It took me a wee while to get into this book, the first few chapters felt more like a chick-lit than a suspense novel with the main character Cara upping sticks and going on holiday with the family savings after a disagreement with her husband and children.

The pace did pick up though after Cara is sent to the wrong hotel room, she thinks nothing much of the father and young girl in the room at the beginning until she then overhears another guest claiming she has seen a girl who was allegedly murdered by her parents years ago.

I must admit I did guess some of the plot but the big twist at the end took me by surprise a little.

As much as I enjoyed this story I think it would benefit from further editing and proof-reading. The TV transcripts were very confusing as some of them were in a fainter font than others which threw me off a bit. I also got a bit confused with the dialogue skipping between characters too.

I would like to thank Netgalley and Hodder & Stoughton for a review copy of this book.

I am puzzled as to how I review this book as I didn't love it and I didn't hate it. Some of the plot was so far fetched it was laughable. A hotel guest allowed in a meeting between local police officers and the FBI. and telling them what is what. Really??
I give it 3 stars for keeping my attention throughout but having just finished it I am in a 'what did I just read' place. *frown*

Fast paced and well written I really enjoyed this, I will be on the look out for more by this author, and will be recommending this one to my book group

This tale kept me enthralled right up to the end. A very readable story.

Cara Burrows is in hiding from her family. She has left the family home in Hertford England and has flown to a five star resort in Arizona USA. She is pregnant and neither her husband nor her two teenage children are happy. Whilst she is trying to think through her dilemma she is aware of a young girl who is staying in the resort with a man. She discovers that seven years ago a girl called Melody was supposedly killed by her parents. But Melody is the girl she has seen. A mystery and a personal dilemma. Is Cara right and if so what has happened. An interesting and unusual book. Recommended and see my full review on the Euro-Crime website.

An excellent book which maintains uncertainty through to its final pages. Cara, our narrator, needs to take a break from her husband and children. She travels to a remote Hotel in Arizona and unwittingly becomes involved in a mystery. Melody, a 7 year old child, disappeared and neither she nor her body has ever been found. Her parents were convicted of her murder with neighbours having been the only other suspects. Public interest in the case remains high with an aged guest at the Hotel claiming to have seen. Melody. But had see or is she just confused? The book weaves an intriguing path from Melody's disappearance until the present time. Other interested parties are introduced but are interventions always honourable and well intentioned? Beautifully written, the story is convincing and you are there.........right to the end.

I thoroughly enjoyed Did You See Melody? It's ostensibly a psychological thriller – which it does pretty well – but it also has a witty and rather penetrating take on US "justice-by-media" and other aspects of the differences between US and British culture.

The plot sounds fairly well-worn: Cara, an English mother has left her family to visit a luxurious spa in Arizona for a couple of weeks. On checking in, she sees someone who, it emerges, was declared to be murdered five years ago, although her body was never found. We get various, possibly unreliable, accounts of present-day events and of the circumstances of Melody's disappearance and the subsequent media and court trials. Cara comes under threat and around half-way through events begin to move in fast and frightening ways.

Frankly, the plot is…well, improbable, shall we say. However, Hannah writes so well and with such wit that I didn't mind that. Her picture of an ordinary Englishwoman pitched into extremes of American luxury and customer service is well observed and funny, Cara herself is made believable and there are two fabulous creations in a monstrous, ruthless, egocentric TV "justice-show" host and a pushy, rude fellow guest whom I ended up liking a lot. Hannah paints excellent portraits, sometimes in just a few neat words, like "…the blond, goodlooking one, made considerably less attractive by his air of seeming pleased with himself for no apparent reason."

There is more than a hint of tongue-in-cheek here, but Hannah still makes her points very well and presents us with a very cleverly structured and well-written story. I was very happy to suspend my disbelief for the duration and I found this an enjoyable read from a very good writer. Recommended.

(I received an ARC via NetGalley.)

I just eat up everything by Sophie Hannah. You can trust her for a book that will grab you immediately and not let you concentrate on anything else.

Cara finds herself unexpectedly pregnant when she, her husband, and her children, thought that their family was complete.

She realises that she needs time away from her family and her life to think about what this new child would mean for her.

And so withdraws a significant part of their savings and books a 2 week  retreat in Arizona. She tells no-one where she is going but gives a date to her family of when she will be back.

The 5 star Arizona resort is luxurious beyond her expectations, and when she is accidentally booked into an already occupied room – she barges in and gives the occupants, a father and daughter, quite a shock – she is upgraded.

Then the mystery of Melody begins to play out. Cara becomes obsessed with finding out the trial details and aided by an American mother and daughter she begins an investigation at the resort as she, seems to have been threatened and is very curious about the father and daughter she saw.

The investigation brings unintended consequences for many people and the book’s final page leaves you wondering just what is the truth? And who is telling the story of Melody? And why?

Read carefully and don’t skip anything because you might miss something important.

I started off my recent holiday with this book, I had in fact been saving it for a while. Wow, what a read. This will be huge! Just blew me away.
A psychological thriller with a difference. So well written, twists and turns but from another angle.
One to highly recommend. My thanks to the publisher & NetGalley for the advance reader copy

Brilliant book by one of my favourite authors. Twisty, turny, perfect for psychological thriller lovers.

I really enjoyed this book and it kept my attention from start to finish. Cara Burrows goes off for 2 weeks to a luxury five star resort, leaving her husband and children behind in England and a note telling them where she has gone.

When she arrives at her room it is already occupied and the hotel staff quickly change her room and upgrade her . During her stay Cara overhears a few conversations of other guests and wonders about the occupants in her original room - the rumour is that one of the occupants is a girl thought previously murdered. There are lots of twists and turns and a confusing number of characters but a good and enjoyable read

My first experience of Sophie Hannah's writing, and it definitely will not be the last! This really drew me in, from the very first page, and I was hooked! A fantastic read for holiday, or just because you like to read!

I loved Did You See Melody. I’m ashamed to say that this is the first novel by Sophie Hannah that I have read but I will definitely be reading her other novels and I can now say that I am a big fan of her writing. Did You See Melody is a fast paced one sitting read, once you start you won’t be able to stop.

Cara Burrows arrives in the middle of the night at a five star resort in Arizona. She has left her family behind in England and has come to America to help herself make an important decision about her marriage. But when she is sent to the wrong room upon her arrival at the hotel she has no idea how this will impact on her stay at the resort. As she settles into her new surroundings she comes across a seven year old mystery that still haunts America. A young girl went missing in 2010, her parents were charged for her murder but the young girl, Melody Chapa was never found. And now there have been three sightings of her at the resort where Cara is staying and Cara is convinced that she has seen her. Is it possible that she could still be alive?

I started reading this book on a Saturday morning and by the end of the day I had read 210 pages. I nearly missed my stop on the train because I didn’t want to stop reading. Sophie Hannah grabs you by the throat and doesn’t let you go until you have turned the final page. I had to know what happened to the missing girl Melody Chapa and why, seven years after her disappearance, people were seeing her around the resort spa where Cara was staying.

I really engaged with the characters in this book. I understood Cara’s need to come to America, even if her decision making did seem a little rash, sometimes we all just need space to ourselves to breathe. There were some quirky characters too which added lightness to the book; this was particularly the case when Cara was getting to know the resort and as she became familiar with the other guests who were staying there.
There is suspense on every page of this book, from the moment that Cara arrives in America to the final, dramatic conclusion. It is psychological thriller writing at its very best.

An excellent read, one I’m sure will be a big hit this summer, perfect for sitting round the pool with on holiday. Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for providing me with a copy to read.

I was pleasantly surprised with this book as never reading any of sophie Hannah's novels before and because now that I've discovered her I am going to.
This book I found was quite funny at times found myself giggling as I was expecting a dark thriller which in a way is good because it breaks it up it was very gripping I loved the the whole story line and all in all the book was a proper page turner where I could not put it down if I'd have wanted to love it when you get a book like that .

I have read books from this author before and this wasnt a disappointment! brilliant twist....loved it!

This is the 2nd book I have read by author Sophie Hannah the previous one been the Agatha Christie
style novel and I have to say I enjoyed this one more.
The main character Cara Burrows goes to Arizona on a spur of the moment holiday without telling her family to try and deal with her family problems. On her arrival she is taken to her room where she finds it occupied by a man and a teenager. The next day, after overhearing another conversation she realises the teenager might have been Melody Chapa whose parents are in jail for her murder. Her parents were convicted of her murder, despite her body never being found. There have been several sightings of Melody over the years but these were mostly ignored, but did Cara really see Melody?

I found this book very enjoyable and well worth a read.

I would like to thank both Net Galley and Hodder & Stoughton for supplying a copy of this novel in exchange for an honest review.

The first thing this book did was hit me with a large dose of holiday envy. It then took me on a mind bending journey that still had me guessing right till the end. Sophie Hannah is an exceptional writer and 'Did you see Melody?' Is a brilliant example of this. I was riveted right till the end and have been left wanting more from a jaw dropping ending. Bravo. 👏🏻

Thank you NetGalley, Hodder & Stoughton

I started reading this book thinking it was a "girlie" book of a woman getting away from her husband and finding herself. Whilst it might have started a little like that, it soon developed into a mystery. Just who is Melody and why should Cara care.
I enjoyed this story and would love to visit a resort like Swallowtail Spa.

OMG goosebumps on goosebumps. Hooked scared, enthralled... all of them in one marathon reading session.