*AD-gifted: I received a copy of The Vanishing Child in exchange for this post. Affiliate links are marked with a *
Today it’s my stop on the tour for *The Vanishing Child by Jennifer Harvey. A heart-wrenching and emotionally charged novel about small-town secrets and the price of facing up to the truth. You are in for a treat!
Book Description
It’s funny how one innocent decision can ruin your life. For me, it was letting my son pedal away on his bike that hot summer day. He’d been so excited to go out by himself—like a big boy. And though I was usually so protective, I let him…
When Carla returns to her father’s house to care for him in his final days, she feels lost and heartbroken. So she’s glad when she meets a kindly older woman named CeCe, and they develop a warm, natural friendship. CeCe understands loss too. Because nearly forty years before her only son disappeared without trace, from this same small town.
Then, sorting through her father’s house, Carla discovers a box of diaries and newspaper clippings from the year CeCe’s son went missing. Her father was barely more than a child himself at the time, but it’s clear the disappearance affected him strongly.
The whole town is haunted by the memory of that summer: of the boy who was never found. But as Carla delves further into her father’s past she realises he may actually have known more than he has ever said—and that perhaps the answers CeCe so desperately seeks have been hidden here in this house all along.
With her father now too ill to tell his story himself, will Carla be able to discover the truth about what happened to the child who vanished—and give CeCe the answers she’s been seeking for forty years?
What I Thought
I really liked the cover and the blurb for this one. I’m always intrigued as to where the story will take you in these mystery/thriller types. I wasn’t disappointed! It was very well written and had a thought-out plotline. It keeps you guessing and also intrigued making you want more. I really liked the characters, particularly CeCe, who you desperately want to know the truth at long last of her missing son all those years back.
Carla the main lead character is like a dog with a bone and won’t stop digging up the secrets to the past about the missing children. See she discovered a box of old newspaper cuttings and her estranged father’s diaries which reveal the old cases of 3 missing boys when he was young. 2 of their bodies were found, but another missing boy years later never was. How was her dad involved?
It’s a book, that you will need to keep reading. As you will need to know the truth. It’s fast-paced in most parts. You will be gripped, that’s for sure! I’m looking forward to reading another of Jennifer’s books!
Thanks to Bookouture and Netgalley for the read.
Author Bio
Jennifer Harvey is a Scottish writer now living in Amsterdam.
Her short fiction has appeared in various publications in the US, Canada, and the UK and she has been shortlisted for the Bristol Prize, the Bridport Prize and placed third in the University of Sunderland Short Story Award. Her novels have been longlisted for the Bath Novel Award and her radio dramas have also won prizes and commendations from the BBC World Service.
Alongside writing, she is a Resident Reader for Carve Magazine, an editor for Carve Critiques, and serves as a member of the Editorial Board for Ellipsis Magazine. When not writing, she can be found sauntering along the Amsterdam canals, dreaming up new stories.
Social Media
Twitter: https://twitter.com/JenAnneHarvey1
Website: https://www.jenharvey.net/
Where To Buy
*Amazon: https://amzn.to/3ktoIrL
Apple: http://ow.ly/hA4v50FfEzF
Kobo: http://ow.ly/RMlq50FfEsM
Google: http://ow.ly/uqwH50FfEBe
Books on Tour
Here is a list of the other bloggers on The Vanishing Child book tour. Why not head over and check out their reviews!
Thanks for stopping by today, I hope you’ve enjoyed this review. You can check out my bookcase of past reviews here.
that certainly seems like my sort of book, mystery and thrillers are my favourite genre
Loving the .blurb too – my kind of read
I love the sound of this book, really up my street. I love a mystery.