I really wanted to love this book. It started off great, I was so invested in the beginning, but then it fell flat for me pretty quickly. It just felt like not much was happening for 75% of the book. I do appreciate getting the opportunity to read this ARC!!

Thelma and Louise don’t have anything on this sisterhood. Instead of being BFF’s though , our protagonists are mother and daughter (Simone and Lucy) just looking to take a vacation before Lucy heads off to university . Things are far from relaxing though when Lucy is kidnapped which sets in motion a sequence of events that threatens to break their family as well as land them in jail- if not worse.

Overall, the story is well written and the motivations of the characters are understandable. The identity of the kidnapper POV could have been more intriguing but still works for the story.

Thank you to NetGalley for the ARC

I am a fan of previous Gillian McAllister novels but quickly lost interest in this installment. There was so much narrative and introspection by the main character that clouded the plot of this thriller. I did finish the book and the ending was resolved in an unsatisfying two sentences.
Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for this ARC

This book is a thrilling high stakes mystery from start to finish! The story was very well crafted and kept me on the edge of my seat!

Gillian McCallister is an auto-buy author for me. I loved this one! A mother who would do anything for her daughter and a plot line to keep you guessing. Multiple times I was screaming at the book for Simone to make one decision or the other, and multiple times I cringed, but I loved how it all came together in the end.

I absolutely adore Gillian McAllister’s writing, and Caller Unknown reminded me why she’s an auto-read author for me. She has such a gift for crafting unpredictable stories, never know which direction the plot is going to take or which character I can truly trust. This book had that same unique, twisty energy that kept me glued to the pages, racing to find out what would happen next. I especially loved the exploration of familial relationships woven into the mystery, which gave the story both heart and depth alongside the suspense.

Once again, Gillian McAllister delivers a smart, gripping, and thoroughly original read. I will never skip one of her books, please keep giving me advanced access!

A thrilling story from start to finish, focused on what a mother will do for her daughter. I felt very engaged with the story, finding myself yelling at Simone and Lucy during certain parts. The ending (no spoilers!) took me very much by surprise. All in all an excellent read!

Thank you to the publisher for providing this ARC. All opinions posted are my own.

Thanks to Harper Collins & Netgalley for the ARC! This was my first book I've read from this author. I enjoyed the twists, varying perspectives, and felt overall the story was solid and moved through this pretty easily; however, the mom/daughter relationship a little bizarre/intense... also didn't find the daughter particularly likeable. That was the biggest drawback for me.

Overall a decent thriller with twists that made for a good page turner. Looking forward to exploring more from this author.

A bit of a slow start for me personally but I ended up really enjoying it!!!
The mother daughter relationship was 🥹
And I was so worried I would guess the ending and who the kidnapper was but I had NO IDEA 😳
This story was bonkers!!!

An amazing thriller from a great author!! ☺️

2.5 Stars (Rounded to 3)

*This review may contain mild spoilers*

“Caller Unknown” by Gillian McAllister tells the story of Simone, who travels from her home in London to Texas to visit her 18-year-old daughter, Lucy, who’s attending a singing camp. She wakes the morning after her arrival to find Lucy missing and a burner phone left behind with instructions for Simone to follow in order to get her daughter back, which includes not alerting the police.

I really enjoyed the setup for this novel and appreciated how quickly events were put in motion, but after the initial kidnapping it felt like the book moved pretty slowly. There’s a lot of waiting around, and Simone eventually becomes a wanted woman so there’s a lot of hiding, and frankly it felt like not a ton actually happens on the page. Simone’s husband is helping off the page for most of the book, and they hire a lawyer who also helps off the page. I think I just expected a little bit more action. Even though the stakes were high, I never felt it from Simone’s narration. Any time she begins to think about how her life has changed, she kind of waves the thought away. The ending felt rushed and convenient as well.

Simone was a super interesting character. I’m not sure if I liked her, but I liked how McAllister wrote her. I really liked hearing about her past and how she ended up as the chef for a high-end restaurant. It’s clear her upbringing played a big part in how she handled the events of the novel. I’m not a parent so maybe I would feel differently if I was, but her relationship with Lucy was odd to me. She is constantly placating her daughter and putting her on a pedestal, and I felt bad for how Damien is made to feel like a lesser parent even though, from what the reader can see, he is an amazing husband and father. Simone does experience growth by the end, but it felt like it was done begrudgingly.

This is my first McAllister novel, though I’ve heard great things about her others and I currently have “Wrong Place Wrong Time” on hold at my library. I look forward to trying another one of her books.

Thank you to William Morrow and NetGalley for the advance reader copy, all opinions are my own. “Caller Unknown” comes out on May 5, 2026.

Simone heads to Texas to spend some quality time with her daughter, Lucy. But things take a terrifying turn when Lucy is kidnapped—and Simone is faced with an impossible ransom demand. Her motherly instincts take over, and she’ll stop at nothing to get her daughter back. Gillian McAllister delivers a suspenseful story about the lengths a mother will go to for her child.

I wanted to love this one, but it was just kinda meh in my opinion 👎🏻 there was no real twists or turns & it didn’t really hold my attention. It wasn’t terrible, but I was definitely looking forward to it being over with 😅

Thanks to @netgalley for the ARC! This will be released on May 5th, 2026

2/5 ⭐️⭐️

#netgalley #arc #newrelease #mystery #thriller #callerunknown #gillianmcallister

How far would a mother go for her daughter? Caller Unkown by Gillian McAllister started off on a thrilling note, with a kidnap. Decisions led to escalations and mother and daughter found themselves on the run. It slowed down a little in the middle but ended with a great twist. Enjoyable read overall.
I got the ARC from William Morrow via Netgalley. This is my honest review

Started off good but then it was pretty slow. I liked the character development and relationships but I think we slowed a bit and some decisions made by the characters became frustrating which also made it hard to enjoy through the pacing as well.

At first, this book was a slow burn. It took about 2/3 of the book before it started to pick up and move quickly. Once it did though, it was great. Very interesting ending!

I was excited to get this ARC from Gillian McAllister. I really enjoyed her book “Wrong Place Wrong Time”. However, this book was just average. The premise of a mother doing anything for her daughter strikes close to home as I have my own daughter but I had a hard time liking the characters. There was a pretty big twist that enhanced the story, but still overall just an average book.

🔎📱✨ ARC Review: Caller Unknown by Gillian McAllister ✨📱🔎

“How far would you go to save your child?” This is the haunting question at the heart of Gillian McAllister’s latest pulse-pounding thriller.

Simone and her daughter Lucy share a tight bond, so when Lucy goes missing on their first morning of a Texas getaway, Simone’s world shatters. In Lucy’s place is only a phone…and a chilling voice on the other end. No police. No mistakes. Do exactly as told.

💔 What begins as every parent’s nightmare spirals into something darker when Simone realizes this isn’t about money it’s about control. To get her daughter back, she must agree to do the unthinkable. From lonely highways to blistering desert towns, her choices ignite a devastating chain of events that test her courage, morality, and the very limits of a mother’s love.

⚡ What to Expect:
👩‍👧 Fierce mother-daughter bond
📞 Tense ransom calls
🏜️ Atmospheric Texas desert setting
⏳ Race against time
❌ Morally grey choices
🔥 Relentless suspense

Gillian McAllister, bestselling author of Wrong Place Wrong Time, delivers another masterclass in tension and emotional depth. Caller Unknown is a gripping, high-stakes thriller that will have you asking yourself: What would I do?

Couldn’t put this down, Simone’s daughter Lucy is kidnapped and the ransom isn’t money, but impossible choices. What would you do for your child?

Thanks NetGalley for the ARC.

I received an ARC from NetGalley. Regardless of what happened in the story, I really disliked the references to Colombia. First, on the phone, where she didn’t want to say anything out loud and her husband was like, what is this, Colombia? And later on in the story. It’s 2025. We can stop pushing negative stereotypes and buying into harmful narratives.

In regards to the plot, sometimes it dragged. I almost DNF. The story took a lot of turns and was sometimes tiring to keep up with.

Gillian McAllister is an auto-buy for me and seeing a new thriller always sparks joy. Caller Unknown offers the two characteristics I have come to think of as "McAllisterian" - one, a story that heads in directions you cannot possibly predict, and two, despite a pulse-pounding thrilling narrative, the focus is on relationships. In this case, the relationship that McAllister is exploring is that of a mother daughter, when the daughter is on the cusp of leaving the nest. Using the metaphors of a mother about to "lose" her daughter, McAllister sets up a scenario when said mother is really about to lose her daughter unless she gives in to a kidnapper's demands. Highly recommend. Thanks to William Morrow and NetGalley for the DRC.