Member Reviews

Huge thanks to Bookouture for an ecopy of this book in exchange for an honest review. Something which I'm more than happy to give.

Wow, where do I begin? I began this book knowing it was a psychological thriller but at the same time expecting it to be a little bit light hearted because it was written by Carol Wyer - she writes humorous, laugh out loud books - something this absolutely was not!

I'm amazed as the ability to switch genre and produce a book that is both captivating and gritty making me want to read on and on - if only lunch breaks were endless, yet at the same time aspects of it were difficult to read.

Robyn Carter is working at a detective agency whilst taking a recuperating break from the police where she is a detective - she finds herself embroiled in a private investigation that she quickly realises can only be dealt with by the police. Due back at work shortly she returns early to take on the case.

Carol has woven the lives of the many characters intricately into the plot. It took me a little bit of keeping up with at first - we have the missing person, an ex music teacher who Robyn was initially commissioned to look for as part of a Private Investigation. Then a murder made to look like an accident whist out jogging. A child is abducted and the realisation that all of them are connected in someway to Abigail who is being blackmailed by an anonymous source makes for many chest tightening moments.

The story is told in both the present and the past and by the victims and the murderer - how Carol Wyer kept all those balls in the air I don't know but I'm thankful she did. This is a fast paced book with short snappy chapters that leave no time to ponder as the plot unravels at an alarming rate. A grippingly, captivating story that is just that little bit too awful for words - a story that made me want to read between my fingers at times. To say this is Carol Wyer's first foray into the thriller world is beyond amazing and Little Girl Lost is just the first in a series.

Thank you Carol for such a brilliant debut thriller, I look forward to book 2.

Was this review helpful?

Where do I start?? Carol's debut to the #darkside is an unforgettable one to say the very least!

This incredible book is so twisty-turny, topsy-turvy it will leave you completely dumbfounded. I still can't quite grasp what I read. I was left guessing, confused, shocked, and more than a little unsettled.

The characters are so richly drawn they become real. Their stories weave a delicate web, an intricate maze that culminates in an exquisite, disturbing story that is, at times, hard to read. Still, it's somehow done in such a delicate, sensitive manner that you really feel the pain and sadness they've suffered.

I don't know what else I can say without giving anything away. I just need to advise you to read this book. And then the next one. DI Robyn will be a character I look out for! She's gona be a kickass heroine!

Was this review helpful?

The minute I was half way through this book, I was anxious to write my review. This novel was absolutely brilliant. If you are a fan of M.J. Arlidge, I definitely suggest this novel for you. Even though it was very different, for me it still had a lot of connections in the way it was written. I received this read on NetGalley from Bookouture Publishing and I am so pleased to finally get this review out there.

This novel starts off following another female Detective Inspector named Robyn Carter. She has just previously returned to the force after a tragic loss in her life. Her first case back on the force is a missing persons case. The man’s name is Lucas Matthew’s and his wife reported him missing. As Robyn starts looking into the wife’s claims and making her way through the investigation Lucas’ father, Paul Matthews has been murdered. As Robyn begins to think both men are connected somehow, she can’t figure out how. While she is in the middle of the investigation, Paul Matthews’ house cleaner and Mary Matthews’ (Lucas’ wife) end up dead. The only thing Robyn has to go on is that a mother and wife named Abigail Thorne is somehow connected to every person.

I loved everything about this book. I will be honest though, I was a little confused at the beginning of the novel and it took me a few chapters to finally put it all together. Inside the novel you read chapters told from a few different points of view but the main ones you need to remember are Alice, DI Robyn Carter and Abigail. They are the three most important characters that will leave you breathless come the last chapter.

Little Girl Lost has just the right amount of thrilling twists and turns that it deserved. There was enough to keep me on the edge of my seat and more than enough to keep my heart racing in fear of something bad happening at the end. The minute I thought I had the killer figured out, the book proved me wrong. It wasn’t until about 70% of the way through the book when I realized who the culprit was but did not know in any fashion how the situation would end up.

After finishing up the book, I was pretty bummed that it was over. It was such a great gripping read that I didn’t want it to end. I definitely wouldn’t mind if Carol Wyer wrote more and made it a DI Robyn Carter series!
Thank you to Bookouture Publishing for providing me a copy via NetGalley. It was a great pleasure to provide an honest review.

Was this review helpful?

Alice is eight years old and she and her widowed mother have moved in with her mother's new boyfriend and his two children. Something unspeakable happens one night and she and her mother are no longer welcome at the house. Mary is looking for her husband who's gone missing although she thought he'd gone on holiday to Thailand. She enlists the help of DI Robyn Carter who's currently working for her private investigator cousin - she's taken a break from the police force after two traumatic losses. Paul is a former actor and dies suddenly while out jogging. Abigail is a young woman who seems to have everything - gorgeous pilot husband, beautiful baby daughter a large house and expensive cars - so who could be tormenting her and accusing both her and her husband of keeping secrets and threatening to make her pay. Can Robyn find the link between all these people and discover the awful secret that has led to years of resentment and led someone to kill. Really enjoyed this book and look forward to more in the Robyn Carter series.

Thanks to Netgalley, the publisher and author for the opportunity to read and review this book.

Was this review helpful?

This is a hard book for me to review because I almost gave up very early on in the story when without giving any plot away an incident was described in too much detail for my comfort. However I did carry on and found the rest of the book to be very well written with a clever twist or two along the way.

Was this review helpful?

I would like to thank netgalley and bookouture for this ARC I received in exchange for an honest review.
Wow what a book! This tense thriller is a read that takes quite a lot of thinking about, it is extremely well written and when I put it down to go to work etc I did find I was trying to work out who was who and how did they know each other.
You start off by reading the prologue here this I have to admit is the most hard to read part of the book and certainly the most graphic so don't feel like it is all like this because it isn't but is needed to set the story off. In the prologue you meet Alice and her mother who have moved into Paul's huge house, Alice's father died earlier in the year and paul is Alice's mums fiancé. Paul has two children Natasha and Lucas. Paul and Alice's mother go to an awards evening and what happens in that house that night shapes Alice's future forever.
Chapter one introduces you to D.I Robyn Carter who is at the end of her year leave after losing her husband and unborn baby. We pick up with her at the end of her time working with her cousin who owns a private investigation business. The book then goes on to the next main character which is Abigail Thorne who is married to Jackson and has baby Izzy and bit by bit her friends.
This is the first in this series and will be afraid to read the next in case it's not as good as this one as this is the best book I've read of this genre. The book flows well with the chapters coming from either Robyn, Abigail or 'then' which really worked.
Robyn obviously has the dective side in her chapters and is a likeable character then you have Abigail who has started to receive threats and suggestions her husband is having an affair making her question everything in her life and the you have then which is told by Alice with events through her life that have made her who she is.
A great read, trying not to give anything away as this is definately a book that makes you think and then makes you go 'why did I not see that??'
I haven't read anything by carol wyer before but will definately look out for her name in the future.

Was this review helpful?

It is great that some of the best fictional detectives over the past couple of years have been strong female characters with personality and intelligence and I suspect the fact that a lot of these have been through Bookouture is no coincidence. Carol Wyer’s latest book is her first foray into the world of the suspenseful thriller and she has really found her calling here with Detective Robyn Carter.
Robyn is just returning to the police force after a personal tragedy and her first case concerns the disappearance of Lucas Matthews. His wife had thought that he was on a short break in Thailand with friends but she has been unable to contact him. When she finds his passport in a drawer at home she knows that something is seriously wrong and looks to Ross, a local private investigator, to help locate him.
As the bodies start piling up and a young baby is kidnapped Robyn has to unravel an intricate and disturbing account going back a couple of decades. Little Girl Lost is a fascinating story dealing with complex family relationships that will keep you guessing right up to the last few pages. I simply didn’t want to put this one down!
Supplied by Bookouture and Net Galley in exchange for an honest review.
UK Publication Date: Jan 19 2017. 412 pages
<a rel="nofollow" href="https://www.amazon.co.uk/gp/product/B01M9ETOCA/ref=as_li_tl?ie=UTF8&camp=1634&creative=6738&creativeASIN=B01M9ETOCA&linkCode=as2&tag=angelrevie-21">Little Girl Lost: A gripping thriller that will have you hooked (Detective Robyn Carter crime thriller series Book 1)</a><img src="http://ir-uk.amazon-adsystem.com/e/ir?t=angelrevie-21&l=as2&o=2&a=B01M9ETOCA" width="1" height="1" border="0" alt="" style="border:none !important; margin:0px !important;" />

Was this review helpful?

Thank you to NetGalley for my copy of this novel.

What did I just read?? It was suspenseful, mysterious, and exciting with excellent characterization. The story had just the right amount of twists & turns and I enjoyed reading. I am looking forward to what this author does next!

Was this review helpful?

What a brave move from Carol Wyer to make the transition from writing funny, lighthearted books such as the fabulous Life Swap to something so intensely dark and disturbing in Little Girl Lost. A move which completely paid off, I might add. I found Little Girl Lost quite uncomfortable to start with as there are some disturbing opening scenes but real life is unfortunately filled with such darkness.

There are a lot of characters at the start and I found it slightly confusing, but out came my trusty notebook to jot down all the relevant names. In a 'before' setting we are introduced to Alice who's about to become the stepdaughter of actor Paul Matthews. Paul has two children of his own: sick and twisted Lucas and goth-girl Natasha. Alice still hears the voice of her dead father speaking to her through her toy bunny and when something terrible happens to Alice and her mother's relationship with Paul breaks down, she only has her bunny for comfort as nobody believes her.

Meanwhile in a 'now' time setting, Abigail is happily married to Jackson and they have a beautiful baby called Izzy. Abigail starts to get texts, emails and phone calls telling her that Jackson is having an affair. She doesn't believe it at first, but then photographic evidence turns up in her inbox. Her tormentor takes things a step further and tries to alienate Abi's friends by hacking her Facebook account and posting vicious messages on friends' pages purporting to be from Abi. It becomes clear that her tormentor must be somebody who is close to her and has access to her house...

So what does Abi have to do with Alice, you might ask. Well, Carol Wyer has managed to cleverly weave an intricate web of secrets and lies that ties your brain in knots! I haven't even mentioned the excitement of bodies starting to turn up with toy rabbits placed at the scene. Alice is back for revenge and she may very well be hiding in plain sight. Nobody is safe, however tenuously linked to her past, in her quest for retribution.

A cracking first thriller from Carol Wyer that had me reading late into the night - I absolutely could not rest until I had discovered all the dark secrets of Little Girl Lost.

I chose to read an ARC and this is my honest an unbiased opinion.

Was this review helpful?

Little Girl Lost doesn't only belong to one of my favorite genres, it also involves a serial killer. It might sound weird, but serial killer thrillers truly fascinate me... And the killer in this one definitely is a 'beauty'. Twisted, disturbed, messed up childhood and a touch of humanity, all put together in a huge bowl of REVENGE: that is basically the description of the perp in Little Girl Lost. The true identity is hidden for a long time, although it's quite easy to guess who it is before you reach the ending.

Little Girl Lost is the first book of a new detective series and I'm glad I listened to the positive reviews. It's without doubt a worthy psychological thriller! The writing style is really enjoyable to read and there were lots and lots of plot twists to enjoy. The new main character of this series surely stumbles across some very disturbed and twisted characters during her first appearance. Robyn Carter is your typical DI main character with cliche messed up past and impressive detective skills, but I've grown to like her during the story. It wasn't love at first sight, but I will be looking forward to find out what happens to her in the future. Some of the other characters were on the border of annoying, but I guess some of them are supposed to be unlikeable/unreliable in the first place. The plot itself was a mix of messed up, intriguing, shocking with a healthy dose of paranoia. I'm sure most of the twists and revelations will surprise you, even though (part of) the ending was a little predictable. If you are looking for an entertaining, well written and twisted psychological thriller, Little Girl Lost is without doubt a great choice.

Was this review helpful?

This was a gripping, page-turning novel with lots of twists and turns. I loved the main character, Detective Inspector Robyn Carter. Her character is well-developed and readers definitely will identify with her. As for the plot itself, I kept changing my mind about what was happening and trying to guess the outcome. I had no clue! I love to be surprised, and this book certainly delivered. This was my first Carol Wyer book and it will not be my last! Thanks for the wild ride!!

Was this review helpful?

Sadly, I did not love this book as much as everyone else seems to. With nearly a 4.5 star rating on Goodreads, I was really expecting to love it!

For me, this book just tried too hard. I think a lot of the subplot was confusing and distracting - sooo many people with sooo much going on. A lot of it just felt unneeded. It was kind of unrealistic that so many people had connections to each other while all being unaware of each other.

I think the main story was really good. Girl suffers childhood trauma and grows up to take revenge on those she sees responsible. But the story just veered too far from this and got a little strange. All the red herring characters didn't do much to add to the story and they didn't really disguise who was really "the bad guy" it was all pretty easy to figure out.

I'd be interesting to read something else in the future by this author - but in the end this was a book I was just not thrilled with.

Was this review helpful?

This book I am unable to review because as soon as it was available to download it was archived. Very disappointed.

Was this review helpful?

This is the first novel I have read from Caroly Wyer and I thought it was a pretty good read.

As the book begins 9-year-old Alice is upset because she doesn't want her mummy to go out that evening. Her mother tells her to be a big girl. But Alice has her reasons for being nervous.

"It was going to happen again - even though he wasn't in the house. She just knew"

She asks her mother again if she has to go out. Her mother tells her this is their chance for happiness. Her mother is to be married to Paul. Alice feels that it's too soon as her daddy has only been gone less than a year. Her mother thinks that Alice should be happy....soon she will have a new step-father and a new brother and sister, Natasha and Lucas.

Natasha seems okay and Alice thought that Lucas was okay too. But that was before the other night. Alice tries not to worry because Lucas is out, staying at a friend's house overnight.

But something happens that night that will change the course of all their lives.

**I have to say that I had a really hard time with the prologue. It felt like there was a lot of graphic detail and I thought I might have to stop reading but I kept on. It did settle down after that but the first part was definitely upsetting and hard to read.

Present day we meet Detective Robyn Carter. After a devastating loss, she has been working as a PI with her cousin while she recovers. However, she's feeling stronger and will be going back to work with the police soon. But when a PI case looks like it's connected to a double homicide, she ends up going back to work sooner than she thought.

Abigail Thorne is married to Jackson and they have a beautiful daughter, Izzy. Her husband Jackson works as a private pilot. It's been an adjustment for everyone since Izzy was born. Between Jackson's odd hours and Abigail's focus on Izzy, they have had no real-time for each other and they are both stressed out. But Abigail has another reason to be stressed. She's been keeping secrets from her husband and now it seems that someone else wants these secrets to come to light. However, after receiving another anonymous text it seems like she's not the only one keeping secrets.

Someone wants to destroy her marriage. But who? and why?

And what does a murdered millionaire and missing teacher have to do with Abigail? Do they have something to do with the messages she's been receiving?

The first part of the book took awhile to get a grasp on. There are a lot of characters and there's a lot going on. The story is told in a then and now format and was a bit confusing but eventually I caught on.

In "then" Alice's story continues....we learn more about her childhood. In "now" Abigail's life continues to spiral out of control. Someone is out to make her life unbearable. They tell her that the worse is yet to come. Are her and Izzy in danger? After more threatening messages and a particularly horrible incident she speaks with Detective Robyn Carter.

So how are all of these incidents and people connected? And who and where is Alice now?

I would think I knew what was happening but then something would send me off in another direction. I had to know what was going on. How were these characters all connected?

This was a fast paced and gripping read. Intense and with twists and turns right up until the very end. I honestly didn't guess the ending, though I may have had a few things right. However, even if I had guessed who did what, I think I would still have been just as interested.

Detective Robyn Carter is a really interesting character and I would love to read more about her. She's a great detective. Having suffered through such a devastating loss, she was determined to prove to herself that she hadn't lost everything. I think that this has the opportunity to be a very good series. I know that I'm looking forward to book two.

Thank you NetGalley, Bookouture, and Carol Wyer for providing an advanced readers copy of this book for me to read in exchange for my honest review.

Was this review helpful?

Was a little hard for me to get engaged in the book at first, but by the middle I couldn't put it down. Read into the late night, had to figure out who the bad guy was. Well written, no spoilers, not so transparent that you can guess the ending. I found myself actually enjoying the book. The ending was less fulfilling, the killer kills herself, after all the planning she does, seemed a weak escape. But it was an enjoyable ride.

Was this review helpful?

https://anaslair.wordpress.com/2017/02/14/little-girl-lost-di-robyn-carter-1/

<i>Little Girl Lost</i> got me from the first line. That prologue had me gripping my Kindle.

Then we meet our DI, who is working for a private investigation company. I immediately liked her.

<i>She was a results woman. She would catch this guy no matter how long it took to collect the evidence.</i>

Yes, we are told that she is patient and persistent, but more importantly we are shown that through her actions.

There are a few things that I wasn't sold on: The child voice did not seem that age. Some things didn't make sense to me like <spoiler>Abigail not trusting that she saw something or heard certain things. I would have to be really messed up to think that, and she was lucid on a couple of occasions. And there were several other details like during the first phone call the perp was supposedly holding a baby and there were no noise at all to indicate that; also, it shouldn't be that hard for the police to get ahold of the approximate location of a subject using their phone; and the death of Paul was related before Christina's, which is not chronologically correct.</spoiler>

There were surprisingly little repetitions. Other than variations of Jackson not knowing Abigail's secrets and that he was really good at solving puzzles, I don't remember much.

There isn't a lot I can tell you without giving away the story. <i>Little Girl Lost</i> is full of twists and turns that will set your head spinning and have you turning the pages as quickly as you can.
I had a clue of who was who but I was never 100% sure because the narrative is ambiguous like that, and I really love that, that I was able to put 2 and 2 together but that it wasn't too obvious - and also that those things that I didn't get by then didn't feel under-explained afterwards, which happens to me frequently, endings getting rushed.

I would actually have been happy with the story finishing at like 80%. It felt like the book dragged on a bit after that, especially in the last 10 percent, although there were still plenty of revelations and tension.

Highly recommended, a gem amongst others of the genre. I will definitely be looking out for this author in the future.

Was this review helpful?

A debut novel for a completely different genre for Carol Wyer. And what an excellent book!

It kept me guessing right to the end and there were enough different threads to weave a tapestry!

I look forward to more from Carol and Detective Robyn Carter (and Ross of course).

I was given an ARC in exchange for an honest review.

Was this review helpful?

A PERFECT FAMILY HIDING DISTURBING SECRETS. A KILLER WHO WANTS THE TRUTH TO BE TOLD.
A teacher goes missing under suspicious circumstances.
A millionaire is murdered at a local reservoir.
For Detective Robyn Carter, there is no obvious link between the men. But as she starts to delve into the cases, her investigations leads her to Abigail, perfect wife and mother to beautiful little Izzy. What was Abigail's connections to the victims? And why is she receiving threatening messages from an anonymous number?

But as Robyn inch closer to finding the killer, Izzy is abducted.

Unless Robyn gets to the twisted individual in time, a little girl will die...

One of the first things I have to say is, I have never read anything by Carol E. Wyer before this and I can honestly say "What was I thinking?" Her development of her characters makes you fall in love with them. Yes, even the killer. "How?" Well, I can really say I felt sorry and almost an empathy for the killer.
Robyn had been working for her cousin Ross, taking a break from police work and doing some private investigating on her own timeline. Her last case for her cousin works its way into being her first case back on the job.

Mary Matthews husband has gone missing. He told her he was going to Thailand but hasn't returned any of her messages she has left on his phone.

Abigail and Jackson Thorne had a magical marriage. Jackson was everything Abigail could hope for and more but something just isn't right. Since the birth of Izzy, their beautiful daughter, Abigail has been different. Tired and worn out Abigail just isn't like she was before. She knows it, he knows it but they can't quite put their fingers on what is behind it.
Then the note showed up, the phone calls started, and Abigail is scared but she is afraid to tell Jackson everything. The voice tells her she needs to tell the secrets or else.

Every single character is developed, even down to Abigail's cat Toffee, and Mary's yapping dog. I laughed at poor Ross, Robyn's cousin, who is suffering from the diet changes his wife has inflicted on him for his own good of course. To how Ross develops a fondness for Jane Clifford, Ross becomes one of the good 'ole boys I hope to see more of in following books in the series.

Robyn is worried that she has lost her gut instinct that has is recognized in the force for having. As she works the puzzle pieces of the case she is thrown off by what she is sure is a clue at all the crime scenes.

I was completely impressed with how the characters come alive and dance across the pages until the final climatic finish. This is one that you really don't want to miss. I am starting to think that 2017 is going to be the year for psychological thrillers. Wyer promises to be a strong voice in this genre as well.


My thanks to NetGalley, bookouture and Carol E. Wyer for my copy for an honest review.

Was this review helpful?

"Little Girl Lost" is a terrific start to a new crime thriller series which introduces us to detective Robyn Carter - the main character in the series. This particular installment also closely follows the lives of a girl named Alice, as well as Abigail along with her daughter Izzy.
The story in mainly narrated in 3rd person with the exception of chapters describing Alice's story, which are written in 1st person.
It would be hard to briefly summarize what the book is about since multiple characters mean multiple stories and different points of view. Now, this may seem a little confusing and I must admit I am not a great fan of stories being narrated by a few different characters. But "Little Girl Lost" is an absolute exception. It is a real gem among the books I have read this year and I am so glad that I have found it.
Having said that, I would feel bad if I didn't give you a little warning. It's with regards to the prologue, which can be found disturbing by more sensitive readers. I had put the book away and only returned to it a few hours later, when I've had a chance to cool down. But that's just the prologue. The remainder of the book was different and not as disturbing. Also, the prologue itself serves it's purpose. It's not there to shock the reader. It really sets the background for the whole story.
To tell you the truth, this novel kept me at the edge of my seat until the very end. I'd like to say I knew who the "bad guy" was early on. And in a way I did. The only thing is, throughout the book, there was not one character left that I did not suspect.
I finished reading "Little Girl Lost" yesterday and I still find myself thinking about it throughout the day. To me this is one of the marks of a great book. It stays with you for a long, long time. I hope Carol Wyer writes more books in this series. I'll make sure to have them on pre-order.
Thank you so much to the author and NetGalley for giving me a chance to read this amazing book. This is the one I will not forget.

Was this review helpful?