Member Reviews
This story is focused on Jess and the latest story she has to write for the local paper. A local woman is found barely alive and is accused of killing a middle-aged man and his mother before turning the gun on herself. Jess is shocked to find that the accused woman is her childhood friend, Heather. Investigating the story brings back memories of her teenage years and the tragic, unsolved, disappearance of Heather's sister.
There's a lot crammed between the pages. The press phone-hacking scandal, drug dealers, underage sex, abusive partners are just some of the topics that are mentioned. However, nothing is ever covered in any depth, and these subjects are really just a means to move the plot forward, slip in a few red herrings and then tie up all the loose ends with a big bow at the end.
It's entertaining if superficial and somewhat predictable. I would recommend it as a light holiday read.
My thanks go to the publishers and Net Galley for the advanced copy in return for an honest review.
This is the first Claire Douglas book I read and it will definitely not be my last! The book is full of twists and turns as you try to figure out the present- is the suspected killer of Clive and Deirdre Wilson really the one who did it and how is it related to the disappearance of her sister, Flora, in the 90s? There are several characters introduced throughout that had their own secrets and made you question were they involved in the murders or disappearance of Flora somehow? This book kept me hooked as I had to know what happened and boy did the end shock me. Highly recommend!
Thank you to Netgalley and Penguin UK - Michael Joseph for an ARC copy in exchange for an honest review.
Really did think this was my sort of book but it was not to be. Sorry to say that it dragged. The further I read the more it did so until I stopped and moved on to the next book on my list; which I read overnight. My 3 star rating really denotes a neutral rating as I was unable to reach the end.
Jess is a reporter on a small bi-weekly newspaper somewhere near Bristol. She was lucky to get the job when she was discovered to have hacked some phone accounts when she was working for a National newspaper. She still feels guilty. Now Jess has come home and she is reminded of her friends Heather and Flora Powell and their mother Margot. The Powell’s house was Jess’s second home, and Heather was her best friend. Jess’s mother was neglectful and selfish, and in fact has now decamped to Spain and is somewhat estranged from Jess – no change there then! Jess loved Margot and Heather but everything changed in 1994 when Flora went missing and her blouse was found later covered in blood, but of Flora, no sign. Jess’s relationship with the two people she loved underwent a change.
Jess is reminded of these events when she is called upon to report on an incident. Two people (mother and son) have been shot and Heather was seen exiting the house with a shotgun – she ends up in hospital after attempting to shoot herself. Her boss is pushing her to get an exclusive story but she is reluctant to trade on her past relationship with Margot.
What an exciting, gripping read. Great characters, fantastic plot and tantalising snippets of information to keep you guessing. Just loved Jess, complicated, insecure, loyal and totally believable. I love books like this and have no hesitation in urging you to read it. Go on, you will not regret it.
Thank you to the author, publishers and NetGalley for providing an ARC via my Kindle in return for an honest review.
Then She Vanishes is another gripping read from Claire Douglas. The plot moves between events in 1994 and 2012. In 1994 Jess, aged fourteen, is best friends with Heather whose mother, Margot, run a caravan park. Jess’s mother doesn’t spend much time with her so Jess loves being at Heather’s as Margot always treats her as one of the family. Heather’s older sister, Flora, meets Dylan, a worker with the travelling fair, and strikes up a friendship with him. Shortly after Flora disappears and hasn’t been seen since.
In 2012, Jess is now a journalist back in her home town of Bristol after leaving a better job in London following an incident when Jess did some unwise things professionally. News comes in that there’s been a double murder followed by an attempted suicide by the murderer. Jess sets out to chase up for a story only to find that the murderer is Heather who is now in a coma. Heather and Jess had abruptly lost touch soon after Flora disappeared. Margot has never forgiven Jess for abandoning Heather so soon after her sister’s disappearance so isn’t too pleased to find Jess on her doorstep, especially given she is there in her professional capacity as a journalist.
This is a really well written novel with many great twists and turns as more and more secrets come out of what was happening in the past. I loved it the whole way though and the ending too. This is my third book by Claire Douglas and I am keen to read more.
With thanks to NetGalley and Penguin Random House UK, Cornerstone for a free copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.
A decent psychological thriller. There are enough twists to keep you reading and the action is fast paced. Jess is an interesting character and although I find her slightly irritating at times I quite like her.
My thanks to Netgalley, the author and the publishers for this copy.
Brilliant book!!! The very first page had me hooked! There were so many twists and turn in the story, that really keep you guessing, did not see the ending coming. Definitely worth reading!
Thank you to Netgalley and Penguin UK - Michael Joseph, for the review copy. This is an unbiased review of the author's work and style. If you want plot lines and spoilers please see the publishers blurb and other reviewers' reports.
This is my first Claire Douglas novel and I have to admit to being puzzled. Looking back over her previous works there are trend and themes that reoccur. I find this worrying as it could imply a lack of imagination buy the author or an author who is still trying to work out how to satisfy her own needs in the writing.
That said I enjoyed the book and I will endeavour to read her other works to see how she develops.
For those who enjoy a good 'whodunnit' and aren't plagued with a need to beat the author to the denouement, then this is one for you. There should be a warning to wearing a seat belt as the story unwinds, as there are plenty of twists in the tale.
Four stars and worth them.
This is the first Claire Douglas book I read and wow- it will not be my last! This fast paced thriller alternates between the past and the present and is told from the point of view of Jess, a local journalist who has a personal connection to the family (including Heather, the suspected murderer) and Heather's mother, Margot. The book is full of twists and turns as you try to figure out the present- is the suspected killer of Clive and Deirdre Wilson really the one who did it and how is it related to the disappearance of her sister, Flora, in the 90s? There are several characters introduced throughout that had their own secrets and made you question were they involved in the murders or disappearance of the Flora somehow? This book kept me up way past my bedtime as I had to know what happened and boy did the end shock me. Highly recommend! Thank you to Netgalley and Penguin UK - Michael Joseph for an ARC copy in exchange for an honest review.
Loved this one it was just amazing.
My third book by this author and by far my favourite.
I just adored how this was all connected together and I'm blown away with how the author has managed to connect the dots to make sense of everything while still managing to keep me in the dark through the journey.
This was such an impressive feat and managed to keep me guessing as well as constantly surprising me with its many twists and turns.
From that shocking beginning where two people are shot down in cold blood seemingly at random to that final end-game, I was seriously transfixed.
This had such real characters with flaws and all and I loved that nobody here was perfect.
I thought Jess herself was such a raw and real person who was by far her own worst critic.
I felt such sorrow for Margot who had lost one daughter only to potentially love another.
I changed direction in my mind so many times over where this might go.
This really was a work of pure genius and I really can't recommend this enough.
I voluntary reviewed a copy of And Then She Vanishes.
When local reporter Jess gets involved in a murder involving an old school friend whose sister went missing many years ago.
Jess finds herself caught between the friendship from her past and her need to prove herself as a journalist.
Douglas knows how to spin a good plot and this is pacy with plenty of twists and turns as the past catches up with Jess and her friend.
A recommended read if you like a bit of a page-turner rather than more complex characterisation. This is Douglas’ fifth novel and they are well-crafted.
I was grabbed straight away by the premise of this book, I too have a long lost childhood friend, I too have regrets about how we grew apart , this leads to every character being very personable and makes you invested in their journey. The writing is pleasant and engaging but alas the ending let me down. Still a good read though with a nicely knitted story.
My thanks to NetGalley and publisher Penquin UK - Michael Joseph for the ARC.
This is a really intriguing read. Well-plotted and intricately woven between events in 1994 and 2012.
1994 - Sisters Heather (14) and Flora (16), together with Jess (14) who has become part of the sisters' family, visit the Summer fair. Fairground worker Dylan takes a shine to Flora and, against Heather's protestations, begins a relationship with him. One night Flora goes missing. She has never been found.
Eighteen years later, Jess is a journalist on a local newspaper in Bristol. Two people have been shot in a village near to her best-friends' home and Heather is in hospital in a coma after trying to commit suicide in the family barn. With her connection to the family her editor is relying on Jess to sign up an exclusive story from Heather's mother, Margot.
The story takes the reader through the delicate path of Jess's relationship with Margot, Heather and Flora; her need to get a story against the guilt she has regarding the last time she saw Flora and Heather.
There are lots of twists to this as gradually the past catches up to the present and some awful truths are revealed.
Has Jess's past from her newspaper-reporting job in London caught up with her. Is someone stalking her, meaning her harm?
What really happened to Flora, and what is the connection with the 2 people that Heather shot?
All will be revealed.
A good read; some passages regarding descriptions of the friends' 1994 lives I found extremely repetitive. Otherwise, I enjoyed it, and just had to find out the ending - which is somewhat surprising. Couldn't work it out - a left-field conclusion.
All right Claire Douglas, we need to have a talk because I’m a little upset with you. Your latest book cost me two nights of sleep because I could not put it down. From the moment I read the dramatic and mysterious prologue I was hooked, desperate to know more.
A sleepy seaside down in southwest England is shaken to its core when a beautiful, sweet young teenager named Flora disappeared without a trace. Eighteen years later, Flora’s remaining family is once again blasted across the headlines when it appears her younger sister brutally murdered two people at random before turning the gun on herself.
This was an atmospheric and intricate tale about the bond between sisters, mother and daughter, and childhood friends. Bonds that can withstand the test of time and trauma and come out stronger for it. This was also a tale about the hidden underbelly simmering beneath the idyllic surface of a picturqesue coastal town.
“Twisty” is an overused term these days but in this case it aptly applies. Especially when it came to the way all these character’s lives were still intertwined nearly two decades later, often in ways none of them could possibly fathom. It was a complex story full of emotion and intrigue that kept me guessing.
I can’t believe that I’ve never read anything by Claire Douglas before! I’m definitely going to be picking up more of her books because if Then She Vanishes is any indication, Douglas sure knows how to write a domestic thriller.
Loved this book a lot of emotions reading it seeing life through the characters at different stages of their lives and how this affected them as adults never would of guessed how it would end which for me Is the making of a good read!!
This book had me hooked from the first page all the way to the end. Double murder for no apparent reason alongside a long-time missing persons case brings a shamed journalist face to face with her past and the secret she's held for 18 years. Brilliant read.
Claire Douglas's fifth novel has one of the most dramatic opening chapters that I think I've ever read! March 2012 - seen through the narrator's eyes as they stand outside a house, shotgun in hand, seeming very calm and in control. This sets the scene and forms the basis of what is to come.
Then She Vanishes is not only a gripping whodunnit but it's also an enthralling whydunnit and I could not turn the pages fast enough as the whole chain of events leading up to this horrific and shocking crime unfolded slowly and skilfully.
The story goes back and forth in time between 2012 and the summer of 1994 when the fair came to town and sixteen year old Flora disappeared and never came home again, leaving behind her bewildered mother, Margot (a character I really warmed to and felt empathy for) and younger sister Heather.
As Heather lies in a coma due to a shotgun injury, her then best friend, Jess, now a journalist working for the local newspaper, and no longer in touch with the family, has to return to her roots and obtain a story, while confronting her own conscience and guilt about that night Flora disappeared. Margot was a mother figure to Jess in those days and the way in which their friendship was slowly and tentatively re-ignited was an absolute pleasure to read.
This is a complex story rich in detail, with family secrets, divided loyalties, betrayal, selfishness, guilt and fear with sympathetic and well drawn characters. It has surprises and shocks - the story was at just the right pace - the perfect read for anyone who likes a good mystery full of suspense.
I loved this book. The story flowed from the first chapter with a stunning opening prologue. Jess reunites with a childhood friends family. Her estranged best friend has been accused of a horrific crime. The family already has a tragedy in their past. A really riveting plot with great characters and lots of suspects and secrets. Gripping!
This starts off well, with a couple being murdered and the suspect then apparently turning the shotgun on herself. What really happened? It's an unusual premise, as, the person doing the investigating within the story, is a journalist who was also the childhood friend of the murderer.
Each chapter is written from the perspective of a different character, but, the author does a great job of this not being confusing.
It's a good story, I just found it slow and dragging in parts.
Solid 3* read.
Thanks to Netgalley and the publishers for the opportunity to preview.
Everything changed the night Flora Powell disappeared. Heather and Jess were best friends until the night Heather's sister vanished. Jess has never forgiven herself for the lie she told that night. Nor has Heather but now Heather is accused of an awful crime. And Jess is forced to return to the sleepy seaside town where they grew up, to ask the question she's avoided for so long: What really happened the night Flora disappeared?
The story starts with a murder and a young woman Helen in a coma after she try’s to take her own life. Jessica is asked to write a piece on the incident only to find that she knows the family from childhood and is torn between her job as a reporter and her relationship. There is a history as Helens sister flora disappeared from a fairground when she was young and had not been seen since. The book goes between the past and the present but is really easy to keep pace with. A page turner as every page leaves you with another question. Brilliant and engaging.
Many thanks to NetGalley and Penguin UK Michael Joseph for an advance copy in return for a fair and honest review.