“𝐓𝐡𝐞 𝐭𝐡𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐲𝐨𝐮 𝐜𝐚𝐧’𝐭 𝐟𝐨𝐫𝐠𝐞𝐭 𝐢𝐬 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐰𝐢𝐥𝐝𝐞𝐫𝐧𝐞𝐬𝐬 𝐢𝐬𝐧’𝐭 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐝𝐞𝐬𝐭𝐢𝐧𝐚𝐭𝐢𝐨𝐧. 𝐈𝐭’𝐬 𝐧𝐨𝐭 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐟𝐢𝐧𝐚𝐥 𝐜𝐡𝐚𝐩𝐭𝐞𝐫. 𝐈𝐭 𝐦𝐢𝐠𝐡𝐭 𝐟𝐞𝐞𝐥 𝐭𝐡𝐚𝐭 𝐰𝐚𝐲, 𝐢𝐭 𝐦𝐢𝐠𝐡𝐭 𝐬𝐞𝐞𝐦 𝐥𝐢𝐤𝐞 𝐲𝐨𝐮’𝐫𝐞 𝐬𝐨 𝐝𝐞𝐞𝐩 𝐢𝐧 𝐢𝐭, 𝐲𝐨𝐮’𝐥𝐥 𝐧𝐞𝐯𝐞𝐫 𝐠𝐞𝐭 𝐨𝐮𝐭. 𝐁𝐮𝐭 𝐲𝐨𝐮𝐫 𝐬𝐭𝐨𝐫𝐲 - 𝐢𝐭 𝐠𝐨𝐞𝐬 𝐨𝐧.”

The Nature of Disappearing is a poignant and atmospheric mystery from a new-to-me author.

Kimi Cunningham Grant’s tale of friendship between Emlyn and Janessa, set in the backdrop of the Idaho wilderness is brimming with tension, not in a thriller-type way necessarily, but more in a taunt exploration of female friendship, past love, and addiction. Told in present day, with flashbacks that highlight Emlyn’s life I appreciated the past just as much as the present; the flashbacks help with understanding Emlyn, Janessa, Tyler, and how their relationships with each other have woven together but also fractured. The wilderness and nature itself feel like a character that add to the atmosphere and sense of threat, with Grant’s poetry-like descriptions a highlight of this exploration of relationship patterns. The love story between Emlyn and Tyler did seem to cast a bit of a shadow over the actual disappearance of Janessa at times, which might’ve thrown the pacing off a bit for me at times. I listened to parts of the story on audiobook, and Emily Pike Stewart did a great job narrating with a tone that kept me invested in a different way than when physically reading.

The Nature of Disappearing is a slow-burn gorgeously written story that has me wanting to check out Grant’s debut. Thank you to Minotaur Books for the ARC!

The Nature of Disappearing by Kimi Cunningham Grant is a haunting and beautifully crafted novel that blends suspense, mystery, and emotional depth. The story follows Emlyn, a woman who has meticulously built a quiet, solitary life in Idaho after surviving a traumatic event three years ago—the betrayal of her ex, Tyler, who left her for dead after a car accident. Now working as a fishing and hunting guide, Emlyn has distanced herself from her past and its painful memories. However, when Tyler reappears with news that their former friend, Janessa, is missing, Emlyn is reluctantly drawn back into the world she has tried to escape.

Janessa, once a social media star documenting her #vanlife adventures, has disappeared without a trace, and Emlyn agrees to help Tyler track her down. As they journey into the wilderness, Emlyn is forced to confront her past, and the unresolved chemistry between her and Tyler reignites. But as they uncover more unsettling truths about Janessa’s disappearance, Emlyn realizes that the danger they are chasing may be far greater than either of them anticipated.

Grant’s writing is both evocative and suspenseful, capturing the stark beauty of the Idaho wilderness while delving deeply into the emotional landscape of its characters. The novel is a slow-burn thriller, with mounting tension as Emlyn unravels the secrets of her past and the mystery surrounding Janessa’s disappearance. At its heart, The Nature of Disappearing is about the complexities of trauma, healing, and the difficult process of letting go and moving forward. It's a gripping, poignant exploration of how the past shapes who we are—and how sometimes, we must face it to find our way forward.

Emlyn works in remote Idaho as a fishing and hunting guide. When her best friend goes missing, she’s forced to team up with her ex-boyfriend—the same man who left her freezing and near death on the roadside three years ago—to track her down.

The narrative is told in both past and present timelines. This usually isn't an issue for me, but in this case, the transition between timelines was not always smooth and did not always go in an order that made sense to me. There were times when the same things were discussed both in past and present which made that information feel repetitive.

I enjoyed the story overall. This would have been a solid 4 star read for me until the last 25%. It's probably more of a personal preference, but I didn't care for the direction the story took towards the end. Given the slow build up, the ending felt a little rushed.

This is my second book by this author. Once again, she has mastered the art of vividly painting the landscape with her words. She does a great job immersing the reader in her remote settings. I wouldn't classify this as a thriller, but more of a slower paced domestic suspense. 3.5 stars.

I read this book while I was laying in bed with Covid it was the perfect escape. The author did an incredible job making me feel like I was in the mountains with the main character.
Emlyn refuses to think about the past she shared with her ex boyfriend Tyler and her former best friend Janessa. We are immediately shown they share a strained past. Emlyn is now a fishing and hunting guide in Idaho and she lives in an airstream.
When Janessa goes missing in the wilderness, while working as an influencer who travels in a van. Tyler reappears asking for Emlyns help. Emlyn knows she has the skills to help Tyler with finding out what happened to Janessa . Tyler and Emlyn share a romantic past, that plays into this plot and you can see the dysfunction that they had, and what led her to be a guide in the wilderness. Wracked with guilt that a call with Janessa dropped last week and she never found out what Janessa needed from her. She reluctantly teams up with Tyler. As the two trace Janessa’s path through miles of wild country, Emlyn can’t deny there’s still chemistry between them. But the deeper they press into the wilderness, the more she begins to suspect that a darker truth lies in the woods―and that Janessa isn’t the only one in danger.

Emlyn has a past that is nothing to write home about. She doesn’t often speak with Janessa, her best friend, and her ex-boyfriend left her on the side of the road for dead. Thankfully she now has a quiet life that allows her to spend her days in nature, leading fishing and hunting groups that wish to take in the beauty that is the Idaho wilderness. All is as it should be, until Tyler, her ex-boyfriend shows up looking for help to find Janessa who has gone missing. Janessa has turned into a bit of a social media star, living in a van and within the wilderness away from all the chaos that cities bring, but she seems to have gone silent online and can’t be located. Believing that she might be the only one who can find her, Emlyn reluctantly agrees, but Janessa might not be the only one in danger.

I really wanted to like this one, but it was a struggle. The descriptive language used painted a beautiful picture of the wilderness and all that comes with it. It seemed to me that the author has a lot of knowledge about the area (or areas like it) and the type of life lived by the characters. I also liked the idea of the dual timeline, bringing the past and the present together well. That being said the plot was such a slow burn that nothing thrilling happened until the novel was almost over, making it more of a drama and less of a thriller. I also struggled with the characters. While I did not go through exactly what Emlyn did, I did face an event that led me to almost die at the hands of another and I would never put myself in a situation where I was alone with my attacker, let alone even take a phone call. This made it hard to connect with her in any meaningful way as a character. I really just wanted more.

Unfortunately I feel the same way about the audiobook as I do about the book. To me the narrator seemed almost robotic, both in terms of the way it sounded as a whole and in the lack of emotion and inflection. I really didn’t feel like anything was added by listening to the audiobook, but it did not affect my overall opinion about the narrative.

Thank you to St. Martin’s Press/Minotaur Books, Macmillan Audio and NetGalley for gifting to me electronic and audio copies of The Nature of Disappearing, given in exchange for an honest review; all opinions are my own.

It's always hard to not set your expectations high when you start a new book by an author you've previously loved. I do think that sets a precedence that's hard to shake, so you expect the new book to be fantastic like the previous and possibly expect it to be more when you wouldn't necessarily think that otherwise. So, needless to say, I expected a lot from this book and was quite a bit let down. However - I tried to set that aside and I realized I did enjoy this book quite a book, I just didn't LOVE it like the last.

This book is very atmospheric, as expected, but it had more of a love story twisted through it as well. Both between the characters and a love story with nature and becoming one with it to explore and keep safe while doing so. It was beautifully written and definitely an excellent read, but I felt it dragged quite a bit in places. I think for this one, audio is the way to go because you can let yourself get lost in it without having to specifically read every word.

I enjoyed this one a lot! I don’t always love when a story is told in two different timelines, but the way she separated them by chapters made it easy to follow. The story flowed well and made this a quick read.

Emlyn ends up on a dangerous search through the wilderness with her ex when her estranged best friend goes missing on a trip with her boyfriend. Once they find her, they realize she wasn’t lost at all but it was part of a scheme to expose her boyfriend for drug smuggling. I caught onto the “who” pretty early, but the “why” was a surprise. I liked that the ex ended up being bad afterall because for a while, I was worried Emlyn would go back to him instead of the new (much better) guy.

**ARC review. Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for letting me read it early.

Thank you! Thank you! Thank you! No spoilers. Beyond amazing I enjoyed this book so very much. The characters and storyline were fantastic. The ending I did not see coming Could not put down nor did I want to. Truly Amazing and appreciated the whole story. This is going to be a must read for many many readers. Maybe even a book club pick.

I wasnt able to read and review this one before the publish date but now that I have I gave it 5 stars.

Another book with someone lost in the wilderness! I have an irrational fear of getting lost in the wilderness, and so this book hooked me in quickly due to the personal connection I felt to the premise.

I think Grant is a talented writer and enjoyed These Silent Woods, but this one was a bit lackluster for me. I didn’t get a good sense of character development, nor did I find anyone particularly likable. It was definitely a slow burn, which I struggle to stay engaged with.

Thank you to NetGalley for the ARC.

Love Kimi Cunningham Grant's writing, having read her previous books. Her characters are always well-drawn, and her writing is lyrical and thoughtfully rendered. This has suspense, wilderness survival, buried secrets unearthed, and plenty of heart. Recommended.

Thank you to NetGalley and St Martin’s Press for the digital read copy in exchange for my honest review.

I found Kimi Cunningham Grant through NetGalley when I received These Silent Woods. I then looked for Fallen Mountains and enjoyed that one as well. While I finished and enjoyed The Nature of Disappearing, it felt a little more love story/drama that the mystery suspense vibe I thought it would have. The #vanlife and disappearance of a friend gave me the sense that it would be similar to Gabby Petito's story or at least inspired by it with hopefully a better ending. I found myself skimming a bit by two thirds through. I will still follow Ms. Grant and read her books since I loved the other 2, but I just can't rate it as high since it fell a little flat for me.

This was a good thriller! This book felt really slow for my taste with not a lot going on for more than half of the book. I did enjoy the action that happened towards the end and how the book ended! I also couldn’t really connect with the characters. Overall it was an enjoyable thriller that I recommend trying!

Although the audio on this book was very well done, the story was a bit of a let down. I LOVED Grant's last novel so I waas a bit disappointed at the slow and lack of storyline. I really wasn't that invested in the outcome.

Thank you for the opportunity to review this advanced reader's edition. Unfortunately, I will not be able to give it the time required to write a thorough review and will be unable to read it for this purpose.

The Nature of Disappearing was beautifully atmospheric. I enjoyed the storyline, even if it did get a little convoluted at times. It felt like slipping on rocks before catching myself. I had to concentrate more than I am able to with a 5 year old and a 2 year old. But that is a fault of my own. This book definitely gave me wanderlust - ha. If you’ve read this, you’ll get it. Overall, I liked this one.

Kimi Cunningham Grant is quickly becoming one of my favorites. Her books are always atmospheric/ melancholic and gives off major winter vibes. Absolutely loved this new one by her. Thank you NetGalley for the arc! Five stars!

For my friends who enjoy atmospheric slow-burn wilderness stories.

THE NATURE OF DISAPPEARING by Kimi Cunningham Grant

Thanks, @stmartinspress, for the advanced review copy via #NetGalley. (Available now)

Emlyn is a 28-year-old hunting/fishing guide who lives a small, deliberately quiet life and is evidently recovering from trauma. When her ex-boyfriend Tyler asks for help finding their mutual friend (and Emlyn’s former best friend), Janessa, they head into the Idaho wilderness…alone…to track her down.

There was much to love here: the strong sense of place, the survival skills, and Grant’s lovely writing. Unfortunately, this was a slow-burn story, with an emphasis on slow. I couldn’t identify with any of the characters and was, therefore, not invested in their stories.

That said, I loved Grant’s previous book (THESE SILENT WOODS) so much that I will immediately snatch up her next one.

What a fantastic read! Slow-burning but deeply emotional, this book is a fantastic exploration of relationships and addiction, and how well we truly know our friends. I loved every bit of it, and the ending was just fantastic.

Highly recommend.

Huge thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for the arc!

The novel masterfully intertwines suspense, personal redemption, and the raw beauty of the Idaho wilderness.

The story follows Emlyn, a wilderness guide who has distanced herself from her past, including her best friend Janessa and ex-boyfriend Tyler. When Janessa goes missing, Emlyn is compelled to confront her history and team up with Tyler to find her. Their search through the vast, untamed landscapes is both a physical and emotional journey, revealing secrets and testing their resilience.

The author'’s portrayal of the wilderness is vivid and immersive, making the setting a character in its own right. The narrative delves deep into themes of trust, betrayal, and the complexities of human relationships, all while maintaining a gripping pace that kept me eagerly turning pages.

Thanks to Netgalley and the publisher for sending a digital ARC in exchange for an honest review.