I enjoyed this book, but found it very wordy. I found myself kind of drifting off during some of the lengthy descriptions.

Emily and her boyfriend Paolo are on a boat trip when she wakes up and finds him missing. After reporting this to the police, her frantic search uncovers shocking evidence of deception and murder.

This was interesting and fast-paced, although I did find the plot to be predictable, hence the 3 stars rather than 4. Still, well worth the read.

Many thanks to Netgalley, Crooked Lane Books and R. J. Jacobs for my complimentary e-copy ARC in exchange for an honest review. All opinions are my own.

This was boring. The main character (who I think was called Emily) had no personality traits apart from having bipolar disorder (which is not a personality trait) and the other characters were literally cardboard cut-outs. Nothing happened. The plot tried to be fast-paced and intriguing but it wasn't until about 70% through and even then, it was boring. The unreliable narrator trope is so overused that it has to be done really well and this time, it just wasn't.

I am very disappointed.

This book has a lot of twists and turns. Emily's boyfriend, Paolo, disappears out of the blue after a romantic night on a boat, but there is so much more going on than your basic missing person situation. I enjoyed following along and learning how everything developed and connected.

Emily is the main character, she suffers from bipolar disorder II. She is flawed and struggling to hold it together while searching for Paolo. There is a lot going on and you need to pay attention. I read the book in one sitting.

This book was a delicious mixture of mystery and psychology. I wanted to like the main character, but there was enough doubt to make her unreliable. The mystery of the missing boyfriend was so interesting and twisty, and I hope I see more from R.J. Jacobs!

Thank you Netgalley and the publisher for an ARC, in exchange for my honest review.

I have to say I really enjoyed this book, after reading a few reviews I was kind of worried I wouldn’t be able to finish it. The saying goes “different strokes, for different folks” and I’m glad I read on anyway. I found I was totally drawn by this book. It held its suspense throughout the book, there were a few parts I questions but all in all, this book was well done.
Great book by Jacobs.

I really struggled with this book. Sometimes it was fast paced and I couldn't wait to see what would happen and other times it was slow and boring. I couldn't stand Emily. Her actions were odd and questionable at times. The story just lacked. I feel like the scientific talk weighed the book down greatly and made me bored.

Thanks to Netgalley and the publisher for offering this book up for a review.

Emily, who is afraid of water and doesn't know how to swim, only agrees to go sailing because boyfriend Paolo is a very experienced swimmer. Emily wakes up alone onboard to find Paolo has disappeared, she is in the middle of the ocean, and has no memory of the night before. The story unravels as Emily tries to solve the mystery of Paolo's disappearance while she becomes the police's biggest suspect

I found the beginning and the end exciting but struggled through most of the middle. Emily is bipolar, which comes up multiple times throughout the book but besides contributing to her unreliability, doesn't seem to have a purpose. I also didn't understand why, Emily's mom, a big support to her in the beginning of the book and in her past, suddenly disappears when she is needed most. I wanted to like it, but this book was a miss for me.

And Then You Were Gone is a brilliant psychological thriller with many twists and turns. Jacobs has done a fantastic job with this book.

I really engaged with the characters and although I did predict one or two of the twists, on the whole, the story did keep me in suspense. It'll keep you on your toes and keep you guessing until the very end. Highly recommend.

Emily at last has her bipolar disorder under control. Its taken her years to get to this point in her life when everything seems to be going her way. She has a terrific boyfriend, Paolo,. a great job, and her own living space.

When Paolo suggests a weekend trip of sailing, she readily agrees. The morning after they set sail, Emily wakes up to a totally empty boat. Where is Paolo? Did he fall overboard and drown? She's alone on the boat and terrified.

Days later with still no answers on what happened, she becomes a person of interest. Her mental health is starting to unravel. She needs to know what happened in order to keep her sanity. But who does she turn to? Where does she start?

This is a real nail-biter. Watching Emily come undone in front of my eyes had me enthralled with the story and I hated to lay it down for any reason. I liked the spunk Emily showed, as she struggled with her illness in order to find the truth. The characters are finely drawn with multilayered emotions and actions.

Many thanks to the author / Crooked Lane Books / Netgalley for the digital copy of this twisted psychological thriller. Read and reviewed voluntarily, opinions expressed here are unbiased and entirely my own.

Thank you netgalley for this copy.

Emily is out on a boat with her boyfriend Paulo but the next morning she wakes up and he has dissappeared it looks like he has gone over board. Emily panics and doesn't know what to do. The police are suspicious and suspects that she has something to do with his dissaperance. Emily suffers with mental health issues too which can make her panic more and make her act to others strangely. It was a good book at times could be a bit confusing but was ok.

I found this book interesting even though at times it felt a little bit predictable.

The story is about Emily, and her boyfriend Paolo. The two of them rents a boat and decides to spent the night out on the lake. Their romantic time takes a horrific turn when come morning, Paolo is nowhere to be found and Emily has no recollection of the events that transpired the night before. So, the question is, what happened to Paolo?

The MC of this book suffers from Bipolar disorder, which makes her a somewhat unreliable narrator. Honestly, I love unreliable narrators but Emily's narration felt tedious at times. The plot moved slowly in the first half but picked up pace in the later half, which ultimately made this book worth while. Like I mentioned, the mystery felt good, if foreseeable at times but overall, I enjoyed reading this book. Is it the best psychological thriller that I have read? Nope, it's not but I think, its appealing in its own right.

And Then You Were Gone is a wonderfully mesmerizing and suspenseful read.
Emily Firestone, a woman diagnosed as bipolar, has struggled for years to get and keep herself on track. Now, for the first time in a long time, everything seems to be running smoothly; she has a job she loves, a home of her own, and a boyfriend, Paolo, that she finds herself falling in love with.

When Paolo suggests taking a break from their busy work lives (he is a medical researcher working on the virus that killed Emily’s father, she is a child psychologist), Emily is all in. To have a weekend alone with Paolo, who promises to keep his phone OFF the entire time, is impossible to resist! She is so excited that when he suggests sailing, Emily decides to put her fear of open water (she doesn’t know how to swim) aside and go for it. They enjoy a wonderful night together, talking and laughing over several glasses of wine. The perfect start to an awesome getaway so Emily thinks.

Emily wakens the next morning to find that Paolo is not on board. Thinking he must be swimming, she calls his name repeatedly. When there is no response, and she doesn’t see any sign of him in the water, she begins to panic. What happened to him? He’s an excellent swimmer, and she heard nothing overnight. But she slept surprisingly deeply – would she have heard anything? Her heart now racing, she steers the boat back to the marina to report Paolo missing. The police soon arrive to take her statement, and it doesn’t take her long to realize she is the main suspect in his disappearance.

With stress abounding, Emily starts to spiral out of control – she’s not sleeping and can’t remember when/if she took her meds. Emily begins to see clues everywhere and becomes convinced that Paolo was murdered, but how can she get the police to believe her when she’s not sure her thoughts are clear?

This book was stunning and well written. I find myself waiting for the next book by R.J. Jacobs because if it is anything like this one and as well written I am in! New authors who can give me a fresh take on a thriller are always welcome to join my reading list.

I loved the blurb of this book and was really excited to read it. Unfortunately, it archived before I could read it.

"And Then You Were Gone" was a fabulous read full of intrigue and twists. There was a lot going on in this story and it was full of substance and mystery. I found myself really rooting for the protagonist even though she made some very questionable decisions. I loved the writing style of the author, R J Jacobs and the story flowed very nicely. The conclusion was most satisfying. I really enjoyed this novel and I would certainly recommend it. Rating: five stars.

I received a complimentary digital copy of this novel, at my own request, from Crooked Lane Books via NetGalley. This review is my own unbiased opinion.

I would like to thank the publisher for giving me a copy of this book via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

I enjoyed reading this!

New author for me but pleasantly surprised. Thank you for the approval and look forward to a book relationship with other reads in the future,

A fast-paced thriller that will have your head spinning as you try to figure out what is going on!! R. J. Jacobs’ And Then You Were Gone is a unique thriller that features a leading character who has been successfully managing her bipolar disorder for years—a fact that is called into question when her boyfriend disappears. This was truly an unputdownable one for me! Fantastic writing, engaging mystery, and a relatable lead character all make this a standout debut novel. I couldn’t wait to read more and find out what happened to Paolo??

I’m always fascinated by missing person mysteries more than any other type, because there are such a huge range of outcomes! Are they alive? Ran away? Kidnapped? Hiding? Lost? The puzzle keeps me guessing. In And Then You Were Gone, Emily and her boyfriend Paolo are out on a boat together when Emily wakes up to discover Paolo is gone. Emily is adrift on the boat, afraid, and alone. And there is no clear sign on foul play! Though Emily is afraid of the water, Paolo certainly is not. He’s a strong swimmer and the chances he drowned are slim.
The set up for this really engaged me! I couldn’t figure out what I thought happened, because there just weren’t a lot of clues. In the weeks after his disappearance, Emily spirals. As everyone moves on and mourns his almost certain death, Emily can’t accept it. If he died, why can’t they find a body?

There is the added layer of Emily’s mental health that was executed so well. I’ve actually had the opportunity to chat a bit with the author, and I know he is a psychologist himself (as am I, though I am not a clinical practitioner). It really shows in this book—he describes Emily’s bipolar disorder, treatment, and her fear that her careful balance she has worked to maintain may slip. I was talking to another blogger I’m friends with who has also been diagnosed with Bipolar disorder and that she has been managing for years, and she indicated that this book felt so authentic to her experience.

The thing about people who suffer from mental health disorders is that others often assume that they are unstable. But when a mental health issue is being treated effectively, those issues are minimized completely. But that stigma that surrounds it never goes away. In the book, we see the police question Emily when they discover her medication on the boat. Did she drug Paolo? Were they taking recreational drugs? It was such an interesting and unfortunately accurate story. One that happens all of the time.

And the mystery itself? Lightening-paced and fascinating! As you begin to learn more about what may have been the context of Paolo’s disappearance (and I won’t say what that is because it is so fun to learn about in the book), you will have a hard time putting this one down! Truly—one of the most engaging psychological thrillers I’ve read this year!

I enjoyed the quick pace of the book and the author's insight into people suffering from biopolar disorder. The reader developed a strong sense of empathy for our protagonist's bouts of mania and her obsession for uncovering the truth around her boyfriend's disappearance. The twist wasn't completely a shock, but I was entertained to the very last page.

2 Stars for And Then You Were Gone. I made it through this one, but it was by sheer force of will. The plot was bumpy and very far fetched. I didn't understand the actions of the main character most of the time and was constantly rolling my eyes at the ridiculousness of it all. This could have been a good thriller with some more editing. It felt first drafty. I would give this author another shot, as I would say there is potential here.
Thank you to NetGalley for and ARC in exchange for my honest opinion.