Shaw Connolly's little sister, Thea, disappeared 16 years ago and she's never stopped trying to find her. Now she's being stalked and harassed by a man claiming to have killed Thea. This situation has contributed to troubles with her marriage, her family and her job. To say that Shaw is a woman obsessed with finding her sister is an understatement. This story had me hooked from the beginning. I liked seeing Shaw's character change and grow throughout the book. Good writing and an equally good plot makes this a must read.

I read the ARC for Shaw Connolly Lives to Tell by Gillian French. Shaw Connolly is being stalked, harrassed by phone calls from a man named Anders Jansen. It's creepy because stalkers are creepy but also because Shaw's younger sister, Thea disappeared when she was 17 and Shaw was 18. Her family has been searching for her for the past 16 years. It has shaped her entire family's life, her marriage, her job, etc. Shaw is a fingerprint analyst. Anders is all but claiming to have taken Thea. This is a story about reclaiming your life, your narrative. Overall, I liked this story, and I liked Shaw, however, the uneven pacing of this story was difficult. The beginning of this story was slow and got slower. Everytime the pace would pick up, it seemed to slow back down. Then, the last 25% of this story moved very, very quickly, but the uneven pacing earlier is difficult to overcome. That being said, if there is another Shaw Connolly story, I will read it. I give this book 3.5 stars rounded up to 4. Thank you to Net Galley and St. Martin's Press for my ARC.

A total swing and a hit. I was captivated from the beginning with this one. It had a Silence Of The Lambs feel or like you were watching an episode of a crime show. Shaw annoyed me at the beginning but by the end I really enjoyed her growth and character

Gillian French's Shaw Connolly Lives to Tell starts with a powerful hook: Shaw receives a phone call from a man who claims he murdered her sister nearly two decades ago. The premise is rich with potential for suspense, emotional depth, and psychological unraveling—but the story struggles to deliver on any of those fronts.

The first 75% of the novel moves at a glacial pace. Key plot developments are delayed, and the tension never fully materializes. While the novel attempts to explore grief and trauma, the emotional beats often feel distant or undercooked. Shaw, as a character, lacked complexity or growth, making it difficult to invest in her journey. Her relationships with her family, particularly her estranged husband and children, felt like missed opportunities for emotional resonance.

There are glimmers of potential—the killer's calls, for example, are eerie at first—but even those lose impact through repetition. The final confrontation does bring some much-needed energy and resolution, but it arrives far too late to make the reading experience satisfying.

Ultimately, readers who enjoy very slow-burn character studies may find more to appreciate here, but those looking for a page-turning thriller with sharp twists and mounting suspense may walk away disappointed.

Police procedurals & murder mysteries/thrillers are some of my favorites but this just wasn't it. Unfortunately I just couldn't get into the eriting style and it felt like a chore to read. I wanted another "The Return of Ellie Black" but unfortunately this wasn't it.

Is the main character loveable, no, is she single minded in her quest to find her sister, yes. Shaw is a fingerprint expert working in a county crime lab in Maine. She is teaching a new hire in the department the ropes of crime scene collections, she has a good relationship with her coworkers. Shaws single minded finding her missing sister has destroyed her personal relationships, its been 17 years, but she can't live her life without that shadow always intruding and being a third wheel. She loves her kids and they love her but her husband has moved out, her little sister doesn't understand because she was only 8 when Thea disappeared and Thea always seemed to take precedence. There is police procedures, murder, arson cases along the way as well as a stalker claiming he knows where Thea is and is out drive Shaw crazy. A good cat and mouse story with resolution at the end, definitely not a light hearted story but I found it interesting and wanted the resolution for Shaw. Thanks to NetGalley for an ARC to an honest review.

A definite hit with this one! I was thoroughly intrigued with the premise of this. It felt like i was in the middle of a Criminal Minds episode- it kept me on my toes.
While I didn't like Shaw at the beginning of the book by the end I adored her and her growth. I think her dad was my absolute favorite character- I felt for him and I loved his humor.

When Saw's sister Thea disappears sixteen years ago her life becomes consumed with trying to figure out what happened to her, leading her to put her life on hold. She alienates herself and turns down opportunities for growth. I was hoping the book would get better but it just never did. The book was similiar to another book about a missing sister but this one just did not hold my attention as well.

Thank you to Netgalley and to the publishers for allowing me to read this advanced copy.

You know those people who say “closure is overrated”? Shaw Connolly is not one of those people. It’s been sixteen years since her sister Thea vanished, and Shaw is still spiraling down a rabbit hole like it’s her full-time job. She’s done everything she can to heal, but some wounds don’t close no matter how much you throw at them. So instead, she works crime scenes for a living while her personal life quietly burns to the ground. Husband? Estranged. Kids? Frustrated. Career? Stalled. Sanity? Holding on by dental floss.

Enter Anders Jansen, aka absolute garbage fire of a human being. This man starts calling Shaw out of nowhere, like your worst true crime podcast villain come to life. He knows everything. He hints at everything. He’s playing a psychological cat-and-mouse game while Shaw just keeps picking up the phone like, "Yes, I will continue engaging with the serial killer who is openly stalking me, thank you." And honestly? Same. Because at this point, Anders might be a deranged sociopath, but he’s also the only one offering her answers.

The tone here is straight-up claustrophobic. Every phone call feels like a countdown to something awful. Every scene feels like it’s closing in on her. And meanwhile, poor Shaw is juggling everything. She’s trying to raise her sons, juggle her job, keep her ex-husband from losing his mind, and not lose hers entirely while a murderer breathes heavily into her phone every night like some Dollar Store Zodiac Killer.

Now, even though this is absolutely marketed like a psychological thriller, fair warning: you are getting a heavy dose of family drama baked into your "true crime" cake. A big chunk of this book lives in Shaw’s spiraling personal life. The emotional stakes sit right next to the crime investigation, and sometimes those domestic threads carry more weight than the suspense itself.

The mystery structure flips the usual whodunit formula. We know who. If you believe him, the question is why and how far this guy will take it. And while you do get answers, not every thread wraps up in a perfect little bow. A few leads hit dead ends, some pieces go unresolved, and the final payoff leans more into emotional closure than neatly solving every lingering clue. The weight lands on Shaw’s grief, survival, and the cost of chasing this truth for so long.

Shaw herself? I loved her as a protagonist. She’s messy and obsessive, but she’s also fierce and surprisingly funny in that “if I don’t joke I’ll scream” kind of way. She’s driven by equal parts grief, guilt, and straight-up rage. You root for her even while screaming at her to maybe, I don’t know, involve a few more professionals before letting herself be emotionally waterboarded by a serial killer.

The pacing is solid, though it dips a bit in the middle while Shaw spirals for the 47th time. And the ending? Brutal, but earned. Not clean, not easy, but it feels honest for this kind of story. 3.5 stars for the intense vibes, deeply broken but compelling heroine, reverse-whodunit structure, and the fact that Anders will absolutely haunt my dreams for the next forever. If you want your thrillers with more emotional ruin than tidy clues, this one delivers.

Whodunity Award: For Proving That Trauma Is A Full-Time Job With Terrible Benefits

Huge thanks to St. Martin's Press, Macmillan Audio, and NetGalley for the early access. Saskia Maarleveld’s narration was excellent as always. I’ve loved her work on other audiobooks, and she brought Shaw’s tense, emotional journey to life perfectly.

Shaw Connolly Lives to Tell
by Gillian French
Pub Date: Jun 17 2025

In the book Shaw Connolly Lives to Tell, Shaw's sister Thea is presumed dead but her body was never found. Shaw will not give up investigating the case. The book is filled with action, arson, trackers, and a whole lot of craziness! If you like mystery and suspense books I highly recommend picking up this one. Author Gillian French did it again!

Synopsis: Shaw Connolly is no stranger to trauma. As a fingerprints analyst, she’s one of the first on-site for crimes, including murder scenes and a mysterious string of arsons popping up throughout the rural Maine community her department serves. But the tragedy of her little sister’s disappearance sixteen years ago has always weighed on her the most; Thea is never far from her thoughts or dreams, and Shaw knows that her obsession with finding the truth about Thea is driving her husband away and impacting her two boys. Still, she can't let it go and has even started taking disturbing calls from a man named Anders Jansen who all but claims to have committed the crime.

Many thanks to #StMartinsPress #NetGalley and #ShawConnollyLivestoTell for providing me an E-ARC of this FABULOUS book!

Are you looking for a typical thriller? If so, this is not the book for you.

Imagine that your sister, only a year younger, went missing at 17. Imagine that many years later, while working as a forensic fingerprint specialist, her killer calls you. He tells you his name but as there is no proof, the police do nothing. Instead, Shaw must confront her memories of her sister, while living her life and trying to pin down her sister's killer.

There was a ton of suspense, not in a who did it kind of way, but making the reader wonder what was coming next. This was unusual but in terms of thrillers, it felt like a breath of fresh air.

Thank you to St. Martin's Press and Net Galley for the ARC. All opinions are my own.

Part police procedural, part atmospheric suspense, part family drama, this is a slow burn story that builds up to a dramatic conclusion. Shaw Connolly is a complex character. She's a loving mom and a devoted sister and daughter but she's also obsessed with her other sister's disappearance, so much so that she's allowed her obsession to affect her marriage and her career. She can be unsympathetic at times, and at others you can feel her love for her family through the page.

I enjoyed how the clues in this story were revealed slowly, building the suspense and keeping the reader guessing. There were plenty of tense moments along the way to keep the story moving and to introduce some doubt, all leading to a dramatic ending. There weren't many shocking twists, but there were plenty of action scenes.

Saskia Maarleveld is one of my favorite narrators, especially for thrillers and mysteries, and she did not disappoint in this audiobook. She captured the atmospheric nature of this story perfectly, and she built the tension in all of the right places. I definitely recommend the audio of this one!

Shaw's sister Thea disappeared 16 years ago and now Anders is taunting her about it. This is a melancholy but familiar plot with the added interest that Shaw is a fingerprint examiner (liked the details). No one, not even Shaw's husband, believes that she's being stalked and her marriage is suffering. She's determined, however, to get answers-and you know she will. Thanks to Netgalley for the ARC. Trope-y but worth a read.

Shaw Connolly Lives to Tell is a raw, unflinching novel that doesn’t flinch from the bruises life leaves behind, both physical and emotional. Gritty in tone and harsh in its depiction of violence, loss, and loyalty, the story unfolds with the tension of a slow-burning fuse, pulling you into Shaw’s world with all its battered complexity.

At the heart of the novel is the obsessive, almost claustrophobic pull of family, particularly Shaw’s fierce need to protect, preserve, and avenge. At times, this connection teeters on the edge of too much, bordering on fixation. But Gilbert crafts it with such emotional honesty that it feels not only believable but inevitable. In a world that repeatedly fractures and fails him, Shaw’s devotion becomes both his armor and his Achilles’ heel.

The writing doesn’t shy away from ugliness. It’s sharp, lean, and laced with a kind of poetic brutality. And yet, amid the broken glass and bloodstains, there’s a surprising tenderness, moments of connection, memory, and the ache of wanting to hold on to something good, even when everything else has gone to hell.

This isn’t a comforting read, but it’s a compelling one. Shaw Connolly Lives to Tell doesn’t promise redemption, but it does deliver survival. And sometimes, that’s the more honest story.

BOOK REPORT
Received a complimentary copy of Shaw Connolly Lives to Tell, by Gillian French, from St. Martin's Press | Minotaur Books /NetGalley, for which I am appreciative, in exchange for a fair and honest review. Scroll past the BOOK REPORT section for a cut-and-paste of the DESCRIPTION of it from them if you want to read my thoughts on the book in the context of that summary.

I dunno, maybe I was dropped on my head or something as a baby?

Because I have had lifelong issues with confusing elbow/shoulder, counter/cabinet, and the two Darrin Stephenses from Bewitched.

Don’t judge! I was only about 7 when I started watching it. Also, FTR, I had a definite preference for the first one, not to be confused with my multiple other preferences for Samantha/Serena, Uncle Arthur, Endora, and Aunt Clara—not to mention my spirit sister Agnes Kravitz No. 2. And I’m pretty sure I at one point wanted a career in advertising because of Darrin, and wanted to be a New England homemaker because of Sam.

Also, I named my childhood imaginary friend Dabrin because Tabitha had an imaginary friend (Henry Gibbons playing the leprechaun Tim O’Shanter). Now, just to be clear, those preferences were not of an amorous nature…..for the most. Not sure what it says about me that Paul Lynde still meeks the ol’ heert flutter a bit, then….

Goodness, gracious but we do seem way far afield, no don’t we?

There’s a point. I promise.

I saw that the name of the author of the book was Gillian French, which I immediately associated with Gillian Anderson, who played Scully in The X Files. And that’s especially significant not only because I once wanted to be Scully when I grew up, but also because Gillian Anderson later was the lead in the crime series The Fall, which was set in Belfast (Northern Ireland, not Maine), and one of the scenes in one of the episodes was set in The Hilton Belfast, where my husband and I once had the worst breakfast experiences of our lives because it was so, so, hot—in June—that even if I had taken off all of my clothes and had someone pour ice water on me I would’ve not been able to eat. We fled, FLED, the premises.

Why were we in Belfast? Well, to see Ry Cooder, of course, and then to take the ferry to Stranraer and then another to Dunoon to visit the memorial to the slaughter of my ancestral clan, of course. What a silly question.

POINT BEING.

I requested this book because of the name Gillian. Which I also associate with the author Gillian Flynn, as one does.

Mistake, me.

I was disappointed. This book was dull and unpleasant and went on about a third too long. And yes, yes, I get that the primary matter at hand is and will always be unpleasant. But, y’all? It was the people. And the writing was weirdly choppy, and at a certain point the book started to feel like an instruction guide to the art and science of fingerprinting. Sometimes too much detail is just too much detail….

I _might_ give this Gillian another chance. Might.

But not any time soon.

DESCRIPTION
A page-turning, compelling thriller about a woman who will stop at nothing to uncover the truth behind her sister’s disappearance.

Shaw Connolly is no stranger to trauma. As a fingerprints analyst, she’s one of the first on-site for crimes, including murder scenes and a mysterious string of arsons popping up throughout the rural Maine community her department serves. But the tragedy of her little sister’s disappearance sixteen years ago has always weighed on her the most; Thea is never far from her thoughts or dreams, and Shaw knows that her obsession with finding the truth about Thea is driving her husband away and impacting her two boys. Still, she can't let it go and has even started taking disturbing calls from a man named Anders Jansen who all but claims to have committed the crime.

Anders taunts Shaw with hints and innuendo about what supposedly happened all those years ago. His calls go to the next level as he reveals just how much he knows about Shaw’s personal life, like her stalled career and ruined marriage. As his stalking escalates to threats on her and her family's lives, he begins to show just how dangerous he might be. Shaw is too desperate for answers to hang up now, just when she's getting close to finding proof. The only question left is what she must lose to learn the truth.

A taut, atmospheric thriller from Edgar Award-finalist young adult author Gillian French, Shaw Connolly Lives to Tell introduces a compelling new voice in adult suspense fiction.

A page-turning thriller about "a woman who will stop at nothing to uncover the truth behind her sister’s disappearance"--ok, I snagged a copy of "Shaw Connolly Lives to Tell" by Gillian French.

Shaw Connolly is a fingerprints analyst who sees some of the worst crime scenes in her line of work. The worst scene is one she cannot see: the time and place her teenage sister fell off the face of the earth. Feuding friends left Thea on the road to walk alone. In part because underage drinking was involved, the police never took it seriously. Sixteen years later, oops, Thea will not make it home again, and the police have never figured out what happened. Where is Thea, or whatever is left of her? An eerie man on the telephone claims to know, but he only tells Shea enough to taunt her. He’s a creepy stalker of the worst kind, dredging up memories of the sister who is still missing. "Not Knowing" is worse than knowing, and Shaw wants to KNOW where her sister is. Her husband gets sick of it; nobody, not even him, takes the phone stalker seriously; her marriage ends because Shaw can't move on.

It’s a story I wish I couldn’t identify with. My own sister at age 18 vanished in 1975 and was missing for months. Come spring, her body was washed out of a culvert. We no longer suffered the Not Knowing where she was, but half a century later, her killer(s) continue to walk free. I know the agony of zero closure, zero justice.

Julie “Julia” Benning, Iowa Cold Case # 76-00382
Date of Death: November 28, 1975
Body Recovered: March 18, 1976

In this novel, the body is finally found (in a most unexpected place), and the killer is finally apprehended. This is not a spoiler. You knew you’d learn whodunnit, and what the motive was.

The story kept me turning pages, but the characters didn’t seem memorable or all that authentic to me. I wasn’t fond of Shaw. She’s cynical and sassy, tough and hard-edged, and too easily lured into conversations with a sick phone stalker. Never mind me: if you're a fan of this genre, and sassy hard-boiled heroines, you're sure to like this novel.

Thanks to NetGalley and St Martin's Press | Minotaur Book for a digital ARC copy.

Shaw Connolly's sister disappeared 16 years ago, and lately she has been getting calls from a man who purports to have taken and killed her all those years ago. Shaw is convinced this is the man, despite the various cranks who have bothered her family in the past, and so continues to try to hunt down what happened to her sister. This is not a great mystery, in that the reader is not given any clues that would enable them to figure out what happened to the sister. It is more like a thriller, except we know what will happen because of the title. Shaw's character seemed to change depending on who she was talking to--she was particularly weird while at work. Overall, this didn't work for me.

Many thanks to NetGalley, St Martin's Press | Minotaur Books, and Macmillan Audio for gifting me a physical, audio and digital ARC of this debut adult mystery by Gillian French, with the audio perfectly narrated by Saskia Maarleveld. All opinions expressed in this review are my own - 4 stars!

Shaw Connelly is a fingerprint analyst, a mother, a devoted sister and daughter, semi-estranged from her husband. But she's desperate to get answers to her sister's disappearance 16 years ago. The not knowing has affected everyone in their family in different ways. Shaw is also being taunted by Anders Jansen, who claims he has info about Thea's disappearance, but his stalking is becoming threatening.

I really liked this family drama/mystery and its characters, especially Shaw and Gauthier, a young analyst Shaw is charged with mentoring. These characters are not perfect nor do they make perfect decisions, but they felt real. It's atmospheric and tense, as Anders seems to get closer and closer. I thought the fingerprinting storyline was interesting as well. But at heart, it's a story of grief and how differently people handle it, but especially the unfathomable grief that comes with a disappearance and no answers. Looking forward to more from this author - this would be a great series!

4.5 / 5 stars

Sixteen years after her little sister vanished without a trace, Shaw Connolly still hasn’t stopped searching. A fingerprint analyst with a front-row seat to rural Maine’s worst crimes, Shaw carries her grief like armor. When a man named Anders Jansen begins calling her with cryptic hints and veiled threats, claiming to know what happened to Thea, Shaw is drawn back into the darkest chapter of her life. As his calls escalate, Shaw's obsession with a resolution deepens – and she must decide how much she’s willing to risk for the truth.

Shaw gave me serious Mare of Easttown vibes – not in the sense that she’s a detective (she’s a fingerprint analyst), but she’s deeply involved in the investigative process and carries herself with the same gruff, no-nonsense energy. She’s cynical, weary, and often keeps people at arm’s length – but underneath it all, she’s someone warm, loyal, and deeply nurturing. I loved her dogged determination, but I also appreciated that the narrative wasn’t afraid to interrogate it – to ask what she’s lost in her pursuit of closure, and whether obsession can ever really coexist with healing.

The tone and pacing here are really interesting. From the outset, we know Shaw is receiving phone calls from a man who claims to be responsible for her sister’s disappearance. There’s suspense in what he knows and why he’s reaching out – but it’s not a twisty whodunit in the traditional sense. It’s more of a how-and-why story – one that explores the emotional toll of grief, the long reach of trauma, and what it means to live in limbo for sixteen years. The stalker storyline adds a chilling layer of menace, but it’s Shaw’s unraveling – and resilience – that kept me locked in.

There were moments, especially early on, when I wasn’t sure how some of Shaw’s casework tied into the larger plot. But by the end, everything clicked into place in a (mostly) satisfying way.

I listened to the audiobook and found it incredibly compelling – and a lot of that credit goes to narrator Saskia Maarleveld. She’s long been a favorite of mine, and her performance here really delivers. Her Maine accent feels like a close cousin to the Delco accent from Mare, and it adds to that same grounded, gritty atmosphere. Total win on the casting front. But, I'm biased towards Saskia and Delco.

If you like your thrillers emotionally layered, full of messy women making impossible choices – this one’s for you. It’s suspenseful without being showy, deeply atmospheric, and rooted in character. Great for audiobook fans, lovers of rural noir, and anyone who finds themselves drawn to stories about the long shadows grief can cast.

Shaaw Connolly Lives to Tell by Gillian French is a thriller about a finger print analyst who will not stop searching for information about her sister Thea 's disappearance 16 years ago.
A professor named Anders Jansen starts calling Shaw and knows too much not to be involved. She is so obsessed , she puts her 2 sons, her other sister and her dad in danger. This obsession has also ruined her marriage.
It is a very suspense filled novel. I loved the characters and highly recommend this book