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As a mom of young kids, I totally felt Carrie’s pain. Imagine going to the beach with three kids. You turn to talk to your oldest child. You turn back around. Your two year old is gone!!!
Here are the main characters-
Carrie- A mother consumed by fear and determination to find her baby
Jimmy- Her ex-husband, also very upset
Leah- Jimmy’s fiance with a very calm demeanor- what is she hiding?
Ava- The missing child at the center of the mystery
This fast-paced story kept me guessing until the end about Ava's whereabouts. I went in different directions with “who done it” and the ending blew me away!
Many thanks to the author, Bookouture and NetGalley for a complimentary copy of the book. The opinions expressed in this review are entirely my own.
#OneBigHappyFamily #SamVickery #NetGalley #Bookouture #BooksOnTour #BookLove #Bookstagram #NewBook #ILoveBooks #SummerBooks #NewMystery #FamilyDynamics

Whew, there is a ton of dysfunctionality in this book!!
Everyone has secrets and I didn’t know who to trust and who to point the finger at.
I felt the most empathy for the kids because they were put through the wringer.
One character was so fickle and was a real,piece of work.
In the end, there is resolution and sometimes family happens in the most unusual circumstances.

Carrie’s family day out turns into a nightmare when her daughter Ava disappears. Her ex husband Jimmy now lives with new girlfriend Leah and even though Jimmy seems terrified, Carrie has suspicions about Leah. Carrie knows she will do whatever she can to get Ava back.

This is my third book by this author and is another fantastic thriller. Sam Vickery has definitely become a go to author for me as every book I find myself gripped to the storyline and desperately wanting to see what will happen next. Even though missing children thrillers are a familiar trope, the author has managed to make this one stand out from the crowd and seem slightly different.

What was strong about this book were the characters, many getting under my skin due to how unlikeable they were, but this made it interesting and entertaining to read. I found that some characters redeemed themselves and went from frustrating to more likeable as the story went on. I enjoyed how the story turned out and although I guessed the main twist, it was still an enjoyable revelation. This was another fast paced, suspenseful domestic thriller overall and one to keep you guessing. I can’t wait for the next one! 4.5 stars rounded down. Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for this copy in return for an honest review.

I’d like to thank Bookouture and NetGalley for giving me the opportunity to read ‘One Big Happy Family’ written by Sam Vickery in exchange for my honest and unbiased review.

Carrie has taken her children Tommy, Maisy and toddler Ava to the beach but within seconds Ava has disappeared and when the police show Carrie footage of a bus that passed by the beach she’s convinced that an elderly lady on the bus has Ava sitting on her lap. The police ransack Carrie’s house believing she’s involved and she realises that it’s now up to her to find her daughter and get her safely back home.

‘One Big Happy Family’ is a gripping domestic drama of what every mother dreads when a child disappears. The story tells of Carrie who’s an A & E doctor but finds it difficult to make friends, and her husband Jimmy with his new girlfriend Leah who’s determined to keep Carrie’s children to live with her and Jimmy to make one big happy family. Carrie knows she’s made mistakes in the past and hasn’t always been there for her children, but she knows she doesn’t deserve to have her two-year old taken and the police believing she’s responsible. I’ve thoroughly enjoyed this novel that has nicely rounded characters, plenty of suspense, and tension that builds up the closer Carrie gets to the truth. By the time I reached the final chapters where the person responsible was revealed, it was so unexpected that I was open-mouthed with surprise. This story has had me in its grip from the first page to the last and unable to stop reading, and I have no hesitation in recommending it.

This was a ride and a half . I went in blind and loved it . I was hooked early on in the book and binged as fast as I could . Propulsive and fast and clever writing .

A little girl is missing during a visit to the beach, has she drowned or is she taken, but by who, her ex, his new girlfriend or a random stranger?
She needs to find her but her other children are also devastated, how can she help them and gossip is going around. Can she be strong enough to survive?
What a great story with twists and turns I didn’t see coming. I really enjoyed reading this.

Thank you NetGalley and the publisher for the chance to read and review this, all opinions are my own.

Sam Vickery’s One Big Happy Family is an emotionally charged domestic thriller that dives headfirst into the complexities of love, loyalty, and betrayal. What begins as a seemingly ordinary family drama quickly escalates into a tense and tangled web of secrets, with a love triangle at its explosive core.

Vickery expertly weaves together the personal and the psychological, crafting characters whose emotional depth and flawed choices keep the reader on edge. The twists come fast and without warning, each one more shocking than the last, building a sense of unease that lingers right up to the final page.

With its high-stakes family dynamics and relentless tension, One Big Happy Family is a gripping, fast-paced read that will appeal to fans of twist-filled thrillers. It’s a rollercoaster of emotions and revelations—one that refuses to let go until the very end.

This was such an intense read as everything shifts in a split second, causing panic and fear, which then spirals into suspicion and rising tension. Definitely gripping from start to finish.

I love all The Books by Sam Vickery but this is the best! Absolutely unputdownable. I could barely sleep cause i couldn’t wait to see what would happening next! I. Highly re comment it a true rollercoaster of emotions!

As far as the genre goes, "One Big Happy Family" is a decent read. There's mystery, there are red herrings, there is tension. However the trope that's tied to the resolution is, in my opinion, quite tired and overexploited. The who and why of the little girl kidnapping was quite unsatisfying because of how often this trope was utilised in such literature. This novel is hence okay but not very memorable.

First, I want to thank Sam Vickery, Bookouture and NetGalley for providing me with this book so I can bring you this review.

Once again Sam Vickery brings us another incredibly emotional read in One Big Happy Family. This is a book where you will want to rush and hold your little loved ones close and not let go. Yes, this is a book that is every parent's worst nightmare come true! Oh Sam surely pulled on my heartstrings and thensome with this book.

Sam’s book was fast paced and immediately engulfed my attention into the story! I couldn’t imagine how this main character must have felt that day on that beach!! That scene I played in my mind like I was living it on the sidelines.

I had a heart for many of the characters and the situations they were put in during this story. However, Macey I think I felt for the most. She was Ana’s sister and there the day the incident happened. However, she was in total shock and had not get out of it. I wanted to reach out to that character. And reach into the book and give her a big hug.

Blown away by the climatic ending that you never saw coming!!

This was a tense, fast-paced read that had me hooked from the start. When Carrie’s young daughter goes missing at the beach, suspicion quickly falls on everyone—her ex, his new fiancée, and even extended family.

Told from alternating perspectives, you’re never quite sure who to trust. The characters are flawed, sometimes frustrating, but always compelling. I loved the twists, the emotional tension, and the way the truth slowly unraveled.

A great domestic thriller that keeps you guessing till the very end!

I would like to thank Bookouture & NetGalley for providing an ARC of this book in exchange for my honest and fair review

I really enjoyed this book by Sam Vickery. The story focuses on the main character, Carrie, who is trying to juggle working life and being a mother.
I loved the twists throughout the book, and it had me gripped to the end.

I absolutely love Sam Vickery, her writing is so addictive and you know you will be in for a treat. One Big Happy Family was another fab book that I could not put down , I absolutely loved it.

Carrie is having a picnic on the beach, her toddler is playing at the edge of the water and when she turns around her daughter is gone. her ex husband has a new girlfriend and she suspects she had something to do with the disappearance.

One moment of distraction can change your life forever.

Carrie is struggling. She is an overworked emergency room doctor in Britain, with three young children. Her husband, Jimmy, has left her for a younger, sexier model, and the new, aspiring step-mother is more than eager to show how much more adept she is with the children.

So, when Carrie’s toddler goes missing during a picnic on the beach, chaos ensues and pre-existing rifts between Carrie and her ex widen. This twisty story, told though the eyes of Carrie and “the other woman” moves quickly, as Carrie fights to retrieve her daughter.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for my copy - all thoughts are my own.

I requested this book having never heard of the author so my review is completely unbiased. However having read this, I have since downloaded all of her books on Amazon. Absolutely loved this. It had me completely engrossed the whole way through and not wanting to put it down. The characters were realistic and likeable and there were twists the whole way through. Highly recommend this.

This was a good holiday read. It felt a bit frenetic at first with Carrie’s narrative seeming disjointed. The main characters were certainly well rounded out by Sam so that you feel you get a good sense of them. Lots of dodgy actions, leading to lots of possibilities as to what happened to Ava. I did suspect the protagonist early on but that could have twisted very easily so well done to the author for keeping us guessing. I thought the kids were credible and it was great to see bad behaviour exposed and people able to move on. That’s a little cryptic but I don’t want to spoil the story flow for any readers. Overall a very enjoyable read. Four stars

This was a good story, despite the fact that I thought all of the primary characters were varying degrees of horrible people. It centers on Carrie, whose young daughter Ava goes missing on a beach trip. Carrie's soon-to-be ex-husband Jimmy, and his new fiancée Leah are zero help and there is a lot of suspicion between this love triangle around what might have happened.

The author really makes you feel what these characters are feeling, even if you don't agree with them. I thought the mystery in the book was sound, though the police work seemed rather unbelievable. It is hard to say whether I disliked Jimmy or Leah more, but seems like those 2 were made for each other. I felt sorry for the kids for being stuck in the middle of the immature oneupmanship between the various parts of the family. I was surprised with the villain was revealed, though once it happened it all made complete sense. The author did a good job of making so many different characters suspicious that it was hard to separate what they might be capable of to what they really did, which I really enjoyed. I can't say I enjoyed the end of the book, but can't really say more without potentially spoiling.

Overall, this was a fast-paced and tense read with lots of mystery alongside believable red herrings. I would recommend to those who enjoy mysteries and domestic suspense. Thanks to Netgalley for providing me with this book in exchange for an honest review.

Another tense domestic drama from Sam Vickery! A missing child, an almost ex-wife, a wanna-be new wife and a recent friend who seems to just show up. Lots of drama going back and forth taking a while to get to the truth and who took the child.

Many thanks to NetGalley and Bookouture for this ARC!