Miranda: I mean, there were days I really wished you would disappear, but I had no idea you felt that way too! Ginger: I don't. Floyd is kind and sensitive and has a young daughter named Poppy, who looks inexplicably like Ellie. Unless its to show readers that the both of them are both nutters and deserve each other? Okay, then. Stop beating a dead horse and let's move on.

It sort of feels like I've read a hundred different variations of the missing daughter/grieving mother plot, and Then She Was Gone doesn't really do anything new with it. The writing is strong, but it's disappointing when you figure out all the major reveals in the first few chapters and even get the reasons behind them. As soon as certain characters are introduced, I was thinking “ah, got it” and, unfortunately, I was right. I kept hoping something exciting would happen to prove me wrong, but it really is as obvious as it seems. Gang, this one is more than just a a beautiful shell of a cover. But that cover IS stunning, amiright? You definitely want to add this to your reading schedule ASAP, especially if you're looking for a read that is so gripping you'll fly right through it. To say I'm waiting with bated breath for Lisa's next novel would be an understatement, and I hope you enjoy this story as much as I did. <3 This story was very dark, gloomy, and creepy, but also quite emotional and poignant. Laurel's voice is so realististic, raw, and sympathetic, she nearly had me believing she was a real person and that this was a true story. Her emergence from a tortuous state of limbo and her fierce determination to get to the truth, and begin truly living life again was an amazing transformation. This could be Jewel’s first tentatives steps towards advancing up to the literary thriller category. I was impressed with this novel as it held my rapt attention from start to finish. It gave me goosebumps in more ways than one. EXCERPT: She had no one to call, no one to ask 'Have you seen Hanna? Do you know where she is?' Her life simply didn't work like that. There were no connections anywhere. Just little islands of life dotted here and there.The structure keeps the suspense level high, and Jewell manages surprising revelations all the way up to the ending. The mix of women’s fiction and suspense—plus a no-nonsense 40-something heroine at the heart of the story—makes this a good fit for fans of Liane Moriarty. Booklist Miranda: (talking to Ginger) Man, if I had known you were, like, clinically depressed, I might have gone a little easier on you. Stacy Shaw has her whole life ahead of her: new job, new house, a baby on the way and a doting husband. After working late one night, she disappears in the dark. I would listen to a friend's concerns, regardless if she believed in Mother Nature or the Great Pumpkin.

Laurel meets Floyd Dunn at a cafe, and they go to dinner at a Eritrean restaurant. Floyd has two kids, a 21-year-old named Sara-Jade (from his first marriage to Kate Virtue) and Poppy, 9-year-old from a casual relationship. Poppy's mother abandoned her at his doorstep when Poppy was four. wow. okay. maybe i wont be playing the whole ‘predict what happens based on the synopsis only’ game because it turns out i only got 1 out of 4 guesses right and its not a good look for my ego. lol. I feel horribly guilty giving only four stars to a Lisa Jewell book. She is one of my favorite authors, and. in spite of the misgivings outlined below I did 'enjoy' this book, although that isn't quite the right word. I give her four stars for brilliant prose, great character creation, and the invention of incredible plots. I take away the fifth star because in this case the plot really is incredible, in the deepest meaning of that word.Even though most parts and big twist are predictable, it was well written, breathtaking, fast pacing, captivating reading which ended in 5 hours. My heart truly hurt for ... yes the readers know which character I’m talking about. That character’s heart wrenching story will haunt me for a long time. Populated with fantastic characters, this was a fascinating and moving story about obsession, loss, and family. Some suspension of disbelief may be necessary, but it didn’t really bother me, I just enjoyed what I found to be a unique and absorbing story.

Hanna pays Laurel to clean her apartment, so Laurel knows that Hanna has not been sleeping at home. Hanna claims she's out partying, but that's not really her personality. Laurel finds some flowers given to Hanna by someone named "T". Laurel also visits her elderly mom who had a stroke many years ago. Her mother Ruby is old, but seems to be holding on hoping for Ellie to be found. When her daughter's bones are discovered years later, Laurel feels she can finally move on with her life. She meets a man at a cafe not long after the burial of her favorite child. This is not a cliched version of fiction with a bunch of peripatetic perfunctory characters with a mandatory twist at the end to consider it as a thriller. I was able to predict the ending by around 30% in the book. This book is the tragic life story of Ellie, which will bring tears to your eyes if you are a compassionate human being.

Thank you to NetGalley, Atria Books and Lisa Jewell for an ARC to read in exchange for an honest review. Mrs. Stacy Shaw has been disappeared from Thursday night after office. She is the last one who left the office that night. The last person who saw her is Betty Robinson; Betty’s husband; Stacy’s boss Leland Chambers, whom she argued that evening and Jeremy; one of the ground workers from office. She has blond hairs, height 5’2”, and aged twenty six, married to Michael Shaw for seven years. Laurel is doing her best to move on with her life. Her teenage daughter went missing years ago, triggering an avalanche of misfortune. The family splintered. Laurel and Paul divorcing. And now, their two remaining children are leaving home at the first chance they get - anxious to live their own lives, away from the oppressive tension within their home.

I love strongly character driven novels, including thrillers and that is what Ms. Jewell does so so well. I became invested in the feelings of Eliie’s mother, and as a mother of four daughters, I wanted so badly for things to somehow turn out that this poor woman didn’t have to continue without knowing what happened to her missing beautiful, intelligent, golden girl! At the same time the actual mystery component to it was less satisfying than I was expecting as well. While the mystery and suspense of what happened to Ellie is absolutely at the forefront of the book throughout the entire novel, the resolution of Ellie’s disappearance is more straightforward than I had been hoping for. To be honest, this seemed more like it was written for a young-adult audience just dipping a toe into the world of thriller novels (I would call this a stepping stone between books like Nancy Drew and the Hardy Boys and the grittier, more adult books. It's not quite as childish as the former, but not quite thrilling enough to appeal to adults either).

Part One

One suspect Jay Martin has arrested in charge of using Disappeared woman’s ATM card, he accepted the charges but denied anything to do with Mrs. Stacy’s disappearance. Police is sure Mr. Martin is behind the lady’s disappearance. Case Closed. Noelle gets pregnant but loses the baby. Around this time, she starts tutoring Ellie. She becomes obsessed with Ellie and her seemingly perfect life.