I really enjoyed this book, all of the twists and turns the author took us on. I liked Aiden as a character and in particular his believability. If I was him I would hope I wouldn’t give up looking either. Not that I would like to be in that position and neither did I expect what happened. The ending seemed open enough for a sequel, even though Mark has primarily written standalones (Magpies withstanding). I would definitely read that too.

The story begins with Francesca traveling on a train on the west coast of the US. A few hours into her journey, she catches sight of a young woman in distress. The scene is set and I loved discovering where this tale would take me. Gripping, compelling and fast-paced.
Recommended read.

Another solid thriller from the very reliable Mark Edwards.
Once again (3rd novel in a row) this one is set in the US rather than the UK.
The premise is in an interesting one and starts strong with a good opening on a train from LA to Seattle.

I must admit I did find as the plot developed and we knew what was happening it did lose some its intrigue and developed into a slightly generic chase plot.

Mark is a very talented author and his writing style is excellent but for me this one was pretty much middle of the road. Perhaps a reset, and setting his next novel back in the UK may mix it up a little as it did remind me at parts a little too much of The House Guest.

When a complete stranger called Francesca gets in contact with Aidan telling him that she has seen his sister Scarlett being chased across a bleak and uneven piece of ground surrounded by a forest, he cannot help himself from going across the country from Seattle to Northern California, a journey of well over 800 miles. He does not hold out much of a chance of finding his sister because Francesca was on a train journey and it was only just sunrise when she and Scarlett caught a glimpse of each other before the train raced away. This lady had never even met Scarlet either. But Aidan literally had to investigate whether it was true or just another false alarm. Scarlett had been missing for over two years and he carried the guilt of losing his little sister while she was visiting him from her home in the UK. She had only been fifteen years of age when he woke up one morning to find her missing. There were so many times that he felt hope in the past he argued with himself, but what if it was Scarlet?
When Aiden arrives at the nearest town to where Scarlet had last been sighted he noticed other ‘Missing Persons’ posters. This both intrigued and excited him. The area had been devastated by forest fires and the community looked suspicious and not altogether happy to see a stranger and especially to answer Aiden’s questions. In the café he met a girl called Lana. She was a local resident who had returned home. Her brother was missing as well and she could not accept that he had been killed by the forest fires. They team up to carry out their own investigations but this was not a good idea. Someone did not want them meddling and bringing up events of the past. Little did they know, but they were in mortal danger.
I was totally riveted at the very beginning of this story. The author posed a tense mystery and told his story well. There were many characters in this novel and, as in life itself, they were an eclectic mixture of good and bad, concentrated mostly on mean, gun-toting characters that would stop at nothing to achieve what they wanted most of all. With themes of coercion, enslaving and brainwashing this novel did not live up to its initial promise. It was too unbelievable, violent and evil. I have read and thoroughly enjoyed many of this author’s novels, but this one fell short for me. It was uneven in pace and too gratuitously violent. It did not reach its true potential.
I received a copy of this novel through my membership of NetGalley and from publisher Thomas & Mercer in return for an honest review. It is a 3* review from me.

I really enjoyed this read. A brother is searching for his missing sister and a lead comes from an old woman who swore she saw his sister running from people in the meadow across from the moving train she was on. Despite lingering doubts about how solid the lead was, his desperation to find his sister won over.

I love missing person cases. This one was a little tame and it took a strange turn that didn't feel right to the rest of the story toward the end but Edwards tied it up neatly with a bow.

It was well written with a good cast of characters and a good amount of mystery and enough suspense to keep you reading. Not one of Edwards best, but not his worst.

Wow, absolutely loved this book. The plot really had me hooked from the start, a disappearance then a sighting... I couldn't put the book down dying to know what happened, would Aidan find his sister, would she be alive? The research that must have went into this book blew me away, I felt like I was right there in the forest. The depth of the descriptions of Shannon's journey of self discovery made me wanted to pack up and go travelling. Definitely one of my favourites of Mark Edwards.

Mark Edwards is one of my favourite authors and this one didn’t disappoint.
The plot is unique and engaging and I raced through to the end.
A great read and one I’d recommend.

What an exciting thrill ride this books was. Highly clever and intriguing plot. Jaw dropping moments, twist and turns, and just when you thought you had it figured out, the author hit you with another scenario. Well written characters and excellent story telling kept me on the edge of my seat until the very end.

My review is voluntary and all comments and opinions expressed are
my own.

When Aiden's little sister Scarlett vanished into thin air whilst visiting him in Seattle, Aiden feels responsible and will do anything to try and find her. However there seems to be no leads until one night a lady traveling on a night train thinks she sees her running across a clearing, and Aiden has no option but to try to find her. This sparks off a series of events, completely outside Aiden's experience, and getting more and more dangerous with every turn.

This is another Mark Edwards triumph. I couldn't put it down till I was finished, and had unravelled all the twists. It was creepy, eerie, shocking, but never boring. I absolutely loved it.

https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/4561865999

Aiden is an English man living and working in Seattle when his younger sister. scarlet comes to stay. After a few days sightseeing he wakes up one morning to find her missing. Thus begins a desperate search to find her.

A standalone novel by author Mark Edwards who is one of the authors I always look out for. Entertaining read but not up to the standard of many of his other books in my opinion. After a good start it didn’t shift up a gear and although still a good read it never reached the highs I anticipated.

Fifteen year old Scarlett disappeared two years ago when she was visiting her brother Aiden in Seattle. Since then Aiden has actively searched for his sister , followed leads but always hitting dead ends and he is fearing he will never see her again. But when a woman sees a girl running for her life across a forest clearing in Northern California, she is convinced the girl is the missing Scarlett.

Aiden is eager to follow this up and heads south to a town well accustomed to missing teenagers. With no one willing to talk to him it looks like another dead end until a chance meeting with Lana gives Aidan his first clue. Their search for the truth to what happened to his sister puts them in danger with others who are just as keen to hide the truth and to the going on in the forest.

This is still a decent read but I thought a little below the high standard we have got to expect from author Mark Edwards.

I would like to thank both Netgalley and Thomas & Mercer for supplying a copy of this novel in exchange for an honest review.

2.5 stars. Mark Edwards is at his best when he's ramping up the tension by inflicting more and more psychological horror on his protagonists. This book wasn't that at all. I loved the way it started with an elderly woman seeing a missing girl from a train, in the middle of the night--felt very Hitchcockian. But the rest of the book really didn't live up to the beginning. It turned out to be more of a cheap action thriller, not my thing and far from a great example of that genre. I hope the author's next book gets back to the psychological suspense he's so good at

Scarlett went to visit her brother and vanished into thin air. Her brother tried to look for her. Then few years their is this girl that running for her life. Could this be his sister or someone that looks like her? Aiden finds a town with missing teenage posters. What lies in this forest near the town?
Fast paced book and not what was expecting but good book. Thanks to Netgalley in exchange for a review.
Publishing date June 21st 2022.

I am a huge fan of Mark Edwards and this book didn’t disappoint.

Scarlett goes to stay with her brother Aiden and disappears. 2 years on and he hasn’t given up hope of finding her. A loads contacts him as she believes she passes her on a train.
Aiden sets off to see if it was really his sister and then the story really begins.
Lots of twists and turns an interesting topic also.
….and the ending is open for a sequel.

Great read

My first read by this author, I picked this up with high hopes as I know he is highly acclaimed for his psychological thrillers.

Aiden's younger sister Scarlett vanished two years ago and hasn't been seen since, Aiden will follow any lead to try and find her.

The story starts really well, a lady travelling on a cross country train sees a young woman running throughout the woods pursued by an angry man. Recognising the woman as Scarlett the lady contacts Aiden, setting him off on the next leg of his quest to find his sister.

It's a sprawling adventure quest rather than a psych thriller, and for the most part I quite enjoyed it. The characters are good, the locations are inventive and the plot flows along nicely.

I felt the latter parts dragged on, and no spoilers but I thought the final location and segment was a step too long and too far.

Overall, not really one for me, but I intend to try some of the author's highly rated thrillers.

Thanks to Netgalley and Thomas & Mercer

When a teenage girl, missing for two years is spotted by a train passenger in a remote Californian forest her brother, tortured by her disappearance, sets off to investigate and uncover the truth. Influenced by current environmental issues with interesting characters the story has the usual twists, is absorbing and picks up the pace to a page turning conclusion.

I'm a big fan of Mark Edwards and have read and loved every one but I wasn't a massive fan of this one. It seemed a little different style, more like a normal mystery book rather than his usual psychological thriller, I'm usually.gripped from the first page and can't put it down and although I did enjoy this it felt slower and lacking in something. Mark is still a brilliant author and can't wait for his next book.

Edwards a.lways delivers on suspense and tension with a strong storyline and 3-dimensional characters. If you like a good page-turner, this is it

Another belter from Mark Edwards, This book, just like The Hollows is set in the US but the main character, Aidan is British but working in Seattle. There are nice nods towards Kurt Cobain and Nirvana and the whole grunge scene in Seattle. Aidan's sister Scarlett has been missing for a couple of years which happened under Aidan's watch and he will do anything to try and find her.

Without giving too much away he teams up with the intriguing Lana whose brother is also missing, but he is believed to have died in a recent bush fire although Lana doesn't believe the stories that are being told about his supposed death. Aidan and Lana make a bucket load of enemies in their quest for the truth about their loved ones. You get a real feel of some of the more remote parts of the US and the mysterious people who live there.

As the book progresses you get a real cinematic feel to the story as it comes to a nail biting conclusion. Does Aidan get reunited with Scarlett? Does Lana find out the truth about her brother? This book is more than just a missing person story. and you will find the themes quite topical. Another page turner from Mark, slightly different to some of his previous books but equally addictive. Thank you to Mark, his publisher and NetGalley for the opportunity of reading an ARC of No Place to Run, prior to publication date.

15 year old Scarlett disappears while visiting her brother, Aidan in America. Two years later and no sign of Scarlett to date, an elderly lady spots someone meeting her unique description while on a train. She contacts Aidan and he is on a mission to find Scarlett and meets up with Lana, who is trying to find her brother who disappeared in a ‘fire’. The two need to be careful, because as they closer to the truth, the dangers become real and escalate quickly.
The storyline concept has potential, but didn’t find this book as gripping as other Mark Edwards books.