alla tv, Garnet che pensa di averlo con sé.
Ognuna di queste donne, insieme a Malia, ha perso qualcosa, ma, a differenza della madre del piccolo Zach, per nessuna di loro c'è più alcuna speranza.
Ognuna ha una storia diversa, e un diverso modo di affrontare la perdita.
Ho trovato commovente il personaggio di Edna, un'anziana donna che vive in una camera in affitto, senza più marito e senza mai aver avuto figli, che ancora ricorda gli insegnamenti del padre, ma ha alla fine il coraggio di andarvi contro e fare la cosa giusta.
Controverso invece il personaggio di Jackie. E coraggiosa, direi, l'autrice, nel descrivere una madre che odia così tanto la sua bambina da mettere in piedi un piano che chiamare mostruoso è poco. Certo, c'è la sua infanzia orribile, la presenza certa di una psicosi, ma è impossibile empatizzare con la donna o provare pena per lei. Le pagine in cui Jackie fa da narratrice sono molto difficili da mandar giù, ed ho apprezzato molto il lavoro dell'autrice che è stata capace di farmi provare dei sentimenti tanto forti.
E poi c'è Ian, il padre di Zach, l'incubo di ogni moglie, e non perché sia un assassino o un adultero, ma semplicemente per la sua indifferenza verso la propria famiglia e per il suo egoismo che raggiunge vette davvero elevatissime. Un uomo normale, che non si farebbe fatica a rintracciare tra qualcuno dei nostri conoscenti.

Forgotten è un romanzo sulla fragilità umana, sulla maternità, sulle scelte, su ciò che è realmente o volutamente dimenticato - forgotten, temine che viene usato più volte all'interno del romanzo, e di cui ho apprezzato soprattutto l'utilizzo nel finale -. E' una storia che impegna emozionalmente e tiene col fiato sospeso fino alla fine. L'ho amato ancora più di Blame, e mi auguro che venga presto tradotto in italiano, così da poter essere conosciuto anche da chi non mastica l'inglese.