I am really a firm 2.5 stars on this one and, again with this author, I seem to be in the vast minority. I'm not sure what felt off for me. Now that I am finished I look back and think it was a really good book. But as I was reading I thought the entire premise just seemed a bit implausible and somewhat far-fetched. There just didn't seem to be enough background for the culprit's behavior and I was disappointed the MC wasn't allowed to figure things out using her own intuition and instead relied on "the vibes" of someone else. I have changed my rating from 2 to 3 stars several times but the thing that keeps me raising my rating is the writing. The author does an excellent job of creating very crisp characters who come very easily to life as you read.

Fifteen year old Ellie Mack heads to the library one day and never returns home. Her family fractures and nothing is the same. Many suspense books start like this, but here all similarity ends. I don't want to give any of the plot away, but this is the best and most intriguing suspense book I've ever read that starts with this premise, or any other plot for that matter. I highly recommend it.

Excellent for suspense and entertainment. A very strong four, nearly five. The author allows you to figure out most of what has happened, but the surprises still occur. Just plain good reading.

WOAH!!! This book had me HOOKED from beginning to end. I know that a lot of people say that to describe books that they love but it is SO TRUE for this one. Lisa Jewel may need to be bumped up to my go to authors for psychological thrillers because she weaves a twisted tale like no other! I highly recommend this one. It's certainly going to be a best seller in 2018.

Then She Was Gone: A Novel by [Jewell, Lisa]

Started out extremely strong, but then seemed rather patched together.

Review copy provided by publisher.

I received a copy of this novel from the publisher via NetGalley.

2.5* rounded down. I like the way Lisa Jewell writes and was drawn into this story quickly. The first third of the story was great; Laurel was a relatable character, the chapters from the point of view of the missing Ellie were hinting towards a solution to the mystery of her disappearance.

Then it all got a bit unlikely and also disturbing and I started to skim the Ellie chapters for my own peace of mind. By the end the plot was dragging - we found out what had happened and then it was re-hashed and expanded upon by another character. Laurel and her family all had coherent personalities, but


SPOILERS


Noelle made no sense to me - her insanity didn't convince. There was an effort made to render her insanity through her unreliable narration, but she seemed somehow not sufficiently deluded. As for Floyd, I couldn't work him out at all. We were told that his upbringing had affected him, and Blue claimed he was incapable of love, but the narrative never allowed us to get inside his head. The video confession, where he claims he has pursued Laurel to return Poppy to her (aside from being nauseating) did not ring true emotionally for me.

I am pretty sure scientists can tell if a person has been run over by a car, as opposed to their skeletonized remains having been treated in a similar way. Despite the final chapter, I can't see Poppy emerging into adulthood otherwise than as hideously emotionally damaged. Finally, the epilogue was the final straw for me. Definitely not a novel for those of us who find cruelty to/abuse of children hard to read about.

I've been reading Lisa Jewell since the days of One Hit Wonder and Vince & Joy, so it's been interesting to see her pivot towards mystery/suspense fiction, and she just keeps getting better and better at it. I have to admit that I didn't love the change in point of view, but in the end, she pulled me back into the story and I liked it.

Then She Was Gone is one of those books where you pretty much know everything that is going to happen or just how the events will take place. Having said that, knowing what was going to happen "next" did not stop me from being surprised. The one thing I did not see coming was the last two pages and I can't give that away. Over all, this was a good book that made me want to turn to the next page, and the next, and the next. It's a heart breaker and deals with abduction and how it affects the family left behind.
I can't wait to get a hold of another Lisa Jewell book!

Laurel Mack as never really recovered from the loss of her daughter, Ellie, who disappeared when she was 15 years old. Now, ten years later, she’s trying to move on, and begins seeing a man she met at a cafe. The man, Floyd, has a daughter named Poppy, who looks just like Ellie. They say everyone has a double somewhere, but Laurel feels in her bones that Poppy is Ellie. So how did she become Floyd’s “daughter”? And what does he wan with Laurel now? While this book has a somewhat predictable outcome, Jewell is so skilled at building her characters that it doesn’t matter. This is still a thrill ride

This is my first read from this author, and I can safely say it will not be my last. A story of a mother who youngest daughter goes missing. How her life and her families lives change afterward, and the man and his daughter who bring her back to life in a sense.

I happened to really enjoy this story. While things were unfolding pretty slowly, it still felt suspenseful to me. I kept turning pages, because I wanted to know what would happen next. This story is told in multiple different POV’s. I feel like that made it so the answers in this story felt whole. I didn’t feel like I was questioning the truth at the end like when you’re only getting one POV.

I’ve seen a couple other reviews saying that it was “predictable,” and I can kind of see how one would think that, but I think the semi-predictably of the outcome allows the reader to feel informed, but still understanding of how the character who DOESN’T know what is happening is being betrayed or misled at times. Plus the general outcome is predictable, but I think the fun and intrigue of this story is figuring out all the little details that can only be uncovered by first hand information.

This story made me feel. It was easy to feel the emotions of the main character Laurel. I was angry with her. I felt her jealousy. I even felt the emotions of some of the other characters. Ones I didn’t think I could ever sympathize with. By the end I was actually tearing up... all in all I’d say this is a pretty great read. On the suspenseful scale I’d rate it a bit lower, but it’s still an entertaining read.