My review

As the blurb said, a lost child, a phone call fifteen years later claiming to be the lost child, and then flashbacks along with the present and future repercussions. All this sounded great which made me request for the book. 

This is my first Joy Fielding book, I have heard of her but haven’t read any of her previous works. Hoping to lose myself in the book, I started the story with great enthusiasm. 

The story starts well, there is the feeling of anticipation of how, when, why. The author has a great plot line with strong characters, but somewhere down the line, it falls short. 

The mother, Caroline, who misses her baby every second in these fifteen years, should have brought out my sympathy but misses her mark. I just couldn’t connect with her, I knew she was going through pain but could not feel her angst in the words. In spite of being a math teacher, I didn’t think she was well versed with the ways of the world, she couldn‘t calculate the odds at any point of time. I never felt she stood up for herself, always being sorry, feeling sorry. 

The elder daughter, Michelle, got short changed in the entire book. I felt bad for her and empathized with her plight. A stubborn clingy child, not liked much by the mother especially when the younger child was angelic, growing up to be a rude moody teenager whose good side sometimes peeks through the pages, but always covered by her ornery words. I liked the way the author has developed Michelle’s character. A girl with a heart of gold but covering it with a blustery nature. She was an enigma. 

I couldn’t care less for the father in the entire book. He did have 2 families pre and post divorce, but he loved only one person – himself. His feelings for his lost daughter did not even come out, and I didn’t know if it was deliberate. The rest of the characters play their part, go through the motions the author puts them through.

The only part in the book which excited me was the ending; it was unexpected and twisted. It came at a time when the book felt lacklustre. A book which read more like a family saga ended with a bang! 

I received an ARC from NetGalley and publisher Bonnier Zaffre and this is my honest and unbiased opinion. 

My rating : 3.5 stars

About the Author 

Joy Fielding is the New York Times bestselling author of Someone Is Watching, Charley’s Web, Heartstopper, Mad River Road, See Jane Run and other acclaimed novels. She divides her time between Toronto and Palm Beach, Florida.

Book blurb 

When Caroline Shipley’s two-year-old daughter disappeared, her whole world came crashing down.

Now, fifteen years later, Caroline receives a phone-call that could change everything.

But could this stranger really be her daughter? And what happened all those years ago to make her vanish without a trace? As Caroline pieces together the events of that ill-fated holiday, she begins to question whether the answers could lie dangerously close to home . . .

Product Details 

Publication date : 14th December 2017

Publisher : Bonnier Zaffre 

Language : English 

Available on Amazon