Gone Again
By Minka Kent
Main Characters: Celia and Genevieve
I voluntarily and honestly reviewed this book without bias or persuasion from the author.
3 1/2 out of 5 stars
I received a copy from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review. This was not my favorite book by Minka Kent. I am not much for reading anything with a lot of religious background in them. I also did not really care for any of the characters. Because when I accept an ARC, I always try to read the whole book but I found myself wanting to skip a lot of the dialogue because of the religious background. Just my personal pet peeve. I will continue to read books by MS Kent as she is a favorite of mine. I just do not care to read books with any religious or political aspects to them.

Typically this author is one of my favorites, but this one just didn't get me. I do think it hit a little to close to home for me with the religion, so I think that's where the disconnect was.

This was fine, not my favorite by her. But certainly won't be my last.

Highly Recommend!!!

I can say this is a Must Read!

Amazing triller with sound Character Development which I love!

This story a brilliant and well written! I could not put this book down! I love the way this story was written and this book holds you from page one!

Minka Kent did an amazing job with this story! I really enjoyed her writing style!

No spoilers with my review. If you have not purchased this book you need to. You will not be disappointed!

Overall I give this book 5 golden stars ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ ⭐️

Thank you to Netgalley and Thomas & Mercer for the e-book arc. I looked forward to picking up another Minka Kent book because I loved Unmissing. Gone Again was a story told in multiple timelines and multiple perspectives. I really enjoyed that aspect of the book. It was easy to follow and kept the story moving. I just didn't find myself wanting to pick it up as frequently as the other book I read. Although I liked how the two different timelines linked, I thought the ending was a bit rushed and predictable.

This book highlights how Celia Fieldings struggled to overcome a difficult religious family background. She was known as a rebellious daughter, cold and distant. Something has changed her. Something that she can't tell anyone and take to the grave.

After two decades, on her fortieth birthday, she went missing. Genevieve, her estranged sister trying to find the true side of Celia. While waiting for a breakthrough, there's sparking speculation that might be related to do with Celia's disappearance. A great deal of secret has been kept for twenty years. Although it's a bit of a slow read to start it is still an intriguing novel with a plausible explanation. I give 4.3 ⭐️

Thanks to @netgalley and the publisher for earc. Opinions are my own.

📚

#donereading #GoneAgain by #MinkaKent #igreads #igbooks #bookstagram #goodreads #kindlepaperwhite #netgalley #thomasandmercer #emabaca #malaysiamembaca

Minka Kent is one of the authors I turn to when I need a quick thriller fix. Her books are fast-paced and are reliability entertaining. At the centre of the story are three sisters: Celia, Gen and Celeste. While the majority of the book is about Celia, we experience a lot of the action through Gen's perspective. The plot is standard thriller fare - enjoyable but likely won't stay with me.

The book takes childhood trauma and familial estrangement, adds in a present day missing persons plot and finishes with a family reunion. After all the build-up, the ending felt rushed and made Celeste feel like a plot device, rather than a developed character.

This is the type of read that hits the spot when it's a rainy afternoon and you're trying to avoid the Sunday scaries.

Thank you to NetGalley and Thomas & Mercer for the eARC to read and review.

Gone Again by Minka Kent is a fast-paced thriller about Celia Guest and her childhood history that has come back to haunt her. She receives a disturbing note in amidst her 40th birthday gifts and cards, and it sends her scrambling to figure out what is going on. When she goes missing, her husband and sister set out to find her and end up finding out more than they ever thought might be possible. I enjoyed this well-written and suspenseful thriller. Thanks to NetGalley for the free digital review copy. All opinions are my own.

quick and easy read. I liked the alternating timelines between past and present. The twist really got me, I had no idea it was coming! definitely a quick thriller

this was a big no for me. I was interested in the beginning, but the more I read through, the less I liked it. the last 40% of the book was wrapped up much too quickly, and I felt the reader not having Celia’s POV was a mistake, as I was constantly wondering wtf happened to her.

I’m not gonna lie, I was really hopeful for this one! I read Minka Kent’s most recent book last year (UNMISSING) and it was 5⭐️ for me! I guess you win some, you lose some.

This book came across more as an outline to a potential novel then a fully developed one. Everything about it, from the characters to the storyline and everything in between was vague, undeveloped and just all over the place. Nothing kept my attention.

Thank you to NetGalley and Thomas & Mercer for providing a digital copy in return for an honest, unbiased review.

I read this in a day, and am always fascinated by thrillers with a religious component. However this one was just ok for me. It was a slow build with a rushed ending that could have been a little better. There are two timelines, past and present, and I liked the past more as the present had a few unanswered questions for me. It is a quick and entertaining read that kept my attention throughout, I just wanted more from this one.

Thank you to NetGalley and Thomas & Mercer for the digital copy to review.

This is my second book of Minka's and can't wait to read more. She definitely doesn't disappoint her readers. I couldn't put this down. I wanted to know where Celia was and what happened to her. I kept trying to figure out who was responsible but I was always wrong.

At 18, Celia escaped her super religious and abuse family by running off with her 30-year old boyfriend. Now her husband, Rob and Celia live a good life surrounded by friends, comfortable finances, and plenty of activities to keep them busy. But after her 40th birthday party, Celia goes missing. Rob joins forces with her sister, Genevieve (who recently relocated to get to know Celia again) to find out what happened.

Minka Kent does it again! I have yet to read a book by her that didn't keep me engaged through the whole story. While there were some story lines that never really got resolved, they didn't end up being related to the overall mystery. I liked the dynamic of Celia with her sister at the end and how everyone came together.

Thank you NetGalley for an arc of this book in exchange for my honest review. I will continue buying any book this author writes.

This is the second book I've read from Minka Kent and I thoroughly enjoyed this one! I was absolutely taken, this is such a great story, craftily made while addressing issues such as child abuse, domestic violence, family dysfunction, marital & parental fears. This has so many layers and yet it stuck to the main story. It was told from different perspectives but nit once did it become confusing. On top of it all, the sensitive issues were tastefully incorporated in the story. Truly a masterpiece.

Every time I see a new Minka Kent review copy available on Net Galley, I know I’m going to be staying up all night that night reading until I finish it. Her books are that great. She has a true gift for creating exactly the right characters and fitting them perfectly into her impeccably executed plots. Her new novel, “Gone Again,” is no exception.

The story opens 25 years before the present, told through the eyes of teenage Celia, who is riding in the backseat of her parents’ car. Her younger sister, Genevieve is sitting next to her. Her mother is in the front passenger seat and her father, a police officer and rabid member of a fundamentalist religious cult is both driving the car and pontificating on the subject of how the world will end and those who will be “saved.”

Meanwhile, Celia is secretly hatching a plan to run away from her abusive home. It ends in disaster when Genevieve discloses the the truth to their father who apprehends Celia and sends her to a“reformatory” operated by the cult which is nothing but an abusive and punitive indoctrination camp. Celia manages to act the role of a model inmate and is discharged to her parents after a year. She gets a job at an accounting firm and falls in love with the boss’s son, Rob Guest, whom she eventually marries. Except nominally for Genevieve, she no longer has contact with her family.

The story goes back and forth between the present and twenty-five years before and alternates being told through the eyes of Celia and Genevieve. Although Celia has never fully forgiven Genevieve, she and Rob are financially well-off, while Genevieve and her family are struggling financially. She and Rob are providing significant financial help to Genevieve and her husband and daughter. The sisters have a relationship, but it is not close as sisterly relationships go.

There is a third sister, Celeste, who is much younger than Celia and, until nearly the end of the book is not much mentioned but she is an important part of the plot arc. In the end, the truth about a terrible crime committed long ago emerges. To say anything more might spoil the ending so I’ll leave it there for you to discover when you read the book.

If you’re a fan of domestic thrillers, particularly those about dysfunctional families told from the point of view of the children, both as children and adults, I highly recommend “Gone Again.”

I love reading books with dual timelines. I really really enjoyed Unmissing by this author. I think this book went really well until the ending. I definitely wanted more and I thought it would wow me at the end. I will still read more books by this author, but this one was just not my favorite.

Religious fanatics and family drama? Gone Again by Minka Kent has both! This was such a great story! The book alternates between Celia and Genevieve‘s points of view. They are sisters who had a troubling childhood. In the present, Celia goes missing. Little by little their story and what happened is revealed. Minka Kent always writes great thrillers, and this is no exception. Thank you to Net Galley and the publisher for the advanced copy of this book. All opinions on my own.

Thank you to NetGalley for the eARC of this novel.

I am a sucker for dual POV and Minka Kent's book did that well. It was quick paced and overall a good read. I will admit that like many others, the ending did fall flat to me. But overall a good read.

Minka Kent’s Gone Again had me hooked after the first few chapters. I thought for sure I knew who Celeste’s parents are but I was wrong. It’s always a thrill to be kept on my toes and read a book with enjoyable deep characters and a plot that isn’t predictable.

I’ve always really enjoyed Minka Kent’s books, so couldn’t wait to read this one. This did not disappoint. I love her fast paced storytelling. This one had me captivated! The ending fell a little flat for me, but overall I still loved it.