This is the third book by B.A. Paris that I have read. I loved Behind Closed Doors but found The Breakdown underwhelming. I wanted to love this one. I kept hoping for a similar reading experience that I had with BCD but this one yet again missed the mark for me. This book was just way too CHEESY for me to take seriously. Layla’s POV was just the worst and overtly dramatic. Finn was unlikable and made really awful decisions that made me want to throw the book at him. These things could be forgiven if paired with a good plot, however I found the twists entirely too predictable. Overall, this reminded me of a really campy B-movie. If that’s your type of mystery/suspense then give this one a try. Unfortunately, for me I was quite disappointed.

In the beginning, I was hooked, pulled right into the drama and intrigue of the disappearance of Layla and how or if Finn (her boyfriend with anger issues) is responsible for her disappearance. And then we get to the sections where Finn speculates and rehashes and wonders and projects ad nauseam about what may or may not be happening, and my eyes glaze over with boredom. The story is poorly paced, there is way more telling than showing, the plot is an old device not particularly well done, the characters are shallowly rendered, and in the end, I just didn’t care what happened to any of them.

I love everything by B. A. Paris! I highly recommend this book as well as all her others. You can't go wrong with B. A. Paris.

This book was easy to read and kept me guessing throughout the story. I didn't love the ending, but overall was an okay read!

I enjoy B.A. Paris's storytelling. She can really build suspense. However, while this was a suspenseful read, I wasn't really a story that I connected with. I found it completely implausible. And the twist left me really disappointed that it went that route. I would even say it was bizarre and just... *sigh Not for me. I gave it a 3 because there's still some redeemable content with the unreliable narrator, but the cast of characters wasn't what I'd expected or hoped to feel for their individual plight or relationship to the main characters. Then the end didn't feel as satisfying as I'd hoped for a mystery.

Thank you to NetGalley, the publisher, and the author for the opportunity to read this book for an honest review.

I have been wanting to read a book by B.A. Paris for awhile but never got around to it until now.

Finn and Layla are living a story book romance until one fateful night Layla mysteriously disappears. Years later, Finn becomes engaged to Layla's sister, Ellen. Everything seems perfect until strange things start happening. Finn and Ellen start finding Russian dolls around their home and other places Finn used to go with Layla. Ellen and a neighbor spot someone who suspiciously looks like Layla. Then Finn receives an impossible email that sets in place a chain of events that will change their lives forever.
As other reviewers have noted, the story is predictable. Regardless, I really enjoyed my first foray into her fiction. Though the story is predictable, her strength lies in her writing for the telling of this story. The way she develops the plot line through the first person experiences of the three people involved slowly builds the suspense. I honestly don't mind if I am able to guess where a book is going if the writing is good. The writing is amazing in this book. I ended staying up late to finish it. I am definitely glad I picked this one up to read. This may be my first book by this author but it won't be my last.

Twisty and shocking psychological thriller. B.A. Paris is a master storyteller. The story is weaved into a tale that you can't flip the pages fast enough to see what happens next. The story pulls you in right from the first page. The story keeps you turning the pages and it's a hard book to put down as you need to know what happens next. While the ending was a little far fetched for me I still found it to be an enjoyable read. Highly recommend. Thank you to St. Martins Press and NetGalley for my advance copy. All opinions are my own.

Sometimes I realize that I just don't click with an author; I read the last two novels from B.A Paris and was underwhelmed; unfortunately, this happened again with Bring Me Back. I just felt like it was too slow and nothing was actually happening.

How do you get your life back on track after your girlfriend goes missing from your car when you make a stop at a gas station to use the facilities? Finn finally gets on with his life and is now engaged to his missing girlfriend's sister. What can go wrong?

Traveling With T’s Thoughts:

I really enjoyed Behind Closed Doors and The Breakdown by B.A. Paris and have to admit that the summary of Bring Her Back appealed to me.

But Bring Her Back did not give me the thrills that the previous books did.

I read a lot of thrillers, mystery, suspense, psychological thrillers, etc…. And truth be told- that while I LOVE them mainly- I’m not always completely surprised. Maybe it’s the Gone Girl effect that causes me to really dig deep into the words and the meanings and the possibilities. But I had 2 theories about this book around the halfway point. One theory was a bit too logical, but actually might have thrilled me more.

The other theory was left field theory…. meaning it came out of left field and it was kinda easy to dismiss at first, but then it just kept circling in my brain…. and I was right. And then I was kinda disappointed because there was at least 2 other ways this book could have gone that I think would have been more bang for the buck. Oh well…

What I liked:

The cover!

How the story was set up. It just started off sounding shady as hell.



Bottom line: For me this was def a like not a LOVE book. And if you want to start a drinking game with your book club- take a drink every time Russian dolls are mentioned. You’ll be hammered by halfway through the book.



*This book was sent to Traveling With T for review consideration. All thoughts and opinions are min alone.*

I read this because I was in the mood for a silly, fun thriller. It was definitely silly, though I'm not sure it was fun. The 'twist' was so far-fetched as to be utterly ludicrous – I think that if my girlfriend lost some weight and dyed her hair, I'd still recognise her! I have no idea why we're meant to believe that the protagonist wouldn't. Also all the characters were so thoroughly unpleasant that I wasn't clear who I was meant to be rooting for. Apparently this author's other books are good so I'd give them another chance, but this one was definitely a miss.

This book was good, but not the author's best work. It was a little bit far fetched, even for a thriller.

This book started off good for me but I quickly lost interest by half way. It flips you back and forth from two different time points and the main characters aren't very likable. The ending was surprising, but not in a good way. Hard to finish the book.

I received a copy of this book from Netgalley in exchange for my honest opinion. This book is addictive, fast paced and a great read. Well done!

If you want that book that keeps you flipping pages and on the edge of your seat you have found it! Suspense at it's best. A real page turner. Happy reading!

I really liked this B. A. Paris book. The story was so intense and so disturbing, and truly a psychological thriller if you ever read one. I can't say much about the story without giving it all away, it's just THAT tricky. I think if you want to find a book to dive into - find your head spinning - and looking for something to read really quickly, this is the read for you. You'll fly through the pages to try and figure out what comes next. The characters are fleshed out in such a way that you're going to be hating them all - sometimes - and questioning whether you should or shouldn't hate them in the next moments.

Grab the book. Dive in and let your friends know what you think. It's worth a read, for certain.

I really enjoyed B.A. Paris's previous 2 novels, but this one just didn't do it for me. I just couldn't get invested in it. It's a quick read (great for the pool!) but I didn't love it. Thank you for the opportunity to be an early reader.

Okay maybe I just don’t like this author. I almost always give every book a chance of more than 30% but I got to 28% and just couldn’t finish. It’s just so slow, cheesy, and boring. I’m sorry, just not my cup of tea.

I really enjoyed the first 40% of Bring Me Back, but then it plummeted off of the cliff.

There was so much repetition, the characters weren't interesting, and the plot wasn't anywhere near believable.

My reaction while finishing up the second half of Bring Her Back was this was a one star read. After taking a step back and cooling my reader jets a little, I think there's something about B.A. Paris' writing that is going to keep it at two stars. Despite wanting to DNF due to content, it was very easy to pay attention to what was happening and it was a quick read for a plot that went nowhere.

I'm obviously not recommending Bring Me Back, but I'm willing to read her previous novels that have garnered much better reviews.

Loved this book! B. A. Paris has become one of my new favorite authors in the Thriller genre! Can't wit to read more of her books!