"Gone Again", described as a psychological thriller, is the eighth novel in this genre by Minka Kent. Psychological thrillers can be gripping reads, especially by well-established masters of the form, like Gillian Flynn, Liane Moriarty and Patricia Highsmith. The title, inadvertently or not, is of course similar to "Gone Girl" and it was this that attracted me.

"Gone Again" also deals with a mysterious disappearance, in this case of Celia, happily married to a handsome, wealthy and loving husband, who unaccountably goes missing immediately after a party at which a gathering of devoted friends celebrated her fortieth birthday in style. Not only are her friends devoted, but generous, bearing lavish gifts such as sapphire bracelets, cut glass crystal vases, hothouse flowers, vintage champagne, and the like. Apart from one however who she discovers has left her a cryptic and anonymous note that says “You Don’t Deserve Any of This”.

This serves as the catalyst for Celia to flee her home in the early hours of the morning and impulsively take a train to New York where, despite clearly being able to afford the best of everything, she books into a crummy hotel in a dodgy part of town and ultimately gets mugged. This is one of a few incongruities in the book which weaken an otherwise engaging story.

The chronology is split between past and present and as well incorporates two point of view characters, Celia and her sister Genevieve. A third sister, Celeste, is an enigmatic character whose purpose doesn’t become clear until the end. Celia, as the main protagonist, is the character who should command most reader attention and empathy, but because of the way the book is structured, although she’s instrumental in the playing out of the backstory, she’s absent for the majority of the present-day narrative. Genevieve, on the other hand, is sketched in for the purpose of the structure but is otherwise shadowy. The girls' father on the other hand is painted very blackly indeed. A religious fanatic and draconian disciplinarian, he plays an integral role in the narrative in flashback, as long hidden secrets of this very fractured family are disclosed.

Tension and suspense are effectively incorporated through most of the book, although there are rather too many conspicuous red-herrings. Questionable behaviour by characters such as Celia's husband and her ex-friend Isabel are too obviously contrivances to distract attention from the real perpetrator. However, the ending is disappointing. While the strings are tied together neatly enough, the playing out is disappointingly anti-climactic. Fans of this author will probably enjoy the book, but I didn’t find it consistently thrilling enough to search out her other books.

While this was a good read, I don't feel like it had the usual crazy Minka Kent twist that I've gorwn accustomed to. I wasn't shocked or surprised by the twist and ending like I have with her other books. Overall the story played out well and Celia and Genevieve had great character growth.

Thank you to Netgalley and Thomas Mercer for this ARC in exchange for an honest review.

Ohhhhhhhh!! This Author is a automatic read for me. She is fabulous.

I nearly broke a few nails gripping my Kindle as I read and read. Totally unputdownable!!

Read this ASAP and then go back and read her other books!!!

Gone Again by Minka Kent
Minka Kent is one of my favorite authors, and she didn’t disappoint me with this book either. It was gripping right from the start, and didn’t let up until the end. There was suspense, intrigue, murder, and of course some shocking twists to keep me turning those pages. Her writing style is captivating and her storytelling is amazing.
Many thanks to Minka Kent, NetGalley, and Thomas & Mercer for the advanced reader copy of a book from one of my favorite authors in exchange for an honest review.

This ARC was provided to me via Kindle, from Thomas & Mercer and #NetGalley. Thank you for the opportunity to preview and review. Opinions expressed are completely my own.

A fast-paced thriller I didn't put down until I was done.

Minka Kent has been a go-to author for me for years and I was super excited and thankful to have the opportunity to read "Gone Again." I enjoyed the shifting perspectives and the flashbacks between the present and past. While this was a quick read, it didn't quite hit the spot as her previous books have for me. This book left me for a lot of wanting- wanting to hear more about Celia and Gen's past in their uber strict religious household, wanting to hear more about their mending relationship, wanting to hear more about Celeste's life.

I felt like the author touched on a handful of different situations and provided just enough information to get you interested (hello cult-like family vibes) and then moved on to a different detail. While described as a thriller, the story itself and outcome were rather underwhelming; I was more interested in and hoping to hear more about the character's lives between their childhood and present than figuring out who wrote the disturbing note and why.

Thank you NetGalley and Thomas & Mercer for this ARC in exchange for an honest review.
Pub Date: 3/7/2023

Good book! This book was kind of a quick read! It was a great story though! This book had suspense, intrigue, murder, and a few shocking twists! The storyline was very interesting and had me glued to my Kindle! I will definitely recommend reading this book as it was well worth reading! Thank you Netgalley and the publisher for sharing this book with me!

I have read all of Minka Kent’s book and I was so excited to see this one coming out! It did not disappoint. It was a wild ride like all the others that kept me guessing until the very end. Gone Again was a fast-paced thriller that I would except from this author.

This is definitely suspense and drama in one!

Celia Guest has never actually celebrated her birthday. There was no reason to have a party according to her family.
But... now her husband has decided that Forty is a magic number. It's time for a party for his beautiful wife!
She has so many friends that want to honor her and all is going perfect!
Yet.... Following a fantastic evening Celia sees a note amongst her gifts and cards that causes her to panic!
Who sent this? Celia thinks she knows and it could be the reason she runs again as she had done when she was young!
She has no idea that her safe world is going to change!

Truly a wonderful story that had me hooked!
I have not read this author before, but will be checking out her other novels!

Thank you to @NetGalley and @Thomas&Mercer for this ARC and allowing me to provide my own review.

I enjoyed this book. There were time jumps throughout. Normally those confuse me, but I liked how these were written and it was easy to follow along. Nothing wow’d me but I did enjoy the book.

Thank you NetGalley for this ARC in exchange for an honest opinion.

I've been enjoying Kent's work for some time now and with each book I know why her books always make me eager to dive inside.
Her writing is captivating and her storytelling is amazing.

Gone Again by Minka Kent was tense, exciting and compelling.
This book was a really enjoyable read with strong characters.
The main characters are well fleshed out and Minka manages to make them interesting in different ways
A fast-paced, great suspense and intriguing read.
The story is easy to follow, easy to get lost into and I liked pacing from the very beginning.
Right from the first chapter I was hooked and I needed to keep turning the pages.

"I received a complimentary copy of this book. Opinions expressed in this review are completely my own."

Thomas & Mercer,
Thank You for your generosity and gifting me a copy of this amazing eARC!
I will post my review to my blog, platforms, BookBub, B&N, Kobo and Waterstone closer to pub date.

Thank you NetGalley for an advanced copy in exchange for an honest review . This was a quick read. I enjoyed Minka Kent's writing style and the sharing the perspectives of different characters. I found there were a lot of unnecessary details that made the book a bit boring at times and it sort of dragged on. The climax/ending was not overly shocking, and quite honestly, anticlimactic. I felt like a lot more could have been done, based on the first two-thirds of the book. I found the ending quite rushed and lacklustre. Overall, the book did not really even feel like a thriller to me.

Thank you to the publisher and NetGalley for the chance to read the newest book by Minka Kent. I have read her other books, so I eagerly started this one as soon as it downloaded. The storyline was unique and kept me guessing, but maybe not always on the edge of my seat. There were several underlying stories going on, within the lives of Celia and Genevieve. The chapters jump from past to present, and from multiple viewpoints. While a good book, and I’m glad to have read it, it just wasn’t as good, to me, as others by Ms. Kent. I agree with another reviewer, that the ending seemed to rush in and finish off the story.

Celia grew up in the Fundamentalist Church where her parents took things to extremes. Unlike her sisters, Genevieve and Celeste, Celia takes the brunt of the abuse and punishments and flees as soon as she turns 18.

The morning after her 40th birthday, Celia reads a threatening birthday car. She leaves a note for her husband Rob that she is going out and will be back soon. But suddenly, Celia is missing again.

This book jumps back and forth from pas to present and has multiple POV. While this is Celia’s story, the majority of the book is told from Genevieve‘s perspective. There wasn’t a lot of thrills in this book and the twist were easy to figure out. But overall, this was a nice, easy read. ⭐️⭐️⭐️/5

I’d like to thank Netgalley and Thomas and Mercer for a chance to read an early copy of this book.

Minka Kent does it again. Great read. Very interesting and unexpected story plot. Would highly recommend.

Thank you, NetGalley and Minka Kent for this ARC.

After celebrating her 4oth birthday Celia disappears. Yet her disappearance is only part of this book. The book mostly focused on her relationship with her somewhat estranged sisters (Genevieve and Celeste), her husband (Rob), her parents and her friends as they search for her. I won't go into too much detail, but Celia's relationship with her parents was very dysfunctional and heartbreaking.

This book does jump from the past to present which I enjoyed. I know some do not enjoy this type of format but I thought it helped the flow of the story. Just like how it was also written from both Genevieve's and Celia's point of view.

I would have given it 5 stars, but the ending was somewhat a disappointment. It felt rushed and just didn't seem to fit into the rest of the book. I expected more. I still enjoyed the book and found it difficult to put down.

The ultimate thriller that will leave you on the edge of your seat until the last page. If you love thrillers, prepare to look no further, this book is absolutely an exceptional one.

This was a quick, good read. It was a little anticlimactic but the author made it work. Not every book has to have huge twists and turns. This was a sad story told from dual perspectives and timelines that held some mystery and suspense. While it wasn't my favorite from this author, it was still worth the read as well as entertaining. I give this Three Stars.

Thank you to Netgalley and Thomas and Mercer for this ARC.

I was expecting this to be twistier than it was. After Minkas last book about the wife who came back, I was expecting all kinds of craziness. Compared to that book this one wasn't nearly exciting. It felt like a quick read which is always sad when you love the author.

I enjoyed "Unmissing" by Minka Kent, so was eager to read this. I was intrigued by the beginning setting up a story of three sisters being raised in an ultra-strict, religiously abusive household. The pace was good, but started to lag at the middle. Although it was not as good a read as "Unmissing," I will continue to give this author a chance. Recommended for those who are fans of Minka Kent or of mystery/suspense. Thanks to NetGalley for the ARC.