Catherine Ryan Howard kept me in my toes with The Trap. The Trap kept me guessing and in suspense throughout the entirety of the book. The story is told from different pov's, which takes place in Ireland. 3 different women have gone missing. Lucy is determined to find out what happened to her sister so she sets her own trap to find out just what happened to her sister.
If you like thriller and suspenseful books then this one is for you.

Expected Publication Date: August 1, 2023-available to pre-order now.

Thank You to Blackstone for the gifted ARC provided through NetGalley

Oh wow, this one was such a thrill ride! I highly enjoyed it! It kept me on the edge of my seat and I couldn't help but want to know what was going to happen next! I would recommend this thriller for a great summer read!

Thank you to NetGalley and Blackstone Publishing for this ARC! I’ve recently become a big fan of Catherine's after loving Run Time and 56 Days. Unfortunately, The Trap wasn’t my favorite. I chalk up my not loving this one mainly because I found the story hard to follow through the multiple POVs. I still enjoyed this book and I thought the twists were very clever in CRH’s signature style. Beautiful cover as well!

Thanks so much to NetGalley and Blackstone.

I am a big fan of Howard, unfortunately this book was not one of my favorites.

A year ago, Lucy's sister vanished in Ireland. She was the 3rd woman to disappear in as many years. Lucy decides to take matters into her own hands.

Angela is a paper pusher but wants to be a member of the police that does investigations. She is chasing something that could either break the case or destroy her career.

There's also a man who has his latest victim in the backseat. She will get to hear everything.

What I struggled with was that there was too much going on. I didn't really care what was happening. There are some twists and an ending that is supposed to be shocking, but I felt disappointed by it. I look forward to reading Howard's next book.

Definitely read this book if you like thrillers. This book started off with a bang. A fast paced, binge-able read with multi-povs and plenty of plot twists that every thriller should have. Three women have disappeared, could there be a 4th victim? The chapters with the first person POV (the abductor) - dang those were amazing to hear his confessions, etc. Super creepy chilling. The finale of the book left me with my mouth wide open (say WUH!). Great book.

Lucy has been a wreck since her sister disappeared 18 months ago. She cannot move on and will stop at nothing to find out the truth. Angela works for the Missing Persons Unit but longs to be on the police force and wants to solve the case and find the missing women. The Trap was a definite page turner and kept me guessing until the twisty end. The story is told from multiple viewpoints which got confusing because I sometimes had to read several paragraphs before knowing who’s viewpoint it was.

Holy crap I was actually really surprised at this book! I wasn’t expecting the twists and what happened, and I love that in a thriller

This book is cleverly written with a few unexpected twists and turns. I especially enjoyed the relationship between Angela and Denise. That being said, I didn’t like the other characters. One plot devise was the use of the point of view of the killer. I personally don’t like that in books but I think others would. Overall I think The Trap will keep your interest and for some readers this will be a five star read. It was only a four for me.

This read was twisty, suspenseful, and shocking. I absolutely was hooked from the start! The writing style was a bit on the detached side but it worked really well for the story. A lot of different perspectives and characters to keep track of, but it was easy to differentiate. Inspired by unsolved mysteries in Ireland, this one was truly believable. I would definitely recommend this read!

Thank you to the publisher for the gifted ARC.

When Lucy's sister goes missing alongside a string of other women in the Ireland countryside, she sets a trap to find her sister and her sister's abductor.

I have read two other novels by Howard and, unfortunately, this one just didn't compare. The multiple points of view did not work for me and I didn't really care for any of the characters (except maybe Angela). Both Nicki and Lucy aggravated me throughout the course of the novel and there was no big reveal or twist that was at all satisfying. In fact, the conclusion guaranteed a two star rating from me. I hope Howard's next novel is not as much of a disappointment as this one was.

Catherine Ryan Howard has been a must read for me ever since I listened to “The Liar’s Girl.” There were threads there of an author who really knew how to tie up the loose ends brilliantly. “The Nothing Man” and “56 Days” are books that I tell people to read frequently. They’re just so original in their storytelling. While I enjoyed Howard’s release last year (“Run Time”), it felt like some of her earlier outings and was just missing something.

“The Trap” thankfully is CRH at her absolute best. The less that you know going into this the better. The blurb is perfection but the story itself is a nasty, but fantastic piece of fiction. I loved it. Can’t wait to add this to the list of her titles that I strongly suggest people check out.

A string of women, including Lucy’s sister, Nicki, have disappeared. The Garda are stumped. Lucy decides to take things into her own hands by turning herself into bait. The twist did not quite work for me, but this was still solid. Thanks to NetGalley and Blackstone for the ARC in exchange for an honest review.

I was really excited to read this thriller and I was not disappointed. I don't particularly love the sort of run run kill kill thrillers that are essentially races from killers, and I worried this had the potential to be that but thankfully it did not fall into those tropes and standards.

I also have always loved the missing sister/brother storyline with the vigilante or detective sibling that refuses to give up even when everyone else has and is out to find justice for their beloved sibling bc nobody else will do it but them, and this is one of those storylines. Lucy's sister Nicki disappeared many years past and Lucy has not been able to forget or move on, she is consumed with the need to bring her sister's murderer to justice. It was one of those glorious thriller endings where the author manages to weave together multiple storylines that had been moving along consecutively and twist them all up and bring them all together in one explosive finale. Those are my favorite and Catherine Ryan Howard delivered..

The writing was also above average writing for a thriller, I did not feel any of those cringey moments when you come across a very poorly constructed sentence, or else a very basic sentence or set of sentences that makes you feel the book was written by an eleven year old. I thought this was a solid reading experience that hooked me from the very beginning and kept me very engaged till the end, when I had no idea what was coming. There's nothing than a thriller that leaves you truly stunned by the twists and reveals, this book did that more than once for me. Solid 4 star thriller, a good one but not the GREATEST. Def recommend to anyone looking for a creepy fast paced read.

Sometimes, you just have to bump a book straight to the top of your TBR pile…

An ex-boyfriend once told her that his favorite part of a night out, was walking home, just him and his thoughts on a deserted street. He didn’t need to walk to the front door with his keys squeezed between his fingers, ready to scratch or disable. He didn’t need to text a thumbs up before he went to sleep so that someone at the receiving end could sleep too. The part of the night HE loved, was the part that SHE had to survive.

And, yet, she sets a TRAP, night after night, walking the desolate streets where her sister was last seen, hoping to attract a monster.

And, that realistic, opening chapter when she voluntarily GETS INTO THE CAR-is TERRIFYING!! (Shout out to the Cover Art!)

Three women have disappeared, never to be seen again.

Tana Meehan, legally separated from her abusive husband was the first. Nicola (Nicki) Sullivan, who was last seen leaving a Pub after drinks with friends was next. And, 17 year old, Jennifer Gold vanished while out walking her dog, who returned home without her.

Operation Tide was formed when the girls were linked because their smashed cell phones were all found at the scenes where they were last seen.

When Angela Fitzgerald, a Gardai support staff member member for the Missing Persons Unit (MPU) receives some “physical evidence” brought in by a Charity Shop employee, she finds herself teamed up with a fast rising Detective, Denise Pope, who has been the Family Liaison Officer (FLO) for two of the families with missing women.

Could there be fourth Victim?

“You’re not being told everything. Call me, and I”ll tell you”

Lucy Sullivan, who is currently living with her sister’s boyfriend, Chris, has admittedly been RECKLESS as she searches for answers into her sister’s disappearance. So, when she gets that message from former tabloid correspondent, turned “True Crime Expert” Jack Keane, she bites.

She cannot move forward without answers, or stop herself from doing “stupid things”.

And, interspersed with the chapters of Lucy, and the two women who have teamed up to investigate the crimes outside of “Operation Tide”, are some from the first person POV of the ABDUCTOR-deemed “The Phantom” by that author who wrote the book, “The Nothing Man”.

He will CONFIDE to us, how he succeeds in getting his Victims into his car, AND how he chooses his VICTIMS, and you, yes YOU, might recognize yourself as a person he may have preyed on.

How CREEPY is that?

Catherine Ryan Howard, delivers YET AGAIN, with her latest, and I was thrilled to receive an early copy. No regrets on moving this one straight to the top of my TBR! It will make my favorites list for 2023.

I am still thinking about the ending!

Expected Publication Date: August 1, 2023-available to pre-order now.

Thank You to Blackstone for the gifted ARC provided through NetGalley. It was my pleasure to offer a candid review!

This book was good. I was not expecting the twist with the main character. I enjoyed the perspective of the two different characters. It was interesting to see 'the other side' and the thoughts of the villain.

This was HARROWING and twisty and upsetting and amazing. I don't want to say much about the plot, other than: it is dark AF and excellent. I love Catherine Ryan Howard with the fire of 1,000 suns, and The Trap is up there with 56 Days and The Nowhere Man as my favorites of hers. Read this!

[arc review]
Thank you to NetGalley for providing an arc in exchange for an honest review.
The Trap releases August 1, 2023

I am OBSESSED! Wow, this is the best thriller I read this year so far! Let me tell you, this is my first book from the author and I love her writing style! Smart, heart pounding, elaborate crime fiction with lots of references to true crime. I did not see the plot coming, yaaaay. Enjoyed the short crisp chapters, without cringy inner monologues. I connected with the two badass female detectives from the get go. Would love to read more stories featuring them, like a future series! Another plus....its funny, nice palette cleansers throughout the story!
Thank you NetGalles for the ARC!

Thanks @netgalley for read number 54 of 2023. I have some mixed feelings on this book. I’ve loved all of @cathryanhoward’s books that I’ve read, and this book is as fast-paced with as many twists as her previous ones. It’s as things all come together in the end that I struggled a bit. I’m still somewhat unclear on how part of the storyline was figured out, and the twist at the end, almost seems a bit much for me. It’s a ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ book for holding my attention, but with a couple of areas that I wished were a bit more flushed out. Have others read this? What did you think?

A young woman accepts a ride from a man in the middle of the night in a desolate area of Ireland. Catherine Ryan Howard begins The Trap with heart stopping tension and fear. Is he a nice stranger offering a ride, or is he the horrifying monster she hopes he is who took her sister and is accepting her bait?! The author references a time in Ireland when several women tragically went missing and the cases were never solved. This story starts with a fictional Lucy, whose life is unbearable not knowing what happened to her sister. There are several missing young women so the Garda create a task force called Operation Tide. Are all the cases connected? The tale is told in multiple POVs, including Detective Pope, Angela, a civilian volunteer in the Missing Person Unit, and the killer. Chapters by the killer are creepy and chilling. The author keeps you on the edge of your seat with unexpected twists and turns and a very clever ending. The Trap is a great read for readers of mysteries and thrillers! With thanks to Netgalley and Blackstone Publishing for this ARC. My opinions are my own.

The premise is fantastic but this moved a little too slow for me in the beginning. I stuck with it because of so many fabulous reviews and I'm glad I did. Once I hit around 50% it really picked up. The ending was really good. It's hard to surprise me but that got me.