Many thanks to Netgalley for an ARC in return for my honest opinion.

Where do I start... The two words I would use to describe this book are 'disjointed' and 'bizarre'. Disjointed because I feel the story is all over the place and starts off very slow with the main character Cara disappearing off from her home using the family savings to have some 'me' time. This is itself is hard to swallow but then a 'bizarre' series of events unravels another part of this story involving child kidnapping / a tv series / reporters and some would-be police officers! The characters in the book are all a bit on the unbelievable side and for me, Its all really very far fetched. I read to the end with a mix of disappointment and disbelief!!!

Thank you to Netgalley for the opportunity to read this book as an arc.
This tells the story of Cara, who jets off to Arizona for a luxury holiday to escape from family life. While there, she thinks she may have seen Melody, a 7 year old child whose parents have been jailed for her murder, but whose body has never been found.
This was a great read with lots of twists and turns and wow moments! The theme of trial by media is explored with quite a lot of dark humour, which definitely works. I really enjoyed this book, but once the story really got going, I felt there were a few too many characters which left me a bit confused.
Plenty of tension and twists ensuring you keep reading.

An excellent story that I thoroughly enjoyed and a definite page turner.

The book starts with the tension of a long haul traveller seeking escape and space to reflect and after a harrowing trip seems to have found the perfect retreat. Until that is, a mistake at check in leaves Cars unwittingly embroiled in a murder mystery after meeting the victim years after they were supposedly killed!

Cue a complex conspiracy that questions the balance of justice and the media.

The twists are varied and unexpected and continue to the very last page.

I thought this book was well written, but the story, as with all Sophie Hannah books is very convoluted and contrived. A good mystery but not very believable and I didn't like all the American TV excep

I've read a couple other Sophie Hannah books before and although I've enjoyed them. I haven't been overwhelmed.

This one was different.

The book is set in Arizona and is about cara from England who's having family issues, so ups and leaves to a five star so resort across the world. She takes a lot of guilt with her

Sightings across the resort of a previously declared murdered, young girl, is where the book gets exciting!

A twist that you don't expect until it's there! And likeable characters.

My one complaint... sooo many character names towards the second half that I was getting a little confused

But a great read!!

I think I might be the only person in the world who finds Hannah's work slow to work for me - admittedly when it does it is intriguing. Here a woman running from her home life for reasons we pick up as we read on , gets entangled in an old murder case. Just because she happens to be there ...and spots a dead girl by accident on her first night away. Her seeming 'good' fortune in being convinced she sees the perpetrator and the dead girl and persuades the police along with a very few others, turns sour when she is taken by the same fellow. The voice of the narrator is very strong, and when she's missing we still see her but also people not in her sights. The working out of her marriage and the expectation of a new child, new relationships of trust unravel until she packs up to go home - the girl, Melody
/daughter reminds our narrator of much that has happened in her day, to her. Thoroughly enjoyable - maybe my expectations were too high.

Cara Burrows is a woman pushed to breaking point, who sees no option other than to run away from her problems, and her family, to a plush resort in Arizona to allow her space to work through her problems. When she arrives, it's far from relaxing though, as someone else is already in the room she's allocated - a man and a teenage girl. Cara starts to believe the girl could be Melody Chapa, famously killed seven years ago by her parents, who are now behind bars for the crime. Cara has to decide how far she'll go, and what she'll risk to find out the girl's true identity, when she already has problems of her own to deal with.

My feelings about the book are split in two. I loved Sophie Hannah's easy style. Reading it was effortless, and engaging, putting the reader right there in Swallowtail resort alongside Cara. Couldn't help but feel the plot was a little thin in places though. The idea that Cara would leave her family behind, and flee the country to spend a big chunk of her family's savings was a bit of a stretch, and I struggled to engage with some of the supporting characters like Tarin, and Bonnie. So overall, it wouldn't be high on my recommendation list because of plot that needs strengthening, but would definitely read more by Sophie Hannah.

3.5 stars

Confession time first - this is the first Sophie Hannah book I've read. It's unlikely to be the last. Did You See Melody has a slow paced start and reads more like a family drama than a mystery. Cara Burrows is an English woman who has spent her family's savings on a solo trip to a luxury resort and spa in Arizona. However, instead of the space and tranquility she was hoping to find, she becomes embroiled in a years old murder case after another guest reports seeing Melody Chapa - only Melody's parents are both serving life for her murder.
I read Did You See Melody in little over a day, it's surprisingly lighthearted considering the subject matter, with an intriguing mystery at the heart of the book. It's the female characters though who are the book's main strength; Cara is an interesting lead character, much of the humour in the book comes from her English reserve and awkwardness in the face of American hospitality and positivity. I must admit to finding her reason for leaving her family, albeit even if it was just for a break, a little flimsy but was pleased to see her character's growth as the book progresses. Bonnie Juno, criminal prosecutor tuned television personality is the very essence of dogged and is a memorable character although not at all likeable. Tarrin probably deserves a book of her own, a wisecracking no nonsense florist turned amateur detective might be a little unlikely but she was definitely the stand out character of the book.
I found the secondary characters a bit weaker unfortunately. Cara's husband, Patrick isn't given much to do and the teenagers, Cara's children, Jess and Ollie, and Tarrin's daughter, Zellie felt a little stereotypical. Zellie never really fulfilled her early potential and although she was clearly an intelligent free thinker ultimately came across as a typical eye rolling teen. I was a bit disappointed too with the way certain parts of the story seemed to fizzle out. At one point the story focuses on the past history of the investigating police officers but what could have been an interesting sub-plot never really went anywhere.
The main story though is fascinating, I was completely intrigued by the premise of a murder that may not have been a murder, and the questions about who is guilty of what kept me turning the pages, eager to discover the truth. It is a book that probably requires its readers to accept a few unlikely coincidences, close scrutiny would likely stretch credibility a bit. However, it's still a gripping story with some excellent twists. Much of the story of Melody's disappearance is told through television transcripts and while arguably this interrupted the pace somewhat, I rather enjoyed the drip feeding revealing of the past. I have conflicting feelings about the conclusion to the book and suspect it will divide opinions. It is undoubtedly a truly disturbing twist but I wish it could have been explored a little further. While I can appreciate an open ending this just felt a tiny bit unsatisfying but I am nit-picking here as it definitely made me gasp! Overall there really was much to enjoy about Did You See Melody and I think it will be a deservedly popular holiday read later this summer.
My thanks to the publishers for my copy, received through Netgalley in return for my honest review.

Cara has fled England and her family, using a third of their life savings to spend two weeks in a luxury spa in Arizona. It is a selfish and irresponsible act, one that is troubling her almost as much as the problem that caused her to flee in the first place. Arriving late at night, jet-lagged and exhausted to the point of tears, Cara stumbles into her room only to find it already occupied. Upgraded for the inconvenience she sets about resolving her own problems, but snippets of conversations and strange incidents keep distracting her. Who is this Melody Chapa people keep mentioning? Did her parents really kill her? If so, who did Cara see the night she arrived at the hotel?

This is a really unusual thriller, in the best possible sense. It is funny, gripping and thoroughly enjoyable from start to finish. In a refreshing break from the dark, twisting thrillers told by an unreliable narrator that have become this season’s trope, we are given middle aged mum Cara, filled to the brim with English reserve and acting completely out of character for the first time in her life. This is fabulously contrasted against Tarin, another of the spa’s guests, a brash, outspoken American florist who says it like she sees it. The interplay between these two is fantastic, and highly entertaining, especially when it comes to culture clashes. The novel also makes interesting observations about the role of the American media in cases like this. Everything we learn about the disappearance of little Melody comes from talk shows and endless internet blogs, and you soon understand how much of a national obsession the case was. Anyone with an interest in true crime will recognise how acute these observations are.

This deserves to be on everyone’s summer reading list – but before you think it’s all light and airy holiday reading be aware that the ending chilled me to my bones.

Mystery story about a murdered/missing girl - engaging and fascinating.

Cara abandons her family to go to a five-star Arizona resort to try to sort out her present predicament. There she stumbles upon a tale of a murdered girl, Melody of the title. Has she seen the girl - alive and well? Without giving too much away, the story involves kidnapping and the threat of violence.

The plot moves along well with character development at all stages. Definitely a thriller, this novel is an eye-opener as I have not read any of Sophie Hannah's work before. I found the book to be original, engaging and well-written but, on finishing it, I found the plot a bit too convoluted and hard to believe.

Absolutely loved this book, a real page turner and I didn't want to come to the end.

'Did you see Melody'? was sent to me pre-release by the publishers. It was actually a much more interesting book that I thought t first glance. The first few pages made me unsure whether I wanted to go further but I'm glad I did. It's a really good mixture of grown up chick-lit and thriller - not two genres you usually see mashed up together! There's the story of Cara who has left her family thousands of miles away to make a life-changing decision. There's Mrs McNair - a regular at the resort who has seen the same missing child a number of years running. There's Tarin and Zellie Fry, a hilarious mother/daughter combo who bring a different slant to the story. And then there's Melody - who was murdered by her parents years ago but keeps popping up in conversation.... a great read.

This was a DNF for me. I just found it too slow and even at 28% I felt I'd give it a good go but wasn't feeling the book at all. I wasn't keen on Sophie's writing style and maybe as this was my first book by her that was the issue. Its a shame as I'd read a lot of good reviews on her books and even this one, but it wasn't for me, sorry.

An unusual book with twist upon twist that will keep you guessing right until the end page. A parody of the American justice system and the true life trials by tv that abound in America.

Just what is the truth? Just where is Melody? Just who is telling the truth and was Cara really only collateral damage, an innocent bystander or is there more to that ? So many questions, so little time to detect the answers and a good rollicking whodunnit read.

This was a bit different for me but although interesting, a high degree of reality suspension needs to be undertaken in order to move through the far fetched plot!

This book is about Cara Burrows an English lady who takes herself on an extravagant holiday at a luxury resort in America to get away from her family for reasons that become clearer in the first couple of chapters in the book. Through a simple mistake of the receptionist of the resort she finds herself involved in the case of Melody Chapa. Melody Chapa is a girl who went missing several years ago and whose parents were jailed for her murder even though Melody's body has never been found.

I really did enjoy this story. The first few chapters concentrated on Cara's personal problems and a description of the resort. I really liked reading about the resort and about Cara. The American TV host in the book reminded me of Oprah Winfrey for some reason. There were several twists to this story, none of which I saw coming. I particularly thought that the ending was brilliant and it left me wanting to know more. I feel that this would be the perfect book to read on holiday.

This book is very different, i liked that it was set in America but had a UK input in the form of Cara. It started quite mysteriously but events started to unfold in a totally different manner. Quite complex at times with the different characters but totally readable.

really enjoyable book to read and easy to follow story line. look forward to reading more from this author.

I'm afraid I'm really not sure about this book, it was an enjoyable read, and a good premise for a novel, but I am really not sure it was carried off. I never really felt a sense of peril or threat to the characters despite the fact that kidnap, murder, child abduction, disappearance are all themes within it. A real shame that we didn't ever hear any of the story from a Melody view point.
Described as a psychological thriller I'm afraid it didn't live up to that description for me.
An enjoyable read though - quite funny at times.

After observing to the trickling tap of evidence and following the flow of the accidental intervention, I’m afraid to say I wasn’t entirely swept away by the torrent of intrigue I had been expecting.

The theme for this book IS a terrific idea. I can’t deny the mystery surrounding Melody and her distinctive toy called Poggy (half pig, half dog) captivated my attention because it did, very much so. I craved the answers, but I’m thoroughly ashamed to say I began skim reading to find them – which is something I never, ever do.

Whether that’s due to the pure combo of unfortunate coincidences from day one of Cara Burrows arrival at the five star Arizona resort, the punishingly long excerpts from TV reports, and the particularly annoying guest who morphed into an excitable amateur detective in the unofficial ‘Did You See Melody?’ investigation, I genuinely couldn’t say.

Let’s put such trifling details into perspective though, as this story has all the juicy ingredients of a compelling story line and the ending itself offers yet another intriguing puzzle to ponder – yep, I had to read the last couple of pages twice just so I could process it!

And yet this review is one of the more difficult I’ve ever tried to write. To be completely honest I’ve been in two minds whether to publish my thoughts on the blog after struggling to convey this book's positive / negative balance. On reflection I can only conclude it’s more a case of the reader (myself) clashing with the writing style rather than anything to do with the plot, as I’m more than happy to rate it a solid 3/5 well deserved stars for that alone.

What I’d really like to know is: have YOU seen Melody yet? I’d be interested to hear from anyone that has...