The Night She Went Missing is Kristen Bird’s debut novel, and I thoroughly enjoyed this book full of secrets, lies, a missing girl, and an elite academy controlled by the old money family in this picturesque island Texas town. You know from the very first chapter that the missing girl isn’t dead and has been found in the ocean, but the novel bounces back and forth between point of view chapters for Emily as she’s in a comatose state and other main characters in the book. The author does a fantastic job of labeling the chapters with who is speaking and what month that chapter occurs in so it’s not confusing.

This island community is extremely tight knit — and competitive. When Emily, her mother, her father who is from that community, and her twin sisters move to Texas from Oregon right before her senior year starts, she is not thrilled to have left her friends and school behind. After a work indiscretion that killed the mother’s career, they move to a place where her father’s last name is on practically everything in town. While Emily is smart, pretty, and a bit shy, the popular kids are not happy to have her there–or having her catch a star football player’s attention. And then Emily goes missing for several months, and accusations fly throughout the community, leaving her family with more questions than answers.

The mother Catherine is sympathetic and you get to see her side as an outsider forced to blend in with the other mothers, while two ex-best friends Leslie and Morgan have tried to coexist in the years since their friendship deteriorated. Now all three mothers’ children are in the same grade and once Emily disappears, they all question not only their children’s stories and lives, but they have to take a hard look at themselves.

I give THE NIGHT SHE WENT MISSING a four out of five. There were so many people who looked guilty, but that’s just because the author did such a great job of portraying real, flawed human beings. The story did bog down a little bit in the middle as everyone’s past and present interactions jumped around, painting almost everyone as flawed, horrible people. This story wasn’t too predictable and there were quite a few places it went that I didn’t expect. The characters were realistic, flawed, and complex. They were loyal and devious while putting their best face forward to the public and police. I highly enjoyed this book, and if you like domestic suspenses full of horrible people trying to act like they aren’t horrible, then you’ll love this. I look forward to whatever twisted tale comes from Kristen Bird next.

I gave this one several chances and even tried getting the audiobook from Hoopla but this one I was just unable to get interested in. The synopsis sounded really good - the cover looks amazing - so I hope others will love it and I am the one off for this particular novel.

You guys know I can't resist a debut novel, especially not when it's a thriller. I love finding new authors, and this time I spotted The Night She Went Missing by Kristen Bird. The pitch promised it would be perfect for fans who loved Big Little Lies, and that's good enough for me.

What happens to a small town when something as horrific as a missing person's case occurs? For this one town, the answer is clear: to find the truth, they will have to take a closer look at those around them, regardless of how uncomfortable it makes them feel.

When a senior in high school, Emily, goes missing, the town is shaken. Three moms, in particular, take the news poorly, as it turns their lives upside down. Could their families have had something to do with it? They don't know – and they're not entirely prepared for the answer either.

I nabbed The Night She Went Missing when it came across my shelves because the description sounded interesting. I love the classic mystery trope of people refusing to look the other way when a crime/mystery pops up. It's a weakness!

Unfortunately, I feel like this novel's introduction is stronger than the conclusion. Now, this may be on me. This happens a lot when I dive into thrillers with high expectations. So it could be an issue with me instead of the ending. Or it could be the other way around.

I think part of the problem might be that at least part of the ending is ruined by how the story is told/described. We know Emily's status from a fairly early point, which naturally changes the suspense levels. I would have preferred that this part be kept a mystery for at least a little bit longer, even if that would have made me more anxious! (That's a good thing with thrillers, right?).

I chose to read this novel because I needed something dark-ish and a mystery. The build-up was at a steady pace, as one would expect from a mystery novel. Just when it seemed it'd start to drag, the story picked up and things intensified. The ending is not the shocking and jaw-dropping twist we're always promised with this kind of books. I don't think The Night She Went Missing is a memorable novel, one I'll never forget, but it is a good choice for when you want to break your usual choice of books, and enjoy a soft domestic drama novel.

The idea I can take away is that sometimes accidents happen, and one such accident can alter the course of a person's whole life. I liked the small town set-up on an island. The novel is told in third person, except for Emily's perspective, which she tells herself. Her disappearance ignites a series of events that lead to second-guessing and doubts among the residents of Galveston Island, Texas. Emily's character is not that well developed, despite she being the person who ignites the whole action of the novel. Better developed are the three adult women we get to know more about. Catherine, Morgan, Leslie are all part of the Galveston Islnd community and of the Preparatory school their children attend. They have secrets of their own they need to protect in order to keep the facade of a normal, successful life. I liked all three women, and their stories and their struggles didn't make them any less likable. However, the one person who made the whole novel seem like a weird TV series led by a matriarch with a patriarch's tendencies is Rosalyn, Catherine's mother-in-law.

There are a few elements which seem unbelievable throughout the novel, but not in a plausible, sure-this-could-happen way. The events of the second half are quite unlikely to happen, and it also picked up the pace, throwing a lot of details and revelations the reader's way; it felt a bit too much all of a sudden, and in a short time span. At the same time, they weren't shocking, just far-fetched. The ending offers closure, but I can see why some readers would be left unpleased with the author's choice. I personally don't like when a whole novel is based on a secondary character's mistake.

All in all, the build-up and the getting-to-know the characters was more enjoyable than the last quarter of the novel, which offered the resolution.

Dr. Catherine Rubisi and her husband Carter Callahan are attending a PTA auction fundraiser for Callahan Preparatory Academy. Carter’s widowed mother, Rosalyn Callahan is the grande dame of the academy founded by her grandfather.

Due to a grave mistake on her part, Catherine and Carter have moved to Galveston recently with their children high school senior, Emily, and twins Lucy and Olivia. As Carter grew up here, he fits right in. Catherine is struggling especially having to put up with her overbearing mother-in-law, Rosalyn.

Morgan Frasier is divorced and mother to Alex who has been getting into trouble lately. She worries about him and hopes he didn’t have anything to do with Emily’s disappearance.

Leslie Steele is a widow who has allowed herself to become Rosalyn’s Chairwoman as she does everything that Rosalyn wants for the school.

One night when she was out with friends, Emily goes missing. She is gone for 10 weeks until she is found floating in the water unconscious and is now in a coma in the hospital.

Emily’s family gathers around her at the hospital hoping she will soon wake up. But there are others who aren’t so anxious for that to happen. What did Emily go through and where had she been all this time?

This book is filled with families and their secrets and the lengths they are willing to go to hide them. The characters are well-developed and all with their flaws for others to see. I liked Emily most of all. She’s a smart young woman and her character was especially well-created. A good book. Enjoy!

Copy provided by NetGalley in exchange for a fair and honest review.

Told from the point of view of four women, Catherine, Emily (Catherine's daughter), Leslie, and Morgan, this story seamlessly weaves the intricacies of small town living in a privileged community in the South. Emily has gone missing, and the immediate suspect swears he had nothing to do with her disappearance. After months of searching, Emily suddenly returns unable to remember what happened. As these women race to piece together Emily's narrative, the truth will eventually come out.
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This was a quick and suspenseful read that I could not put down. Despite having a lot of characters, they had great depth and motivation throughout the story. This book is original, fresh, and unpredictable - I cannot wait to read more from Kristen Bird.

This suspenseful novel started out so strong but unfortunately lacked so much to the story. I was pulled in at the beginning but soon lost interest to the story. Nothing was too shocking and the second half of the book was so underwhelming.

This was a quick, somewhat suspenseful read, but I was a bit disappointed. I felt like there was a lot of irrelevant bits and pieces in the story, and it was very predictable but also super random at times. Near the end, I just found everything so far fetched and unrealistic. I did however enjoy and appreciate all the drama that was packed into this novel, as well as the simplistic writing style. I was definitely engaged while reading which was great, but overall the story just didn't click for me.

It took me a long time to get through this one. But it wasn't for the normal reason. It really was a book I didn't want to put down. But life kept happening and I had to time and again! It made me so mad. The Night She Went Missing is a fantastic read with amazing characters and an intriguing mystery at it's core.


Emily doesn't quite fit in. She's gorgeous and smart, but a new transplant in her senior year of high school. It's hard to meet friend when everyone has known each other forever and is busy making memories before college. Still, she has one friend, Alex. Never mind that half the town thinks he's a rapist. She doesn't believe it and he's the only person who has been nice to her.

Still, when she disappears, her mom who wanted to trust Alex, her new friend's son, is worried she made the worst mistake a mother can make. As everyone scrambles to figure out what happened to Emily, more secrets emerge. Secrets from years before and it's hard to tell who is protecting who and if anyone is telling the truth.

When I learned that The Night She Went Missing was a debut, I was blown away. The book has everything. The characters are so clearly drawn it's one of those that I wouldn't be surprised to see a movie version of one of these days. Special thanks to Netgalley and MIRA for an advanced e-galley in exchange for my honest review.

This book starts off with a bang, with an immediate attention grab; Catherine is living every parent's worst nightmare, throw in a few cagey teenagers- it had every potential to take off and run, which was surprising when it didn't.
Bird's writing is smooth and capable, the story was solid, and the conclusion satisfying.

A solid domestic thriller with rich folks hiding dark secrets.

I quite enjoyed this book. So many great characters I loved to hate. This was fast-paced and pretty well written. So many shocking reveals which kept me totally glued and anxiously awaiting what would happen next.

First of all I am obsessed with this cover! I loved the mix of POVs and timelines. Pretty early on you find out who has gone missing and throughout you will find out more about the why. This story is full of rich people drama as they behave badly so if you like that in a book you will enjoy this one. I was able to stay entertained through out with the drama and the suspense.

If you like unlikeable characters in stories with secrets and deceit you will enjoy this one!

Many thanks to the author and HTP Books/Netgalley for my copy of The Night She Went Missing.

I thought this was a great debut and I look forward to reading more from the author in the future!

The Night She Went Missing, the debut thriller from author Kristen Bird, opens with a first-person prologue related by Emily. She describes being found face-up in the Galveston harbor on the morning of her funeral. She conveys that, despite being aware of all that is happening around and to her, she is unable to move or speak. From there, Bird whisks readers back several months and employs third-person narratives to present the perspectives of the remaining key characters.

Catherine Rubisi is a disgraced composer and music educator. She plagiarized a student's work and, when her unethical conduct was discovered, resigned her university position. With her husband, Carter Callahan, a corporate attorney, she has returned to Galveston from Oregon, along with their daughters, Emily, and eight-year-old twins Lucy and Olivia, who are in third grade, Carter is the son of Rosalyn Callahan who runs Callahan Preparatory Academy, an exclusive school attended by the children of wealthy and influential parents. Stephanie Morgan Frasier, the divorced mother of Alex, has been dating Robert Steele, the handsome neurologist she's had a crush on since she was a freshman and he was a senior at Callahan Prep. Alex is a charming football player who was accused of sexually assaulting a female classmate at a party three years earlier. The charges were eventually dismissed, but he has lived under a cloud of suspicion ever since. He and Emily have been spending a lot of time together, even though Emily insists they are merely friends and not romantically involved. Morgan is not convinced that Alex's interest in Emily is only platonic, and has always wondered if her son is capable of an act as heinous as rape. She has always hoped for, but never completely believed in his innocence.

To Leslie Steele, Rosalyn is "somewhere between a friend and mother." Michael, her husband and Robert's brother, succumbed to cancer just under four years ago. Leslie continues to mourn him and suffer from anxiety attacks that manifested shortly after his death. She and Robert were never close while Michael was alive, but since his death, Robert has provided emotional support . . . and prescription medications. Leslie's daughter, Anna, was the most popular girl at Callahan Prep, but Emily's arrival has threatened "everything Anna worked her whole life to achieve." Her dutiful son, Asher, is away at college, studying to follow in his uncle's footsteps. But his twin brother, Sawyer, distanced himself from his family three years ago. Leslie doesn't know where he is living or how he is surviving, as he seldom communicates although he does stay in touch with Asher.

Chapter by chapter, Bird advances the story's timeline while revealing details about the characters' histories and their relationships with each other. After all, Galveston is a "big, small town" and most of the characters have known each other for years, with several of the parents having attended Callahan Prep together. Only the chapters setting forth Emily's narration are outside the timeline because, of course, she relates her thoughts from the hospital bed to which she is confined after being rescued. Bird deftly explains how upset Emily was when her parents informed her the family was moving to Galveston, her anger at her mother for making it necessary to leave her school and friends behind, and the difficulties she faced as a new student and granddaughter of the owner of Callahan Prep. Bird deftly establishes the conflicts between Emily and Anna, and Emily's blossoming friendship with Alex. ("Alex was the only thing about living here, my only friend, the only reason to get out of bed in this awful town some days.) Emily was receiving threats prior to going missing. For example, "This isn't your school regardless of your name. Go back home." Who would send such horrible messages? Bird's depiction of teenage angst about friendships and the quest for popularity is, not surprisingly, given her experience as a high school teacher, credible and compelling. She also discloses details about the fractured relationship between Leslie and Sawyer, as well as Morgan's childhood as the daughter of an addicted mother and her efforts to hide the truth from her friends. And describes a disturbing watershed event that permanently strained Catherine and Rosalyn's relationship.

Bird skillfully amps up the book's dramatic tension when Emily goes to a party but fails to return home. Carter is notified that her abandoned car was located with her cell phone inside it, which explains, in part, why she did not respond to frantic messages. The last person to see her alive? Alex.

Because readers know all along that Emily is alive, the mysteries at the heart of the story center around where she was during the weeks she was missing, who was responsible for her disappearance, and why she failed to contact her family to let them know she was all right. Additionally, because she explains at the outset that she is unconscious and cannot communicate, her medical future is uncertain. Will she regain consciousness? And, if so, will she remember what happened to her during all those weeks she was unaccounted for?

Bird keeps the story moving forward swiftly, accelerating the pace as the pieces of the puzzle begin falling into place. And it turns out to be a very clever story with surprising plot twists and unexpected revelations. But the most interesting aspect of the tale is the various ways in which the mothers -- Catherine, Morgan, Leslie, and Rosalyn -- react to Emily's disappearance, view their own children, and connive to protect them. At that point, the effort Bird has expended to immerse readers in those characters' backgrounds, struggles, secrets, and conflicts with each other pays off because their fears, reactions, and, in some cases, machinations have context and are believable. Even relatable, as grudges are put aside and alliances formed for the sake of finding a missing child. Bird inspires readers to ask themselves how far they would go to protect a child suspected of playing a part in the disappearance of a peer, especially if they, like Morgan, doubt their child's innocence.

Did Emily experience a dissociative fugue state? Her experiences and interactions while her parents and friends are desperately searching for her are touching, and compassionately described by Bird. If she was in a fugue state, what triggered it? Was it initiated by trauma? The whole truth, once revealed, is quite shocking and unexpected, showcasing Bird's storytelling prowess.

The Night She Went Missing is an impressive freshman domestic thriller that leaves readers wanting to read more from the very talented Bird.

A town full of secrets and deceit. The book was professionally written and very entertaining. It was packed full of drama, both family and the town. A young girl goes missing and the town thinks it's the school jock. Well, it just can't be that easy. So pick this up!!

I wanted to love this more than I did in the end. I think as a debut in the domestic suspense genre this was a solid read! I enjoyed the multiple POVs and the pacing of the book. The mystery was great and I liked the journey we went on to figure out what happened to Emily. Why did she disappear? How did she end up in the water? Who did this to her?

I’ll always love the setting in a small and supposedly close-knit community – because everyone shows their true colors when everyone is pointing fingers at each other. I’m all for the domestic thrillers being a little bit of a stretch when it comes to reality but parts were just a little too out there for my liking. Still a solid debut and I’ll be curious to see what Bird comes out with next.

Thank you to the author, Harlequin and NetGalley for this review copy! This story did not disappoint and kept me reading to figure out the story. It was a brilliant story that seems like it was very well researched.

Emily, a new student to Galveston’s elite private school, her family name everywhere in the little gulf town disappears for 10 weeks. Nobody knows where she could be. Her parents and her very well influential Grandmother all searching and worrying about where their smart and bright daughter/granddaughter could be. During a memorial service, a fisherman walks in and tells her Mom, Catherine that he’s found her baby. Her baby who is pregnant and unconscious… What happened after a party at another students house, where did Emily go?

I enjoyed this story and more so, because I’ve vacationed in Galveston. It’s a nice town and so, I was able to imagine the things happening as they did, even being a fictionalized story. It was well written, characters were well developed and it was easy to follow along with. 4 stars! Definitely recommend!!

Thanks to Harlequin Trade Publishing, MIRA and NetGalley for providing me a digital ARC of this book. The opinions are my own and freely given.
The Callahan's move to Galveston Island before Emily's senior year and she goes to The Callahan Preparatory School, which is owned by Emily's grandmother, Rosalyn whose family rebuilt Galveston Island in 1900. She is the most powerful and wealthiest woman on the island. Unbeknownst to her, Emily makes an enemy and only makes one friend, Alex. They start to spend a lot of time together and go to a Mardi Gras party. They each leave separately, but Emily doesn't make it home. While the community searches for Emily, any relationship the mothers had with each other is torn apart. This book is told from the POV of Emily, leading up to her disappearance and each of the mothers as the month's go by, starting in September and ending the following September. I enjoyed the story as there is a group of wealthy women that are not drinking all the time. So many stories these days have a group of alcoholic women, and it was refreshing that they go out and are not getting black out drunk. They also seem to have morals and want to protect they children no matter what. This was very easy to follow. I did not really have an idea who caused Emily's disappearance until right before it was revealed. I kept reading this and thinking about "The Night Olivia Fell" by Christina McDonald. I really enjoyed this book, it was a fast, easy read. Thank you NetGalley, Harlequin Trade Publishing and MIRA

Great debut novel by Kristen Bird. Hooked me from the beginning.
I enjoyed the cast of characters, the way the plot flowed easily while being told from several POVs, and the overall suspense of the story. There is a lot of lies, secrets, and accusations about what really happened. Nice ending! Overall a great domestic thriller.
I received an advance copy of this book in exchange for my honest review .

This is a fantastic debut novel by a new voice in suspense and domestic drama! Three families are bound together by the events in a small town, where everyone knows everyone else and where the matriarch of the town, Rosalyn Callahan, pull strings like she’s a puppeteer. Catherine, Morgan and Leslie were once friends, but their relationship has deteriorated so that they are barely speaking and then only when necessary. When Catherine’s teen daughter disappears one night after a party, Catherine pulls out all the stops to find Emily, including seeking the help of Morgan’s son Alex and Leslie’s daughter Anna. There is a lot of underlying tension between the families and a lot of suspicion about what happened to Emily. The tension builds nicely, with a quick-paced plot and a well done conclusion. There were a few loose ends that I would have liked more information about, so that is the reason for the four stars. There is tons of family drama and people with real psychological problems who are mingled in a very complex plot, with lots of characters and more than a few suspects. I enjoyed the setting and the way the families were all connected in some way. I also enjoyed getting to know Sawyer, Leslie’s estranged son and one of the few characters who seemed genuinely honest and concerned about Emily. The characterization was fleshed out well, even with the number of people involved in the drama. All in all, this was an extremely well-written novel that kept me reading and guessing until the end.
Disclaimer
Disclosure of Material Connection: I received a complimentary copy of this book from the publisher via Netgalley. I was not required to write a positive review. The opinions expressed are my own. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission’s 16 CFR, Part 255, “Guides Concerning the Use of Testimonials and Endorsements in Advertising.”

(3.0*)

The Night She Went Missing by Kristen Bird is a solid beginner-thriller read.

The story is pretty interesting and intriguing in the beginning. The author’s writing starts off strong — creating lots of suspense, having multiple POVs/narratives (one of which is the girl who was missing, Emily), and characters who are hiding tons of secrets (which we all know will later come out somehow). But, in my opinion, it doesn’t really take a HUGE turn from there.

I always love a strong beginning, who doesn’t? But, when it is not carried out as strongly all the way through, it just sort of feels hard to read. Like you are pushing yourself to read it, instead of just enjoying the story as it flows on by.

I think the main reason why I just felt that it was only “okay” was, due to its way of adding in “drama” instead of “suspense” , as well as, it has some far-fetched twists and turns.

I have been reading quite a bit of thriller/mystery books with outlandish twists and/or endings and it makes me a little sad.

Thank you NetGalley and Harlequin Trade Publishing for this ARC in exchange for an honest review from me.