Very gripping plot. This is an author that I really enjoy and this new novel didn’t disappoint. Look forward to the next one.

A tense. twisty psychological thriller that keeps you guessing until the final page. I loved this book so much, kept me page turning for hours until I finished! To say I was shocked at the ending was an understatement! If you love thrillers that are constant page turners you defiantly need to read this when it is released! You will not be disappointed!! Emmie the main character kept me reading late into the night, but then came the twist... read it to find out what I mean!

Thank you to NetGalley and Bookouture for the ARC!

Thank you to NetGalley and Bookouture for providing this book, with my honest review below.

Sophie Was Here defies the reader to guess what’s really going on, with plenty of red herrings to throw them off. Opening with a young couple, Emmie and Charlie, moving to Charlie’s family’s farmhouse in a small village, it ramps up the tension from the start with clues to tragedy in Emmie’s past and some secrets in both Charlie’s past and in the house itself. Though it’s easy to write off Emmie’s unease with what she finds in the basement to paranoia due to her past, as she pokes around the village it seems more and more like Charlie is hiding something that would make him a less than ideal partner, tied to a girl who went missing when he was a teenager, Sophie.

I didn’t expect the tangled web to emerge that did in the story but it was highly enjoyable to read through and not something I’d have been able to figure out. Definitely a thriller you’ll have to puzzle over but likely not guess the ending to.

Sophie Was Here is an intense domestic thriller full of deception and lies at every turn. Kathryn Croft is a longtime favorite author of mine and this book is a prime example of why. The drama starts right away and feeds you just enough to keep you flipping the pages quickly.

Emmie and her partner Charlie have been gifted an enormous farmhouse by his parents. Relocating from London to the small town of Peaslake, immediately Emmie feels things are off. Upon hearing about the disappearance of seventeen year old Sophie, and Charlie's connection to the missing girl, Emmie feels the pull to find the answers to the teens disappearance.

The story is told from past and present viewpoints and moves at a fast pace. The suspects are numerous and up until the shocking ending, could have been anyone.
The writing is captivating and flows rapidly. There is a mix of reliable and unreliable characters, making it hard to guess the direction it's going. I highly recommend this for domestic suspense lovers.

Thanks to Netgalley and Bookouture for the advanced copy

A fast paced thriller from this talented author.
Twists galore, dark and tragic.
Flew through this in a couple of sittings.
Prepare to be shocked.
My thanks to netgalley and the publisher for my copy.

This one had me second-guessing everything. Just when I thought I had it figured out, bam! Another twist. And then another. And yes… another.

Kathryn Croft really knows how to craft a fast-paced thriller. The writing is super easy to follow, which makes it so easy to binge in one seating. There are numbers of characters, but surprisingly, it never felt overwhelming. Everyone had their place, and it was easy to keep up with who’s who.

Now, about Emmie's big reveal, I won’t spoil anything, but let’s just say it didn’t hit quite as hard as the rest of the story. It felt a little underwhelming compared to the wild twists that came before it. That said, it didn’t take away from how gripping the book was overall.

Sophie Was Here started off fast and kept that pace throughout the book. Very shortly after moving into her partner Charlie's childhood home, Emmie realizes that things are off. She finds suspicious things in the basement and when she starts to get to know people around town, they don't have the nicest things to say about Charlie. She finds out her partner may be involved in the disappearance of a young girl named Sophie, many years ago.

As I said before, the pacing on this was quick. It was told in both past and present viewpoints and there were quite a few characters but it never got too hard to keep everyone straight. The author did a good job in making you think that really any of the characters in the book could have been involved in the disappearance of Sophie. I found Charlie to be an extremely unlikeable character but since that was kind of the point, job well done!

Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for the advanced copy in exchange for my honest review.

I didn't think there was anything great about this book. I Just don't get it, but her books don't seem to be as good as they were in the past. Emmie moves with her boyfriend, Charlie, to a family house. As she tries to settle in, she finds out people in time don't like this family. She also finds some suspicious things downstairs, that then disappear. Once she discovers Charlie has an ex gf who disappeared, Emmie is determined to find out what happened to Sophie. I don't know. I just felt it was very average, while her previous books were amazing.

I loved this dark thriller about a young woman who moves with her boyfriend into his childhood home but a scary discovery in the basement sets her off on an investigation into a missing girl with links to her boyfriend as she gets closer to the truth she is putting her relationship and life on the line and there us a shock that turns everything on its head. Trust no one! Some secrets need to stay buried. Love it!!

Thank you NetGalley and Bookouture for giving me the opportunity to read and review Sophie Was Here by Kathryn Croft. Release date July 3, 2025.
Wow! This book is a tidal wave of a page turning mystery. From the very beginning I was hooked! The web of lies and twists are so perfectly done. That Kathryn does an amazing job in confusing the reader, so much that I'm usually one to figure out who done it but not with this one. She writes in a way that everyone even a tree can become a suspect. Emmie at the very beginning I found her to be insufferable and a bit over the top. Obsess with unraveling the secrets of the Hollinger family and the small town of Peaslake, can she find out what truly happen to Sophie? Not everyone or everything is as simple as it seems. Total must read!!

A missing girl....a new home...a boyfriend carrying a dark secret....this book has it all! The suspense and the grip this read had on me is hard to explain. I could not put it down. I had to keep turning the pages to find out what happened next. The storyline was great, the characters were relatable, and the transitions smooth. The author does a great job of tying up any loose ends by the end of the novel and answering any unanswered questions. Emmie was my favorite character. Her perseverance in finding out what happened to Sophie made me like her that much more. Filled with twist, turns, and intensity, this is a MUST read.

⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ 5 STARS ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

Thank you NetGalley for the eArc!

This story was such an emotional rollercoaster. It takes you on a journey of young love, heartbreak, tragedy and violence. So well written and highly recommend.

Reminiscent of a Gothic thriller, it's a right conundrum knowing who or what to believe. It's all centred around Emmie, the Hollinger family and the mysterious disappearance of Sophie which happened sixteen years ago. I liked how it is cleverly presented in before and present day chapters and all expertly comes together in a shocking dynamic way which is completely unpredictable.
A powerful read which kept me up all night. Highly recommended.

A stunning thriller that makes you keep reading until the very end. Fast paced, with twists that you don't expect.

Highly recommend this book, or any others by her. This author never disappoints!

What a fast paced psychological thriller this is, full of lies and deceit extremely well written. I have read most books from this author but I think this is her best yet.

The characters were all described well and things kept getting more and more unbelievable as the storyline developed.

It was certainly a twisty page turner and this has to be another of my top reads for 2025.

Thank you to Netgalley and Bookouture for this great ARC which I have no hesitation in recommending.

This is not your typical missing girl thriller! You have to read it, it’s so good! A great read that pulled me along from the start, if totally exceeded my expectations and I read it in 6 hours, it’s that good!

Wow. What a roller coaster of a ride. Emmie is in a relationship with Charlie. There are plenty of secrets in this relationship. There are twists and turns and you just don't know who to trust.

A gripping, tense and suspenseful thriller. Twists and secrecy and lies. The pages couldn't turn fast enough for me, so I could see how it all unfolded!
Emmie is determined to uncover what happened to Sophie. Her partner Charlie gaslighted her constantly, and lied... he must have been aware of what his family did?

A solid 4 stars from me.

Wow. What a great story.

Sophie Was Here is not your typical murder mystery.
There are things in this story you won’t expect and never see coming.
You have a few options of who may have done this or that but until you get towards the end you just aren’t sure.

Kathryn did a great job keeping the suspense alive as well as keeping her readers guessing.

Love Kathryn Croft!

When you've been in a serious relationship for a while and you now get the chance to plan your future in a big house that you were just gifted by your in-laws, then you can truly call yourself the happiest girl in the world. This is what happens to Emmie.

However, it's all somewhat overshadowed by the fact that Charlie, her boyfriend, is absolutely not on board with the move. Why not? That’s a question we gradually find an answer to as this amazing book unfolds...

The two main characters are Emmie on the one hand and Sophie on the other. Their story is gradually revealed through alternating chapters.

Emmie becomes more and more engrossed in her search for answers, and that doesn't exactly make her popular. Still, she is determined to dig to the very bottom and uncover all the answers.

This is a suspenseful and at times even creepy story. I often didn’t know who I could trust and eventually started suspecting everyone.

The author knows exactly how to deceive the reader and lead you completely astray. And if you can then pull off a top-notch ending out of your hat, you've delivered a perfect story.

I found this book very well constructed, with the necessary surprising twists and a bundle of emotions. It truly captivated me. 5 stars.

Thank you