Thanks Netgalley and the Publisher. Sorry my review is late. She's Not There" was a very enjoyable read that was easy to follow and had a decent storyline which kept my attention from start to finish.

Caroline Shipley went to Mexico to celebrate her tenth anniversary with her husband Hunter and their two children, Michelle who was a precocious toddler and the baby Samantha, about a year old. Her husband even surprised her by having their friends and her brother join them to celebrate. So, everything seems perfect until their babysitter cancels and Caroline and Hunter can’t attend their own anniversary dinner. Caroline wants to skip the dinner, but Hunter is insistent that they will just be downstairs and will check on the girls every half hour. Reluctantly, Caroline gives in, but to her horror, when she goes up to check, baby Samantha is missing. Thus begins the real drama of the book. Caroline refuses to give up hope that she will find her missing daughter. When the current story begins, it is fifteen years later, the reporters are covering the story again, and Caroline is still seeking answers. The denouement of the story is unbelievable but so realistically portrayed that it is almost as if the reader is there, with Caroline and holding her hand, walking with her through the unimaginable tale of what really happened to Samantha. Joy Fielding will not disappoint with her gripping story of a mother’s love that won’t give up hope.

I have come quite late to Joy Fieldings books but I’m pleased to see that others are also now only just discovering her, with many reviews saying that She’s Not There is the first book by this author that reviewer has read. And I bet it won’t be the last one they read either as this is a wonderfully suspenseful missing child mystery with an unexpected depth of characterisation that must certainly win Joy Fielding many more fans!

Anyone reading She’s Not There can’t help but notice a similarity to the Madeleine McCann case. Away at a luxury resort in Mexico for their 10th wedding anniversary, Hunter and Caroline leave their two young daughters alone in their hotel room after a babysitter lets them down. Whilst they have a meal with their friends and family at a restaurant on the terrace, within sight of their room, they take turns to check on the kids every 30 minutes. But at 10pm when Caroline returns from their anniversary celebrations their youngest daughter, two year old Samantha, has vanished. Fifteen years later, Caroline and Hunters marriage hasn’t survived the devastation of losing their perfect child and Caroline’s relationship with her other daughter Michelle is difficult and distant. But a phone call is about to bring them all back together even if they aren’t all about to agree on how to handle this new information. But it may answer the question of what really happened to Samantha all those years ago….

Although I loved the suspense angle of the missing two year old here and found the flashbacks absolutely heartbreaking, what really drew me into this book was the mother daughter relationship between Caroline and Michelle and that between Caroline and her own mother Mary. I can’t imagine what it must have been like for Caroline to lose her child but found her attitude towards her other daughter difficult to understand. It hadn’t followed the overprotective path I had expected and I felt so sad that by losing one daughter she seemed to have lost her other somewhere along the line too. And poor Michelle with her survivor guilt was left with so many issues that I felt such a huge wave of sympathy for her! I have no idea how families who have faced these terrible circumstances manage to stay sane as the awful events of their loss must be with them every second of every day. Joy Fielding has managed to convey that pain that never goes away, alongside the media suspicion surrounding the family, in a gripping storyline that you become completely wrapped up in whilst desperate to discover the truth about that night.

I read this in one sitting, hooked from page one and unable to put it down. It’s the definitive page turner, beautifully written and deftly plotted whilst maintaining a heart-thumping level of tension throughout! I absolutely loved it from start to finish!

This is a new author for me. I loved this book. It made compelling reading right from the start. Caroline's daughter Samantha, aged 2 was snatched 15 years ago while the family were having a meal in the restaurant in the hotel. The media have regularly condemned Caroline for poor parenting and even accused her of her daughter's murder down the years. 15 years later the couple are estranged. Caroline is a Maths teacher and Michelle, their eldest daughter is very prickly, emotionally challenging and flits between both families. She and Caroline have a tempestuous, fractured relationship. Out of the blue there is a phone call that changes everything.....There are lots of twists and turns. I look forward to reading more from this author. I shall add this review to Amazon and my blog. Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for the pleasure of reading this book..

This was a very well-written book. I could picture the anguish the parents went through when their daughter was taken because it was described so well. The author caught all the nuances of sibling rivalry and even a parent who seemed to push her children to fight for her affection and attention. The characters are all somewhat flawed, and this is portrayed so well

I was drawn in by the plot, and little tidbits of information that were doled out here and there. It was difficult putting the book down and I devoured it in two days, which is a bit faster than I usually read books.

The only things I was disappointed by was the swearing—I never feel it’s needed to show a character’s feelings—actions work so much better, and the sex which wasn’t necessary at all. There are authors who write bestsellers who never feel the need to throw in elements like that. Why turn away readers?

A story straight out of the headlines (Madeline McCann), this book starts strong and hooks the reader from the first page. What really happened to Samantha?? Fielding does a great job of fleshing out her characters. The story slowly unfolds as we move back and forth between past and present, keeping the reader flipping pages to find out the final outcome.

I have been reading Joy Fielding's novels since I picked up Kiss Mommy Goodbye. I think I was in my mid-teens when I read this book for the first time. I remember the cover was very 1980s and I think I first picked it up because it was so terrible looking. I read the synopsis and it drew me - a divorced mother lets her children go away for the weekend with their father but soon realizes she may not see them again. I remember starting it on a Saturday morning and being sucked in for the rest of the day. I read a few more of her novels but it was in 2002 that I started back up with Fielding's books. I was in University at the time and had a day where my courses were 6 hours apart but not worth going back home. I would study but I needed a break where my mind needed some fun reading. I remember wandering the stacks of fiction and literature in awe of how many books I had not read...yet. (More about my University library wanderings in another post.)

I came upon an author I had not read in awhile...Joy Fielding. The books the library had did not have jacket covers for hardcovers. Often I picked a book based on title. I can't remember what book I started with but after finishing it I started to read everything written by Fielding I could get my hands on. I reread the ones I first read in my teens as I could not remember the details. Each book I read left an impression on me as Fielding is great with psychological suspense. Whispers and Lies is my favourite to date as it left me speechless for a few days. Then I got to The Wild Zone and I could not finish the novel without major skimming. I was left bewildered to the point I did not pick up another Fielding book for 5 years (2 books in between). I was afraid I had overdosed on Fielding and now my tolerance was not the same. Last year I took a deep breath and tried Fielding's new book, Someone is Watching and I enjoyed it but still lacked a little suspense for me. This year when I saw there was a new Fielding book I knew I had to try again...



SHE'S NOT THERE
Joy Fielding
FEBRUARY 23, 2016; 368 Pages
Genre: mystery, suspense, psychological

★★★★

(I received an ARC from the NETGALLEY in exchange for an honest review.)

Caroline Shipley's husband, Hunter surprises her with an anniversary trip to Mexico with their two daughters, her brother and his wife, her best friend and her husband plus Hunter's business friend and his wife. When their babysitter does not show up Hunter talks Caroline into going to dinner anyway with them checking on their daughters every 30 minutes. As they have dinner in the hotel restaurant they take turns checking on the girls and when they head up for the night they relaize their baby daughter, Samantha is missing.

Fifteen years later...Caroline has suffered not just by losing her daughter and not knowing if she is even alive, but by having reporters hound her every year over the kidnapping. She has lost her husband, she can't seem to get through to her other daughter, she cannot trust people or make new friends. As she gears up for another year of reliving Samantha's disappearance she receives a phone call from a young girl who thinks she may be Samantha and leads Caroline to more questions. As everyone else tells her its a hoax she cannot help but explore the possibility her daughter is back even if it ruins her world further.

Wow, this book had me from the start and the emotional kick this novel has is intense. I have to admit this was a book I stayed up till 1am reading. I had to know if Lily was Samantha and what happened to Samantha either way. I am not a mother but I have nieces and nephews and my bestie is pregnant with a girl so the premise of this story is definitely one of my worst nightmares. And, having been lost a few times I understand that feeling of blind panic. Not that you need any experience as Fielding delivers on emotional and psychological aspect of this suspense thriller. She's Not There reminds me of a vintage Fielding novel and I am excited again...and the two books I missed in those 5 years are getting read this year, count on.

I think in the coming month I may do some reviews of Joy Fielding's books as I would recommend her novels to any mystery fan. And, she's Canadian (who also lives in Florida!) If you have read all of Joy Fielding's novels please try Mary Higgins Clark, Wendy Corsi Staub, Harlan Coben's standalone novels, Linwood Barclay's standalone novels and Carleen Thompson.

k (My Novelesque Life)

As a treat for their wedding anniversary, Hunter has taken Caroline and their two children, Michelle and Samantha off to Mexico for a holiday. A nice relaxing romantic week with kids club and babysitters to look after the children. All goes well until the final evening, when tragedy strikes and lives are changed forever.
The story is told mainly from Caroline’s point of view, moving back and forward from the present to the time when Samantha was taken and the years that followed. This is done wonderfully well, giving us little snippets and ideas to what could have happened. It’s a real guessing game and quite intense at points.
She’s Not There is a very character driven story. In the beginning we get a good feel for the characters and they are very realistic. By the time I got maybe halfway through I felt like I knew the characters personally which really set my emotions off. The author has done a fabulous job of  showing how each character has changed over the years and how the awful disappearance of a child has changed the relationships between many of the characters.
The second half of the book is a bit more action packed and tense. I was turning the pages so fast, if it had been a paper copy I think it would have went on fire. I was desperate to know what the heck really happened in Mexico and blooming heck what an ending it has. I really didn’t guess how it was going to play out at all.
She’s Not There is an edge of your seat kind of read, it had me totally engrossed from page one. Joy Fielding has written a story where the words just flow over the pages and totally draw you in hook , line and sinker. This being the first book I have read by this author I will definitely be having a look to see what other books I have been missing out on and highly recommend She’s Not There, it’s a cracker.

Books featuring missing children seem to the topic of choice at the moment and is very much the central theme in this story which revolves around a young toddler Samantha being abducted from a hotel room whilst her parents, Hunter and Caroline, were out having an anniversary dinner nearby with friends.

Told mainly from the viewpoint of Caroline, the story flips back and forth between the time of the holiday and abduction, the intervening years to the current date, as events unfold and we learn how the relationships suffered, particularly that of Caroline and her now ex-husband and her twenty-year-old daughter Michelle, and friendships strained following that fateful night fifteen years ago. But what really did happen to Samantha?

Reading this book felt so realistic and so similar to a well-known case here in the UK but, whereas we still don't know what really happened to that child, in She's Not There we do get to a dramatic conclusion that I totally didn't see coming. From about the 150 page mark I literally could not put my Kindle down until I'd reached the dramatic conclusion of this story and the truth was finally revealed and who was involved. I thought the story was heading in one direction but then it took me in a totally different jaw-dropping direction which is testament to the writing skills of the author.

Joy Fielding was a new author to me but having had a look on Amazon I can see she has quite a back catalogue so it looks like my TBR pile is going to be added to over the next couple of years.

I love books that grip you from the very first page and keeps your attention throughout! Caroline’s daughter disappeared in Mexico when she was only 2 years old, stolen right from her hotel room crib, now 15 years later Caroline receives a phone call from a young girl who thinks she may be her lost daughter. Is this for real or a truly sadistic hoax? Highly recommended this intriguing and addictive read!

I loved this book! Caroline is a woman to whom the unthinkable happened fifteen years ago. Her 2 year old daughter Samantha was taken from her crib at a resort in Mexico while "her parents cavorted with friends". The press was not kind to her, citing everything from her clothes to her composure. Every five years the press dredges up the cold case on its anniversary. This year is different. Caroline receives a call from Lili in Canada who thinks she may be Samantha. Told in alternating chapters set in the present as she deals with Lili and the past as she dealt with the kidnapping and its effect on her marriage and her life the book presents a compelling heroine in Caroline as she struggles to be what everyone thinks she should be. I don't want to give any spoilers but the ending was unexpected to me. Read it. I think you will enjoy it.

Thanks to Netgalley for my copy. 3.5 stars

Caroline is still being targeted by the press 15 years after her toddler daughter vanished from their hotel room in a Mexican luxury resort. Obviously there are similarities to the kidnapping of Madeleine McCann.

The family has been torn apart by the disappearance, divorced and with a rebellious older daughter, Caroline is tortured by guilt and shame. When the phone rings and a girl claiming to be the missing Samantha it is all dredged up again.

As the story progresses and the full horror and betrayal unfolds Caroline is thrown into a maelstrom of emotions. This was an interesting read and I can't imagine the horror that a parent of a kidnapped child must feel.

This book held my attention and I wanted to find out the conclusion. However it didn't wow me and I found several of the characters lacking.

This suspense novel keeps you turning the pages. A missing child, a family guessing, it will keep you up reading!

The Shipley family have been torn apart. 15 years ago 2 year old Samantha was taken from their hotel room in Mexico while her parents celebrate their 10th wedding anniversary with friends at the hotels restaurant.

Just before the 15th anniversary they receive a call from a girl claiming to be Samantha. The family struggle in their own ways to come to terms with this and wonder if at long last it could be true.

This was a great book, an easy and quick read that is hard to put down. The characters were not perfect... far from it and that made it all the more real. I will be looking to read more books by Joy Fielding. Thank you to Netgalley and Bonnier Zaffer for a copy of this book to read and review. All opinions in this review are my own.

When I read the book description of ‘She’s Not There’ I knew this was a book I wanted to read. I love thrillers, and after all those Romance novels I was definitely in need of a good thriller.

In ‘She’s Not There’ we meet the Shipley family. Caroline, Hunter and their two young daughters seems like your perfect American family. When Caroline and Hunter are celebrating their ten year anniversary, they take their family on a vacation in a beautiful resort in Mexico. Everything seems great. But then their two year old daughter Samantha disappears without a trace from her bed in the resort. And fifteen years later, everything is changed for Caroline.

‘She’s Not There’ is an easy to read book. The writing is good to follow and makes you want to keep on reading. I for one didn’t want to stop reading from the very first page. My mind kept going almost by it’s own. Where is Samantha? How could she have disappeared? I had a lot of questions and I needed to have them answered. Joy Fielding definitely did a good job in keeping me hooked.

The chapters in ‘She’s Not There’ change from fifteen years ago to the present. And this was something I definitely enjoyed. It just had an extra charm and fascination to it. Being able to read what happened years ago and how much life had changed now, really made this into an even better read.

The funny thing is, which made this read very interesting even now when I’ve finished it, is that I didn’t like almost all the characters. Yes, that right. And this isn’t something that happens a lot to me. Caroline was kind, but really could have been a little stronger and a lot tougher. There were lots of moments in this book I was yelling at her to just tell her oldest daughter to behave. Caroline’s oldest daughter Michelle? Horrible. Horrible as a kid but even more as a teen. Man I disliked that girl. I even yelled at her, which made for a very funny scene when my husband wondered if I was going crazy. And then Hunter? Blegh.. I hate man like him. And don’t even start about the grandmother!

But even though I didn’t really like the characters, this book kept me hooked from the beginning till the end. It wasn’t as thrilling as I thought it would be. I had a pretty good idea about what was going to happen early on. But still, this book was a very nice read and I enjoyed it.

She's not there by Joy Fielding kept me guessing and held my attention throughout the book. I liked that all the characters were well developed and not cookie-cutter types but felt real, warts and all, I enjoyed this book immensely. Thank you to the publisher and netgalley for this arc in exchange for an honest review.

If you forgot about the kidnapping of Madeleine McCann this book will bring it all back to you. There is differences between the two but there are similarities too. The child that is kidnapped is in Mexico rather than Portugal. The little girl is two years old and is kidnapped while her parents are having dinner close by.
Just like the real life case the parents are blamed for the kidnapping.
I flew through this book because I couldn't wait to see how it turned out. I don't know if I would read this if I had small children because it is such a scary incident.

Random House Publishing Group - Ballantine and NetGalley provided me with an electronic copy of this book, which I reviewed in March of 2016. Bonnier Zaffre has given me the opportunity to revisit this book, as it is being published in Europe in December of 2017. I was under no obligation to review this book and my opinion is freely given.

After 15 years, Caroline Shipley is still being hounded by the press because her two year old daughter Samantha went missing from her crib at a resort hotel. A shocking phone call around the anniversary of Samantha's alleged kidnapping leaves Caroline with a confusing mix of emotions: skepticism, hope, grief, and anger. Without knowing who to trust, the only thing that Caroline knows for certain is that the truth must finally be told. Although her daughter Michelle and ex-husband Hunter are not supportive of her quest for answers, Caroline is steadfastly determined to know the truth.

This psychological suspense novel kept me guessing until the very end. Although a more linear approach would have had more of an impact, with the constant time shifts pulling too much focus away, the story kept me captivated until the shocking conclusion. She's Not There features a strong premise, well developed characters, and a great plot. The fact that Caroline alone, not Hunter, was vilified, in both the press and the job market, did not seem to be a realistic possibility. Her family and friends would have been able to recount how worried Caroline was to leave the children alone, so that they all could enjoy an anniversary dinner at the restaurant just outside. I have been a fan of Joy Fielding's books for many years and I rank this one right near the top as one of my favorites. Readers who enjoy psychological suspense/thrillers will not be disappointed with She's Not There.

A 15 year long nightmare

I've been a big fan of author Fielding's books for a long time and SHE'S NOT THERE is a new favorite of mine.

Caroline Shipley's husband, Hunter, took her and their two young daughters to Mexico 15 years ago to celebrate their 10th anniversary. There ends up being a crowd there to celebrate and one night they leave their young daughters sleeping in their room while they go right outside for their anniversary dinner. And the very worst happens - two year-old Samantha disappears without a trace.

The story alternates between current day and 15 years ago and the transitions are handled quite well.

The story is mainly about Caroline Shipley and how horribly she suffered - divorce, media persecution, persecution by law enforcement, and the worst dysfunctional family ever. She gets a call one day from a girl claiming to be Samantha and the story proceeds from there.

There were a lot of characters I disliked including Caroline for part of the book. She's got a Mommy Dearest mother, a bum of a brother, a snarky teen daughter, an ex philanderer husband and the list actually goes on.

But the story was well written. It kept my interest all the way through to the final page. And it had enough twists and turns in it that I didn't figure out whodunit until it was spelled out to me at the end of the story.

I highly recommend this book to lovers of mysteries, thrillers, and family dramas.

NOTE: I received this book from Bonnier Zaffre through Net Galley in exchange for my honest review.

Joy Fielding writes great books about complex relationships - and she has done it again. I hate to give away the plot or ruin any of the story so I will simply say, pick up this book and submerge yourself is this psychological thriller that will keep you guessing to the end!!!