My first John Marrs book and not my last! (what took me so long?!) This story has so many layers that you need to be focused or you might miss something. The pacing at times felt slow to me, but when I finally got to the ending, it all made sense.

“when he disappeared, our lives changed forever.”

Shocking and full of rage, I was so surprised by all the twists in this one. But I wasn't surprised by the rage. It just no longer shocks me that men hate women. That they have a low level anger, for their mothers who never did enough for them, for their wives for not being more than their mothers, for their own daughters who they are just sure will also disappoint them. Why men think they get to hold women up to this higher standard when the measuring stick for men is on the ground will never fail to make me sigh.

So it's no surprise when we have a father that's come back after 25 years missing. He just walked away from his life with his children and wife because he thought he should be able to. And now, he wants to come back and tell his old wife all about his life away from her. He has shocking secrets to tell her and he thinks he has sins he can lay at her feet. The audacity was jaw dropping.

I know this has been re-released with an extra chapter at the end and it did add some additional closure that I appreciated.

A huge thank you to the author and publisher for providing an e-ARC via Netgalley. This does not affect my opinion regarding the book.

I read the reprint ebook version of When You Disappeared and while it is not my favorite of John Marrs’s novels, it still showcases why he is such a strong storyteller. His ability to build layered characters and explore the emotional weight of their choices is very much present here.

The book shifts between perspectives and timelines in a way that feels seamless and natural. That structure keeps things interesting, even when the pacing slows down. And it does slow down. At times it felt more like we were wandering through events rather than driving toward something. Still, the story held me. There was always this feeling that there was a deeper reason behind it all, something I needed to understand.

Simon is a difficult character to spend time with. He is self-centered and often unlikeable, but strangely compelling. You are not reading to root for him, but to understand him. Catherine, by contrast, is grounded in a way that makes her story hit harder. The emotional realism and fully fleshed out backstories make both characters feel like people you might actually know.

While this was a slower read for me and not the most suspenseful Marrs book I have picked up, it is still worth reading. The writing is solid, the emotional arcs are carefully built, and the ending offers a sense of closure that feels earned.

Thank you to NetGalley, Thomas & Mercer, and John Marrs for the opportunity to read this reprint edition.

This book is so well written, I was enthralled from the beginning to the end.

A real unimaginable storyline about a husband and father who just decides to up and leave forever.

We follow the anguish and confusion of his wife and children which is painful to read. Then the otherwise of the story about the husband and how he emerges as his true self in his newly built life.

Really interesting storyline and I will certainly be looking forward to another book by John Marrs.

Thank you for the opportunity to preview When You Disappeared.
When a woman who is happily married finds her husband has left, gone, disappeared her world is shaken to the core. What happened? Why is he gone?
Flash forward to 25 years and he is back. He has returned and he’s got a story and some explaining to do.
This is a character based drama with heartfelt and emotional energy throughout the novel. Steady and slowly the tale unfolds and the ending was unexpected.

3 stars

John Marrs's When You Disappear promised a thrilling unraveling of a domestic mystery, but for me, it just didn't quite hit the mark. As my third attempt into Marrs's work, I'm left scratching my head about the widespread hype surrounding his novels.
The premise here is certainly intriguing: Catherine wakes up to find her husband, Simon, gone without a trace. Her belief that he's in trouble is quickly upended by the revelation that Simon has deliberately vanished, harboring dark secrets about their marriage. The idea of him thriving halfway across the world while Catherine grapples with a "dark new reality" is ripe for psychological tension. And the twenty-five-year jump to his reappearance, promising a shocking truth, definitely piqued my interest.
However, the execution feels a bit flat. While the concept of hidden truths and a husband's calculated disappearance is compelling, the summary suggests a narrative that might struggle with pacing or depth. The "truth" Catherine uncovers, which she'll "wish she'd stayed in the dark" to learn, needs to be truly earth-shattering to justify the long wait and the dramatic build-up. Without that sustained intensity and a truly shocking payoff, the story risks feeling drawn out or even anticlimactic.
Ultimately, When You Disappear has a strong hook, but based on the summary and my previous experiences with Marrs, I anticipate a read that delivers on premise more than profound impact. It's a decent enough thriller, but it doesn't quite elevate itself above the crowd.

One morning, Simon vanishes, leaving his wife, Catherine, and their 3 children. She does everything to search for his husband for years but Simon doesn't return. Meanwhile he’s living a whole different life someplace else.
25 years later, he reappears, forcing Catherine to confront the truth about his disappearance and their past. The story unfolds slowly and from both of their perspectives for the readers to decide who is at fault.


What? Nope. No and No.
Let me start by saying that I have never ever hated any character more than I hate Simon (so congratulations John Marrs, you have great writing skills)

I had so much expectation from this book but now I don’t have anything to say. I have mixed feelings about this book because it pissed me off so much. So unrealistic and over the top scenarios and reasons for everything. No twists and turns, no excitement; I just feel anger so yeah that’s it.

Love love love
This was amazing!!
I literally did not put it down
I loved the characters well most i definitely hated one!! Such a twisty thriller
Was so excited to read the new chapter
John marrs never fails couldn’t of loved it more

Catherine’s world is turned upside down when her husband and father of her children suddenly disappears.
The book switches between both Catherine and her husband Simon’s narrative around the time he disappeared and present day- 25 years on.


This is very much a slow burn and character based book rather than an action packed plot led thriller. There is a lot of tension simmering under the surface throughout which keeps it interesting.

This was so hard to put down. John Marrs created characters that felt so incredibly real. I don’t think I’ve ever hated a character more in my life. It was maddening. And on the other side, I found myself rooting so hard for another character to finally catch a break after everything she went through.

This isn’t a feel-good or lighthearted read. It’s intense, maddening, and emotional. I wanted to throw the book across the room one minute, then pick it back up and keep going the next. And that ending? I did not see it coming.

The new exclusive chapter was a great treat. It wrapped up everything and answered questions I definitely would’ve had after finishing the book.

Thank you, Amazon Publishing UK, for my ARC of the rerelease edition with an exclusive chapter.

ARC Review - ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

First John Marrs read — a republish with a new cover and a bonus chapter.

The story jumps between timelines — from 25 years ago to the present — and it dragged a bit in the beginning. I almost gave up, but I pushed through, and I’m glad I did. The final quarter pulled me in. That’s when the mystery behind Simon’s disappearance and Catherine’s struggles really unfolded.

Highlights :
- Simon vanishes and shows up 25 years later, burdened with secrets and regrets.
- Catherine, his wife, is left alone to raise their kids and survive without answers.
- The pacing is slow, with lots of back-and-forth between past and present.
- Themes include painful family drama, dark secrets, and emotional weight.
- heavy themes
- Twists and turns

Thank you @netgalley and @amazonpublishing for approving the ARC. It was a good read and great first time experience with a John Mars Book.

BOOK REVIEW | @thrillbythepage_
WHEN YOU DISAPPEARED by John Marrs
Newly reissued | Stunning new cover | Same jaw-dropping mystery

❝ All she wanted was the truth… but she’ll wish she never found out. ❞

Just when I thought I knew the limits of psychological suspense, John Marrs pulls the floor from under me—again.

When You Disappeared is a haunting, slow-burning mind game that blurs the lines between heartbreak, obsession, and the ugly truths we bury beneath everyday life. From page one, Marrs plunges us into the eerie silence of a home where a husband simply vanishes—shoes by the door, no note, no warning. Just… gone.

Catherine is left behind—wife, mother, believer in a man she thought she knew. But the reality? It's darker than she could ever imagine.

Meanwhile, Simon, oh, Simon, is out there, living a new life, wearing new skins, running from the past… but how far can you really go before the truth catches up?

This isn’t just a disappearance.
It’s a psychological autopsy of a marriage.
A tragic unraveling of memory and motive.
And when Simon resurfaces twenty-five years later, the fallout is nuclear.

What makes this republished version even more thrilling?

A haunting new cover that mirrors the novel’s chilling tone.
An exclusive epilogue that adds fresh insight and emotional gut-punches for longtime fans.

If you’ve never read Marrs before, start here.
If you have, trust me—you’ll want to experience this version. Again. Differently. Deeper.

This book is for fans of:
Domestic thrillers that mess with your mind
Morally gray characters that crawl under your skin
Stories that ask: How well do you really know the one you love?

5 stars (and a sixth star for the sheer psychological devastation)

This was a good read. Makes you think what we would do under the same circumstances. When simon goes out the door one day, he is gone... .... but where and why? Catherine becomes successful in her own right, but has always had questions ??? Will she ever get the answers?

You wake up one day thinking your husband has gone out for a run but soon realize he’s not coming back. This is what happens to Catherine, her husband Simon disappears of the face of the earth. Not to be heard from for 25 years.
This book is set in the past and the present and told by both Catherine and Simon’s POV. We find out what Simon did while he was gone and eventually (right before the end) why he left. While following both main characters stories other things come to light.
This was a good book , it kept me reading because I NEEDED to know why Simon left but when I heard why , I literally said WTH ?! Would I recommend it ? Yes but be prepared for the WTF moment.

Thank you NetGalley , Thomas & Mercer and John Marrs for letting me read an eARC of this story.

Thank you Netgalley, John Marrs and Amazon Publishing UK | Thomas & Mercer for the eArc of When You Disappeared.

When You Disappeared is a slow burn psychological domestic thriller from a duo POV and a duo timeline. Our 2 main characters are Simon and Catherine. Simon has been missing for 25 years after disappearing one morning and reappears on Catherine's doorstep. After the initial shock, both sit down and between the 2 narratives, we get to find out each others lives after that fateful day.

It took a little while to get into this book but once it gripped me, I wanted to know why Simon left. Minute by minute as both their stories unfold, it's guaranteed that you will both love and hate each character in turn. Each situation plays out and each character plays out their reactions. Every story told either invoking joy, pain, mistakes, loss and love. The story oozes misconceptions, miscommunications and regret. Two ordinary people that we get to see their flawed lives were built really well. They could very well been a neighbour, or a friend that you might know. Who knows what goes on behind closed doors. The plot end, is worth the wait as the tension builds and builds to breaking.

4.25 stars for story graph. 4 stars for Netgalley

2.5 I rounded up.
I'm a big fan of John Marrs and was excited to get this re-release, however, I don't know if I just wasn't in the right headspace or what but I felt like it was really drawn out for not a lot of payoff at the end. I really felt disappointed with the ending and I normally enjoy the twists of Marr's previous works.
This just wasn't his best.

This is a gripping psychological drama that explores the emotional wreckage left behind when a loved one vanishes without explanation. The story begins with Catherine waking up one morning to find her husband, Simon, gone- not just from the house, but seemly from her life entirely. For years, she believes something terrible happened. Then, out of the blue, he returns.

Told in alternating perspectives between Catherine and Simon, the novel slowly unravels the mystery of Simon's disappearance, revealing painful truths, betrayals, and deeply buried secrets.

Tension Builds, Emotional Characters, and Dark Secrets! 3.5 stars!

Thanks to NetGalley for this copy of a book originally released in 7/13/17. This book will return with a fresh cover on 7/8/25.

Thriller Checklist:
*Past vs Present

I have a lot of mixed feelings about this book. The writing itself was easy to follow and kept me turning the page. It’s the characters that I’m on the fence with.

The story is told from two POVs. Catherine (wife) and Simon (husband). It jumps from past to present throughout the book. Catherine’s POV broke my heart. Simon walks out the door one morning leaving behind his wife and three kids and never looks back. He feels justified for leaving them and starting over. You see both of those lives and stories play out in the years of his disappearance. You find out at the end of the book why he left when he confronts Catherine after all these years.

This book had me crying multiple times and had me stepping away. My poor fiancé got my rants during reading this. It was hard to have any sympathy for Simon through this book and his character and choices made my blood boil.

A decent read overall. Kept me interested and kept me going to see how it ends/wraps up.

Published: July 08, 2025

Thank you NetGalley and Amazon Publishing UK for this ARC in exchange for my honest review and opinions.

First, thank you Netgalley & Amazon Publishing UK | Thomas & Mercer for this ARC!

Note: This is a revisioned version of the book, with a different cover & a new epilogue. I admit, the cover was what sealed the deal for me, in the end. I had thought about getting the book a couple of times alread,y but never did. And now, I finally had a chance to read it.

It was an interesting read. At times, I did struggle a little with jumping between Simon's and Catherine's POV, as well as the past and present tense. But that is yet again more a me problem than a book problem, I am sure. Also, I hated Simon. I seriously wondered more than once why Catherine even married him. But to each their own, I guess.

Overall, It was a solid read. It will not become my favourite John Marrs book, though. I am giving this version 4 stars rounded up because of the exclusive epilogue.

WOW!! This book was fantastic! I loved the development of the story and the ending was everything and more even though it was very emotional. So well written, this is my second book by John Marrs. The first one I read was You Killed Me First and that was also a five star read for me! The only author I have given five stars to up to now! I can’t wait to read more of his books!