Cover Image: The Day I Disappeared

The Day I Disappeared

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Author # Brandi Reeds has a new novel #' The Day I Disappeared'. A novel that will keep you in suspense. This brings a mother and daughter together to try and solve this mystery.
Thank you,
#Netgalley, # Brandi Reeds and # Lake Union Publishing for the advanced copy

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The story is about a 4 year old girl, Holly, that’s is kidnapped, but returned to her parents with no memory of what happened to her.

20 years later, a similar abduction occurs abs the police they made a mistake with the conviction they made and that the real culprit it on the loose.

Holly is asked to help the police, resulting in her trying to dig up suppressed and forgotten memories before the missing girl in question turns up dead.

The story is told from Holly's perspective, but as the reader we hear of past events from her mother.

This twisty story will have you reading on to find out what is going on, but not in the devouring sense.

I’d give this book 3.5 stars.

Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for an ARC in exchange exchange for an honest review.

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Although I eventually enjoyed this book it took me a little while to "get into" it, I felt it was very predictable. Still it was a good book.

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I liked this book though it was predictable somewhere through the middle of the plot. The writing was good and so was the character delvelopment.

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I wasn't expecting to blow through this in a day. It wasn't even that it super suspenseful because it wasn't, it was actually fairly predictable, but something about it just kinda sucked me in. Holly goes missing from a park at the age of 4, 94 days later she shows back up at the park she was taken from unharmed and with no memory of what happened. The story follows Holly as she navigates "echoes" from her past and how they are tied to the here and now, and switches to the perspective of her mom as she was going through the whole ordeal.

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I received this book "The Day I Disappeared" from NetGalley and all opinions expressed are my own. Although a bit predictible it was still a good story. Took a little bit of time also to get into the storyline. Overall an interesting read.

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I’ve been on a kick with “troubled woman who can’t remember her mysterious past is stalked by an unknown villain” stories lately. I read The Day I Disappeared in two sittings, and I read the last 75% all at once. I HAD to know what happened! I had a suspect in mind, but after the author debunked that theory I had no clue who the bad guy was until the very end. I would recommend this book for people who enjoy Gone Girl, Girl On The Train, and any thriller they sell at Target.

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The story of Holly's kidnapping when she was young and how she is still affected by it to this day is a thrilling tale! I loved how during flashbacks and glimpses the story starts to unfold. Such a great read!

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I very much enjoyed this book. It has a good story and excellent main characters. I would definately recommend this book.

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Echoes of the past are haunting me.

Holly Gebhardt is haunted by her past. She was taken at 4 years old in her neighborhood playground while her mother was only a few feet away. Three months later she was brought back, alive and with no memory of what happened. Now she works for her father in construction and her mother's car accident has brought back her past in full force. Her mother is in a coma and she has left her family with unanswered questions.

The narration is done between Holly and her mother Cecily as they go back to what led to Holly's abduction. New evidence has come out that they may have the wrong man in prison and a detective in the case has contacted Holly to see if any thing in her memory can shed any light. Twenty years after the terrible incident, her family has changed and the relationship they had with their good friends and neighbors. Their daughter Kitten and Holly are best friends and Kitten had witnessed Holly being taken away. What makes this thriller so engaging is how all the stories come together. It is done so seamlessly that you can. not. stop. reading. It had everything I liked in a thriller, intrigue, likeable characters and I could not figure out who done it. There were plenty of suspects but it still was surprise. Very stealth in nature. Will be looking for more on this author.

A special thank you to Lake Union Publishing and Netgalley for the ARC and the opportunity to post honest review.

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Holly is a little four year old girl who gets kidnapped, but she is returned to the same spot from where she was kidnapped just a little over 3 months later. What I found strange was that she was totally unharmed, no sign of sexual assault (thank God), and with little to no memory of what happened to her.

Initially, I was a bit confused about what was going on. It was told in two POV's: Holly's (as a grown woman) and her mother Cecily's. Adding to the mystery was that other little girls were being found dead under very similar circumstances. It was just odd to me how Holly was unable to remember even as things were revealed.

I did not like her mother at all. I felt like she was a lousy mom overall. I never did grow to like her. I understand why as the story moves along. I did like that her character was flawed and complex, but she just didn't grab me emotionally.

What I did like is that there were twists and turns, the kidnapper was not an obvious prediction so that you continued to read knowing who did what. I had a suspect all right from the beginning...problem is, I kept changing who my #1 suspect was. But that kept it interesting for me.

I want to thank NetGalley and Lake Union Publishing for giving me a free e-book in return for an honest review. This review is my own opinion and no one else's.

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I loved all the twists and turns that were happening throughout the book. I was relieved when the physic was revealed as a fraud because I really didn’t want any supernatural elements in the book but the ending revealed a hint of a ghost which is really confusing. If there is a hint of supernatural the author really needs to own that it was supernatural or have some explanation on why it happened like a trick of the mind but it was an open ended question that for me ruined the end twist of the book.

I would have liked one of the narrators to be the kidnapper just to get into his mind a little more and understand why his sister was so important and what the dolls were about.

I loved the book but the ending felt rushed and like a writing cop out.

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You have to pay close attention to this story to keep track, until the mid-mark at least, due to the two different POV. It did turn out to be a good read, just had to get my head in it. I thought it would be predictable, but I was wrong....

Three months after four-year-old Holly Gebhardt was kidnapped, she was inexplicably returned to the same park from which she’d vanished…with no memory of the ordeal. Though a local handyman was convicted, suspicion also fell on his friend—Holly’s mother, Cecily. The troubling doubts about her involvement shattered the family, forever driving a wedge between mother and daughter.

Twenty years later, another girl goes missing under eerily similar circumstances. It’s just the latest in a series of kidnappings that Detective Jason Guidry thinks Holly can help solve. Though Holly has tried to move on with her life, a young girl’s life hangs in the balance. All she has to do is try to remember…

With her memory still mostly blank, Holly is missing vital pieces of the puzzle, and she believes her mother can put them in place. In desperation and fear, Holly and her mother come together again. But in a chilling rush toward the past, Cecily still has secrets she’s yet to share with her daughter. Should she dare to breathe a word, she could lose Holly all over again.

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Quite an intriguing book that I got my hands on. Author Brandi Reeds made me feel as if the story was being told from both ends of the spectrum, rushing toward each other to clash into a final reveal.

Holly at age 4 disappeared for 3 months, but was returned back almost intact, except for loss of memory for only those 3 months. After 20 years, children were disappearing again, but were returned back. DEAD. The Detective in charge had a theory. Both Holly and her mom Cecily knew something. Holly couldn’t remember, and Cecily was in coma post an accident.

My first book by this author, initially it took me time to get oriented to the story as there were two POV, but the timelines weren’t clear. Slowly the picture started coming to light as the rays from the author’s pen strokes made the picture clearer one page at a time.

The writing smoothed out for me after the first few chapters, and I got to see what was happening in the present time with Holly, and Cecily in her comatose state provided me the backstory. There were many things hidden in the days prior to the disappearance.

Suspense was built up slowly, though it seemed slightly erratic at places. A sharper prose would have helped. Nevertheless, unreliable narrators, a few suspects, some twists, and fast paced storyline from 30%, it was quite a suspenseful story.

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I highly recommend this book. What I do not recommend is reading it in bed because you will not be able to put it down and you'll be in for a late night!

The story is about Holly who is abducted and disappears then reappears for three month when she is a young child. 20 years later, with a man in jail for her crime, new evidence appears which suggests the crimes have still being going on throughout the 20 years suggesting the man in jail is innocent.

Holly wants to help the missing girl and begins to find secrets throughout her family and has flashbacks about her own abduction.

Gripping and interesting which made it a quick read.

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Another thriller told in dual perspectives! these are simply harder for me to follow. The story was well crafted.

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The book centers around Holly disappearing at the age of 4, then 3 months later she is back and cannot remember anything that has happened. She was in the park with her mother and Kitty her best friend and her mother, yet no one so her disappear but Kitty. Other young girls are also being abducted but not returning alive. Why Holly, why can't she remember?

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This book was fantastic. I read a lot of this genre and can usually predict who the bad guy is. This one I was kept guessing the whole time. So much so that I stayed up til 3am to finish it because I needed to know who the culprit was! I loved the switching POV's between the mom and daughter too. I felt like it added to the suspense and gave the reader a second mystery to solve instead of just the main one. The only thing that was a little meh was the ending with the family (a little forced). I wanted it to end slightly different but all in all it did not take away from the rest of the story. I would highly suggest and have been since I finished it!

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I will not be providing feedback as the book was archived before I was able to re-download it. I may re-download and read it if or when it becomes available again.

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The Day I Disappeared by Brandi Reeds is a twisted story full of mystery, disappearances and secrets. My second by this author, having previously read Third Party, The Day I Disappeared is a compulsively readable, jaw-dropping tale.

Cecily's daughter Holly is kidnapped from a park when she is four years old, and is then returned to the same place, three months later. Though a local handyman was convicted for the crime, Cecily was suspected of also having some involvement, splitting the family apart, including the relationship between Holly and Cecily. Twenty years on, another little girl is taken, with a similar MO. It heralds the latest in a series of disappearances that Detective Jason Guidry reckons Holly can assist with... if she can remember anything from her own kidnapping.

The narrative alternates between chapters told from Holly's point of view and those of Cecily, who is in a coma after a car crash. Both viewpoints are intriguing - from Holly the reader gets brief glimpses of memories from her kidnapping, and Cecily furnishes the reader with background information, allowing for character development and possible suspects. There was so much happening in this gritty story and I soon found myself immersed in the dramatic plot, completely engrossed as the suspense levels rocketed. There was abundant depth to Brandi Reeds' writing which kept me hooked throughout. As characters were introduced, there were some individuals who I eliminated as suspects immediately, with a few a few lingering around as they had enough to garner suspicion and leave it festering. There was incredibly good entanglement to this mystery before it hurtled towards the surprising denouement. I thoroughly enjoyed this exciting story and I will be checking out this author's novel - Trespassing - as well as looking out for her next one. All in all, this is a cracking read for anyone who has a preference for brilliant suspense thrillers.

I received a complimentary copy of this novel at my request from Lake Union Publishing via NetGalley. This review is my own unbiased opinion.

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