Then She Was Gone

Then She Was Gone: A Novel by Lisa Jewell
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

This is one of my favorites by this author. I’ve read a few books by her and two elements have been consistent for me; she is an excellent writer with perfect timing and character development while using language that fascinates me. The other is that her books make me squirm. I don’t like the squirminess but they are typically innuendo and definitely not completely weird. Just uncomfortable.

This book was excellent. Very well paced and I love her writing. The story is very engaging. A beautiful 15 year old with everything going for her disappears without a trace. Ten years later, with no leads, the family fractured and broken, Laurel, Ellie’s mother, meets enigmatic Floyd, who coincidentally, is single parenting a 9 year old child who bears a striking resemblance to missing Ellie.

What is striking about the story is that the author must untangle for the reader the relationship or non relationship between Floyd and Ellie (that is the mystery, after all), but also concentrated on healing of relationships between Laurel and her ex-husband and children. There are different peripheral stories that don’t seem relevant but, in the end, make the book much more satisfying. Threaded throughout the main story is hints of the way each family member dealt with the grief and loss and Laurel’s judgment of each. Rather psychologically insightful. I think I enjoyed that aspect as much as the main story.

This book was provided by the publisher for an honest review