I am a huge John Marrs fan. This was one of like 3 of his books I had not read yet. I received an audio copy to review, which included the new bonus chapter.

This book was very slow. There's no way around it. If you love John Marrs because of books like The Family Experiment and The Passengers where there's a lot of action, this is not like that. His books are usually five stars for me, but I could not get over the pacing.

We have two POVs, husband and wife as they're catching each other up on their lives. The timeline moves around a lot. Switching from their pasts to their present conversation. There are many side characters but it's pretty easy to keep everyone straight.

John Marrs always has multiple narrators which is so so nice. It makes the story very easy to follow, even at an increased speed.

This book shook my world. When I was done, I had to sit, take a minute, and process. John Marrs wrote the perfect psychological thriller. It should stick to you and invade your thoughts, and the horror should feel inflicted on yourself. I knew from the start something horrible had happened to force Simon to just up and walk away from his life, I commiserate with them both, and I felt the despair and the depression dripping from both. Heck, I even thought it's better this way - sometimes people just aren't compatible. I'm not saying it was done right im just saying there were valid reasons as far as I could tell. But as we go deeper, delve more, slowly the horrific truth starts trickling out. Simon Mattacks narration, which started of as sounding uninterested and callous about leaving his wife, changed into a deliberate and detached psychopath. Elizabeth Knowelden narration is sweet and light yet passionate, and I could sense the trepidation when scenes permit. As far as psychological thrillers goes this was terrific! I can confirm that my pshyce has truly been touched and changed upon finishing this. Excellent reader for the fellow thrill seekers out there!

Thank you to Bbrilliance publishing and Netgalley for this advanced copy in exchange for my honest opinion.

This was a story that kept me engaged and it had its dark parts for sure. It was more of a family/psychological thriller. It was quite the story. I did feel it was predictable and wasn’t really surprised by any of the twists. Simon was a heinous character. One thing is for sure, John Marrs sure knows how to tell a story! Enjoyed it overall.

⭐️⭐️💫 (2.5 stars)
The Night You Disappeared by John Marrs

This one wasn’t quite for me. While the premise sounded intriguing, I found the main character extremely difficult to connect with — probably one of the most unlikeable characters I’ve ever come across, which made it hard to stay invested. The story also felt overly long, with certain parts dragging and not adding to the overall plot. I definitely think it could have been tightened up for a more impactful read.

On a positive note, the audiobook narrators were excellent. They really elevated the experience and added a level of engagement that the story itself sometimes lacked.

Not a fan of Simon. He abandons his family. This is while his wife is still mourning the loss of a child (insert eye roll).
His wife, Catherine, tries to find him but has no success.
The cops think Catherine killed him.
Later, and I mean MUCH LATER (25 years), he shows up seeking forgiveness. He tells the tale of why he left, and it just makes me mad. He claims it is because he knows about her "affair" with his best friend. He loved his best friend but couldn't have him because he was married, and so his BFF moved on.
Meanwhile Catherine is raped by Doug while our guy Simon over here sits idly by and lets it happen.
Simon ends up killing Doug.
Catherine ends up pregnant but miscarries.
Simon has trampled around the world, killing anyone and everyone during his travels.
The characters were fairly developed. I could not relate.
The plot was fairly well structured. It did feel as if some things were out of order that shouldn't be, and it came off as a bit disjointed. The pace was slow for me.
I do want to warn any readers that you MUST read the trigger warnings before you pick up this book. I struggled with it and I read the warnings and was prepared (so I thought).
Thank you to NetGalley, the author, and the publisher for the opportunity to read and review this book.
Happy Reading!

⭐️⭐️⭐️ (3/5)

“For it to have been deliberate….” 🤬🛁

“I will never forgive you for what you did.”

Thanks to Brilliance Publishing for my #gifted copy of this #audiobook in exchange for an honest review.

This was John Marrs’ 1st book, originally called The Wronged Sons (2013) and you can definitely tell he had all of the potential in the world but needed to unlock it onto the page, the execution and sorting his ideas has clearly matured over the years. He’s one of my favs but this book was not cohesive enough and felt choppy at times but the ideas were 🔥.

It had so many scandalous and unsavory pieces which I love in a thriller but they just felt so disjointed. It was almost like several different books were thrown into one but never quite cohesive enough.

The cool thing about his writing is you can see it evolve and get better with each book. He has a great twisted kind for writing with so many great ideas. I’m so excited to continue working through his backlog.

Omg when the revaluation came regarding Billy I was NOT expecting that. It gave me the ick and made me so mad. This book is full of misunderstandings in a HUGE way. Sheesh. I’m exhausted. This book is also packed full of unsavory pieces of trash, the characters are just terrible. 🚮

The ending was good. The epilogue was meh. The bonus chapter was good.

🎧 The narration: I listened to When You Disappeared strictly on audio this time around, and I can confidently say that was the best decision I could have made. Even if you have already read the print version, I highly recommend giving the audiobook a try because the narration is absolutely incredible. The narrator breathes life into these characters in ways that the page alone simply cannot. Each voice was distinct, their emotions perfectly pitched, tender when it needed to be, absolutely chilling when the story demanded it. The subtle shifts in tone and pacing elevated the suspense and psychological weight of the book, so that I felt completely tangled up in the characters’ messy lives. The narrator also handled the morally complex moments with just the right gravity, drawing out the pain and the slow, devastating realizations that make this story hit so hard.


Sometimes audiobooks can feel a bit disjointed, especially if the chapters are very short or the story jumps between perspectives. That was not the case here at all. This is one of those listening experiences where I would look up and realize hours had flown by. It also helps I am currently on summer break. Yay, teacher life! 😂 The chapters transitioned smoothly, and the narrator always made it clear whose point of view we were in, without it ever feeling forced or awkward. Even though I could not visually track the chapter breaks, the narration provided all the cues I needed to follow the shifts. It made for a seamless binge-listen that kept me hooked.

The story: I read three other John Marrs books—The One and The Passengers—are two of which I rated five stars, so I was thrilled when my book club selected When You Disappeared as a pick. It is a psychological thriller that goes to some truly dark places, and yet still manages to weave in moments of heartbreaking tenderness. I was also coming off a slower reading season, picking up far fewer books than usual, but this story snapped me right out of that slump. The short, punchy chapters paired with the deeply unsettling plot made it nearly impossible to stop listening. I needed to know the truth, even if it meant staying up way too late. A small note of caution: the official synopsis actually gives away way too much of the plot for my taste, so if you are someone who loves going in blind, avoid reading beyond the very first lines. Trust me, it is more powerful that way.


I also have to mention that the audiobook includes a bonus chapter that ties everything together so perfectly. It is satisfying to say the least. That extra audio-exclusive content made me even happier I chose this format.

All in all, this was a five-star experience for me. John Marrs continues to prove he might just be my favorite author in the psychological thriller/speculative fiction lane. This story is not for the faint of heart because it is dark, tense, and morally messy, but if you are up for it, let it keep you awake all night like it did for me. And if you have already read the book in print? Truly, give the audiobook a chance. The narration adds an entirely new layer that makes the story even more immersive, emotional, and unforgettable.

For me there was just too much backstory and it bothered me that all that happened could have been avoided if he only really knew what happened.

I did however enjoy the narrators of this book and felt they did an excellent job.

John Marrs’ When You Disappeared is a gripping psychological drama that explores the devastating impact of secrets, guilt, and the passage of time.
I loved the rich character development and the alternating view points.
The novel is both tense and introspective, with emotional depth that keeps readers engaged.
Perfect for fans of psychological thrillers with a strong emotional core.
The extra chapter was a welcome surprise!
Thanks NetGalley and Brilliance Audio!

When You Disappeared by John Marrs is a gripping psychological thriller that explores the devastating impact of loss, secrets, and the passage of time. Marrs builds suspense as the story unravels from both perspectives. I was hooked from the very beginning to the final unsettling twist!

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ (4/5)

From the very first chapter, I was pulled into the eerie quiet of this story. One moment Catherine’s life is completely normal—and the next, her husband Simon is gone without a trace. The way the book opens, with just his running shoes left behind, was unsettling in the best way. I knew right away that something wasn’t right, and that feeling stayed with me throughout the audiobook.

The story is told in dual POVs—Catherine in the present and Simon as he recounts the years he spent away. I really appreciated the emotional depth and how layered Catherine’s pain and resilience felt. Her chapters were the heart of the book for me. Simon, on the other hand, is not an easy character to sit with. His decisions and the way he justified them often made me uncomfortable, but I think that was the point. He’s deeply flawed, and as more is revealed, that discomfort becomes part of the experience.

The narration was strong—Simon Mattacks and Elizabeth Knowelden brought the characters to life and helped me stay engaged even during the slower moments. The performances gave weight to both perspectives and made the tension between past and present feel more personal.

That said, the pacing did dip in places. There were stretches, particularly in Simon’s chapters, that felt long and less urgent than others. Still, I stuck with it because I wanted to see how everything would come together—and the final reveal definitely hit hard. It’s less of a twisty thriller and more of a slow-burn exploration of guilt, consequences, and how two lives can completely unravel in different ways.

Overall: If you’re looking for a psychological drama with emotional weight and morally gray characters, this is a gripping listen. It’s not perfect, but it left me thinking long after the audiobook ended.

Thank you to the Brillance Audio and NetGalley for the ALC in exchange for my honest review.

Thank you Brilliance Publishing and NetGalley for the free audiobook.

When You Disappeared by John Marrs is a suspenseful, slow-burn family drama that spans decades and explores family secrets, trauma, betrayal, and forgiveness. The story follows Catherine, who wakes one day to discover her husband, Simon, has vanished. No note, no trace—only his running shoes by the front door. While Catherine and their children try to rebuild their lives, Simon starts anew, living a transient life and eventually finding a new family for 25 years. Then, unexpectedly, he returns—bringing with him a truth so dark it shatters everything Catherine thought she knew!

Although marketed as a psychological thriller, the novel reads more like an intense family drama, with the characters’s incredulous decision-making, melodramatic reactions, and the unraveling of family secrets driving the narrative. The book does include a few twists in the second half, which does help make it “feel” more like a thriller.

This was the first novel of John Marrs that he self-published in 2013 and originally titled “The Wronged Sons.” It was re-edited and re-released in 2017 under a new title, When You Disappeared. Now it’s being rereleased again, with a new epilogue—the result of readers begging to know what became of the characters after the final chapter! If you’ve already read this book, it’s definitely worthwhile to pick up a copy again to read the satisfying aftermath in the epilogue!

The story is gripping from the first chapter as readers are thrust into Simon’s surprise return to confront his wife (and family) he abandoned 25 years ago. From there the story toggles back and forth between past and present timelines. The present timeline essentially spans the entire (very emotionally charged) confrontational conversation between Simon and Catherine, as they both share what’s happened in their lives since he disappeared. The past timelines give backstory to the characters, detail what went wrong in their marriage, and display the incredibly different life paths they had.

While reading, readers will find it difficult not to dislike or judge Simon for his incredibly selfish and incomprehensible life choices while simultaneously finding it easy to empathize with Catherine as she faced immense hardships as a single mother. As Catherine explains how she overcame immeasurable obstacles to become a stronger woman and successful business owner, Simon details his sordid experiences of casual sex, transient work, and eventual marriage to a former prostitute—and the two individuals, who were once married, couldn’t seem further apart!

The story is told from the perspectives of Simon and Catherine. Readers get to see clearly how different their inner workings are and may wonder how they managed to be together for so many years without really knowing each other at all! Simon’s POV depicts him as self-centered, bitter, impulsive, and manipulative—and a man who is capable of murder without remorse in his inner monologues makes him more unlikable. Meanwhile, Catherine’s POV solidifies her emotional resiliency and thoughtful nature.

If you’re not a fan of slow-burn suspense or fractured timelines, then this book likely isn’t for you. A few twists feel convenient or overwrought—especially scenes like the serendipitous meeting between Simon and his musician son abroad—and can definitely cause disbelief from readers. Sensitive readers should also be aware that the book includes heavy subject matter—rape, murder, mental illness, child death, and more. This emotional weight of all these elements enhances the storytelling but can feel very overwhelming by the end—and readers will need time to process what they read afterwards!

In summary, When You Disappeared is an unsettling exploration of trauma and the long-term effects of betrayal. It’s clear from this debut novel that John Marrs’s writing has come a long way, but it’s still well worth the read if you’re a fan of his other books or enjoy intense family dramas with flawed characters that linger after the final page!

Narrator Performances:

The audiobook of When You Disappeared is a gripping listen performed by award-winning veteran narrators Simon Mattacks and Elizabeth Knowelden!

Simon Mattacks voices protagonist Simon's POV, using a brisk and impulsive voice that captures the character’s impulsive and manipulative nature. As the character spends many years living in the USA, Mattacks' use of a slight American-sounding accent (in parts of the story) makes the character and his experiences feel more real. Mattacks also does a great job providing unique voices and pacing to all the side characters that Simon encounters in his travels—although some of the female voices could’ve used more distinction. In the climactic scenes, Mattacks shifts his performance of Simon to portray a more desperate, remorseful character—and the character’s final scenes are especially emotional and well executed—but perhaps still not enough to make listeners empathize with the character!

Elizabeth Knowelden narrates Catherine’s perspective, using a slower pace and wider emotional range to fully capture a woman who has to deal with the emotional fallout of her husband disappearing and the hardships of single motherhood. Knowelden makes each of Catherine’s romances in the story unique and captivating, bringing out the character’s raw emotion and honesty and making her easy to empathize with. The most compelling part of Knowelden’s performance comes in the final chapters and new epilogue—here Knowelden increases her emotional intensity, especially when Simon makes a heartbreaking confession that causes Catherine to become hysterical. From here, Knowelden brings out all the emotions and drama, and listeners will be glued to their headsets until the very last word!

If you’re drawn to dual narration audiobooks where both narrators give captivating performances of their characters and you enjoy easy-to-understand British accents, then this audiobook is for you! It’s a must-listen for fans of John Marrs’s books and those who enjoy emotional family dramas and stories of betrayals.

Insanely good! Catherine's husband, Simon, disappears and returns 25 years later. During this time, we find out how they individually navigate their way through life; finding happiness, heartbreak, raising children and facing health issues.

What makes a husband and father walk away from his whole life? I was intrigued and desperate to find out, so I devoured this book in a day! Catherine and Simon are very well written characters and I felt sympathy, frustration and fury for and with them both, at times. The cliffhangers and suspense that John Marrs wove in throughout the story had me hooked and I was wracking my brain to work out what had happened, but I didn't even come close to the truth.

As it all unravelled with twists taking my breath away, I really was amazed! What an incredible plot! Heartbreaking and emotional, as well as being one heck of a thriller., brilliantly narrated by Simon Mattacks and Elizabeth Knowelden.

5 ⭐️ Thanks to Netgalley, John Marrs and Brilliance Publishing for an ARC of this book.

𝗤𝗨𝗜𝗖𝗞 𝗣𝗟𝗢𝗧 𝗣𝗘𝗘𝗞
When Simon vanishes without a trace, his wife Catherine is left to raise their children alone. Years later, he suddenly returns with a shocking story about why he left. As they piece together what really happened, the truth turns out to be far more unsettling than expected.

𝗛𝗢𝗡𝗘𝗦𝗧 𝗢𝗣𝗜𝗡𝗜𝗢𝗡
This was John Marrs debut novel (2013) originally published as The Wronged Sons.

The audiobook narrators did a brilliant job of bringing Simon and Catherine to life. The final couple of hours are probably best listened to in a safe space - i.e., not while driving - because you’re gonna feel the feels.

The multiple POVs and timelines are smooth and perfectly woven. The pace is slower than I usually go for, but I was gripped. I needed to know all the things - to say I was addicted is an understatement.

This is a hardcore character-driven plot, and Simon is probably the most unlikable character I’ve ever come across.

I won’t say much more because I don’t want my emotions to sway anyone’s experience. But I will say I’m really glad the title was changed. I’m even more pleased that the bonus epilogue was written. If you can handle unlikable main characters and all the feels, this needs to be your next read.

𝗪𝗢𝗥𝗧𝗛 𝗧𝗛𝗘 𝗥𝗘𝗔𝗗?
Yup.

Thanks to @BrilliancePublishing and @Netgalley for access to this advance listeners copy

Twenty five years. Twenty five years since Catherine last saw her husband. And now he’s back. Will she finally learn the truth of why her husband Simon up and left one morning? Or will the memories she once held so closely all, too, have been a lie?

This definitely reads like an old school thriller which checks out as it was released in 2017 😆

I am glad I listened to the audio book version because I know I would have struggled to stay invested in physical format whereas the narration and 2x speed made it seem a lot less slow burn and got me from a to b in a more efficient and enjoyable way. The narrators also did a good job and I liked how the alternated through different POV and narrators so we actually got the husbands perspective while everything was going on.

I will say I definitely prefer the authors more recent books but that’s just a personal preference within the thriller genre I prefer a more twisty / darker genre compared to a domestic suspense for example!

Worth a read if you’re a fan of the author!

Thank you brilliance publishing / audio for a gifted alc!

When You Disappeared was such an interesting and emotional read. It was equal parts entertaining and frustrating—in the best way—because you have to wait until the very end to find out why Simon left. I really enjoyed seeing how Catherine rebuilds her life and didn’t find the plot dragged at all; I was invested in both their journeys.

And then when the reveal finally comes? Shocking. Simon is one of those characters you grow to hate. Like… what a jerk. The new epilogue in the rerelease adds even more depth to the story, and I loved the audiobook narration—it really brought everything to life. Overall, I really enjoyed this one!

Something I always love to comment on my John Marr’s reviews, is the way he writes very complex and flawed characters. However, I think this is the first book I’ve read by him where I just did not like a character, Simon. My jaw was dropped the majority of the book because I could not believe the audacity.

This book is a slow burn, especially compared to other John Marrs books where it is non stop plot twists. This book was more character driven and the journey from what separated and then brought Simon and Catherine meeting again. I also want to note that similar to his other books, this one is also really really dark.

I always highly recommend listening to the audiobooks for John Marrs, or Immersive reading. The audiobook for this was fantastic! The narrators give the characters so much depth, that it adds to the complex and flawed characters that they are.

Thank you NetGalley and Brilliance Publishing for the Audio of this book in exchange for an honest review.

Thank you NetGalley and Brilliance Publishing for this audio ARC. This author has been a favorite of mine for very long time and I really enjoyed this audio book! I loved learning about Catherine and Simon and the reasons behind Simon leaving and the things that he did that led up to his return 25 years later. I was definitely invested in both of these characters I needed to know how this book was going to end, and I did not guess the ending at all, and I love that I would highly recommend this book and this author to anyone who enjoys thriller books!

John Marrs has never let me down—and When You Disappeared is no exception! So much drama, tension, and emotional whiplash in the best way. I was hooked from the first chapter, needing to know why Simon left and what twisted truths were hiding beneath the surface. The dual perspectives add so much depth (and frustration!). A slow-burn psychological rollercoaster with a haunting payoff. Loved it!


Thank you John Marrs, Brilliance, and Netgalley for the advanced copy!

#whenyoudisappeared #netgalleyarc #netgalleyreview #netgalley #arcreview #arc #arcreader #review #somanybookssolittletime