Member Reviews

This is a great mystery crime thriller.
Nine people go missing from a village one night and there’s no trace of them.
David Raker is approached by the relatives of the missing people a couple of years later, and asked to help find out what happened.
Raker starts digging into their lives but at first cannot understand how they could all just disappear.
The story then moves to California thirty years earlier, with Detective Jo Kader trying to find a murderer.
The two stories eventually link up and what follows is an action packed ending to both stories.
Thanks to Penguin UK-Michael Joseph and NetGalley for the opportunity to read this book.

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No One Home is due for release tomorrow and I highly recommend it.
In the past I've read a few Tim Weaver books featuring David Raker, and throughly enjoyed them. However, I've missed out on reading the couple before No One Home ... rest assured that, although probably best to read in order, Weaver very skillfully sketches in enough of a backstory to fill in pertinent information. No One Home read perfectly well as a standalone.

The fact that No One Home is set in Yorkshire, visiting Keighley, York, Skipton and Bradford is an added bonus for me as an honorary Bradfordian. The bleak moorish settings, the haunging Marie Celeste type village and the relatives' grief are palpable.

I love the concept of a PI focussing on finding missing persons and that is what David Raker has focussed his entire career on. Raker is one of those nuanced characters whose dogged perseverance is juxtaposed by his empathy. When he's enlisted to investigate the enigmatic disappearance of an entire village, Raker's first instinct is to breathe in the essence of the deserted village, the diappeared people's homes and the surrounding area.

Whilst Raker delves deeper into the mystery of the disappeared families, he is aware of avery real and present threat. As his investigation leads him back in time to the late 1980's and another disappearance, Raker struggles to link the two investigations.

Meanwhile, a dual narrative takes us to 1980's Los Angeles where, a female homicide detective is not only battling the innate sexism within the department, but is also investigating the case that just won't let her go ... that unsolved one that she keeps revisiting ... the one that haunts her dreams and steals her thoughts.

So .. what links the two narratives?

This is a tricksy, twisty novel with characters that keep you guessing and two plotlines that are equally compleeing . Weaver has that knack of using few words wisely and it is that skill that had me completely hooked. Whilst reading the Raker narrative, I didn't want it to end and whilst reading the LA narratives, I din't want those to end either. So, this was one of these books that you just sail through. The pages kept turning and I read it in no time.

The ending was explosive on so many levels and although completely satisifed, i now find myself wishing that David Raker Book 11 was sitting in my kindle. However, I know from the crumbs dropped so tantalisingly that there will be a Raker Book 11 in the future.

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Nine people go missing from a remote village. No trace is found, no clues, no signs. Two and a half years later David Raker is approached by the relatives who ask if he will investigate as the official police investigation had stalled some time ago. Understanding how the family’s need answers he takes on the case, delving into each of their lives to try and solve the mystery. The story then bizarrely switches to California some thirty years earlier and follows Detective Jo Kader as she tries to solve an unusual murder. As each part of the story unfolds both Raker and Jo find themselves in difficult and dangerous situations that has the reader as desparate for answers as they are. This gripping, dramatic book instills fear and trepidation with many twists and a finale that makes me want to read the next in the series right now. A good, long read that reels you in with a great storyline and believable characters.

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I was hooked from the beginning. It was a dark read which had lots of twists and turns. Didn't want it to finish.

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# No One Home # Netgally
A pretty awesome book, and extra intriguing for a entire community to go missing, no matter how small of a community it is. At first when I actually read the synopsis I was not too sure. However once I started the book I was hooked very early on into it. I do recommend the book its a genuinely good book, the only thing I think could have been better for me personally and that was to have read the other books. I all in all I will have to go back and read from number 1 being honest it's not the first time I have come across a book in a series that no matter what number I read. If that book as really caught my attention in a big way like this one did. I do go back to read the others that came before. I have done this about 3 to 4 times now. where some I have spread so many books into a series and not gone back to read the rest. This series I definitely will be going back to number one and read in order. That's says in itself how God the book is. Highly recommended

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I was drawn to this book by the premise of an abandoned village and to start with, this premise was very good. How can the whole of a village just disappear one night and no trace ever be found? But this was such a long and drawn out story and even now I’ve finished it I’m not sure what the conclusion was.
There were 2 different stories in 2 different eras in this book which you know are going to tie up at the end but they take a long time to get there.
So I’m slightly disappointed that this wasn’t more of a thrilling read

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I loved the blurb for this book, sounded very much like an Agatha Christie. What happened to the residents of Black Gale that Halloween?

The investigation led by David Raker takes the reader on a powerful journey with many twists and turns.

I will read more by this author.

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This is the first book I have read in this series and it was ok for a stand-alone. I liked the premise and thought it unique but that said it started well but slowed right down for a good part in the middle and the way it ended for me was far fetched and confusing and left me feeling not all was explained . Thanks to Netgalley and the publisher for the chance to review it

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The premise of this book really intrigued me - a whole village of people goes missing overnight. It sounded spooky and strange. The village turns out to be more of a hamlet (nine people), but that’s still compelling.

I’ve read one David Raker book in the past and I do think the author does a great job of making each one feel like a stand alone. You might occasionally wonder if you’re missing the thriller equivalent of an in-joke, but the novel is self contained and can be enjoyed whether or not you’ve read the others.

David Raker is hired to look into the mysterious disappearance of the residents of Black Gale, but in the end his investigation leads him in quite a different direction and the missing villagers become almost secondary. It works as a gripping opening to a more typical mystery/thriller. It does have good elements and I was keen to find out what happened, but I expected more of it to be about the missing village.

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This book had me hooked from the beginning. The whole storyline gripped me. Why would eight middle aged to elderly people, and one teenager, all go off together, leaving an empty village? If they were kidnapped, again why all nine?

Loved it enough to stay up late to finish it.

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I haven't come across Mr Weaver's books before, but he has just found a new fan!
A long, labyrinthine tale of twisted plots and people which cleverly brings together various strands and solves the disappearance of 9 neighbours, but leaves a loose end to have his readers waiting impatiently for the next book! I think I will use that time to catch up on the past history of David Raker.
Thank you to netgalley and Michael Joseph for an advance copy of this book

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I am a fan of Tim Weaver and have read some of the previous books featuring David Raker, so was really looking forward to reading his latest.

I liked the premise of this story and it started really well, did find it a little confusing at first when we went back in time, and also went to a different country but it did eventually all fit together. I do find it a little unbelievable that police would just give up looking for 9 people who went missing, but sometimes you have to suspend reality when reading fiction!

I enjoyed the book, but to be honest guessed who the protagonist was, I was also slightly puzzled at the ending which seemed to end, then you turned the page and you find it has gone back a few days/weeks who knows. I didn't think that bit made sense, and for a book which was quite drawn out, seemed to end abruptly.

On the whole a good read, but not the best one.

Would recommend

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Brilliant. Tim Weaver really knows how to write a gripping thriller. There are so many layers to this story and every part of the story is brilliantly written. The pieces slot into place as the story continues. This book had me gripped the whole way through. There are twists and shocks. The characters are really good and kept me reading. I hope the next book comes out soon.

Thank you to Netgalley for my copy.

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Three years previously the nine inhabitants of a small, new-build village go missing on Hallowe’en evening. No clues are left, the houses are left neat and tidy; the neighbours had been all together for an evening dinner. The official police investigation has ground to a halt. Then, missing persons investigator David Raker, on the request of Ross Perry the son of one of the missing couples, arrives to try and solve the mystery.

Parallel to this tale, we meet Joline Kader, a LA police detective whose story begins in the 1980s where she is making her way in a sexist working environment at the time of the LA ‘Night Stalker’, an horrific serial killer. She is kept well away from this case and is given less ‘important’ investigations; her work easily dismissed and disregarded by her superiors, to her frustration. Everything else pales in the excess and horror of the Night Stalker’s work…

This book became an absolutely obsessive read for me – a fascinating story and so chilling at times I could barely move while reading! The plot moves fast and eventually the link between the 2 investigators becomes clear. The story doesn’t end when you suspect it will either, more horror keeps coming! - There’s a truly chilling perp, and a totally compelling tale.

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Tim Weaver has an incredible talent for drawing you in from the first page and refusing to let you go until you have turned over the last. This is the latest in the David Raker – Missing Persons series. It plays out nicely as a standalone but if you haven’t read any of the previous novels in the series I wouldn’t mind betting that you will seek them out to find out more about David Raker.

The nine residents of the very isolated Black Gale have gathered for a dinner party on Halloween, they are good friends as well as neighbours. The following morning they have vanished without trace. The police can find no explanation for the disappearances and the case has gone cold. Two years later, Raker’s attention is drawn to the case and he starts to dig into the lives of all the residents of Black Gale. Are they dead or alive? How can so many people disappear during the course of one evening?

In parallel to Raker’s investigations, we step back to 1985 where Jo Kader is the only female homicide detective working for the Los Angeles Sheriff's Department, where she has to battle discrimination and misogyny. It was at that time that The Night Stalker (a true case) was terrorising Los Angeles and all police resources were poured into tracking down this killer. Jo’s own investigation into a death in an acid bath and an apparent suicide is shut down by her superiors but she has never given up trying to resolve what she believes is not a closed case. How can incidents America in the 1980s be linked to disappearances in the UK so many years later? Well that’s the very clever bit and you’ll have to read the novel to find out.

This is an expertly told novel with an excellent premise and plenty of layers and twists. David Raker and Jo Kader are authentic and believable characters. The tension and pace of the narrative are skilfully handled and I thought the ending was excellent. I do like a bit of unfinished business and I wonder what book number eleven will bring.

This is a must for lovers of the crime and thriller genre.

Thank you to NetGalley and Michael J Books for an ARC in exchange for an honest review.

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I haven't come across this series of books before, but it works as a stand alone read. The story concerns a Halloween party, where 9 residents get together to enjoy a party. They are all good friends and live in Black Gale, a close of houses. By the following morning, all these residents have vanished overnight,leaving no trace whatsoever . Their phones have not been used, and no money has been withdrawn from relevant bank accounts.
Robert Raker is a missing person investigator and is asked to find answers. Running in tandem with this story is a murder mystery set in America about a suicide/ murder investigation. Jo Kader, is a lovely detective, fighting against sexism in 1980's L.A. and it does make uncomfortable reading for all of us females that experienced such treatment back then. She is a strong, determined character, who finds out that you really can't have it all, it's job or career.
I liked this book, but didn't love it. It was a thriller, but very wordy, everything was over explained in great detail, that really wasn't necessary . I found that by the middle of this book, I started to get annoyed by this, it started to lose pace and became lack lustre. It became too contrived and too neatly tied up, the ending was slightly deflating and so convenient for the story. The two cases seemed to collide rather clumsily, and seemed a lot of work just to discover a murderer. Not my cup of tea this time.

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I haven’t read any Tim Weaver before, and it wasn’t stated when I requested this title that it was in an established series which was annoying. I wouldn’t have requested it if I had known, but this story can be read as a stand-alone, albeit there are things that are referenced & ongoing storylines that have come from previous books. Due to this I didn’t personally care about the drama with Healy & the journalist who is trying to do a story on Raker.

The most interesting parts of the book for me were Jo Kader's, a lot of the rest I feel could have been edited out - there is an awful lot of explaining every little thing, & I feel like the plot was so convoluted, whereas the initial premise for the book was interesting enough without going that far to make things as shocking as possible.

My initial feelings after finishing this book were that it's very male dominated, & it felt like the writing was aimed more towards making it into a film or tv series rather than just enjoying the story for what it is. The ending also really annoyed me, the jumps back & forth in time (not across the LA/Raker sections, just within the final section) weren’t difficult to follow but felt awkward, & the fake out of thinking someone’s dead, then they’re not, then they possible are was just infuriating to me.

I’m sure if you’re a fan of Weaver or this series you will enjoy it, but I’m afraid it just wasn’t for me,

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I really liked the idea of the premise of this book, so I decided to give an unknown (to me) author a go, and I wasn’t disappointed.
This story gripped me right from the beginning; what had happened to the residents of Black Gale? I had expected a slight preview into their lives before they disappeared and I was expecting to be there with them on Halloween but to turn a chapter and them be gone. However, the story starts off with them already missing, and David Raker is starting an investigation two and a half years after their disappearance.
I really enjoyed how the investigation unfolded, and nothing was kept from us the readers. We were watching it develop and finding out things as Raker did. I saw the massive twist, but only as Raker figured it out, it really did feel like I was there alongside him as his sidekick!
It was really well-written, had lots of hooks to keep you reading just another chapter before going to sleep! The characters were likeable, and you really worried when any peril was about to befall them.
The only thing that let this book down for me, but won’t be a problem for many, was the fact that it was book ten of the David Raker series. It doesn’t say this on NetGalley, which is a massive bugbear of mine. I did feel like I had missed out on a lot as so much has contributed to his career, his insecurities and relationships with other present characters. All of these events must have happened in previous books, so although the story of Black Gale is stand-alone, that of David Raker is not. No matter how much the premise gripped me I wouldn’t have requested it had I known it was book ten! This was, however, a minor inconvenience and I did still, luckily, enjoy this book. So much so that I am going to have to go back and read the previous nine books.

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Where has Tim Weaver been all my life? Not sure how (because I love the kind of mystery/thriller that he writes), but I'd never heard of him until now. I requested this book because the premise appealed to me: an entire village goes missing? How does that work? Well, the village in question is more of a hamlet but the story is a clever one and I really enjoyed it.

David Raker specialises in finding missing persons. He has been contacted by the relatives of nine missing villagers, who gathered together for a Halloween dinner party and then vanished. Their houses are immaculate, there is no evidence that anything happened and no clues to solve the mystery. Running alongside this is a story set in Los Angeles in 1985, about an American detective trying to solve a suicide that might be a murder. Are the two events connected?

No One Home is a completely gripping read, full of twists and genuine surprises. I particularly loved the character of Joline 'Jo' Kader, who has to battle against 1980s sexism and misogyny to solve her case. It did take me a few chapters to get into this story, because I hadn't appreciated that this is #10 in a series and I hadn't read any of the others! The only thing I didn't like was the long explanation at the end of the book as it seemed repetitive, but don't be tempted to skip it because there is a rather excellent twist following it!

I really enjoyed No One Home and plan to go back and read some of the earlier stories in this series. It's fast-paced, with lots of nail-biting moments, and I can see it appealing to fans of authors such as Harlan Coben and Lee Child.


No One Home is due to be published in the UK on the 16th May 2019

Thank you to Tim Weaver and Michael Joseph for my copy of this book, which I requested from NetGalley and reviewed voluntarily.

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I was hooked from page one. This thriller develops layers as it goes along, and keeps you guessing right till the end. The main investigator is a likeable, flawed character, with the requisite tragic background. Some scenes are very tense, excellent descriptions. It kept me up till night at night to finish it... What more can I say!

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