Member Reviews

I enjoyed this book, the first I've read by this author. This one came to me from NetGalley in exchange for a review, thank you.
The book starts with an explosive murder in a small town, the story follows the back threads which lead to this
and the chapters alternate between 1994 and the present day.
In current time, Jess is a reporter under pressure to bring in a story about the double murders which look to have been carried out by her childhood best friend Heather
In 1994 Heather's sister Flora has disappeared as a young teen and we explore the story and the breakdown of Jess and Heather's friendship.
Back in the present day the story is also told from the point of view of Heather's mother who is now coming to terms with not only having lost one daughter but that her second daughter appears to be a murderer and is now in a coma. A good story, rather convoluted at times, I read it in a couple of days. I did work out whodunnit and, more or less why, as the story unfolded but that didn't detract really.

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Liked the premise of the book and it didn't disappoint. Great read, will look out for more books by the author

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Yet another fantastic book by Claire Douglas. Then She Vanishes is a really complex story with twists and turns galore.

The opening scene is a brutal murder of a man and his Mother, in their home, in the early hours of the morning. Is this a random attack or is there more to their murders.

A local woman, Heather Underwood, is later found injured and unconscious in the barn at her home. She is soon the only suspect in the murders but why would she do such a thing ?

Jess is a local reporter and when news comes in of the double murder she instantly realises that the prime suspect was her childhood best friend. Jess hasn’t seen Heather for years, they lost contact soon after Heathers older sister, Flora, went missing and was never found. Although she hasn’t seen Heather in years, Jess cannot imagine her best friend committing the murders. Will Jess discover the truth ?

This is a complex, twisty tale with some fantastic characters. Every character has a story to tell that slowly starts to reveal the truth about the present and the past. What really happened to Flora ? Who knows more than they are letting on ? Why were a mother and son brutally murdered in their own home ?

Thank you to Michael Joseph and NetGalley for a digital copy of this book.

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Thanks Netgalley and the :Publisher and most importantly the author. This was a totally gripping page turning thriller that I would highly recommend to other readers.

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Excellent book, I have never read a book by this author before but I shall certainly look for them now! I really enjoyed it and found it such a twisty and turny story that I couldn't resist just reading and reading till I read the full book over 2 days!

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A whodunnit beach read for sure, this tale of teenage friends that splinter after a horrific incident. I'm afraid I'm getting too used to this type of story and the last chapter wasn't much of a surprise for me, but still enjoyable.

This book might have skipped backwards and forwards through time, but time flew by for me in only one direction when reading this!

Recommended as a summer read.

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Flora, a sixteen year old, disappears in 1994. Eighteen years later her sister, Heather is accused of shooting two people and trying to kill herself. Jessie, a reporter, realises Heather is her one time best friend and uses that to try and get an exclusive.

The story moves at a good pace but relies on everyone having a secret. The first chapter pulls you in but story goes round and round to a fairly predictable end. Having said that, I did enjoy reading it.

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I have read 2 other books of Douglas and I think this is the best one. I am a big fan of alternate timelines in thrillers and this one is one like this. Although I figured out who has done it, I think this was a good page turner. It could have been a tad shorther, but still a good read.
Jess and Heather has a history with a tragedy, and today Jess is a journalist, and she returns to her hometown. Heather is accused of murder...and she is in a coma! I really do not want to say more, as this is one of the books the less you know the better you enjoy. It's good and it made me want to visit Bristol!

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Then She Vanishes is yet another fantastic thriller by Claire Douglas. The book grabs the reader's attention from the very beginning and maintains that momentum to the end. The character development is excellent as the author describes the characters, their motivations, and their actions so well. The plot moves along at a fast pace and doesn't get bogged down with too many irrelevant details like many books do. The author is skillful in keeping the reader guessing throughout the book as well.

Previous novels I have read by this author include Last Seen Alive, Local Girl Missing, and Do Not Disturb. Claire Douglas is one of my favorite authors, and all her books are so good! I look forward to her future books with great anticipation as I have no doubt that every one will be just as good as her previous novels. I will read everything she writes!

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And then she vanishes is a well executed mystery novel, but genre fans will be quick to figure out who's the killer. However, it is still a pretty good read, that will entertain you for some hours, make you question things but not scare you, ruining your sleep. It will manage to surprise you at some points, and you won't resist the appeal of the story.
The blurb boasts about the last chapter being more shocking than the first one. To be honest, I'd say it's overstatement. The ending at that point is pretty clear, and the last revelation won't shock many readers. The overall mystery could be better played out, the ending seemed a little disappointing considering how strong the book till the last chapters. I'd appreciate if the events were given more meaning, instead of playing on the randomness and cruelty of the world.
Even considering the less than perfect aspects of the book, I still enjoyed it and I wouldn't be mad for ending up reading this book while waiting for delayed flight.

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Another gripping thriller from Claire Douglas.. The chapters alternate between 1994 when Flora disappeared and the present day. Well worth a read. I recommend this book

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Absolute cracker of a story! Claire Douglas never fails to deliver. A brilliant mystery and a thoroughly thrilling read. #NetGalley#AndThenShe Vanishes

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Absolutely amazing. I loved this book so much! I am a huge fan of Claire Douglas and have read all of her books but with this, she has absolutely excelled herself. The characters, the plot and the twists were incredible. I cannot recommend this book highly enough. Well done, Claire!

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Who wouldn't want to find out what turned your school friend into a murderer?

OMG! I loved this book! Not just bits: All of it! Right from the very beginning I was pulled deep into the story when faced with the fact that I was in a murderer's mind and they were enjoying it! Immediately I was hooked with questions I needed answering; who is she, and what have these people done to her to make her want to kill them? After all, they're just a man and his elderly mother - how cruel!

In addition to loving, well basically everything, I feel I need to explain a little more about what I feel needs mentioning!

The way the characters speak naturally, down-to-earth and basically quite British in a way of which I can relate to, made it really easy for me to really feel what these characters were going through. Everyone has something to hide, or at least, discover.

I also love how cleverly the author added Heather's own voice into the story, developing the plot even further, but in a slow, drip, drip way that would save Heather from giving away too much. She's in a coma and therefore unable to reveal anything she knew before she killed these two people, because her mind is fuzzed up with drugs and of course she is on the brink of death . Marvellous! LOL

On top of that, Jess works as a reporter of a small twice-weekly paper, having been sacked from her previous job which was much better. She needs this story to go well for her to further career. So when she realises that the girl who's in a coma, an alleged murderer, is her ex-best-friend from school, it's her perfect chance to show her boss what she is made of! But can she do it? Is she that ruthless? There were after all friends, until Heather's sister went missing...

I honestly didn't know if I could handle so much mystery and intrigue! What a super fast pace I read this at!

## Review to be added on my blog and shared later!

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A mother and son are shot in the early hours, while Heather is in hospital accused of the murders, Jess, Heather’s childhood friend is now a journalist and having known Heather and her sister as teenagers, decides to use their shared history to her advantage and get the best story. Jess and Heather were best friends until Heather’s sister went missing as a teenager and haven’t been in touch since.
I really enjoyed this, I actually think it’s the best Claire Douglas I’ve read yet. It’s well paced, realistic and everything ties up neatly.

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Then She Vanishes is the second book I’ve read by Claire Douglas and this one doesn’t disappoint.
Summer of 1994 and Heather and Flora, sisters and along with their mother Margot were the family Jess felt she belonged to until one night Flora vanishes without a trace whilst walking home one evening.
Fast forward 25 years and Heather has killed two people and shoots herself only to be left in a coma. Jess is now a reporter and has had no contact with the Powell family since 1994 so she is sent to her old home town to find out what happened for a piece for her paper.
The chapters throughout this book are alternated between 1994 and Heather and Flora and present day with Jess and Margot. This I thought worked well in this thriller that had me gripped. This is a well written thriller with believable characters and was unputdownable.
I would like to thank Netgalley and Penguin for this ARC I received in exchange for an honest review.

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I loved this book. Was totally hooked from the start and found it hard to put down. I loved Jess with her upbeat personality and quirky clothing. I changed my mind about who the shooter was so many times during the story, and never guessed who the photos were from. This is a totally engrossing read and would definitely recommend to everyone who enjoys a great thriller will loads of twists.

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'Then She Vanishes' is a beautiful and evocative thriller. The narrative is split between the present day and the summer of 1994. I loved the chapters set in the past. I was sixteen then and Douglas paints such an accurate picture of life back then, vibrant and full of nostalgia. The plot is good, nicely twisty and turny and it keeps up the 'did she...didn't she?' right up to the end. This was my first Claire Douglas novel, but it won't be my last.

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Well this one certainly went off with a bang. It’s an opening chapter that compels you to read on. The timeline is split between the present time and 1994 and the last sighting of Flora. This is a good twisty read and while it seems an odd criticism it did feel like there was just too much going on at times.

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I would give this book a 4 star review, I enjoyed the characters and the writing style, the reason why it did not get a 5 star review is because it was a bit predictable, I guessed most of the ending pretty much at the start. It is the first time I have read a Claire Douglas book and I would read the author again and recommend.

I have left a review on goodreads and will leave a review on Amazon when it allows me, i will also leave a review on The Book Club on Facebook.

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