This book was filled with great descriptive writing but the storyline was weird.
I have nothing else to say except it wasn’t for me

There was much to enjoy here, but I found I couldn't connect with it. I'd read more from this author in the future though.

Every now and again a book grabs you from the first page and won’t let you go. You stay up all night reading it and think about it when you should be doing something else, desperate to get back to the story to see what is going to happen next. That was the case for me with Elly, a book I’m still flashing back to weeks after I’ve finished it.

What was it that made me love it so much, especially given just how dark the subject matter - a missing child - was? I think it was how painfully honest it was without being overly sentimental. The pain Elly’s parents, and her sister felt is palpable. Their reaction to the disappearance, the way their lives fall apart, the way they respond to her being found. It felt so real.

The way Wetzel shares their story really appealed to me too. I love sparse writing where not a word is wasted. There are no lengthy descriptions of places or people. No overly flowery sentences that take me out of the story because they don’t belong. I am always slightly in awe of authors who can do this (and, in this case, translators).

Is there anything I didn’t like? Not a thing. I’d recommend this book to anyone and I can see it being my Christmas gift list.

Elly is an 11 year old girl who goes missing while on her way to a judo class. Four years later she has come back.
This story is not like other missing persons stories I have read, it is not a thriller or whodunit mystery, instead it focuses on each individual character and how they have been affected. I really wanted to like this book, there were a lot of positives about it. It was interesting to read all the different perspectives, I even made myself push past the writing style, which I was not a fan of. I almost put it down several times but after reading some other reviews, especially about getting a resolution at the end, I kept going. I was honestly, extremely disappointed with the end, I didn't feel, as a reader, that I got any kind of resolution. I wasn't looking for a happy ending but the story just kind of ended and left me with so many questions. I appreciated being able to really get to know the characters, but I didn't care much about any of them. I felt no strong emotions through out the book, except maybe at the end, but as I mentioned, it still left me with so many questions. If you don't mind books that end abruptly and don't answer everything, then definitely give this book a shot. It just wasn't for me.
Thank you to Netgalley and Scribe UK for the ARC copy of this book.

What an amazing little book! It wrapped so much depth of characters and story in 148 pages. Originally written in Germany the translation is flawless and smooth. How do you deal with losing a child? What do you do when a child shows up 4 years later stating she is your daughter? Very thought provoking story.

Elly is a little girl who climbs on her bike to go to Judo lessons. She never makes it. She disappeared into thin air. Not even her bike is ever found.
Her parents and sister are greifsticken.
Four years later, a girl is found dirty and tortured. She can barely speak. Could this be their missing daughter.?
This is a heartbreaking story of grief, hope and doubt.
It is very well written and will keep you captivated up to the very end!

A very dark short story which took me a while to get into. It’s an unusual style with lots of very short sentences. I understand it was originally written in German which I don’t speak so maybe the style matched that language better.

A really impressive piece of short writing related to the effects on a household when a daughter missing for 4 years returns to the fold, told from the perspective of her sister Ines, Her mother, Judith and her father Hamid, plus others who it would spoil the book to reveal. I liked the way that each persons narrative was subtly different each time and often directly opposes the other characters viewpoint. Excellent novel,and well worth reading.

Beautiful written book for having such little stars on good reads, we need to get those stars up this deserves way more.

This book was an intriguing story of lost and found, though that seems to simple a way to describe it. It is a short story, about a girl who goes missing only to seemingly return years later... or does she? It was a well-paced book, even if it did feel a bit simple in places. Worth the read.

3.5/5 stars.

Thank you to Scribe UK and NetGalley for the chance to read this book.

An intense page turner Elly a child goes missing years later she returns. She returns but something seems different.A dark involving book one that drew me in kept me turning the pages, #netgalley#elly

A subtle, small story about loss and grief and desperately wanting things back to normal. When an eleven year old goes missing, the world continues, except for the family, friends and acquaintances of someone who has disappeared, either voluntarily or snatched. This is what happens.

Four years have passed since little Elly ride set off on her shiny red bike, happy,carefree and looking forward to her judo lesson. It was a route that she had travelled many times before, to and from school. But on this fateful day, she never reached her destination because somewhere along the way, she disappeared without a trace. Despite a extensive search no clues have been unearthed that could assist in the recover of her body or her missing bike.

Her mother Judith and father Hamid have spent the last four years living under a cloud of suspicion, trapped in a state of limbo and constantly torn between feelings of hope and despair. Whilst her sister Ines battles her fear over her sister's fate and the ever widening gap between herself and her parents.

Then the unthinkable happens, they receive a phone call from the police, a young girl has been discovered who fits Elly's description. Judith and Hamid are overjoyed about the return of their missing daughter but Inis has her doubts. Is the young girl really Elly or is the family's living nightmare for their own gain?

The chapters of this enthralling drama were voiced from the alternating perspectives of Judith, Hamid and Inis. The author's depictions of a family torn apart by a terrifying event and their joy and disbelief when it appeared that their nightmare was over were realistic and believable. I can't imagine what it is like to spend every waking moment wondering were your child is, are they dead? lieing injured somewhere? or is someone hurting them? The not knowing must be horrible, it's every parents worst nightmare. My heart went out to poor Inis who was obviously heart broken because of her sister's disappearance and missed her so much but had no one to share her fear and thoughts with. She had not only lost her sister but to all intents and purposes her parents as well. We also heard the voice of another complex character who took us through their tragic back story and who caused me to experience mixed emotions. But who was this individual and how did they got into this gripping story.

Elly is a quick read that consists of short,snappy chapters which give the reader a very bad case of just one more chapter syndrome. It's a frighteningly realistic tale of loss, grief, deception and hope that keeps the reader guessing and frantically turning the pages. The story doesn't have the usual conventional happily ever after ending and the final chapter is truly heart breaking. The story is well written and the outstandingly translated, reading it, you wouldn't believe that it wasn't originally written in english. I really enjoyed this book and would happily read more books written by this of in the future.

Elly is a mystery & thriller novel written by Maike Wetzel and originally published in German. It’s been translated into English by Lyn Marven. It’s been scheduled to be come out on 09-April-2020, so keep an eye for it guys!

Elly is a gripping story about an 11-year old girl who just disappears out of the blue and without a trace. Now, when I read the blurb, I was quite excited to read the book as I had recently seen the Netflix documentary “The Disappearance of Madeline McCain” – here too a 3-year old little girl disappears without a trace but I have to admit the book wasn’t as gripping as claimed.

The interesting and even hurtful bit about this story was the trauma that the entire family had to endure because of the disappearance of a child. The author has brilliantly narrated the heart-wrenching feeling of each family member and how they chose to cope with this life changing incident. The story of Elly takes a turn for the worse when the child is found and returned to her home. Normally, it's a good thing when the child is found, but not in this case. This is when I’m hoping for the thriller bit of the novel to begin but I am left disappointed and the story is brought to an abrupt end.

It’s a short read, so I do suggest anyone who’s interested in picking up a hard and dark read. I rate this book 3 out of 5 bookmarks due to the lack of closure to the story.

Although the summary of the book sounded very interesting, the first 1/4 of the book was so confusing. The chapters switched between characters, but didn’t tell you who they were so it took awhile to figure out who’s point of view you were reading from next. It was a nice, short, quick read though that did keep me entertained.

A very intense read. I would suggest reading something light before and after this book. Some parts were hard to read to be honest.

Well told story of a child gone missing. A short read butt one that brought me to tears. Elly was missing for four years before she returned. She seemed very different so naturally the family has many questions. Everything is resolved in the end. Good read.

Thanks Net Galley for allowing me to read this arc for my honest review.

What a strange little novella this is.

Eleven year old Elly rides her bike to her sports class as she has done many times before however this time she doesn't arrive. She also doesn't return home. The police investigation can find no explanation for her disappearance. The family is told to move on.

Four years later and Elly returns. Or did she?

For a book with a 2.91 average rating on Goodreads I was pleasantly surprised by this one. The writing is beautiful and the story slowly builds in tension and there is a touch of menace in the air as you are reading. You can easily read this in an hour or two and I found this to be a fine way to pass some time. 4 stars!

Thank you to NetGalley and Scribe UK for providing me with a digital ARC in exchange for my honest review.

3.5 stars

Well told story of the grief of losing someone.
You miss them,you long for them to come back.
Then when they do,you talk yourself into believing anything.
I enjoyed the multiple narrative,mostly Ellys sister,so desperate to have her back or know what happened.
Good to get some sort of resolution towards the end too.

Absolutely amazing book. A very hard subject to read but was written so well it was a fabulous read. Highly recommended xxx