The Empty Nest by Sue Watson is a psychological thriller.

First, let me thank NetGalley, the publisher Bookouture, and of course the author, for providing me with a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review. All opinions are my own.
 

My Synopsis:   (No major reveals, but if concerned, skip to My Opinions)

Kat Ellis is a worried mother.  Her 18-year old daughter did not come home from university on the weekend as planned.  It is Sunday, and Kat hasn't heard from Amy since yesterday.    She doesn't understand why no one believes there's a problem.  It's a whole day.  Yes, Kat may have over-reacted to things in the past, but it was always because she loved her daughter, and she had to protect her.  Yes, she may have lied in the past, but it was always to keep Amy safe.   Yes, she goes a little overboard occasionally, but none of that matters now.  Kat is sure that something awful has happened this time. Amy would never abandon her plans with her mother, not without at least calling or texting.  Amy tells her mother everything, doesn't she?

Kat's husband, Richard, is trying to calm Kat down, but to no avail.

Kat's best friend Zoe is also trying to keep Kat calm.  She and her daughter Jodie know that Kat can "crowd" her daughter a little too much.  They aren't having much luck keeping Kat under control either.

When it turns out that Amy really is missing, secrets are going to be revealed.  Apparently everyone is keeping some....and lying.

 
My Opinions:  

First, I have to tell you that I really disliked most of the characters in this book.  I guess Richard and Josh were okay, if a little bland.  Kat was over-bearing to the extreme, Zoe was overly sympathetic, and Jodie just whined.  Then there was Amy, who we mostly heard about in a round-about way, but she didn't appeal either -- sounded like a mean, egotistical child.  So I couldn't relate, or enjoy any of the characters, which made the book a hard read for me.  As well, my feelings for the characters did not change from beginning to end.

However, the plot, the writing, and the twists, were all good -- if a little predictable.  

So overall, the book was "okay" in my opinion.  This one just didn't have the spark that Sue Watson's "Our Little Lies" had.  Although I found it more than a little annoying, I am sure others will love it.  I will also continue to be interested in books by this author.

Amy and her mom Kat are very close.  As expected, when Amy goes to college, it is devastating for Kat.  But Kat keeps it together knowing Amy will be home for the weekend.  Except Amy doesn’t come home.  She is nowhere to be found.  No phone, no sightings, nothing.  Is Amy just testing out her freedom? Or is something more frightening going on.  Does Kat even really know who Amy is?  
A great read, which  builds up to a satisfying ending!

(Also written on my GR page!)

3.5 stars rounded up!

What a treat from Sue Watson!

The Empty Nest tells a story about a worried mother whose daughter went to university and she might be or might not be missing. Kat was a helicopter mom and her actions throughout her daughter's ordeal was bordering mad. Everyone became a suspect and there was a question whether her daughter was truly in trouble or not.

I was kept awake because of the plot and wondered where Amy might go.
It started real slow and the solution appeared after around 80% mark.
But, boy, what a solution it was!

Great story albeit slow, definitely worth it!

Kat and her daughter Amy were thick as thieves when Amy was growing up. They told each other everything and did everything together. That is until Amy moved away for college. She chose a school that was a few hours away, so there was no dropping in by Kat. So, of course Kat is devastated by the “loss” of time with her daughter. What keeps her going is the texts and calls she gets from Amy about school and the new people she has met. Everything seems to be going alright until Amy doesn’t come home when she said she would and Kat starts to get frantic with worry, thinking the worst. But no one believes Amy is in any danger, everyone just thinks she is enjoying her new found freedom from home and maybe even Kat. But Kat won’t let it go…

As a parent I can relate to Kat with the whole kids growing up and moving away for school and how it can be hard to adjust to them not being there, but wow Kat was overly protective almost to the point of being obsessed with everything that has to do with her daughter. But at the same time, her heart in the right place and I can see myself doing some of the things she did too if it were my kid. There were a few times that I had to question her actions though especially when it came to her past but I still had to root for her to find her daughter.

There were a lot of players in the story. Her husband Richard, was supportive to a point but even he had his breaking point with the obsessiveness as well as her friend Zoe. There were teachers and friends, some questionable, some who seemed to genuinely care for Kat and Amy and then there were a couple that I just couldn’t figure out. That is until the end. But it was certainly a great cast of characters.

This story starts slow and steady and is one that is built on secrets and lies. Kat’s lies, Richard’s secrets and it seemed that no one in this little circle of friends knew how to tell the truth and that just made it where you don’t know who is trustworthy or not. Now, Amy’s disappearance did bring some of the secrets to the surface but there were some that were willing to fight to keep their secrets, no matter the cost. During the later half of the book is where the suspense starts to build at a faster pace and there are a few things I did see coming but Watson did a great job taking the story in a different direction leaving me on the edge of my seat right up till the end. And the epilogue was certainly a fantastic addition!

The Empty Nest was an engrossing psychological thriller and had a great mystery with questionable people with questionable motives and plenty of suspense right up till the end. It was definitely worth the read!

Kat is an overprotective mother. When her daughter, Amy goes to university, Kat misses her terribly. They are I  constant contact. Amy was due to visit home at the weekend, but she never showed up. Kat tries to contact her but theres  o reply from her phone or social media. Kat I owe something is wrong but no one will take her seriously. Even her husband thinks that Amy will turn up. But when a few days pass with still no word from Amy  they contact the police. Will Amy be found safe and sound?

Everyone is a suspect into Amy's disappearance.  The book also lets you see how a missing family member can tear families, friendship and relationships apart. Where you will suspect anyone and everyone. There are plenty off twists. This is a well crafted story. It's a well written story that send you in different directions. The ending, I did not expect.

I would like to thank NetGalley, Bookouture and the author Sue Watso  for my ARC in exchange for an honest.

It feels like this book was written in two parts. The first part was more inside the thoughts of the main character (Kat) – there was a lot of exposition. In spite of spending a lot of time in her head, or maybe because of it, I did not connect to Kat as I would have liked. She was overbearing and unlikeable. The second part contained more interaction between characters, and there were more than a few twists that kept the plot moving. The result is a decent psych thriller that examines mother/daughter relationships as the daughter grows up. For more thoughts, please visit my blog at Fireflies and Free Kicks Fiction Reviews. Thank you to NetGalley and Bookouture for a complimentary, pre-release, digital ARC of this book.

I have enjoyed books from Sue Watson in the past, but this one fell a little short for me. I had a hard time relating to any of the characters. I had figured out the plot early on. It just wasn’t for me. And I’m sorry. But thank you for the ARC.

No one knows their child like a good mother. If they are in trouble she can sense it. This book is about such a mother/daughter relationship. When Kat’s daughter Amy goes away to college she is like any mother, sort of afraid but also I think happy that she is claiming her independence somewhat. They talk every single day. Then one day Amy does not call. Kat knows something is wrong but no one seems to want to listen. Even her husband.. Her bossy best friend. No one seems to get it. 
You’ll find out why Kat is how she is while reading this story. I liked her but also thought at first she was a bit to clingy to Amy. Although being the mother of a girl I also fully understood. You want to protect your child from everything and when they go away it’s difficult to let go. 
I truly enjoyed this book from start to finish. It kept me turning the pages and wanting to know what happened.. It was well written and most characters were a bit likable. I didn’t much like the stepdads way of handling things and the mother good grief but I did end up truly loving Kat. 

Thank you #NetGalley, #Bookouture for this book. This is my own true honest review.

I give it a big 4 stars and recommend it.

The Empty Nest is one hell of a read. Gripped right from the start I was caught up in this story, that took me on a journey of a mother’s love for her daughter and how you should never question a mother’s instincts. If you like a psychological thriller that is chock full of mystery, suspense, intrigue with twists and turns, then this is the book for you!

Sue has crafted a story that is tightly plotted and is extremely well written. There is no love stronger than a mother’s love for a child and when it is an only child in the case of Amy, this just intensifies these feelings more. When Kat is unable to reach Amy when she is meant to be coming home for a few days on a break from university, Kat automatically thinks the worse. She knows her daughter and she would never not call her mother to let her know that her plans have changed. What follows is a mother’s desperate search for her daughter while dealing with her husband Richard and Amy’s friends who all seem to be hiding something and may know what has happened to Amy.

I must admit I did have mixed feeling’s for Kat’s character at the beginning. I found her to be too much to start with and at times I felt very claustrophobic and smothered when reading the first few chapters. As the story progressed though and we were given more insight into Amy’s background, it became much clearer why Kat was like this. Truth be told, I would much rather have a mother like Kat than one that took no interest in me at all. Her desperation and manic behaviour in trying to find out what has happened to Amy tore at the heartstrings and had me welling up many times. She has been very well written as have all the supporting characters which are a mix of likeable and unlikable ones.

I always enjoy Sue’s writing style. It flows well and is fluid and engaging. Sue really knows how to get your attention from the get go and is a master at building tension, suspense and have you sitting on the edge of your seat as to where she is going to take the story. In this case you think you know, but in true Sue Watson fashion she throws in another twist which throws the playing field wide open again. I love how she does this.

The Empty Nest is a thrilling read but also one that makes you think and see the other side of how a parent feels when their child leaves the nest. Unable to have children off my own, I guess this was something I never really thought about and now I can understand how my mum felt when I left home. She is very much like Kat but a more chilled version. We are extremely close and it made me put myself in her shoes and it really didn’t feel great. I would be completely lost without my mum and I appreciate her so much and love the relationship we share as mother and daughter.

It was an absolute pleasure to read and review The Empty Nest which I highly recommend.

Thank-you to NetGalley, Bookouture and Sue Watson for allowing me to read an advanced copy of The Empty Nest which I have reviewed honestly and voluntarily.

Kat feels bereft when her only daughter moves to Wales to attend Aberystwyth University. The mother and daughter have a close bond and Kat wishes her days away waiting for a phone call, a brief text or most of all, a visit home.

So, when Kat’s daughter Amy doesn’t turn up as expected she knows there is something amiss. Her husband Richard and best friend try to reassure her but Kat knows her daughter better than anyone and she knows that something is not right.

I raced through The Empty Nest desperate to find out what happened to the teenager. Sue Watson has a talent for building up suspense and sending the reader down dark alleyways and dead ends, then producing a shock when you are least expecting it. Most of the characters (especially Kat) grated on me (as I am sure they were meant to) but it didn’t matter to me, as long as I found out what happened.

The overbearing mother, flaky stepdad and bossy best friend were all frustrating and irritating in their own way, but people like that do exist. As a mother myself, I was deeply affected bt Kat’s anguish which kept building and building. The maternal instinct is a powerful emotion and Sue Watson demonstrates this perfectly. This is a clever, tense thriller … everyone has a secret, many are lying…and finally, the epilogue had my head spinning!

Amy is 18-years-old and off to University. Kat, Amy's mother, is living in memories of when Amy was a child and never left mom's side. Kat always says that she and Amy are not only close-knit, but they are best friends.

Amy's been gone a few weeks and she and Kat have spoken on the phone every single day without fail. That is, until now.

It's been 2 days and Amy has not called .. has not answered her phone ... has not sent or received any text messages. Kat is beside herself with worry.

Kat's husband just tells her to calm down, Amy is fine .. just having a good time at school. She's becoming independent and doesn't need to talk to mommy every day. Even Kat's best friend, herself the mom of a teenager, tells her this is a normal thing.
But Kat knows right away that something is very wrong. Her daughter would never forget to call. She would never just disappear... After all, Amy has nothing to run from. Or does she?

This is a family with a lot of secrets. Kat can't even tell her husband about her past. Amy has been keeping secrets, too. And Kat's husband is hiding something .. but what? This is a mother who is obsessive about her daughter ..... with good cause? Who can she turn to when those around her keep telling her this is normal behavior for a teenage on her own?

The Empty Nest is a highly suspenseful psychological thriller with twists and turns that never quit until the final explosive unpredictable ending. There is a feeling of loss when a child leaves home to make their own way in the world. I feel Kat's rising fear and angst as the story progresses. The characters are finely crafted and memorable.

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

Amy is 18-years-old and off to University. Kat, Amy's mother, is living in memories of when Amy was a child and never left mom's side. Kat always says that she and Amy are not only close-knit, but they are best friends.

Amy's been gone a few weeks and she and Kat have spoken on the phone every single day without fail. That is, until now.

It's been 2 days and Amy has not called .. has not answered her phone ... has not sent or received any text messages. Kat is beside herself with worry.

Kat's husband just tells her to calm down, Amy is fine .. just having a good time at school. She's becoming independent and doesn't need to talk to mommy every day. Even Kat's best friend, herself the mom of a teenager, tells her this is a normal thing.
But Kat knows right away that something is very wrong. Her daughter would never forget to call. She would never just disappear... After all, Amy has nothing to run from. Or does she?

This is a family with a lot of secrets. Kat can't even tell her husband about her past. Amy has been keeping secrets, too. And Kat's husband is hiding something .. but what? This is a mother who is obsessive about her daughter ..... with good cause? Who can she turn to when those around her keep telling her this is normal behavior for a teenage on her own?

The Empty Nest is a highly suspenseful psychological thriller with twists and turns that never quit until the final explosive unpredictable ending. There is a feeling of loss when a child leaves home to make their own way in the world. I feel Kat's rising fear and angst as the story progresses. The characters are finely crafted and memorable.

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

4.5 stars

THE EMPTY NEST
BY SUE WATSON 

     "But having children is agony.  From the minute their born we hold them to us knowing life will never be the same again.  The worry never leaves us, but one day the children will--and we are left with our empty nests, and full desks, and we tell ourselves we now have time for ourselves.  But what we don't realize is that we are never ourselves again after having children, they shape us as much as we shape them."

Kat is a helicopter mom to her daughter Amy.  Even though Amy is an adult and has been gone to university for a couple of months.  Kat doesn't let a day go by without knowing what Amy is doing or who she is doing it with.  Amy is Kat's only child whom she had with her first husband named Tony.  Amy has a four day weekend  coming up which she us due home.  When Amy fails to show up on her appointed day home without calling or texting her mom, Kat goes over the top with worry that she fears something awful has happened to Amy.  

I think we all as parents would worry about our adult children or only adult child, if we were expecting them and they never showed up without a phone call or a text telling us something else came up.  Not Kat.  And this is where I had a problem with this book.  Kat goes over the top with worry and obsessing that something terrible has happened to Amy.  Crying and ruminating in her head right off the bat that the worst has happened.  It got tiresome and their was just way too much catastrophizing.
The daughter is an adult and it was far too soon in my humble opinion to think the worst so soon.
This bothered me so much so that I was ready to set the book down with a DNF at about 6 percent in.  I am glad that I stuck it out and gave the book a chance but it seemed sort of lackluster for me with all of that chattering and it just seemed unrealistic and too much too soon to be thinking of calling the police the same day.
Amy is a full fledged adult who could have had any number of things that came up where she didn't have a chance to contact her mom yet.  To the author's credit there was good reason to worry but not to the extent that she did too soon.

I am not giving any spoilers away because there are a number of ways this novel could have played out.  Did Amy just decide to go away with friends and forget to call her mother or decide not to because of Kat's obsessive helicopter ways?  Did Amy's dad Tony take her to another country?  There were some of Amy's flat mates who said that they saw her with an older man with gray hair?  Could Amy's step-father Richard have something to do with her disappearance?  You will have to read this book to find out.  I did guess before the big reveal who was involved .  The story did get interesting as I reached the 30 percent mark.  I think fans of psychological thrillers will like this and this novel will find an audience.  For me 3.5 stars rounded up.  I would still recommend this and be interested in reading this author's other work in the future.

Thank you to Net Galley, Sue Watson, and Bookouture for providing me with my ARC in exchange for a fair and honest review.  All opinions are my own.

When Kat’s daughter goes missing, she is the only one to think something is amiss but she won’t stop until she is taken seriously.

I enjoyed this book, I was swept along with Kat’s journey through all the twists and turns, through to the end. Although I suspected the truth at the end of the book, the ending still took me by surprise, and even though everyone had their secrets, it still left me feeling kind of uplifted. I completely recommend this book.

I did not care for this book.  Amy goes off to uni and helicopter mom Kat nearly goes out of her mind when Amy fails to call her.   I got really tired of Kat's nonstop whining and telephoning/texting trying to find out where Amy was.  I really had to struggle to finish this one.  Thank you NetGalley and Bookouture for the ARC  of this book in exchange for an honest review.

This is a gripping psychological thriller that had me hooked from the first few pages. 
Kat is missing her daughter Amy while she’s away at University so is looking forward to her coming home for the weekend. 
When Amy doesn’t arrive, Kat starts to panic. 
She becomes more and more distressed and we gradually find out more about their relationship. 
Amy is everything to Kat and she knows deep down she would contact her if she could. 
Kat did annoy me a little bit but I think the book shows the extreme emotion involved when a loved one goes missing. 
This book has a great ending/epilogue which really pulls the story together. 
Thanks to Bookouture and NetGalley for the opportunity to read this book.

Another cracking read from Sue Watson, starting slowly and drawing you in until the pace picks up and wham! That was a surprise! And the surprises keep on coming as the sense of danger and tension increases. She has a knack for upending your theories and throwing them back at you with her storytelling, keeping you guessing, before throwing another shocking chapter ending your way.

Amy mother was very thoughtful of her she would any time hold her hand and take her to playgroup 
But Amy is gone to university and always rings her mum everyday
But she never rung one day and her mother believes she’s missing 
I had an ARC

"It's the not knowing." 

Kat and her 18-year-old daughter, Amy, are very close. They're not just mother and only child, they're also best friends. They tell each other everything and Amy knows how her mother worries about her. So, when Amy moves to Wales for university, Kat is bereft and missing her Amy. This empty nest syndrome has got her bad. But, they talk and text everyday which helps to keep some of the terrible lonlieness at bay. And, best of all, Amy is coming home in the upcoming weekend and Kat can't wait to catch up. When Sunday comes and goes without any contact, Kat starts to fret. The initial attempts to contact Amy via mobile come to nothing and Kat moves from excitement to panic as she calls Amy, her friends, stalks her on social media to see if there are any updates (none), and finally summons the police. She knows her daughter and this behavior and the lack of communication is not Amy. Of course, no one believes that anything bad has happened to Amy -- she's just spreading her wings is all. Not Kat's husband, and Amy's stepfather, Richard. Not Kat's best friend, Zoe, or Zoe's daughter, Jodie, or Amy's boyfriend, Josh, or any of Amy's new flatmates at school. Kat will not be comforted and she alone knows that something is terribly wrong. NO SPOILERS.

It is amazing, sometimes, when you pick up the perfect book at the perfect time. It was 11 pm last night and I'd just gotten a call from my eldest daughter (she hasn't lived anywhere near me for many years) who was letting me know that due to a missed connection on her flight home, she was going to rent a car and drive over 5 hours back. So, folks, yeah, it's a mom thing. Of course I still worry about her and always will no matter her age and stage of life. So, I picked this up and started reading. It hit ALL the right notes from the very beginning and I'm confident that most parents would understand everything that Kat was feeling, even if you never were an obsessed helicopter mom or dad. Yeah, Kat was a little over the top neurotic, but she did have some reasons for that and I could totally empathize with her instincts telling her that something was off and her need to take some action. This was truly psychological suspense and great domestic drama with interesting characters and the narrative so compelling that I could not put it down so read it completely cover to cover while waiting by the phone myself! I loved the surprises along the way, especially unusual for me not to anticipate where this was going. 

Thank you to NetGalley and Bookouture for this e-book to read, review and recommend. You won't be disappointed!

Empty Nest hits a few points that will resonate with many women as Kat is faced with her only daughter off at university and too much time on her hands.  Amy, Kat's daughter, is by all accounts smart, precocious, pretty and popular. Extremely close to her daughter, Kat has a difficult time with Amy away and keeps in close contact with her-so much so her family and friends feel it's over the top.  But Kat is hiding something and her fears of becoming exposed may be realized when Amy is discovered missing. 

But not everyone is convinced Amy is missing-after all she's a young college student who may have made other plans to come home for the weekend. However, Kat immediately believes something is amiss and the longer Amy is out of contact the more sinister the possibilities. A few red herrings and some surprises make for a quick read; the narrative in the beginning is a little slow but the second half picks up and overall is a decent read!

Thank you to NetGalley, the publisher and author for this ARC in exchange for my honest feedback.

This book was one I couldn’t put down! Kat and Amy are mother and daughter who have a great relationship. When Amy goes off to college, Kat misses her terribly but they keep in constant contact. One weekend Amy is supposed to visit but she never shows up. And Kat can’t get ahold of her by phone or social media. Kat immediately knows something is wrong but no one will take her seriously. Everyone around her, including her own husband, think she’s too over protective and that Amy will soon show up. But as the days pass, the police are contacted and everyone is a suspect. Where is Amy? Did she run away? Or did someone take her? The secrets and lies in this book are predictable but well executed. I enjoyed this book very much. Good mystery!