<b>The Short of It:</b>

Walker hit it out of the park with this one. It met all my reading wants.

<b>The Rest of It:</b>

Molly Clarke suffered a terrible loss. One that involved her young daughter, killed in an accident right in front of her own home. What’s inconceivable to Molly’s family and even Molly herself, is that she was the one behind the wheel. The one who turned as fast as she could, but not fast enough to avoid her daughter running in front of her car.

The family is left utterly distraught. Molly’s older daughter Nic, remembers the moment like it was yesterday and Molly’s husband can’t even bring himself to look at his wife. An accident, yet one so tragic that the family just cannot move past it.

That’s why when Molly Clarke goes missing one stormy night, only to leave her abandoned car and phone behind, people are quick to call it a “walk away”. She just couldn’t live anymore with all those accusing eyes, reminding her every day of what she did.

Did she really walk away? Or has something happened to her?

Don’t Look for Me is a GREAT read and as I mentioned above, it checked all the boxes for me. A good story. Nice plot twists. Characters you care about. Maybe a tad predictable at one point but a good ride to get there. It kept me guessing in a lot of places and had me stopping to piece things together.

I put household chores aside to read it. I read it during the baseball playoffs. I sat on the couch with it when I wasn’t feeling well and it was just what the doc ordered. These days, you gotta keep your mind busy and off of politics and this wretched pandemic. This book helped me do that.

Highly recommend. I’ve read one other book by Walker, Emma in the Night, which I also enjoyed. If you need to immerse yourself into something other than the news, find yourself a copy.

For more reviews, visit my blog: <a href="http://bookchatter.net">Book Chatter</a>.

Molly Clarke disappears on her way home from watching her son play football at his his prep school four hours away during a horrible storm. Five years ago her youngest daughter died and her life and family haven’t been the same. Did Molly walk away from her life or is her disappearance something else? Molly’s 21 year old daughter comes to the small town to find out.

Enjoyable thriller with one major twist I did not see coming at all (which I didn’t like it all). Lots of emotional growth with Nic and Molly as they grapple with their past grief over Annie. Alice was nicely creepy.

I think that Wendy Walker writes psychological thrillers that include intricate plots, well developed, complex characters.. This book. like her previous one deals with the relationships between parent and child, as well as husband and wife. Many of the characters are suspects, and many have secrets.
The original plot is disturbing and totally absorbing. She incorporates creepy suspense into an intricate plot that is well paced. It is intersting to me that she does not give any physical descriptions of the characters other than Nicole. Yet she describes the characters suffering and coping with detail and empathy. She brings into the story real life emotions surrounding grief, anger, loss, blame and forgiveness, and lets the characters internalize these feelings and express them in painful ways.
The small town with its secrets is also a character in this book and she describes the breakdown of the family unit within the context of the town. Each member has his or her own demons that consume them and reduce their communicatin and involvement with each other.

I've now read pretty all of Wendy Walker's books and have loved each one of them in different ways. I find the lead females in each one very relatable in one way or another. In this case, reader's of a certain age and stage will certainly understand how Molly came to be in the dejected mental space she was in at the beginning of the novel. She was so full of grief and guilt that she had begun to repulse her entire family (husband and two children). So in turn, as she was at her lowest mental state, she was also being rejected by the three people she loved the most. While hopefully Molly's circumstance is one most of us will never experience, her momentary thought of leaving them all behind because they would be happier and better off without her was believable.

Nic was a bit harder for me to relate to. Her version of nihilistic was not something I have ever been tempted into. Where Walker was brilliant, though, is to make Nic incredibly believable in how she repeats the last awful words she said to her mother over and over again, regretting them, questioning why she said them, and letting her guilt drive her forward with single-minded determination to find her mother.

The thriller-plot was really secondary to the family drama for me. I didn't love the little girl, Alice, or her penchant for "punishing" Molly with milk and mood swings. The man that was at the center of the mystery plot was harder to believe or understand his motives as much. So this aspect of the book wasn't something I loved, but it was so far outshone by the brilliant family dynamics taking place in both Nic's and Molly's heads that I barely noticed. It worked as a plot device to really get into family dysfunction and drove the relationship between mother and daughter forward in a compelling way.

I would recommend this book to anyone who enjoys family dramas.

This was INTENSE but excellent! Exactly how I like my thrillers - dark, nail-biting, edge of my seat kind of stuff. I love Wendy Walker’s books and she did it again with Don’t Look For Me.

Molly Clarke has been through a tragedy and as a result her life is still falling apart. Would it be so hard to just walk away from it all? Probably not, it would probably be easier. So when she turns up missing after a storm and a note is found in a hotel, it’s an open and shut case. Or is it? She ran out of gas in the storm and a man and his daughter offered her a ride. Seems easy enough until it doesn’t. Meanwhile, a new lead comes in and causes Molly’s daughter to question whether her mother really wanted to leave it all, as the more she thinks about it, it just doesn’t make sense.

We then are working from two POV’s, Nicole’s and Molly’s. It is nonstop, heart pounding intensity until the very end. Oh and this town is straight up CREEPY. And SHADY. A town that you do not ever want to stop in at all, just keep it moving thank you. This book just had it all for me, and Molly is one momma I would not want to mess with. You do NOT want to miss this one, just trust me.

Thank you to NetGalley and St. Martin’s Press for the e-galley to review. The audiobook is also fantastic as an FYI.

Wendy Walker shows the lengths one women will go to protect her family and the lengths another will go to find her:

One dark and stormy night, Molly Clarke walks away from everything she has known and loved. All that is found of here is her abandoned car and a letter stating to not look for her. Molly had a reasons to disappear, not in the least that her husband no longer loves her, her daughter hates her and all of her family blames her for killing her youngest daughter, Molly even blames herself. She just wants to walk away from it all, start anew, and allow her family to greave and move on. But would Molly really run away from her family and if she did would she do so in such a mysterious way? Her daughter Nicole does not think so and she will do anything to find her mother, whether she wants to be found or not.

This book, for me, ends somewhere in the middle of the pack of books Walker has written. It is not the best book she has written (that is still reserved for All is Not Forgotten) but it is not my least favorite. I think my main criticism for this book as it seemed like Walker didn't write it. I feel like it was not as inventive, suspenseful or have as many twists/turns/red herring as her books usually do. After a strong start, something just felt off with this book. Now I could chalk this up that I had it basically figured everything out in the first quarter of the book, but once again this really doesn't happen when I read Walker's book, so I think that really threw me off as well. I mean I did not question for one second what I thought was going to happen in the book. Walker makes attempts to lead you off course, but they just felt lack luster than what her usual plots twists hold. I will admit I did not see one twist coming but it was a minor one at best, it did not change the story or really affect the plot as this twist came up at the end.

I did like the format that Walker decided to have the story in, with alternating POV for Molly and Nicole as well as have them at different time stamps from the day Molly disappears. I think this was an effective way to lay out this plot and tell this story and this aspect was executed well.

I really liked Molly as a character and a mom. She is struggling as a mom and a person after a tragedy stuck the household and she blames herself for what happened. Molly seems like a real person, her struggles seem real, her thought process and questioning whether her family would be better off without her all has a very real feel to it. You also get to see how smart she is and how Molly will fight for her children.

So not my favourite book Walker has written. I finished it, but I just do not think this book was her shinning moment in her writing career. The farther I read into the book I just felt like I wasn't reading a Walker book any more but something I have read so many times before. Of course will continue to read her books, I am a fan of her as an author but this one just wasn't for me.

Cheers!!

Everything about Molly’s life had been wrong ever since the death of her 9-year old daughter five years earlier. Her husband was distant, blaming Molly, her older son remote, and her older daughter, Nicole, openly hostile toward her. Molly understood and forgave them all because she, too, blamed herself. So, when Molly vanished on the night of a hurricane, the idea that she might actually have done so on her own took hold. That is, until Nicole got a call from a woman claiming to have seen her mom get into a truck in the middle of that storm.⁣
⁣
𝘋𝘰𝘯’𝘵 𝘓𝘰𝘰𝘬 𝘍𝘰𝘳 𝘔𝘦 alternates between Molly, and what’s happening where she is, and Nicole’s desperate search to find her mother. The story bounces back and forth for 17 days as both women become increasingly desperate, each falling into greater and greater danger. In true thriller fashion, the ending was a little out-there, but it did take me completely by surprise and that doesn’t happen often. Bravo, Wendy Walker! 𝘋𝘰𝘯’𝘵 𝘓𝘰𝘰𝘬 𝘍𝘰𝘳 𝘔𝘦 was a quick, easy read that fans of thrillers are sure to enjoy.

Note: I received a copy of this book from St. Martin’s Press (via NetGalley) in exchange for my honest thoughts.

Summary:

Molly Clarke’s family is led to believe that she walked away from her entire life one night leaving her car abandoned and a note in a hotel. The authorities conclude and try to get her family to believe that Molly just doesn’t want found………

The stormy night of Molly’s disappearance, Molly ran out of gas and was picked up by a man and his young daughter. They are taken back to his house where the doors are locked.

Molly’s daughter, Nicole, has a feeling that something is wrong. Some of the information just doesn’t add up, so Nicole decides to do some investigating on her own.

My Thoughts:

This book is terrifying!! I haven’t read a book that freaked me out this much since The Chain. Wendy Walker does a fabulous job of creating suspense along with keeping the story flowing fast!

I highly recommend this if you love a good thriller!

This is a book that has been getting allllllllll the hype lately and it was most definitely wild ride! For whatever reason, I found my mind wandering during the chapters told from the daughter, Nic’s, perspective...so I often had to go back and reread those parts. But Mollie’s chapters had me on the edge of my seat for sure! Although this one wasn’t a five star read for me, Don’t Look For Me is a dark and twisty domestic thriller that I know will shoot straight to the top of many readers’ lists.

This was my first book by Wendy Walker and it won't be my last! When Molly Clarke goes missing on the anniversary of a tragic family accident, her family thinks that she left them. Meanwhile, Molly is desperately trying to get home to her family. The story goes on with creepy plot twists and an ending that you won't see coming!

This story seems to be common as of late, women just wandering off and leaving their family.

After a tragedy the family couldn’t get past, Molly gets caught in a storm and things take a turn for the worst.

After Molly’s disappearance, the story continues at breakneck speed, keeping you guessing and wondering all the way until the end.

All I can say is I”m glad there are people with good brains and imaginations that come up with stories like these, and write them down for readers like me to enjoy. What a wonderful thriller with such a surprising twist.

Molly Clark goes missing one night during a hurricane. Because of a devastating loss she and her family suffered five years previous, and clues that have been found surrounding her disappearance, speculation is she that depression has caused her to walk away from her family. Her oldest daughter, Nicole, driven by guilt over the blame for the family tragedy she has put on her mother, she sets out to find her.

A masterful plot full of clues that lead in many directions, Don’t Look For Me is a book that will satisfy every psychological thriller reader.

Molly Clarke once had it all. A loving husband and three terrific children. Then in an instant it all changed due to a terrible accident which left her family broken, and Molly fighting to put them back together.

On a stormy night, after feeling rejected once again by her children, she runs out of gas on a highway close to a gas station which has already closed. When a man and his young daughter drive by as she has begun walking in the pouring rain and offer her a ride, she at first hesitates, but then takes him up on his offer.

And then Molly just disappears.

Her clothes and a note which says she needs to get away are found in a room at the local casino. Her family and the police begin a massive search for Molly which yields no clues as to where she could have gone. Then rewards are offered to no avail. As Molly’s husband begins to believe she really has decided to leave them, her daughter Nicole refuses to let it go. Perhaps it is due to the guilt she feels as she relives the conversation she had with her mother the last time she saw her.

Then Nicole receives a tip from a woman who says she saw someone that matches her mother’s description get into a pick-up truck with a broken headlight the night Molly disappeared. Against her father’s wishes, Nicole decides to go back to the small town where her mother went missing and meet with the woman. What she discovers when she goes back is that her mother’s cold case is now brimming with local suspects.

She begins to learn the townsfolk know how to keep secrets buried and not everyone wants to give up what they know to her. But she persists and she begins to unravel the unknowns and starts to piece together an unbelievable story. But what could any of this have to do with her mother’s disappearance?

Then Nicole discovers the horrific truth which has her racing to find her mother before it is too late for both of them.

Don’t Look for Me is a twisted, devious psychological thriller which continually leaves the read both gasping and wanting more.

Thank you #NetGalley #St.Martin’sPress #WendyWalker #Don’tLookforMe for the advanced copy.

I received this ARC in a download form and also a hard copy. While this isn't my favorite, I really enjoyed reading it. It has an excellent story line and keeps the pages turning. Overall, I think it is a good read but not one I spent too much time thinking about afterwards.

This is the second book that I have read by Wendy Walker. I liked her pacing of this book and the various characters. This book runs on two different timelines and they meet up at the end.
Don't Look For Me is a psychological thriller that has you questioning everyones intentions and what they are hiding. When Molly Clarke disappears one night, her family is faced with the possibility that she left them and didn't want to be found. Her car is found abandoned on the side of the road, with her cell phone still inside. A note is found that at a nearby hotel that states she needs to start her live over again.
But what really happened to Molly Clarke? Her daughter will not give up on trying to locate her- living or dead. Both Molly and her daughter Nicole are carrying a lot of guilt over the death of a child, Molly's youngest daughter. While Nicole is trying to find her mother, she encounters people who are hiding secrets from her. How much do they know? Who is telling the truth? Who is trying to harm Nicole?
This book is certainly a page turner. I found myself routing for both Nicole and Molly. A fast paced read that will keep you guessing until the end.

DONT LOOK FOR ME was another fast-paced, action packed, captivating thriller. A perfect read for the month of October. DONT LOOK FOR ME was my first Wendy Walker novel and I was not disappointed. All of the reviews I've seen on this book has been phenomenal and with good reason! I'll try to keep mine short...

What I liked:
-short chapters
-dual POV
-fast paced and page turning
-two twists that I DID NOT see coming at all

Long story short, read this book. You won't be disappointed.

I liked how the book has both mother and daughter's point of view. This was definitely a psychological thriller. The manipulation that happens is astounding. You go for a wild ride trying to find out what happened and who the bad guy is. The ending is more convoluted than you think it is going to be. I am glad I read this book. It will get you sucked it from the beginning and wondering what will happen next until the end.


*I received a free copy of this book from NetGalley and am voluntarily giving my honest opinion*

This book is great! Would definitely recommend. Thanks so much to NetGalley and the publisher for the ARC.

Now that is one heck of a thriller! This was my first Wendy Walker book and it most definitely will not be the last!! There is so much to unpack in this book - did Molly leave her family or was she kidnapped? Did she kill her kid or was it an accident? Is John having an affair? Does Evan really hate his mother? Does Nicole blame her mother for Annie's death or is there something deeper going on? Who can you trust in Hastings and who is really telling the truth? The first answer is that nothing is what it seems!!! This book will keep you guessing and on the edge of your seat trying to figure it all out.

A riveting, fast paced page turner with some crazy twists! My one issue with the book was around Daisy's character. I don't feel that was explained very well. Otherwise, buckle up, keep your arms inside the roller coaster and enjoy the ride!!!!

My thanks to Wendy Walker, St. Martin's Press and netgalley for a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

When a woman disappears, her daughter decides to look for her in defiance of the police and her family. Despite the general consensus that her mother left on her own, the daughter is determined to follow her instincts and bring her home. Author Wendy Walker builds a compelling plot that fizzles out and devolves into something much less serious in her newest novel Don’t Look for Me.

For five years, Molly Clarke has lived with a mountain of guilt. After an accident that killed her youngest daughter, Molly has lost her confidence in herself as a mother. Her husband, John, has pulled away from her. Her oldest daughter, Nicole, has dropped out of school and spends her days drifting in and out of sobriety. Her middle child, Ethan, lives at his boarding school and does everything he can to give Molly the cold shoulder.

That doesn’t stop her from driving to his school every other week to attend Ethan’s football games. John might be having an affair and Nicole barely speaks to her, but cheering Ethan on is something tangible that Molly can do to regain her center as a mother and she’s going to do it. No matter what.

After the most recent game, though, Molly is driving home alone with her guilt renewed. She starts to wonder whether it would be better for the entire family if she disappeared. Clearly no one wants her around, and she’s only making everyone unhappy. She can see it and sense it, and she’s tired of feeling so awful all the time.

When her car breaks down, she doesn’t think her day can get any worse. It seems like serendipity then when a truck slows down to ask if she needs help. That’s the last anyone hears of Molly Clarke.

After a few weeks, Nicole makes a drastic decision regarding her mother’s disappearance. She’s sick and tired of medicating herself to avoid her life. She couldn’t do anything to help her sister, but Nicole is going to go find her mother.

The police found a note in a hotel not far from where she disappeared that says, “Don’t look for me,” but Nicole isn’t buying it. Her heart and instincts tell her that her mother didn’t leave; she was forced to go against her will. As the story switches between mother and daughter, both will fight to get back to what they once had: a strong bond and a sense of normalcy.

Author Wendy Walker’s two main characters will touch readers’ hearts. Molly’s guilt and her constant source of emotional pain are real. At times she may come across as a little too needy, but once the reality of her disappearance is made apparent she anchors the story. Readers will appreciate her persistence in trying to work through her problems.

Nicole’s despair is also grounded and feels real. Like her mother, Nicole is reaching for anything that will restore her life’s balance. Her determination to find Molly is refreshing. Even as she deals with her alcoholism, she lets her goal keep her focused.

The story is let down by the last third of the book. As Nicole gets closer to finding Molly and Molly gets closer to coming home, major plot elements meant to be twists actually seem too convenient. They don’t do justice to Molly and Nicole’s grief and distract from the larger narrative. The fact that they’re meant to work out the climax doesn’t help at all.

Also, while Molly and Nicole’s objectives are clear, the goals and even the purpose of secondary characters seem less so. Readers may get distracted by several questions about logistics that arise as a result of the direction the plot takes. The narrative never answers them, making it harder to buy into the “big reveal” toward the end.

Unfortunately the book, with its strong start, is almost undone by the last several pages. I recommend readers Bypass Don’t Look for Me.