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Thanks to Penguin’s First To Read for providing an eARC in exchange for an honest review.
Release Date: April 18th, 2017
Synopsis: Hannah Monroe’s boyfriend, Matt, is gone. His belongings have disappeared from their house. Every call she ever made to him, every text she ever sent, every photo of him and any sign of him on social media have vanished. It’s as though their last four years together never happened.
As Hannah struggles to get through the next few days with humiliation and recrimination whirring through her head, she knows that she’ll do whatever it takes to find him again and get answers. But as soon as her search starts, she realizes she is being led into a maze of madness and obsession. Step by suspenseful step, Hannah discovers her only way out is to come face o face with the shocking truth…
Can you imagine coming home from work one day to fine the person you love and have lived with for the past four years gone? And not only that but he’s erased every sign that he existed in your life. It’s because of this premise that I was so excited to be approved for Gone Without A Trace. I spent the first part of the book dying to know why Matt would do this. Was it willingly, or was he forced into it? And my heart ached for Hannah who was left devastated but determined to find out what happened. The story is told in her first person POV which makes it even more personal. But then I started running into a few roadblocks. First, Hannah frantically running around on her own trying to find Matt went on much too long. Making things worse, the more I read, the more I started to dislike her. I understand the effect of the trauma and emotional toll of something like this can have on someone, but Hannah had no thoughts, concern, or empathy for anyone else in her life. Not that any of the other characters were likable either. The only one I really felt any sympathy for at the end was Hannah’s mother. So, obviously there has to be more to this story, right? Well, there is a huge twist in the latter half of the book that turns everything upside down. Unfortunately, for me anyway, I had already started to suspect what this big revelation was so it wasn’t a huge surprise. I was going to only give this 3 stars, but the author brings up an important social issue that is seldom talked or written about, so I’m giving her an extra 1/2 point for that. Gone Without A Trace isn’t a bad story. It’s just one that I personally was hoping more from. However, if enjoy suspense and mysteries with sketchy characters, then I still recommend you give this a try!
Carrie said:
Nice review! I have this one to read too, hopefully will get to it soon. 🙂
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By Hook Or By Book ~ Book Reviews, News, & Other Stuff said:
I can’t wait to hear your thoughts on this Carrie!💁🏻
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beetleypete said:
Getting the twist early always spoils an otherwise good read.
Best wishes, Pete.
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By Hook Or By Book ~ Book Reviews, News, & Other Stuff said:
So true Pete.😕
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Books, Vertigo and Tea said:
This sounds intriguing, but I struggle too much when things become predictable. Fantastic review!
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By Hook Or By Book ~ Book Reviews, News, & Other Stuff said:
Thanks Danielle! ☺
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YAandWine said:
It does have a fascinating premise. I’m sorry it didn’t quite live up to that for you. I’m interested to know what social issue it brought up, but I doubt I’ll read it honestly.
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By Hook Or By Book ~ Book Reviews, News, & Other Stuff said:
It definitely wasn’t the worst book I’ve read. Maybe my expectations were too high.🤷🏻♀️
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YAandWine said:
Yeah, that happens sometimes. I feel like I’m harsher on books I have high expectations for. I’m really trying not to be that way, but I really have to put a conscious effort into it.
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Jen said:
Now I want to know what happened lol. That’s so crazy that he could vanish without a trace, so the premise sounds entirely fascinating! But that’s always kind of a bummer when you figure things out and when the other characters aren’t that intriguing. Such a wonderful review Kim and here’s hoping your next book is much more addicting!!
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By Hook Or By Book ~ Book Reviews, News, & Other Stuff said:
Ha! You know me Jen. I’ll never tell. 😁
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Lashaan and Trang (Bookidote) said:
Whenever the premise is something like this, I always start off by thinking that the person was a figment of the protagonist’s imagination! It’be funny if that was the twist. 😛 Great review though!
– Lashaan
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By Hook Or By Book ~ Book Reviews, News, & Other Stuff said:
Ooh! That would be a really cool twist!😁
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