I love this authors previous books and was stoked to get this one!!

The story is told from 3 perspectives; the relative, the investigator and the antagonist. It does start off quite slow, as if the characters are finding their feet before pushing on with the story. However, it is very tense, gripping and quite unsettling. I loved the twists and the way that they were revealed by various characters.

Though I thoroughly enjoyed it, I am actually annoyed with how it ended. But only because I can't handle books that don't wrap up every single thing that's mentioned!

4⭐️

I am a fan of this author’s work, so was excited to read this asap.

An unsettling dark gritty psychological thriller inspired by the still unsolved mystery of the disappearance of people in Ireland in the 1990’s

A year a go Nicki went to meet friends in a pub in Ireland and never came home. She was the third to go missing in as many years, the others being Tana and Jennifer.


Bullet points for The Trap
📕3 missing women
📕several threads with various people involved
📕it has a great hook


We get the story from 3 POV Lucy who is Nicki’s sister who decides to take matters into her own hands by recklessly acting as bait. Angela is a civilian paper pusher working in missing persons, and desperate to be a Garda. The antagonist who isn’t identified, discusses the how, although I’m always more interested I’m more interested in the why. Information is obtained from quite a lot of characters which drops the pace in the first half making it a slower burn.

The use of the antagonist likening their experience to climbing Everest was quite novel and added a bit of interest.
There’s some monumentally bad decision making, but the author managed to get me to buy into the reasoning. I liked Denise and Angela, their working relationship works well.

Oh there’s twists and turns, and it kept my interest. It didn’t WOW me, but was steady right up til the end. I have to say I hated it. I’m surprised I’m only knocking off .25⭐️for it ! Don’t get me wrong it’s still a solid read.

Let me start this off by saying that I am a massive fan of this author and will probably read anything she writes. Luckily, this was another hit for me.
This starts with a great first chapter that totally reeled me in and was packed with tension. And this continued throughout the story.
I really liked the different POV's we get and I especially liked the killers POV, as this really added some depth to it.
As always with this author I liked the writing style. It flowed so well, I didn't want to put it down.
There were no real twists or shocking reveals in this for me but that never spoiled my enjoyment. I was gripped throughout.
One slight thing I didn't like was the ending. It felt so sudden, almost like there was a chapter missing. Having read the authors note at the end, I understand why it was like that, but I did end up feeling a bit disappointed by it.
This is quite a dark, unsettling read so beware of that going in.

‘It was four in the morning and beginning to drizzle, so she’d started walking. Because, really, what other choice did she have?’
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CATHERINE RYAN HOWARD IS A MUST BUY AUTHOR repeat after me CATHERINE RYAN HOWARD IS A MUST BUY AUTHOR
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Every book I pick up by Catherine Ryan Howard has been one of my favourites of the year, and I truly mean that without exception! Her latest novel ‘The Trap’ finds us amongst a slew of missing women, all seemingly connected with no suspect apprehended. This twisty novel blew me away, the premise had me constantly questioning HOW Catherine comes up with these ideas, and the twists this one took, at one point I audibly gasped not realising the story was going to take such a direction!
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This one comes out August 6th and I IMPLORE you to already pre-order this so you don’t miss out! And whilst you’re at it, buy her whole back catalogue, I can promise you you’ll enjoy!!
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Thank you to the publisher & Netgalley for the ARC

In ‘The Trap’ by Catherine Ryan Howard, Lucy's sister Nicki walked out of a pub in Dublin a year previously and hasn't been seen since. She's one of three women in the area to have gone missing, and now Lucy will do absolutely anything to find her. But just how far will she go?

The first chapter expertly hooks you, with a fairy breathless beginning. Immediately you know this is a book you're going to be hurtling through in a short space of time. I had previously read 'The nothing man' so I knew Ryan Howard could deliver an addictive mystery thriller.

To begin with, I did like the serial killer addressing the reader as he relieved the abductions. I'm still not sure as to his motives, but after reading the exceptional 'Notes on an execution' recently, I didn't really care. The scenes were he was on the couch with his wife allowed him to comment on peoples fascination with true crime, the generation that is 'so obsessed with true crime that you listen to all those grisly podcasts while you're putting on your make-up and doing your hair'.

The relationship between Garda Denise and Angela, a pen pusher in the missing persons unit, was interesting enough, more so than the character of Lucy, who was a bit annoying and a little naive. I found it hard to make a connection with the characters to be honest. I thought some of the supporting cast, such as the victim's boyfriend, were fairly one-dimensional. Listen, it's a pacey crime thriller and it's all about getting the reader to turn the page; I appreciate the genre. I'm not expecting layered characterisation.

I was only a few chapters into ‘The trap’ when I immediately thought of 'The Vanishing triangle', as the story is set in the same geographical area. In the afterword, Catherine Ryan Howard mentions the eight women, aged between 17 to 39, who disappeared around Leinster and the Wicklow mountains and have never been seen again. The author makes it clear the book is not about those particular cases, but 'she was certainly thinking about those women when she wrote it'.

There is a bit on why some missing women draw the public attention more than others (younger & prettier, more conventional lifestyles, Irish surname) and I read a piece just this very day about a woman called Eve Brennan who vanished thirty years ago and has never been seen since. She disappeared just four months after Annie McCarrick, one of the 'vanishing triangle' disappeared. Eve suffered from depression and had had a minor argument with her parents, so because suicide was seen as a possibility, a retired detective believed her case didn't get as much attention.

The role that the media plays also features, though this didn't quite ring true either, and felt a bit contrived. I know the author was highlighting the importance of the media, and people's fascination with true crime cases, but it didn't really say anything new to me. I found the 'journalist' a bit annoying which was probably intentional - he seemed to be an amalgam of a couple of different media types.
Book cover of 'The Trap' by Catherine Ryan Howard
The Trap Summary

It probably seems I'm being a bit overly critical but I probably had high expectations after 'The Nothing Man' which isn't the author's fault. I did read this over three days, there are plenty of twists to keep you guessing, and the ending caught me completely unaware, so it's certainly clever enough. I can see how the nature of the ending might annoy people, but I was happy enough with it.

I think it's a competitive and difficult genre to stand out in, but if you like crime fiction and Catherine Ryan Howard's previous books, you'll know what to expect and will probably lap this up.

This incredible book has the most well plotted twisty ending I have ever read. I picked up on nothing that would have given the final reveal away and yet it made perfect sense with everything I had read.
The first couple of twists kind of lulled me into a secure state where I thought I knew what was going on. I thoroughly enjoyed being proven wrong by this highly talented wordsmith.
The story that I read was very entertaining, seeing different perspectives via the perpetrator, the missing women's families and also those of some of the Garda employees.
This is a difficult book to say much about for fear of risking giving spoilers so I will have to leave it there. Just know this is yet another amazing tale by this author and well worth picking up a copy!
It was a lovely surprise to see a couple of mentions of the authors previous books, not that you have to have read them to understand this story, they're just nice Easter Eggs for those of us who have.

A well written crime thriller with some good twists, but a slightly disappointing ending. I found it quite sad to read, particularly as the author later discusses the missing women in Ireland and there have obviously been some high profile ones in England recently (and for a long time). I thought the point about which women "deserve" all the headlines was also covered well.
Thank you to netgalley and Random House for an advance copy of this book

The Trap by Catherine Ryan Howard* is the highly anticipated upcoming release from one of the most lauded crime writers of recent years. When Lucy’s sister fails to come home from a night out, she becomes one of a number of Irish women who went missing under similar circumstances. As the investigation stalls, Lucy takes matters into her own hands, much to the chagrin of An Garda Síochána. A chance break in the case by a civilian administrator in the Missing Persons Unit reignites the case and a whole new story unravels.

Despite being an avid crime fiction reader, I find CRH’s books quite hit and miss, largely because of how convoluted they are. I love a multi-perspective narrative but I found it to be a bit clunkily employed in The Trap and I kept having to check who I was with now which removed me from the story.

4.5/5

Thank you Netgalley, Random House UK, Transworld Publishers and Bantam for a copy of this ebook in exchange for an honest review.

After a night out, Lucy has no choice but to walk home. En route, she accepts a lift from a stranger. She knows the dangers this could cause but she needs to set a trap to see if this stranger was the one who kidnapped her sister.

I thought I’d enjoy this one as I liked Run Time but I wasn’t expecting it to be as good as it was! I felt the plot was tighter and the writing style has really improved.

The book is inspired by a series of unsolved disappearances and I am now going to be spending my evening looking into them in more details for sure! It did really feel like a true crime book and made the book a stand out from a lot of books I have read recently.

⭐ ⭐ ⭐
The Trap
by Catherine Ryan Howard

When I read the opening chapter of this book I felt sure I was in for one hell of a ride. Within 2 minutes my anxiety levels were rising noticeably and I could feel my heart pounding and my breath catching.

I'm a huge fan of this author, wasn't mad about Run Time last year, but with her solid reputation for unique structure I'll always eagerly anticipate her latest release. Sadly, this one is not, for me, up to par with her previous work.

What I love:
The premise
The first chapter
References to the Vanishing Triangle which has been the backdrop to my own 90s experience in Ireland
The return to CRH "true life crime" inspired themes

What I don't love:
The lack of CRH's signature sardonic but achingly funny irishisms. The narrative feels like she has harmonised the tone to embrace her increased popularity beyond Irish Market.
The abductor POV is fairly surface level, I thought we'd get something new or more nuanced
Lucy and her sister's boyfriend feels incongruous, his character is pointless and the Denise/ Angela relationships feel jaded and clichéd
The pace is much slower than her previous works and doesn't have that page turner quality this author is renowned for.

But I'm being super picky and hyper critical because this author has blown me away in the past so my expectations are very high.

The overarching question this book asks is how can a woman go missing off the face of the Earth? Is she still alive? Where is she?

The resolution is a little convenient and the out-of-the-blue nature is unsatisfying and leaves an important topic unexplored. Odd. However there IS a satisfactory element to the structure of this story which delights me no end.

It must be so difficult to come up with something unique and layered, intelligent and bingeworthy every year. I wonder if the industry puts too much pressure on writers to churn out work on demand?

Publication date: 17th August 2023
Thanks to #netgalley and #transworld for the ARC on exchange for my always honest thoughts

Lucy's sister Nicki has been missing for over a year, Lucy wanders down remote roads at night hoping to set a trap for the person who took Nicki. But so far she's been unsuccessful. Her Liason officer Denise teams up with Angela, a civilian who works in the missing persons unit to try and find Nicki and 2 other women who have also gone missing.
If I'm honest, I struggled with this book, it didn't hold my attention the way I thought it would from reading the synopsis. I didn't particularly like Lucy's character, i found her quite annoying, but I did like the inclusion of Denise and Angela and their interaction with each other. And surprisingly I liked reading the abductors chapters. They were in depth and interesting, a "normal", everyday person sitting beside his wife in the evening reliving his abductions. The ending left the reader hanging but in itself is very clever because youre left wondering what happened next.

There are many things to like about this book and others that are more perplexing. The storyline itself is gripping involving the disappearance of various women. In true Catherine Ryan Howard fashion we are swept along with ever changing perspectives and different voices. I quite enjoyed the abductor's sections in the way they were constructed so that he was talking directly to you the reader (in the same way Miranda Hart broke the 4th wall in her sitcom).
The real thing I found difficult was the ending, I don't necessarily need everything tied up with a neat bow, I can cope with loose ends. Whilst the author's note at the end tells us a little about the real-life 'Vanishing Triangle' where there are a number of unsolved disappearances I do feel that the reader here deserves some kind of conclusion as there is no sense of justice being served. If this is the intention of the author then bravo - would it put me off reading her again, no it wouldn't, it just wouldn't be my favourite of her novels.

3.5/5 I can't bring myself to give it 4 nor let it down as low as 3.

Crikey, that was a dark one! This psychological thriller sees Lucy searching for her sister Nicki, who has been missing for a year and is presumed to have been taken by the same man that abducted at least two other women in the area.

While Lucy searches, the case is also being investigated by a civilian working with the Missing Persons Unit, Angela, who has her own insights into the case. Alongside the chapters told from Lucy and Angela’s POVs, we also have chapters told from the POV of from the killer, adding a completely different, thoroughly chilling view on the narrative.

The story is intricately plotted and very clever in its twists and turns, and I enjoyed the pace. It was a lot darker than other books I’ve read by this author, and I wasn’t keen on the slightly open-ended final scene, but enjoyed it nonetheless.

My thanks to the author, NetGalley, and the publisher for the arc to review.

'The Trap' is yet another great novel written by Catherine Ryan Howard. Once again she has written an excellent un-put-downable psychological mystery thriller which grabs your attention from page one. Set in rural Ireland and written from various points of view, (one of which just happens to be the killer) it's based on the search for multiple missing women. Well rounded characters and a strong storyline keep you going to the end...and what an ending! No spoilers from me, just the recommendation that you put it to the top of your to be read pile. Thank you to NetGalley, the author and publisher for an arc of 'The Trap'.

I hadn’t realised I had read a novel by Catherine Ryan Howard before and I’m glad that my 3-star review of Rewind didn’t put me off requesting her latest read: The Trap.

The Trap tells the story of Lucy, whose sister Nicki disappeared years earlier in a spate of vanishing women in Dublin. The book alternates perspectives - an unknown perpetrator, an unknown victim, Angela – a civilian in the Missing Person’s Unit of the Garda and Lucy herself. I actually enjoyed this mechanic and it worked to keep the pace high and keep you guessing throughout. The first chapter in particular, which sees Lucy getting into a stranger’s car, was chillingly written and felt realistic.

I liked the fact that Angela was a civilian working for the MPU which meant she was relatable, and this stopped her from becoming a cop cliché. I also liked that we learnt quite a lot about the perpetrator from their chapters but not enough to easily establish a link to present events. The final twist was brilliant, and I did not see it coming. The ending is a little unsatisfying, but it keeps the book in your mind long after you turn the final page. I think the conclusion will divide readers but it was a brave choice from the author and it worked for me.

Overall, The Trap is a twisty thriller that will surprise you with an ending you won’t be able to stop thinking about! Thank you to NetGalley, Random House UK, Transworld Publishers & Bantam for the chance to read the ARC in exchange for an honest review.

A slow burner to start with then it soon picks up. It begins with a missing woman and her sister who is trying to find out if she is dead or alive and so much more. The sister becomes amateur sleughth and bait. This was a nail biting read, packed to the rafters with tension and suspense. With a twist I never saw coming that left me speechless. A really good crime thriller and highly recommended.
Thanks to Netgalley and the publisher for the Arc in return for an honest review.

Since I first picked up Catherine Ryan Howard’s first thriller ‘Distress Signals’ in 2016, I have tried to read everything this accomplished Irish writer produces. Nobody is better at developing thrillers built on the premise of an unassuming, overlooked individual who turns out to be a psychopath, and 'The Trap' once more does her craft justice. In the novel, Detective Denise and civilian police operator Angela are trying to solve the case of three missing women who were all lured into a stranger’s car in different Irish towns and at different times of day. What makes this novel so different from others in the genre is that as well as several female voices, the anonymous killer himself is one of the narrators, adding additional chilling layers to a thriller that is, to use a clichéd but appropriate adjective, ‘unputdownable’. Amazingly executed, this is the thriller for readers who think they have read it all before. My thanks go to the publishers and to NetGalley for the free digital ARC that I received in exchange for publishing this review.

The trap sends you straight in at the deep end with a nail biting prologue that had me shushing my toddler so I could get through it. And the story explode from there. The pace never slowed for me and I just did not know what the next reveal was going to be. I really felt the remoteness of Ireland too which added atmosphere. Bravo!!

I’m afraid I wasn’t keen on this book. It’s a good premise; women are disappearing in Ireland and the sister of one of the missing roams the streets at night, attempting to lure the killer. It’s heartbreaking to read the notes at the end by the author and learn that there have been similar cases over the years in Cork.

There are elements that kept me reading; The different points of view, although I found the chapters written by the abductor difficult to read, the characters of Angela and Denise were interesting. But, overall, the characters were frustrating and unlikeable in the extreme and Lucy, the sister, just plain silly and naive.

I like this author’s work and for many, this will be a good read, but, for me it was OK.


Thanks to NetGalley and Random House for the opportunity to preview.

This is a whodunnit crime thriller novel set in rural Ireland. A woman sets a trap to catch the person she thinks abducted her sister.
Bit of an original idea I think which is why I requested it. Book is told via a number of different character within the story itself, I found it a little hard going at times but it is overall well written.