Peter James is one of my favourite authors so was very keen to read this. Such an intriguing thing to do to fill in those gaps about Sandy's story. It was not how I imagined it to be at all, but it was a good read and now we know....

In the first Roy Grace series, his wife Sandy disappears without a trace, but we don’t know why and all the series we wonder where she is. Is she dead or alive and somewhere else. This is her story.
Sandy gets involved with the wrong people and owes money too, Roy is oblivious to her dilemma. The only thing is he is investigating him for several murders. Sandy goes on the run because she thinks she has no choice. But, doing so she gets in worse situations that she was first in. Which includes drugs, gambling and getting people murdered and meeting some unsavoury characters along the way. Not only that. she has a son who she thinks is Roy’s, but he doesn’t know.
You don’t have to have read the whole Roy Grace series to read this. You can read it as a standalone. This is great. intriguing read and couldn’t stop reading which each stage and problem that Sandy faced. But in all she does she still couldn’t think of Roy and what might have been if she stayed with him. It feels like this series is concluding with this book. Or is there more Roy Grace to come. I hope so. 5 stars from me.

I love Roy Grace as a character and always had that lingering doubt about Sandy in each and every novel- so it was nice to find out he is indeed an upstanding and innocent (at least in this case!) chap!
Sandy's story is certainly a whirlwind with lots of danger, especially with a child in tow. She is the queen of poor decision making but in the situations she finds herself in it is no surprise that she is left with only bad choices!
An enjoyable, well -paced read!

I have enjoyed so many of Peter James' books I was very curious to learn the secret of Sandy. Sadly, I really didn't enjoy reading this. From almost the first page Sandy holds no appeal as a character. I am not entirely sure what feelings we are supposed to hold for Sandy, but I suspect disdain and disinterest are the ones James was hoping for. Weak, unpleasant, whinging, manipulative, lazy, often stupid (surely no woman in 2024 is this stupid?!), and greedy. I simply couldn't connect with anything about her or any choice she made.
I suspect the issue lies as much in the writing as the storyline - maybe we're supposed to find her naive and vulnerable, to cheer when she shows a moment's strength, and be proud when she does something (relatively) strong, but nope - instead we get a shallow reading of a shallow person I cannot believe the great detective didn't see through. But then, I did say she was manipulative.
Nobody comes across as real in this book, they are all pastiches of trope drug dealers, gamblers, money lenders and general 'bad guys'.
It's just too bland, boring and frustrating. Each scenario is more unlikely than the next, there is nothing suspenseful, it's all just dull.
The only thing worse than a person blaming all of their life's ills on 'it wasn't my fault' is that same person ruining someone else's life at the same time, while constantly justifying it by saying they had no choice.
The only reason this book scores more than one star is that at least the ending delivers.

Sandy is a very troubled character. She is very gullible especially where men are concerned. When she marries Roy she finally has a good man and a comfortable life but, perhaps because his job is all-consuming and he often has to cancel dates because of work, she is bored and makes a lot of wrong decisions. Her life then spirals out of her control. A clever book that weaves all the snippets we have had in previous books into complex and gripping story.

I have read all of the Roy Grace books and so was pleased to get this Arc to read.
The book is the story of Roy's wife Sandy that went missing over ten years ago we read of Sandy throughout the series and there happy marriage and wonder where she went to and this is the book which tells you where.
Sandy is not the mild loving wife Roy knows and her history is very colourful and upsetting and shows numerous wrong turnings she took whilst missing.
A great story
Thanks to the publisher and Netgalley for the ARC and I give my honest review

The wife of a detective wants more. She spirals into a gambling habit with debts to pay to some very nasty people but is afraid to tell her husband.
She decides to flee and lurches from one relationship to another with disastrous consequences trying to get out of the holes she digs.
Not what a expected as I thought this was a detective novel and though similar follows events from the opposite side.
Well worth a read and shows how quickly you can slide from normality into the unkown.

Throughout the Roy Grace series by Peter James, the burning question for me has been where is Sandy? I wondered if she had left of her own free will, and if so, why? If not, what happened to her? Did Roy kill her and get away with it? As each new book came out I eagerly read it, in the hopes of having that question answered.
There was closure of sorts eventually, but no backstory, no insights into why Sandy did what she did. Until now.
They Thought I Was Dead is very much Sandy's story, and it's not a pretty one. It's a story of bad choices, followed by more bad choices. It's the story of someone who believes that the grass is greener on their neighbours side of the fence, only to discover when it's too late that this is not the case.
I devoured this book. Although Sandy is not a very likeable person, her story was still interesting and engaging. There are plenty of twists and turns, and one or two "oh my god!" moments.
You don't have to have read the Roy Grace series before reading They Thought I Was Dead, but it adds context.
Thanks to Netgalley and Pan Macmillan for the digital ARC in exchange for this review.

There is just one thing I didn't like about the book: after finishing it, I felt I had to re-read the whole Roy Grace series again. Immediately. Frustratingly I have so many books on my TBR shelf I will have not time for this in the foreseeable future. And some of the earlier books I only read in Dutch so I would have to buy the original ones first.
This is how I felt after reading this very, very interesting story about Sandy. It's not just about Sanday of course. It's also about Roy but it is also about people making bad decisions without being able to pinpoint why they made them. Gambling, drugs? It's easy to say 'this will never happen to me' but are you sure? Sandy was safe in a loving marriage and it happened to her too. Sometimes I wanted to shake some sense in her, sometimes I wanted to hold her and comfort her.
I'm happy Peter James decided to write this book. Although it can be read as a stand-alone it is a part of Roy's story too, a part that explains a lot about him.
Some of the characters are rather creepy and unfortunately the nice characters don't play a big role in Sandy's life but I admired her in the places where she tried to stick to her resolves - even at the terrible costs.

Thanks to PanMacMilland and Netgalley for this review copy.

This certainly ‘ puts the meat on the bones’ of Sandy’s tortured character drawing together the hints cast along the way in the series of Grace novels. An interesting and compelling read bringing Sandy to the forefront

I really enjoy the Roy Grace books by Peter James but I’m afraid this one didn’t work for me in the same way. I found Sandy’s character to be utterly infuriating, making the same mistakes repeatedly and the story just felt repetitive – meets unsuitable man, instant attraction, acts impulsively, huge mistake over and over. It’s difficult to make a complicated character stay sympathetic and this book didn’t quite manage it for me.

Thanks to Netgalley and the publisher for an advance copy in return for an honest review.

The most anticipated book in my opinion. Sandy has always held intrigue in the Detective Superintendent Roy Grace series. Why did she disappear, why move to Germany, is Bruno Roy’s son? The book finally put some meat on bones, providing detail and reasoning behind a lot of unanswered questions.
Sandy’s life is complex and full of secrets which all catch up with her. With several white knights that aren’t all as they seem, she has not had an easy time of things.
5 stars to Peter James and thank you for finally giving us the story we have all wanted!

Wow, what a read. Really binge worthy. Love the amazing concept to tell your readers what really happened to Sandy. I am sure I was not alone in never really worrying about her, it was just a fact that she vanished without trace, and was always a back story. This really gave the reader why she left, and how she managed it without a trace. So clever the way her history was filled in. I thoroughly enjoyed it and struggled to put it down.

I am a huge fan of the Roy Grace series, so was really excited to see that Peter James had written this book. When we first meet police officer Roy Grace, he is still desperately trying to find out what happened to his wife Sandy, who disappeared suddenly and without trace. Throughout the series we have been given little scraps of Sandy's story, but this is the complete picture and I really loved it!! I also found it very sad, as Sandy seemed to always be looking for something in life and never seemed completely happy. We already knew how it ended but it was good to get all the gaps filled in.
Thanks to NetGalley for a preview copy.
Copied to Goodreads.

I love Peter James’s Grace series and his writing but I am divided on Sandy’s story, because as much as I wondered what and where Sandy had been all the years Roy had been looking for her this story just had an air of unbelievability to it. Certain key points were briefly mentioned and then glossed over and other parts were just dragged out and unlikely, I won’t say what and why as that will give away key points in the story, As to Bruno her son he gets a bit of the limelight as to his upbringing and why he was like he was but not to much insight to him. I’ve always felt it was a shame he was written out of Roy’s life so abruptly as he would have been an interesting character to see develop but that’s another story.
All in all I’m glad I’ve read it and if you too are a die hard Grace fan then read it but I do not feel it’s not a must read novel.

I have been reading Peter James' novels for years and have read most of the Roy Grace series. So I am familiar with the fact that Sandy Grace disappeared many years ago and Roy has never known what happened to her. Which made this book an intriguing 'must read'.

I liked the fact that the book is written in Sandy's voice as a first person narrative. The storyline was good tackling some big issues, such as addiction. I spent the entire book wondering whether Sandy and Roy would reunite, partly willing it to happen and partly not. And also wondering whether the poor decisions Sandy makes along the way would catch up with her.

I felt as though the storyline around Nicos was unfinished in a way. Surely Sandy would have tried to claim some inheritance or his legitimate business in Jersey?

This is a great read, which sits alongside the Roy Grace series and fills in some background information which many readers have been curious about for a long time.

Many thanks to NetGalley for an early copy in exchange for an honest review.

I really enjoyed this spin off Roy Grace book that allows us to really find out from Sandys point of view why she disappeared and what she was doing all those years. Great writing from Peter James as always. It made me think of Sandy as a more in depth character and there were real reasons for her disappearance. The book follows her as she makes her escape from Brighton and who she has been involved with in the decade since she went. Their are topics covered such as addiction and gambling and also who she can trust as she is always looking over her shoulder. I love that parts of the book ties in to the previous series and things start to make a lot more sense when you put it altogether. We also find a bit more out about Bruno, his upbringing and psychological issues. I cant wait for the next in series and I will be recommending to others.

This is a story about the life of the very troubled wife of detective Roy Grace and how she managed to get herself into so much trouble with some very dangerous people and finally to disappear whilst all the time still holding a candle for Roy. This sad tale is well written and I am sure readers of the Roy Grace series will love it.

Oh Sandy! Having read all of the books in the series I was pretty captivated by the story of Sandy and her mysterious disappearance. I always assumed there could be so much more to her story and felt the need to know all the answers so, in that respect, this book was to be a real treat. It was, however, so much more than just the answers Sandy’s own story is far more complex than I outdoor ever have dreamed and deservedly needed to be told. I’m aware I’m actually writing this as though she’s a real person because I’m so engaged and invested in the whole saga that I (almost) feel that way. Granted she doesn’t always make the right decisions along the way but who does? Her vulnerability and love for those around her, however, really shine through in this story and I’ve smiled but cried probably in equal measures. As ever the author makes the most foreboding and sinister of ‘bad guys’ and I felt lots of very real threat looming. Domestic abuse and coercive behaviours are also tackled headlong and sensitively and honestly. This book and definitely the ending will one hundred percent stay with me and in my thoughts for a very long time. Truly feel privileged to have been on the rollercoaster ride.

I enjoyed this book as it gave an interesting view of things from Sandy's point of view. As a long-time fan of the Roy Grace books I really appreciated this clever addition to the series.
I will definitely be recommending this book.