I loved the first novel that I read by Claire Douglas so I was super excited for this one. I just didn’t love it as much. It was well written and I liked the story but I didn’t love it. Olivia was in an accident 20 years ago and her friends just disappeared from the scene. What really happened that night? This story is told in different storylines but you don’t know that while reading and I thought that was confusing. All in all I thought this book was a solid read.

Twenty years ago, four girls got into an accident driving home on Devils Coridor. Only Olivia was found. The case has been unresolved and gone cold. Podcaster Jenna Halliday comes to town to speak with locals about the case. As she begins to uncover secrets, no one is happy with her. After she starts receiving threatening notes, it’s clear someone wants her out of this town.

This was a slow-burn thriller with multiple points of view. We get to see Jenna as she tries to work on this case and Olivia as she has been the only one left after her horrible accident. I loved the whole creepy vibe of “Devil’s Coridor”, the dark woods and mysterious notes. Though I had an inkling of where this story was going and figured out a twist early on, that did not stop me from enjoying the story. Another fabulous mystery from Claire Douglas! She has quickly become an auto-buy author for me.

Thank you to Netgalley, Harper Collins and Claire Douglas for the ALC! “The Girls Who Disappeared” releases on January 10th, 2023!

This review will be shared to my Instagram blog (@books_by_the_bottle) shortly 😊

I liked this book. It wasn’t the best thing I’ve ever read, but for a fun mystery …. Hit the spot. Keeps you wondering, guessing regarding the mystery, always throws in some personal struggle. I will recommend to patrons.

A wonderful, twisty story about the journalist Jenna, police officer Dale and a haunted English village! Together Jenna and Dale set out to solve a 20 year old cold case. The story is told by three female protagonists, and Claire Douglas has yet again shown that she is a master story teller.

Thank you NetGalley for the chance to listen to and review this ARC.

The Netgalley audio feed was so bad. It started out fine but it was like listening to an echoing robot by the end. I could barely focus. No more Netgalley audios for me.

Thank you Netgalley for the ARC! This novel started out great. A wreck involving four teenage girls. When emergency crews arrived, only one was in the car. The other three girls are gone without a trace. Years later, the mystery is still unsolved. This one fell flat for me. The story of what actually happened to these girls years ago was just too far fetched. And the fact that the perpetrator was never caught seemed a little too good to be true. Very unrealistic and also hard to follow for me. Too much going on.

Set in the rural English countryside, Devil’s Corridor is a haunted stretch of road where strange things happen. It’s the scene of a tragic accident from 20 years ago. Four girls were in a horrible car crash and three of them disappeared. Now Jenna Halliday is in town to research the mystery for her podcast. It quickly becomes clear that the townpeople don’t want to talk and someone doesn’t want her there.

Told in alternating voices between Olivia, the remaining car crash survivor, and Jenna. The story unfolds as past secrets are revealed. The use of two narrators, Clare Corbett and Joanne Froggatt (Downton Abbey’s Anna) makes this an especially enjoyable audio book. The building suspense, spooky atmosphere and plenty of twists will keep you listening to the end.

Thank you to NetGalley and Harper Audio for the opportunity to review this title in return for an honest review.

I love Claire Douglas novels and own many but i just dont like the narrator but the story was great and kept my interest but the narrfelt ruined it for me. So im hiving it 4 stars instead of 5

A twenty year mystery involving 4 teen aged girls who were in a horrific car accident. One was found wounded and had to be cut out of the wreckage. The other three disappeared never to be seen or heard from again. Throw in a young journalist who comes to the small village to produce a podcast for the twenty year anniversary of the incident and a young cop who is an expert on cold case solves and you have an engrossing story about survivor’s guilt, young love, bad love and what a mother will do to be able to stay with her child. I alternated between liking the characters, feeling sorry for them, and disliking them. I didn’t understand what the parallel story had to do with anything until the connection was finally told near the end of the book. I was totally unprepared for the twist at the end. And, I absolutely hated the last secret that was revealed. If I had been reading the book, instead of listening to the audio version I probably would have thrown the book across the room.

The Devils Corridor, a road that runs through a sleepy Wiltshire town, is the sight of many eerie situations. Many locals and visitors have been spooked by strange lights and the sound of a baby crying, but the strangest of all is the Olivia Rutherford case. In the late 90’s, Olivia and her three friends were in a car crash on The Devils Corridor. When the accident was discovered only Olivia remained in the car and her three friends were never seen again. On the 20th anniversary of the crash, Jenna Halliday arrives in Wiltshire to investigate the case for an upcoming podcast. When Jenna starts receiving threatening notes she knows that she must get out before she becomes another mystery attached to the Devil’s Corridor.
No one is who they appear to be and the twists keep coming until the end in this twisty thriller! This book is fast paced, has short chapters and a dual timeline. The eerie setting and atmospheric quality of this novel reminded me of Ruth Ware and the story reminded me a little of The Night She Disappeared by Lisa Jewell. Making this a perfect read for fans of either author! I also loved the narration by Joanne Froggatt and Claire Corbett. Hearing Joanne Froggatt read the parts of Jenna helped me get my Downton Abbey fix. The character of Anna was always one of my favorites and I love her voice. The Girls Who Disappeared is an enthralling and suspenseful thriller that will keep you guessing until the very end!

The evocative atmosphere, the slow-moving plot, and the well-developed cast of characters made me appreciate this book primarily. Unfortunately, I think it lost my interest in the last third after being a little monotonous, and even though I felt the ending was fine, I didn't feel riveted.

Excellent narration, though, and for that, it was well worth the time.

In 1998, 18 year old Olivia and three of her friends went out for a night of fun. Driving back, their car was in a serious accident. Olivia, who had been driving, awoke to find she was pinned in the car and her three friends were missing. Twenty years later, the missing girls have still not been found.

In the present day, journalist Jenna Halliday arrives to do a podcast about the missing girls. Jenna herself is perhaps not in the best frame of mind to start a new venture. Her husband, Gavin, has just announced that he needs some time away from the marriage and has moved out. She is confused about what this means and is also missing her son. But she gets down to business and starts trying to arrange interviews with townspeople and others who were involved in the story. No one seems overly eager to speak with her, and then someone appears to be actively trying to get her to back off. Sinister events begin to occur, and it seems someone doesn't want the truth to come out about what happened that night so long ago.

I listened to the audiobook and really enjoyed the two female narrators. One did mostly Olivia's story, and the other recounted Jenna's point of view. Both were excellent and kept the tension high! Overall, the story was a very enjoyable listen, with plenty of twists and turns and possible suspects skulking around.

If you enjoyed Megan Miranda's The Last To Vanish, you're going to want to check out The Girls Who Disappeared. A spooky small town with a handful of unexplained disappearances is the perfect atmosphere for a thriller. Add in the creepy cabin in the woods and you’ve got yourself the perfect setting!

The beginning of this book was so engaging: Olivia and her friends were driving home from a night out on the town when Olivia had to swerve to avoid hitting something in the road. The car crashed, and Olivia woke to find her legs trapped and her friends gone. I couldn’t wait to find out what happened to her friends!

I really enjoy how Douglas starts off with two seemingly unrelated stories, leaving the reader wondering how the two relate to each other. She used a similar technique in The Couple at No. 9. I love the guessing game of figuring out the connection!

I love the podcast element in books, so I was sad that Jenna’s podcast didn’t play more of a role, other than giving her a reason to be questioning the townspeople. I was hoping for some clips of her podcast, especially in the audiobook. She was still a good character, though, and investigated the case in what seemed like a realistic way.

I’ve become a big fan of Claire Douglas lately, thanks to Harper’s re-publishing of a lot of her books. I’m excited to read more of her backlist!

Audio Review: Clare Corbett's voice is a familiar one, and I always love her productions. I've only listened to one production from Joanne Froggatt, The Night She Disappeared, but I enjoyed her narration as well! The only thing this audiobook was missing was snippets of Jenna's podcast, as mentioned. I feel like podcast thrillers really can shine on audio!

The girls who disappear feels like swimming in a pool not so clear just when you think you’ve found a clear spot more jumps in. This was def a thrilling story with a hint here and there of creepiness which is right up my ally! I loved how the story just unfolds more and more with each new chapter. So many questions you’ll be wondering about will all be answered!

3.5 rounded down.

Synopsis: Back in 1998, Olivia and her three friends are driving home from a night out and get into a car crash at the Devil's Corridor (a road where eerie things are rumored to occur). When Olivia comes to, her three friends are missing and, 20 years later, have still not be found. Jenna, an investigative podcaster, comes to Wilshire in hopes of solving this cold case. The story is told in dual narratives by Olivia and Jenna and its interspersed with a Thailand timeline.

Review: This book had an interesting premise but felt a little bit slow and (at times) repetitive. Also, the ways in which it came together didn't really work for me-- it was a bit over the top, while also functions as a nice neat way to wrap things up.

One fun fact I put together: one of the narrators is Anna from Downton Abbey- it was fun having her read for Jenna!

A group of girls are in a car wreck and three of them disappear from the wreck. Twenty years later they are still missing and a reporter has arrived to write a story on it.

Well..this one just didn’t work for me. the story was good, the writing was good, but the pace was SO slow. Painfully slow.

I thought it was well written with clever hints along the way, but it just took too long to get anywhere for me. I continually lost interest, unfortunately.

The story lines did come together in a way that wasn't completely predictable, which I enjoyed, but it just was SO DAMN FLAT at the end.