3/4 stars A good mystery thriller but somehow I just failed to connect to the characters but overall it was not a bad read and perhaps it just wasn't for me.

Anna has always believed that her mother, Debbie, died 30 years ago on the night she disappeared.

But when her father gets a strange note, she realises that she’s never been told the full story of what happened that night on the cliff.

Confused and upset, Anna turns to her husband Jack – but when she finds a love letter from another woman in his wallet, she realises there’s no-one left to help her, least of all her family.

And then a body is found…

The one thing which baffles me is what about those 11 calls? I think there was one brief mention part way through the book, so for me, not sure of the point of the title!

It took me a long time to get into this book and I nearly bailed before halfway. I stuck it out and quite enjoyed it but I was a bit disappointed by the ending. I expected a big twist at the end but that didn't come and it felt like a bit of an anti climax.

Before that, I enjoyed the parts narrated by Debbie as we started to find out what had been happening in the lead up to her disappearance. I was less riveted by the present day narration by Anna and unfortunately didn;t click with her character as much as I'd hoped I would.

To sum things up, I thought this was a good read, just not outstanding.

This was such a pain to read. None of the characters were particularly likeable at all and everything just seemed to go on and on. Think i also missed the 11 missed calls part? Not sure. irrelevant maybe?

Thank you to net galley for providing an ARC in exchange for an honest review.

I received a free e-copy of 11 Missed Calls by Elizabeth Carpenter from NetGalley for my honest review.

Anna's mom has been missing for thirty years. When Anna's dad gets a strange note, she realizes she doesn't really know what happened that night on the cliff.

Anna gets an email one day, supposedly from her mother and decides she is going to find out what really happened that night. Is her mom alive? Is she dead? Can she trust anyone because there are a lot of people keeping secrets. The book is told from the point of views of Debbie in the past and Anna in present day. The whole book seem a bit soap opera-ish and I just couldn't get into it.

I really enjoyed 99 red balloons and thought this was really good as well although I read it at a slower pace.

This is my first read by this author, it won’t be my last as I enjoyed this read.

The story is told through two points of view. We are taken back in time to the 1980s for Debbie’s point of view. We are then told of Anna’s point of view, Debbie’s daughter. This point of view is told in the present.

I didn’t like the female characters very much however they were certainly more likeable than the male characters in the story. Although the characters weren’t as likeable as I’d have liked I enjoyed the story and I’m looking forward to reading more from this author in the future.

I loved the authors previous book and so was excited to get my hands on this one, I did prefer the previous book but I also enjoyed this one too!

It’s very much about secrets and lies and how well do you know the ones you love, it was quite well paced with good characters and a decent storyline to boot. A few twists in there also and so really it wasn’t a bad read....

I’d recommend it to my friends though I would recommend her previous one first I think

Even though I ended up buying my own physical copy of this book to read, I still would like to thank Netgalley and the publishers for also providing me with a copy to review.

This book follows Anna, who has always believed that her mother, Debbie, died 30 years ago on the night she disappeared. But when her father recieves a strange note, she realises she's never been told the full story of what happened that night on the cliff. Confused and upset, Anna turns to her husband, Jack - but when she finds a love letter from another woman in his wallet, she realises there's no-one left to help her, least of all her family.....

I loved this author's first book '99 Red Balloons', and although I didn't like this one quite as much as her debut, I still enjoyed this one.

I love that the story is told from the perspectives of both Anna and Debbie - 30 years apart. While Anna's story and her character is brilliantly-written and believable; Debbie's story is a page-turner! I instantly felt for her character and was so gripped on finding out what happened for her to disappear. While I liked Anna's side of things, I felt the story dragged on a little on her side of things; while I was on edge reading Debbie's point of view!

Although I didn't love the ending, I still would recommend this book! It's a tense, twisty family drama that is guaranteed to have readers guessing! Looking forward to reading more from this author!

This was written from the two female viewpoints 30 years apart. Anna's mother Debbie disappeared whilst on holiday in Tenerife, when she was only a baby. She's been desperate to collect any bits of information to bring her mum to life in her mind.
We hear Debbie's story of what led to her to disappear and it's a tale very much of it's time.
When some correspondence is received we are left to wonder what happed to Debbie all those years ago- did she die, is she still alive and who is sending the correspondence and why.
You really want to find out more all the way through the book

This book kept me on edge up until almost the end. I was a little disappointed in that I was so hooked for the entire book and what I thought was going to a be CRAZY plot twist, was just “so-so.” However, I still think this is great read and definitely worth reading.

Not the kind of book I was expecting but very surprisingly fab. Well written. Loved the lay out. Brought out tons of empathy for Debbie. Made me very emotional at times and could relate to poor Debbie. Fab ending. Well done and thank you to net gallery for enabling me to read this book.

1986. On a cliff top in Tenerife, a young mother stands wondering if she should jump. Everything is a mess and she doesn’t know how to fix things. Then there’s a noise behind her and she turns, “it’s you,” she says.
Thirty years later, the young mother’s daughter – Anna – still hasn’t got over the fact she was abandoned as a baby. Despite her father remarrying (her mother’s best friend, adding a nice complication to the story) and being a mother herself, life just feels hard.
It gets harder still when the said best friend – Monica – gets an email that says they know what Monica has done and, thanks to some cryptic words at the bottom, everyone becomes convinced the missing mother – Debbie – is back. The questions is now, where was she all this time.
Unfortunately, for me, the answer was nowhere as gripping as the first two thirds of the book led me to believe. With a story told by Debbie back in 1986 and Anna in the present day, I was completely drawn in to a mystery of a missing woman and so many potential suspects it made my head hurt just a little – but in a good way. I found myself questioning everyone and everything I read.
Then, as the conclusion rolled around, it all went a bit pear-shaped. All these tightly strung out plotlines just didn’t join together properly, leaving me with an ending that just didn’t have any of the tension of the rest of the book and feeling more than a little bit flat. It was such a shame because, until then, I’d been enjoying myself.
When this happens, it’s so hard to judge a book – how do rate something you’d give four stars in parts and three in others? I’m settling in the middle at 3.5 but with the caveats that the ending might not be what you expect if you read the blurb.

EXCERPT: Monica's mobile phone lights up; it’s ringing on silent, the caller unknown.

'Aren't you going to answer that?' I say.

She shakes her head, just staring at it.

It stops flashing. I peer at the screen.

'There are eleven missed calls, Monica. What if it's her?'

ABOUT THIS BOOK: Here are two things I know about my mother:

1. She had dark hair, like mine.

2. She wasn’t very happy at the end.

Anna has always believed that her mother, Debbie, died 30 years ago on the night she disappeared.

But when her father gets a strange note, she realises that she’s never been told the full story of what happened that night on the cliff.

Confused and upset, Anna turns to her husband Jack – but when she finds a love letter from another woman in his wallet, she realises there’s no-one left to help her, least of all her family.

And then a body is found…

MY THOUGHTS: This was a vastly different read from what I expected.

The story is told from the points of view of Debbie, who is suffering from undiagnosed crushing postnatal depression following the birth of her daughter Anna, and from Anna herself, now also a mother and who has absolutely no memory of her own mother, but is consumed by her disappearance.

Debbie tells of the events leading up to her disappearance, while Anna is struggling in her own relationship, and gradually the two timelines converge.

I have to admit to making a lot of erroneous assumptions, as the author no doubt intended, while reading. So well done on that front Elisabeth Carpenter. While this is marketed as psychological suspense, I am afraid that I didn't find it suspenseful at all, and it really didn't need to be. 11 Missed Calls is very much a character driven novel with a touch of mystery.

Mostly I enjoyed this read, but there was one thing that irked me. At one point in the story, something happens, that I can't remember being explained. It seems it was a device used purely for dramatic effect, and then forgotten. (view spoiler)

Overall this was a good read, and I will be reading more from this author. I believe she has a lot of as yet undeveloped potential.

😍😍😍.5

THE AUTHOR: Elisabeth (Libby) Carpenter won a Northern Writers New Fiction Award (2016) and was longlisted for Yeovil Literary Prize (2015 & 2016) and MsLexia Women’s Novel award (2015).

Elisabeth lives in Preston, Lancashire with her family. She loves the north of England, setting most of her stories in the area – including the novel she is writing at the moment.

99 Red Balloons was Elisabeth’s debut novel.

DISCLOSURE: Thank you to Avon Books via Netgalley for providing a digital ARC of 11 Missed Calls by Elisabeth Carpenter for review. All opinions expressed in this review are entirely my own personal opinions.

Please refer to my Goodreads.com profile page or the 'about' page on sandysbookaday.wordpress.com for an explanation of my rating system.

This review and others are also published on my blog sandysbookaday.wordpress.com

Review:11 Missed Calls by Elisabeth Carpenter. Decent storyline concerning post partum depression. I do wish it had a bit more twists and turns instead of being so straightforward. ⭐⭐⭐Three stars.

This book took me a couple days to finish I loved it but when you have a seven year old on summer break it happens 😉. I enjoyed this book it was a step away from my usual mystery thrillers! It was a deep character thriller which starts with Debbie who is the mother of Anne . Debbie disappears when Anne is still a baby so part of the story takes place in the 1980s which is Debbie’s story that leads up to her disappearance and then now Anne who wants to know what happened to her mother now that she’s a mother and it’s something that she’s never gotten over. Every time she brings up her mothers disappearance her father doesn’t want to talk about it and her stepmother who’s name is Monica was once Debbie’s best friend doesn’t want to talk either. When Monica gets an email from someone claiming to be Debbie old wounds are opened and it seems like everyone has something to hide! I loved the past and present story and when it comes together your shocked but happy you finished the book. All questions will be answered ! Loved this book!

This was a pretty good book. it was written differently the way they alternated between the two different stories of daughter and mother. When she was younger Anna's mother disappeared and into adulthood she never stopped wishing she was in her life or wondering what happened to her. Through this book you start to see the truth unfold. Thank you for allowing me to read this book and write about it.Thank you Netgalley.

Very good concept just not quite sure it came off. The ending seemed hurried and unsatisfactory still not sure where Debbie disappeared to for so many years and Ellen’s role was not very plausible sorry l too skipped pages an ok read but could have been so much more

I thoroughly enjoyed this story. It is my first book by this author and I can safe for definite that it won’t be the last. The writing is flawless and draws you in from the first page. The characters are well fleshed out and I became completely engrossed in the story.

11 Missed Calls is told from two different points of view. We are introduced first to Debbie in 1987 as her world falls apart. She is standing at the edge of a cliff wanting to end it all.

The next chapter takes us to the present time and we are introduced to Anna, Debbie’s daughter who is now grown up with a husband and daughter of her own. Anna has always felt the loss of her mother in her life and this novel is all about her finding the answers.

As the chapters alternate between Debbie and Anna we get to see exactly what happened to Debbie all those years ago. We learn more about her character, her husband Frank, her best friend Monica, and Monica’s husband Nathan. Their story spans over 30 years and as a reader I was engrossed and wanted to find out what happened to Debbie and where she disappeared to.

Anna is a strong character too but the constant questions about her mother leaving when she was just a couple of months old has always haunted her and she struggles to come to terms with it. Her Dad and Monica raised her but she has been obsessed with her mother from an early age and has hired a private investigator to help her uncover the truth.

The story is intriguing and I had no idea what secrets were going to unfold. I was gripped and didn’t want to stop reading until I got to the end. I have to say I was a little disappointed with the ending and felt that it was a little rushed and to be honest I don’t think it was very plausible. Because of this my rating is four stars. If you enjoy a gripping story that will keep you guessing right to the end with realistic characters that you can get behind, this is a really great read.

I just loved 11 Missed Calls and could not put it down.
The story centres around Anna who believes her mother passed away 30 years ago on the night she disappeared but now she’s determined to find out what happened to her.
I will be looking out for more books by this author.