Frankie Elkin is a woman who travels light at least as far as possessions are concerned. The mental scars she carries guide her every waking moment, haunt her dreams each night and can only be temporarily warded off by her life's goal to find those the police have stopped searching for.

Angelique Badeau was 15 when she disappeared without trace leaving only her backpack and bewildered family behind. Eleven months later the leads have dried up, time has moved on, and Frankie, arriving in the Boston neighbourhood of Mattapan, knows she is the Haitian teenager’s last hope.

It's fair to say female, white, middle-aged, recovering alcoholics are not spotted that often in Mattapan but Frankie's used to being in the minority. Having found herself a job and somewhere to sleep she begins her task, but there are things happening which put all those involved in far greater danger than they can imagine and finding Angelique could be the least of their problems.

Lisa Gardner is a first class thriller writer and this very good standalone novel is an excellent example of her craft. Frankie is likeable, believable and motivated.  Gradually her back story is revealed and adds so much to her character. This isn't a fast moving story, it doesn't hurtle rather it evolves slowly until everything is satisfactorily dealt with. Both Frankie and the reluctantly helpful police detective Dan Lotham would definitely warrant another outing sometime in the future.

I was able to read an advanced copy of this book thanks to NetGalley and the publishers but the opinions expressed are my own. I enjoyed this very much, it is a good read.

Frankie Elkin is an average middle aged woman. She's a recovering alcoholic with more regrets than belongings. She has spent her life looking for missing people the world has stopped looking for. A new case brngs her to Mattapan, a Boston neighbourhood with a rough reputation. She's looking for Angelique Badeau. a Haitian teenager who vanished from her high school. The ostonPD and the victims family are reluctant to help Frankie, but nothing will stop her discovering the truth.

Frankie is a strong character. She's an alcoholic in recovery. She's raw, unapologetic and very good at her job. This is a gripping and complex story. The characters are well rounded and believable. Frankie has a knack for asking the right questions in her searchfor sisteen year old Angelique. We eventually find out why Frankie is as determined the forgotten victims. The pace is steady in this well written book,

I would like to thank, #NetGalley, # RandomHouseUK #Cornerstone and the author #LisaGardner for my ARC in echange for an honest review.

My first Lisa Gardner read, and it won’t be my last! Frankie Elkin, a tough middle aged woman and recovering alcoholic has devoted the best part of her last ten years to trying to solve missing persons cases that the police have not, in particular the ones whose families and loved ones don’t have the resources to do much else. In her latest case, Frankie ends up in Mattapan in Boston, where she tries to help the Haitian family of Angelique a teenager who went missing from her High School a year ago. She is one of the only white women in the community, which is known to be dangerous, but this does not seem to bother her, and she goes out walking around the community at all times of night in the hope of solving this cold case.

During the book, we get glimpses into Frankie’s troubled past which seems to haunt her at times. Her ability to solve these crimes means that people just seem to trust her. I liked the bar owner and cook where she convinces the bar owner to give her a job and accommodation and she doesn’t seem to mind much that it comes with a feral cat!

For me, this was a slow burn and at one stage it was going to be a DNF but I persevered and although slow it did grip me in the end. Ms. Gardner’s character development is excellent, and I ended up enjoying the story. 3.5 stars rounded up to four.

Many thanks to NetGalley and Random House UK, Cornerstone, Century for giving me the chance to read the ARC in exchange for my honest opinion.

Thank you to the author, publisher and NetGalley for providing an ARC of this book.

I loved this book. Frankie is a great character and the story itself kept me intrigued (and guessing) right til the end.

This is a very good standalone read filled with interesting characters and well written. The main character, Frankie, is a recovering alcoholic who investigates cold cases of missing people. I loved the Boston setting and the quirky plot, the steady pace and the compelling writing. A good read and I would recommend it. Thanks to Net Galley for my ARC.

Many thanks to Net Galley and Random House UK
I am a huge fan of Lisa Gardner, this book is another 5 star read.
A brand new female lead in this book - Frankie Elkin who is a likeable character of some force. Frankie is not employed, is a recovering alcoholic, lives with some demons of her own, has virtually no belongings and has spent the last years finding missing persons that the police have given up on. She has yet though to find one of her missing persons alive.
Sixteen year old Angelique has come been missing for 11 months, Frankie is determined to bring her home to her aunt and brother alive.
Frankie builds relationships in the community and earns the trust of Stony whose bar she has taken a job in and Charlie from her AA meetings, Asshe strifes towards the truth behind Angelique’s disappearance and that of her friend Livia she is putting her own life in danger.
This will definitely be in my top reads list - well done Lisa Gardner once again. I do hope we have another book featuring Frankie in the future.

This is my first book by Lisa Gardner and I pleasantly surprised and will definitely start reading her previous books.

Firstly, I have to say that I really enjoyed the complexity of the characters and how they developed throughout the story. I loved to read about Frankie and found the plot really imaginative and fast paced.

There is plenty of action, mystery galore and there is something charming and captivating about Boston, as well as Frankie that just made me want to read more and more. I am hoping this is not a stand-alone!

Overall, I think this was a great book and I will definitely be addI guess Lisa Gardner’s previous books to my “must read list.

I would like to thank Netgalley,Random House UK, Cornerstore and Century for an advanced digital copy of this book in exchange for an honest and unbiased review.

Simply outstanding from start to finish!

This is my first Lisa Gardner book but it definitely won’t be my last! I LOVED THIS BOOK SO MUCH!!

This book is a standalone novel, so newbies, like me can jump straight in and discover just how amazing this author truly is.

I loved how the main character Frankie is slowly introduced throughout the novel. She has a story to be told but we are simply introduced to her as a recovering alcoholic who’s souls purpose is finding lost people. Frankie is a wonderfully scripted character, both fiercely brave and opportunistic, battling demons and running full force into danger - pleading with all she has and all that she is for atonement.

The dialogue in this book is brilliant, the characters are well fleshed and believable. Gardner has not only researched police procedures but delved into the development illicit crimes and gang warfare. She’s researched her location Mattapan, Boston thoroughly and the many ethnic groups that inhabit it. And she has such an understanding and way with words that the torment of alcoholism is believable and painful to read/experience.

An expertly crafted plot that beautifully unfolds without giving away too much - I genuinely was stuck trying to figure it all out as there was so many leads of enquiry and possible outcomes.

This book had me not only holding my breath in anticipation, but flat out crying and all the while mentally cheering by the end. I feel wrung out and lost now that it’s over, hoping that this won’t be the end for Frankie’s character. A simply complicated character that has stolen many hearts!

Thanks to NetGalley for my advance copy in exchange for my honest review.

Always a big fan of this author and yet again another good read from her. Always a big fan of this author and yet again another good read from her. Always a big fan of this author and yet again another good read from her.

This is my second book by this author and I thoroughly enjoyed it. It was action packed and a good amount of mystery to keep you guessing. Frankie was a likeable character with her own demons but it’s not until the end of the book that you fully understand them and why it gives her that drive to keep going. It also makes you think about all the missing people and the upset their families go through. Thank you NetGalley and Random House UK, Cornerstone for letting me read and review this book.

Thanks yo netgalley and the publishers for allowing me to review this book.
A really good story and a different kind of missing person story line.

Thoroughly enjoyed this, it was an interesting perspective and made for an entertaining read. It was well paced and there were some great characters. The plot was nicely crafted and I liked the twists.

Really enjoyed this story of a woman, Frankie, who carries her complete life in a ruckack and travels across states to search for missing people. In doing so, she completely immerses herself in their local community. It started in the same way as many novels but I was soon drawn in to her complex history and to the rich Haitian community of Boston and the secrets it holds. A missing girl, a simmering chemistry with the local police and an ability to empathise with all: Stoney, her employer/landlord; Piper, her territorial feline roommate and most of all, the bereft families. The themes of addiction and loss run through the story.

Before She Disappeared is the new fantastic novel by Lisa Gardner and it introduces us to a brand new character: Frankie Elkan, a headstrong and determined woman who travels around the country looking for missing people, particularly minorities, those people that the police has stopped searching but whose families still hope for their return.

The book opens with Frankie on a train to Boston after the end of her latest case. Frankie never stops working and she is in Boston to investigate the disappearance of fifteen-year-old Angelique Lovelie Badueau, Angel to her friends, Lili to her family. Angelique lives with her aunt and her brother in the neighborhood of Mattapan and she was last seen a year earlier coming out of her school. Mattapan is an area mostly of immigrants and Frankie not only has to face the resistance of the police, but also the hostility of the locals who see her as an outsider.

Frankie is an interesting, likable, and authentic character. She is a loner with a tragic past. She doesn’t have a place to call home and she travels around the country with few belongings and a guilt that’s eating her looking for the people no one else is searching. I liked her determination, how she never stops in her search, no matter how dangerous it is and, as much as I found the main plot intriguing and captivating, I was also very curious about Frankie’s personal life and the painful past that it is slowly revealed.

Before She Disappeared is an action-packed, exciting, addictive story with fantastic and engaging characters and, of course, the author’s excellent writing style that make it impossible to put the book down.

Pub 21/1
4.5* I loved this book.
Frankie a middle aged white woman, an ex alcoholic has taken on a life with no ties, no stability, no place to call home. Choosing to wander the country looking for missing kids, many from minority ethnic groups as they fall furthest through the cracks. She has spent the last ten years on her crusade.
Frankie is instantly a likeable character. She is no nonsense, straight talking Ballsy woman. She is extremely astute with her observations and intuitive with people.
I love the fast paced snappy writing style. It grabbed me by the second chapter. The first chapter with the dream sequence didn’t reel me in. It felt a bit disjointed which is understandable as it was a dream.
I love Frankie’s humour.
The reasons it nots a 5* are that it’s a little laggy around 60-70% and a little too much over repetition of the presenting facts.
I was emotional at the end.

This is a great novel, I couldn’t stop reading it and stayed up far to late one evening to finish it. Frankie Elgin is a recovering alcoholic who has her demons. She travels around finding missing people and she is good at it. This time she arrives in Mattapan, a Haitian neighbourhood of Boston, looking for sixteen year old Angelique Badeau. It is a well written quick paced mystery, I loved the way the characters developed throughout the story particularly Frankie. She is a wonderfully complex woman and I hope to read more about her in the future. Would definitely recommend for anyone who loves a good thriller.

I never repeat the blurb. Goodness me...this was a slow burner, but almost too slow. However, I was pleased I persisted in this unusual glimpse into the world of amateurs who make it their mission to locate the missing people who remain elusive to regular searches. Glad I stuck with it.

At first when I read the premise I thought it sounded far fetched and that I wouldn’t relate or enjoy however, this book was compulsive.

It’s well written and the layers and layers of mystery unfold in a way that is intriguing and not frustrating. The characters are interesting although ‘Frankie’ is slightly over egged but this does not detract from the story.

I’ve never read a book that unfolded this way and the setting and story stands out to me as truly original in a genre that can be quite predictable.

I usually love Lisa Gardener’s books but this one just wasn’t for me it was a lot more character driven than her usual books and I tend to prefer plot driven books. I couldn’t really connect with the MC and didn’t really like her or understand her purpose.

I received a copy of this book via Netgalley in exchange for an honest review.

This story is about Frankie Elkin. She is a recovering alcoholic who travels to different locations to voluntarily help with missing persons cases. She has a high success rate. The case this time is missing school girl Angelique who vanished without a trace after school one day. It is a tough job for Frankie in a rough area of Boston where she finds neither the locals nor the police have any trust in her.

I thought that this book was okay. I was far more interested in Frankie and her personal life than I was the case that she was working. The case veered off into a direction that really didn’t interest me. I also found that some of the discoveries that she made were far too convenient. My mind is still blown how Frankie A, reached a theory based on nothing much and B that it was correct. I would be happy to read more books with this character but I would hope for something a bit more thrilling.