An interesting, thoughtful, and well-written mystery/thriller. "The Shut Eye" is a suspenseful read, which will keep readers guessing for much of it.
Well-written, good characters, and a good read.

This is a book that slipped through the net. I was determined to sidle out some books that slipped down my list, I wanted to put some time aside to get to read them over the Xmas holiday, this was one of them.

This authors books are amazing, this one had slipped down my kindle, so it was great to pull this out and start reading it. I started it in the evening and carried on the next morning as I just was hooked on the story line. I didn’t have a clue where it was going to end up but it was a very good ride.

Starting off with a child going missing pulls at a reader. Then when you get the other ingredients in the pot it made for a gripping read.

My thanks to Random house via Net Galley for my copy

Hi, just clearing up my shelves. I started this one a few years ago and couldn't get into it properly so left it for a while, hoping to get back to it but I've never wanted to. Sorry :(

This book grabs you buy the collar and plunges you right into the story. Any mother must dread this sort of thing happening to them. Thrilling, thought provoking and heart wrenching all at once. I loved it!

(I received a free copy of this book from Net Galley in exchange for an honest review.)

Five footprints are the only sign that Daniel Buck was ever here.
And now they are all his mother has left.
Every day, Anna Buck guards the little prints in the cement. Polishing them to a shine. Keeping them safe. Spiralling towards insanity.
When a psychic offers hope, Anna grasps it. Who wouldn't? Maybe he can tell her what happened to her son...
But is this man what he claims to be? Is he a visionary? A shut eye? Or a cruel fake, preying on the vulnerable?
Or is he something far, far worse?

*3.5 stars*

This was my first book by Belinda Bauer...and it was quite an introduction!

From the first, let me say that I am in no way a real fan of different POV's - they can drag a story down and make for tough reading. In this case, there was a little bit of that...but not too badly.

My biggest enjoyment was the character of Marvel - he is everything we are supposed to dislike in a character (real or invented) - rude, arrogant, sarcastic...but he just worked. But more than that, he has some pretty cool things going on in his head. You just have to read it to find out what...

Anna, the mother of a missing child, was an interesting character - her grief of loss and her spiral into desperation is fascinating - up to a point. It did get a little repetitive and I found that I started to disengage from her as a character about 2/3 of the way through. No real reason...just I didn't find her as interesting after a while. Finally, Edie I didn't connect with at all...

The story itself was very good - there was ample opportunity for this to fall into the tacky and clichéd "psychic" or "supernatural" tropes but the author kept me engaged with the story all the way...until a rather disappointing conclusion. So much strong writing was let down, in my opinion, with an ending that could have been so much more.

Having said that, I will look for more of Bauer's books and see what else she has done.


Paul
ARH