Book Review: Then She Was Gone by Lisa Jewell

AD* | THEN

She was fifteen, her mother's golden girl. She had her whole life ahead of her. And then, in the blink of an eye, Ellie was gone.

NOW

It’s been ten years since Ellie disappeared, but Laurel has never given up hope of finding her daughter.

And then one day a charming and charismatic stranger called Floyd walks into a café and sweeps Laurel off her feet.

Before too long she’s staying the night at this house and being introduced to his nine-year-old daughter.

Poppy is precocious and pretty - and meeting her completely takes Laurel's breath away.

Because Poppy is the spitting image of Ellie when she was that age. And now all those unanswered questions that have haunted Laurel come flooding back.

What happened to Ellie? Where did she go?

Who still has secrets to hide?

Then She Was Gone is a captivating mystery thriller, bound to keep you on the very edge of your seat! 

The timeline within the book swaps between 'then' and 'now', helping to uncover the mystery of what happened to Ellie Mack. It also features several different narrators, each telling their own portions of the story and revealing important clues - and plenty of twists and turns, too! In other hands, this could be confusing and disjointed, but Lisa Jewell pulls it off expertly, effortlessly combining all the different plot threads to weave an utterly engrossing novel.

At points heart-wrenching and at others shocking, Then She Was Gone focuses on the emotions of the characters as much as the action. As the story progresses, more and more is revealed about each individual - their history, their motivation, and their secrets. This is a cast of flawed characters; no single person is perfect, yet each seems as real as any stranger you might encounter on the street. 

This adds an extra element of realism to the story, drawing you in and keeping you engaged throughout. The book is very well-paced - a slow-burner, yet still full of shocks and surprises at every turn. This makes it very hard to put the book down once you start to read - you might just find time escaping you once you delve into this book! 

Thrilling, unexpected, and truly captivating, Then She Was Gone is an unputdownable five-star read! 

Rating: 5 stars 

Then She Was Gone is available to buy now.

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* I received a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review

Are you a fan of Lisa Jewell's books? Let me know in the comments below!