Ellery Hathaway is not only a cop, she is the one who survived. The only victim of a brutal serial killer nearly took her life. She was saved by Reed Markham, who at that time was in the FBI. It is years later and Ellery is overstressed. Not only does she have cases as a police officer, she is desperate to know if there is a copycat killer taking lives currently. As Ellery gets birthday cards on the dates women were killed, she lives in her own kind of fear and places a call to Reed for his help. The killer from years ago, Frances Coben is on death row, so Ellery really needs Reed's help to discover who is now committing serious crimes.

Reed is all but washed up. In fact, he is not even in the FBI at present. His work has been suffering, his marriage has ended and now he must face the brutal past that Ellery experienced. Ellery really hopes that Reed will be able to work alongside her to discover who the copycat killer is. This is critical to Ellery as it is only Reed that knows her secret, and what connection it is that ties from the past to the present.

Ellery's boss Sam, the Chief of Police, and her former lover, wants her to leave things alone. He has no idea why Ellery is pursuing things the way she is. So, while Ellery and Reed are looking for answers, Ellery still has to answer to Sam.

What an excellent introduction to a new series! Ellery is scarred, both physically and emotionally, yet her professionalism shines through. She is flawed, there is no doubt of that, yet she has compassion for the victims, both past and present. The next book in the series, No Mercy, is just as compelling as this one was.

Many thanks to Minotaur Books and to NetGalley for this ARC for review. This is my honest opinion.

A gripping tale that entangles past horrors with present-day dangers, immersing readers in the world of Ellery Hathaway, an officer in the seemingly idyllic town of Woodbury, MA. Ellery's past is shrouded in the dark history of being the lone survivor of serial killer, a secret she has keep from the people of Woodbury.

Ellery becomes increasingly convinced that her once-well-hidden secret is on the verge of exposure. Three people have disappeared from Woodbury in as many years, each incident occurring around her birthday. Ellery fears that someone is aware of her harrowing past and poses a very real threat, a concern dismissed by her superiors.
Ellery decides to reach out to FBI Agent Reed Markham, the man who rescued her from the clutches of Coben years ago, sets the stage for a gripping reunion. Reed, whose own life has taken a downturn since the high-profile Coben case, grapples with the ghosts of his past triumphs and failures. The dynamics between Ellery and Reed are fraught with a shared history, making their collaboration a compelling exploration of trauma, survival, and the inexorable pull of a case that refuses to stay buried.

This is a must-read for fans of psychological thrillers that seamlessly merge past traumas with present-day mysteries.

Thank you to NetGalley, St. Martin's Press, Minotaur Books and author Joanna Schaffhausen for the opportunity to review the advance copy of this book.

"The Vanishing Season" is a surprisingly dull first book in a series. It could have been a more interesting read but it felt like the idea for the series was already solidified and this was just to establish things. Could definitely be better but it was an overall okay read.

*3.5 stars*

Thanks to the publisher and NetGalley for the e-arc I received in exchange for my honest review.

I almost stopped reading right at the start with the really old cliché of the lone female officer sleeping with her boss. But I kept going and the story and characters were decent, especially of course, Bump.

This is the first book in the series and I will keep going. What happened to Ellery as a kid was really awful and very dark; definitely not a cozy mystery!

I have had this book in my TBR pile for a while and I wish I would have read it sooner. I read book #2 in the series first, so this was good background on Ellery and Reed. I feel like the story really picks up in books two, but I enjoyed this one,.

Do I ever love dark and disturbing, and Joanna Schaffhausen delivers! She has just been added to my list of favorite suspenseful thriller authors. The Vanishing Season is both creepy and enjoyable. I could not put it down.

Great book, love this author and how they can keep my attention to the end! The plot is well developed, characters are believable and they obviously paid attention to detail to make the story worth your time to read.

Abigail was kidnapped by a serial killer late one night as a child. When the fresh FBI Agent Markham cracked the case, it gave her a second chance at life. She started going by her middle name, and became a cop in a small town.

Years later, people in her town start going missing on her birthday every year, and she received a creepy card the same day. Leading up to the 3rd year, she calls in Agent Markham for help when no one else believes her.

I enjoyed this book, but at times it felt like it should have been the 2nd book in the series. It frequently discussed her experiences, but did do in a way that could have been another book.

Looking forward to reading book #2 next!

I received an ARC from Netgalley in exchange for an honest review

Great story, thrilling plot that I could not put down. Well worth a read, and would recommend to others. Wish I had read this sooner!

Such a great read! Grabs you from minute one & doesn’t let go.

I loved this book!

Thank you to NetGalley for an ARC copy of this ebook in exchange for my honest opinion.

#NetGalley #TheVanishingSeason

I’m coming in with a long overdue review for this Netgalley read. The synopsis for this one hooked me and I’m glad I checked it out.

This book opens up with one of the most chilling scenes and I fully expected that opener to set the tone for the rest of the story, but it didn’t play out that way.

Fourteen years ago, a young girl was abducted and tortured by a serial killer. Unlike victims before her, she was rescued and lived to tell her tale. As the reader, we know someone witnessed her kidnapping, but they’ve never come forward. Now Ellie is a police officer working on a missing persons case. She suspects a serial killer is on the loose and turns to the man who rescued her for help. Ellie and Reed work together to solve this case and make a startling discover along the way.

I struggled with this one a bit due to the pacing and long chapters. Some of the side stories took away the tension and suspense for me. However, I love plots that involve serial killers and still think this debut had a lot to offer. Thank you Netgalley and Minotaur Books for this copy.

Thank you NetGalley for the advanced copy of The Vanishing Season by Joanna Schaffhausen.

Exciting, suspenseful and a down right clever read!

This is the first in the Ellery Hathaway series and it did not disappoint. A gripping creepy serial killer thriller/mystery. I enjoyed following Ellery and Reed putting together the mystery and tried to solve it with them. Like a good thriller, i was wrong! This is a fast paced read and I'm looking forward to more of Ellery.

I am glad this is a series, and I had actually read the second book out of order, so I’m very glad I went back and read this first book. It was excellent and I liked the different take on the police procedural. I thought it was very well done, and loved how strong Ellery was, and that she was not a victim at all as sometimes survivors in these types of stories can be. The case was extremely interesting and kept my attention until the extremely suspenseful ending that had a very satisfying resolution.

Thank you to NetGalley and Minotaur Books for the e-galley to review.

RATING: 4.5 STARS
2017; Minotaur/St. Martin's Press

I have had The Vanishing Season on my TBR list for about 4 years, and now I am mentally kicking myself for waiting soooo long. This novel starts with a bang and does not let go of you till the last page (or in my case, listening to it on audio, the last word). Schaffhausen writes with compassion and raw emotions. After finishing this one I sat there. I thought about Ellery, and all she has been through, and the things not discussed in the book. I have a feeling, Ellery, her story, this book will stay with me for awhile. This is book one in a series (four books to date) so I have placed the others on hold. I am ready to dive back into Schaffhausen's writing, but I will need a several days to part with this one. That means I need a few lighter tales to move onto another dark twisty novel.

Ellery was kidnapped at 14 years old, and rescued six days later by a FBI agent. She was the killer's sole survivor, and soon is in the spotlight. The FBI agent, Reed Markham, wrote a book about the case pushing Ellery's story further in media. With her brother's illness, and her mother's attention divided, Ellery changes her name and starts a new life with her baggage right behind her.

Fourteen years later, Ellery is an officer in a small town, Woodbury, MA. When three people in three years go missing she suspects they are connected. They have gone missing right around her birthday, and everything leads her to believe that something dangerous has come to town. Her superiors won't listen to her theories, and she can't get them to see her way unless she divulges who she really is. Ellery decides to call on one person who will believe her, Agent Reed Markham.

Markham is going through his own demons, but drops everything to aid the girl that started his own career.

I loved the interactions of characters in this novel. They are messy and real and full of intensity. Whether it is between Ellery and Reed - her rescuer but also now a peer, or Ellery and her fellow officers - whom she wants to impress with her ability, feel like one of them, and yet also show she has the chops to be a better investigator. The trauma of her early life lurks in everything she does, in her relationships (or lack thereof), her work and how she lives her day to day life. As someone who has had trauma, I could relate to many of her defence mechanism and her emotions. At times, I would feel uncomfortable with Ellery as I felt a bit exposed to my own stuff. It is books like this, that dig deeper into the world behind the mystery, that makes reading so magical to me. Yes, there is a mystery to solve but the characters around that are what makes the book work. I loved this one, and I hope you get a chance to read it as well.

***I received a complimentary copy of this ebook from the publisher through NetGalley. Opinions expressed in this review are entirely my own.***

This book has been on my NG queue for a long time, and I apologize for the tardiness of my response. I no longer have access to this file due to a Kindle crash, but I think you for the opportunity to review.

TERIFFIC! Such a great read. Really enjoyed this one, hard to out down. I will look from more books by this author.

The Vanishing Season is an addicting and unique thriller that will grab you from the first page. I am pretty impressed that this was a debut novel by Joanna Schaffhausen! I love the mystery, suspense, and .fast-paced crime-mystery novel. I would recommend and plan to continue to series.

Thank you to NetGalley, St. Martin's Press and Joanna Schaffhausen for an ARC to review.

What a fantastic thriller read. The author has created a story about a serial killer, lots of suspicion, interesting characters and a pinch of intrigue!I found myself second-guessing what I thought I knew! The Vanishing Season was the perfect quarantine read. Kudos to Joanna Schauffhausen!!

Author Joanna Schaffhausen (https://www.joannaschaffhausen.com) published the novel “The Vanishing Season: A Mystery ” in 2017. This is the first of her "Ellery Hathaway" series. She has published four novels.

I categorize this novel as ‘R’ because it contains scenes of Violence and Mature Language. The story is set in Woodbury, MA. The primary character is Abby (aka Ellery) Hathaway.

Hathaway knows about serial killers first hand. She was taken when she was a young girl. She was the final victim and lone survivor of serial killer Francis Michael Coben. She has moved on with her life and taken her middle name. She is also a law officer in Woodbury and no-one there knows of her past.

She believes that there is a serial killer in Woodbury, but no one takes her seriously. When the time of the year comes around again for another person to disappear, she reaches out for help. She contacts FBI Agent Reed Markham, the man who rescued her from Coben.

Reed has fallen upon difficult times since he saved Hathaway. Even though he is on leave from the FBI he decides to go see Hathaway. Hathaway's request for help does not go down well with her department. Before long though, Hathaway and Reed begin to find evidence to support her theory. Their progress does not go unnoticed by the killer.

I enjoyed the 7+ hours I spent reading this 279-page mystery. The character of Hathaway is damaged. She went through too much at the hands of Coben to be normal. Nor has she been able to confront her feelings. She has few friends and is a loner. She needs Reed's help but has a difficult time trueing him. Reed has made some professional mistakes and is separated from his wife and daughter. he makes an effort to avoid alcohol and give Hathaway the best help he can. I understand whey the cover art was chosen, but I am not a fan too it. I give this novel a 4.4 out of 5.

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