Cover Image: Don't Look for Me

Don't Look for Me

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Member Reviews

Wow. Wow. Wow. Don’t look for me is a fast paced, heart pounding, gut wrenching, emotional, must read.
Wendy Walker does not disappoint. The character development was exceptional, I felt like I was on an emotional roller coaster. The twists and turns in the story will compel you to read on. The culmination of events that lead the the conclusion of the story are unexpected. The story could easily be turned into a movie! 5 stars.

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Wendy Walker is a terrific writer, and Don’t Look For Me is another page turner! Molly’s car has run out of gas, just as as she is driving right into a hurricane. Gas stations and businesses are boarded up for the storm, and Molly is stranded somewhere in northern Connecticut, hours from home. I am a big fan of Ms. Walker! This is a good thriller. Recommended. 

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Don’t look for me by wendy walker is an enjoyable and quickly read thriller, however if I am giving an honest review, I did not like it as much as Walker’s previous books. The plot, a kidnapping/hostage situation with a loosely fleshed out backstory was not the most original and it was not tricky to identify the “bad guy” early on in the story. There were nods to other, really well done books in this novel as well, like Room by Emma Donoghue in the idea of the child captive making a life and a whole world inside the walls of captive space. That book, however, really masterfully focuses on that inner world and the child’s perspective, whereas this one is straddling worlds - inside the house in captivity, outside in the creepy, decrepit, rundown town, the former lives of the main characters before their lives were torn apart by a tragedy five years ago, and lastly, a plot about another woman from 10 years before that is really the crux of the whole story, but is not given adequate weight until the very end. This is a lot going on and unfortunately none of the plot lines were fleshed out enough or paced well enough in my honest opinion to make me truly connect with any of them. Thank you Net-Galley for the advanced copy, I love the thriller genre even when the story isn't my favorite, I still love to curl up and devour a good novel of suspense.

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Oh, this one was goood! Nicole is trying to find her mother, Molly, whose car was found abandoned and out of gas. A note found in a casino hotel room indicates that her mother disappeared for her own reasons and that she has not come to harm. But Nicole doesn't believe it. Ever since Nicole sister, Annie died, Molly has been completely, obsessively focused on her family. There is no way she would just take off. So what happened to her? Read it and find out! You won't regret a minute of it. Walker is the real deal.

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If you’re a fan of thrillers and domestic suspense novels and have never read a book by @wendywalkerauthor, you are missing out! What sets Wendy apart from so many other authors writing in this genre is her ability to deliver engrossing thrills and twisty mysteries while leaning into complex and deeply emotional characters and stories. Her previous book, THE NIGHT BEFORE, is a maddeningly fun puzzle about a first date gone wrong, but at it’s core is an emotional story of two sisters and the lengths they will go to protect each other.
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Her latest, DON’T LOOK FOR ME, is just as good, if not better than TNB...about a young woman investigating her estranged mother’s disappearance in the midst of a family tragedy. I was lucky enough to read an early copy, and let me tell you, the story pulled me in from the first page and kept me captivated all the way through the final heart-pounding chapters. The book is Wendy Walker at her best, and I can’t wait for everyone to check it out when #DontLookForMe is released on SEPTEMBER 15, 2020!!

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I found this book to be an enjoyable read. Good mystery with some suspense thrown in. Good solid ending. This is a book which I would recommend to others.

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I started Don’t Look For Me by Wendy Walker thinking I’d read for an hour and over three hours later I had finished the book. It’s one of those that you start and just can’t stop reading. Wendy did an awesome job with the backstory for the characters and really put down a great foundation for the whole premise.

Molly Clarke’s kids don’t love her, her husband might be having an affair and she knows she is to blame for the accidental, tragic death of her young daughter five years ago. So when Molly ends up missing on a dark and stormy night, it’s totally believable that she gave up on life and did something. Maybe she ran away to start over. That would be understandable. And when a note surfaces saying something to that effect, the police believe she did a “walk away” and left of her own accord.

But Molly’s daughter Nicole senses something is amiss and sets off on uncovering what truly happened to her mother. Though they have gone through some rough times, she knows her mother wouldn’t abandon her and her brother Evan.

And soon we learn that Molly was picked up after running out of gas on the side of the road. A man and his daughter gave Molly a ride to their home where she was offered clean, dry clothes and a warm bed. She was promised that the man would call her family and let them know she was safe. But Molly suspects he didn’t call. And she soon begins to wonder if he is ever going to let Molly out of his house.

With alternating chapters from Nicole and Molly’s point of view, we see what Molly is going through and we witness Nicole’s pursuit of finding her mother and putting her trust in people she shouldn’t.

The tension is tight, the suspense is heart pounding and the author did such a fabulous job writing the book that I wasn’t even mad she made me stay up past my bedtime to read the entire book in one sitting!

What a great suspense this was and you will love it! Due out on September 15th. Something to look forward to!

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Wow! This one left me shaking! I think this will be on everyone’s list. Very good. Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher!!

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Classic Wendy Walker!

This one boasts the fast pacing ad twisty goodness that those of us who call ourselves fans have come to love and expect!

Molly can't forgive herself for the accident that took her daughter's life so when she disappears during a storm on her way home from her son's football game her family is devastated. Then the note surfaces...

Complex, twisty and chilling, this one grabbed me by the throat and didn't let up until I got to the last page!

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I love Walker's books so was delighted to be approved for this one! And wow, I was bowled over by the tension in this novel! Molly feels guilty for accidentally killing her younger daughter in a car accident when Annie ran into the street. So when she disappears in a storm on the way home from her son's football game and later a note surfaces that tells her family "Don't look for me," they are devastated. But her daughter, Nicole feels her own guilt as she had yelled at her mother that morning and told her she hated her. And things don't add up. As Nicole begins her own investigation in this small town, there are many inconsistencies, secrets, lies, and deceptions. Told from alternate perspectives of 3rd person following Nicole and 1st person Molly, we get a harrowing tale of obsession, revenge, and a family suffering from grief. Each chapter ends with the twist that keeps you from putting the book down! And yes, I cried at the end, but redemption is powerfully addictive and even though I was put through the wringer, it was worth the wild ride!

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The horrifying read with Don’t Look for Me kept me riveted through most of the book.
How can a mother disappear in one night? Will all her family give up on her or were any of them involved with her disappearance?
So many people keeping secrets to protect others, but it’s only to protect themselves.
Strong four star winner by Wendy Walker. I can see this as a tv miniseries.

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Molly Clarke disappears when her car runs out of gas in the middle of a terrible storm. Serendipitously, she’s picked up by a kind man and his nine-year old daughter; the daughter bearing a striking resemblance to Molly’s own daughter, who she hit and killed with her own car when the child unexpectedly ran into the street.

The pair take her to their off the grid home, where Molly is literally held prisoner. She develops a relationship with the man’s daughter. Alice. But the man, Mick, is a strange one; paranoid and moody.

Meanwhile, Nicolle, Molly’s eldest daughter, travels to the small town where Molly disappeared, moves into the only lodging available, and gets involved with the Jared Reyes, the number two man on a two-man police force.

Initially, Jared and the Chief seem dedicated to finding Molly, especially Jared, who accompanies Nicolle on many of her searches and helps her figure out what might have happened to her mother.

That’s the general story. But, that’s not the whole story. Things turn dark, dead ends and red herrings that are anything but dead ends and red herrings, pop up, as do some strange characters who appear to have little to do with the story but in fact play crucial roles. Bit by bit, Nicolle and her father, John, with whom she has been in contact while looking for her mother, figure things out.

Saying more would reveal spoilers.

I thought this was a good but not great thriller, as a good bit of the story seemed quite contrived. Nonetheless, the character development and Molly’s backstory of horrendous guilt about her daughter’s death and how she processes that, as well as her relationship with Alice is well done.

I received this book as an ARC from the publisher and NetGalley.

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Wendy Walker delivers yet another incredible five star thriller! I read this book for three straight hours, fell asleep and woke to finish it before I even got out of bed. It’s that compulsive!

Molly Clarke has endured heartbreak no mother should experience. Is that why she left a note and ran away leaving her old life behind? Or has something more sinister happened to Molly?

This wild ride is told in alternating point of views between Molly and her daughter who goes searching for her. So many twists and turns! You will be on the edge of your seat the entire time. And what an ending!

Anyone else pick Alice as their favorite character?

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This is my third Wendy Walker, and I'm a big fan. Walker knows how to weave a taut tale! In Don't Look for Me, we meet Molly Clarke, a suburban mother of three, as she drives home from her son's football game. Molly is distraught and severely depressed. Her son has just intentionally ignored her at his game. Her husband may have fallen out of love with her. And her teenage daughter told her she hated her before she left the house earlier in the day. Now, still miles from home, she runs out of gas in the middle of a storm of biblical proportions. She gets out to walk for help and disappears. Two weeks later she still has not been found, but a note is found at a hotel that makes it look as though she's walked away from her family and her life. Wracked with guilt, her daughter can't let it go and continues her search in the town where her mother's car was found and discovers a town full of liars and deceit.

Molly's story is heart wrenching and Wendy Walker paints her with great empathy. There are lots of red herrings thrown into the mix, and a huge twist at the end that I didn't see coming. This is a fast, intense read that I couldn't put down.

Thanks to NetGalley and St. Martin's Press for providing a digital ARC in exchange for an honest review.

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Review Copy

Wow. Yes, just wow. I was not prepared for this. I've read Wendy Walker before, so I should have known...so I'm telling you hang on, it's gonna be a bumpy ride!

The premise: A woman feels unloved by her family and leaves home only to run out of gas and abandon her car. What comes after? Horrendous. Horrifying. Horrible.

From St. Martin's Press coming this fall. Preorder this now.

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Wendy Walker’s books truly represent the genre of “psychological thriller”. Don’t Look for Me introduces a compelling cast of characters dealing with anger, grief and regret. When a woman disappears, police and family must figure out whether it was intentional or a crime. As personal lives become intertwined and secrets from the past resurface, finding the truth is literally a matter of life or death for all of those impacted. A fast paced, twisted story that will keep readers guessing.

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Riveting, heart aching story of what could have been. Molly is trying to hold on to whatever is left of her family after her youngest died in a car accident. On a horrible night of a storm, Molly went missing on her way home from visiting her son. Two weeks after her mother went missing, Nicole went back to the town that her mother was last seen. This time because of a tip from a woman who said she saw Molly that unfaithful night. However, the town as many secrets and no one is to be trusted.

There are mysteries throughout the book. It definitely kept my reading and wanting more. Not only was the town a mystery but also Molly’s family. I don’t feel like I got a full picture of the family. Molly’s husband where about the night of her disappearance was never explained; especially when Nicole question her dad in that last phone call. His part of the story never wrapped up. Molly and her husband's relationship was the focal point of her emotions when she was missing; However, it was never explained at the end. The ending has a twist I never saw coming. However, the explanation of the twist was weak. The protagonist could have stayed away. The reason to bring this person back was to have the twist; in which I thought made for a weak ending. 

Thank you to the publisher and NetGalley for letting me read this ARC in exchange for an honest review.

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I can tell I liked a book by how fast I read it... and this one was a super fast read. Maybe it’s because I’m close in age to the main character, but I connected with her and wanted to know how this turned out for her. The story was both tragic and twisted and definitely not a light read. It was an interesting, well paced story with quality characters. Just a great read.

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Holy freakin’ wow! What a book; intense, chilling, realistic, and shocking!!! A book that literally had me flipping pages to find out what was going to happen, and when I thought nothing else could, would leave me either breathless in chills, or gasping in shock! Must read for anyone who loves twisted, demented books that will absolutely shake you to your core! A must read. One of my favorite reads this year! Unputdownable!!!
Will make sure I buzz if you on all the different platforms!

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Well hellooo Wendy Walker! This author has pulled off another great thriller and I am becoming a big fan! Loved it!

"Don't Look for Me" is a page turner that grabbed my attention from the very start and didn't let go. The point of view changes between mother and daughter throughout. The pacing was great with the suspense notched up high keeping you hooked and needing to read just ONE more chapter! I couldn't s t o p reading!

Molly is a mother who is grieving and trying to heal all the while hating herself and fearing that her children hate her as well. There is the car abandoned miles from home, the note found at a nearby hotel, the shattered family that couldn’t be put back together. Did Molly really leave her children and husband behind or did something more sinister happen? Go in blind people, you won't regret it! 5 stars from this thriller lover! I didn't expect that ending. Can't wait to see what this author comes up with next!

Thank you so much to St. Martin's Press and NetGalley for the advanced copy of this book!

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