A really riveting read! I devoured the book in two sittings. It is a very absorbing read with likeable and dislike able characters. Very atmospheric of the southern states of America. I really enjoyed this. #NetGalley#TheNowhereChild

The Nowhere Child
Author: Christian White
Publishers: HarperCollins
Gripping Psychological Thriller.

This debut novel won the Victorian Premier's Literary Award, previously won by 2 authors whose work I had read and loved, and I can see why it won. I read it in 2 sittings, I really did not want to put it down. The writing was great, the characters instantly believable and the story, about a missing child, was taut and gripping with an ending which I hadn't guessed but loved. I'd recommend this to anyone and everyone.

Many thanks to the author, publishers and netgalley for giving me this digital reader copy in exchange for my unbiased and honest review.

The opening of this book introduces Kim Leamy a photography teacher in Melbourne, Australia in the present time. She is approached by James Finn, a stranger from America who informs her of the kidnapping of a little girl (2 years old) thirty years ago – Sammy Went.

The following chapter takes us back to that time in a small town in America when Sammy goes missing. The plot in this period unfolds through Jack, Sammy’s father and Emma, her 13 year old sister. In this fashion we are introduced to Emma’s brother Stuart, the sheriff Ellis and Travis a neighbour and we learn of the mother’s obsession with ‘The Light Within’ a fundamentalist, cult-like group to which she belongs.

The plot follows this structure of alternating between the two time frames. We witness Kim’s confusion and disbelief as it is revealed that James (in reality Stuart, Sammy’s brother) declares that Kim is that kidnapped child.

Well done Mr White. You have presented a complex, challenging plot with a cast of interesting characters. I liked the structure; I liked the characters and most of all I loved reading this book even if the rattlesnake thing un-nerved me somewhat.

Heartily recommended.

Thank you to the author, publishers and NetGalley for providing an ARC via my Kindle in return for an honest review.

Clever and intriguing this book will have you hooked from the start!
The nowhere child tells the story of a missing child, who is you! Cleverly written it flashes between present day, and back to when the girl goes missing. This was done really well, making it feel as though you were reading two stories. The end of the book saw both stories meet. I really enjoyed this way of writing, it made for a page turner, with both stories gripping!
Thank you to Netgalley and HarperCollins for an ARC copy of this book in return for an honest review. #Netgalley #thenowherechild

Snakes, exorcisms, cults and much more!

Kimberley Leamy lives in Melbourne, Australia is shocked when a man approaches her while at the college where she teaches photography. He claims that she is his sister, Sammy who had been abducted when she was two years old from Manson Kentucky USA. Stuart Went gives her irrefutable evidence as to who she really is.

The story is told in two parts. The story of what happened to Sammy, how the members of the Church of the Light Within (a cult who use poisonous snakes in their services) had influenced her (biological) parents and the present, where Kim/Sammy gets to find out the story of her kidnapping. The biggest shock for her is realising that her life had been based on a lie and the people who she had always considered to be her true parents are not.

The storyline moves at a very fast pace. I found that I was making excuses to read, even waking up early, so that I could fit in at least another couple of hours before my day started. Christian White has painted a very disturbing picture of the cult and the scenes with the snakes (creatures I’m terrified of!) had me forcing myself to continue reading even though I wanted to hide under a blanket. He’s captured the family’s torment following the abduction of Sammy. Equally, he’s captured Kim coming to terms with the lie she’s lived since her abduction.

A truly memorable book and one that will continue to give me nightmares every time I hear the word snake and God forbid that I trip over one as I holiday here in Africa!

Imbali

Breakaway Reviewers received a copy of the book to review.

Kimberly Leamy is a photography teacher in Melbourne, Australia. Twenty-six years earlier, Sammy Went, a two-year old girl vanished from her home in Manson, Kentucky. The novel opens with Kim being approached by an American accountant who is convinced she was that child.

There seem to have been a lot of books about missing children over the last few years and I went in expecting a competently written, if not terribly original, story. Fortunately it was much better than expected! The characters are well-rounded, with their own quirks (and demons) and I particularly enjoyed the male characters Jack, Travis and the cop. However, it’s the setting that makes this book really stand out. Small town Manson, Kentucky is vividly brought to life, along with its weird and wonderful Church of the Light Within. Tightly plotted, with a structure that jumped regularly from then to now, this thriller kept me hooked from start to finish.

Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for a digital ARC to read and review.

I have to say, The Nowhere Child was a highly anticipated read for me, yet when I started reading, I wasn’t sure if I enjoyed it that much. Maybe because there were too many descriptions and unnecessary dialogs (for my taste) ?
And I also wasn’t sure about the whole church (or more like cult) thing that seemed to take over the American side of the story. But, it all made sense at the end, even if some parts were somehow unlikely and a bit far fetched for my liking. I can see most of it happening though, but it’s hard to explain without giving too much away!
The plot starts by an accountant approaching Kim Leamy in Melbourne, claiming she’s a long lost girl called Sammy Went, who disappeared from her bedroom in a small town in Kentucky, 28 years ago. Kim decides to go to the US to find out what happened to her that fateful day.
I liked how the main characters were portrayed, some of them were truly horrible and that fitted the story well. It also handles some pretty thoughtful issues - but again, can’t say much without spoiling it!
There are two timelines, one in the now, from Kim’s POV, the second back in 1990, starting from the day Sammy disappeared.
Around halfway through, I was pretty sure I figured it all out (it seems fairly straightforward at first, I had a few theories to start with but then I was fairly certain I knew! ) and I thought I knew what happened to Sammy. Turns out I was wrong. It was quite shocking and maybe a little improbable, but it made for an original story.
All in all, it makes a refreshing read, even though I found the writing a little “too much” at times, the plot makes up for it! I would definitely recommend this book and I would definitely read more from this author in the future!

Thank you NetGalley, Christian White and Harper Collins UK for my free copy to read!

I liked this book a lot. After only a few pages, I knew it was going to be good. I liked the back then and now concept, the chapter lengths were just right for this. The story flowed well, I liked the backstory sideline titbits that added to the intrigue and mystery.

This is a book worthy of a duvet day as it's frustratingly good that you just want to get answers so just one chapter while I have 5 minutes turns into sorry I'm busy.... while you read more....

I highly recommend this author. I'm looking forward to his next book.

Thank you to #NetGalley and the author and publishers for the opportunity to read this book #NowhereChild

“The reader gives the author a dozen or so hours of their life, and in return, hopefully, the author gives them a story worth their time.“

Christian White’s Author’s Note at the finish of the book is very sweetly self-deprecating as he calls on the pact between author and reader and prays we will forgive him if we feel this story is not worth our time, because this is, after all, a debut. Luckily, I did feel this story was worth my time and would recommend it to others who have enjoyed the latest spate of Aussie crime thrillers.

Kim Leamy, an Australian photographer is brought into contact with a man who claims to know details of a past of which Kim has no memory. Deciding to go into more detail and hear how her story might interact with a toddler who went missing in Kentucky years before might open a Pandora’s Box of secrets. So of course, she proceeds. What follows is a gripping page-turner.

Okay, so it’s not perfect. There are occasions where you have to suspend your disbelief, for example (without giving too much away) why didn’t Stuart do some more digging to find out about Kim’s parents?
But would any of the moments of disbelief stop me from recommending it highly to others? Not when the point of a thriller is to to keep the reader enthralled. This does just that.

An excellent debut and I look forward to reading more by this author.

Many thanks to NetGalley, HarperCollins UK and Christian White for an ARC in exchange for an honest review.

This book is brilliant there is no other way to describe it. I started reading it not knowing what to expect. The premise a simple idea but the book turned into something more. The story has so many twists in it. From the start with Stuart to the end with Dean. Kim /Sammy lead you down her story but the past and present story telling leading you into the finale had me gripped. I was sleep deprived at the end of it but it was worth it. The ending left me with the what's going to happen to Kim/Sammy this new family, her old family, her step dad. I feel emotionally invested in her now and hope the author does do a continuation. I want to know what happens next! This was a brilliant debut and I look forward to reading more of Christian Whites work.

The book tells the story about Sammy, a little girl who went missing many years ago, and Kim who is believed to be the same child, almost 30 years later.
It took a while to become absorbed in the story as it switches between two time frames – the past (a small town religious community in Kentucky, USA) and Australia, where Kim currently lives. And as new characters are introduced it becomes more complex, I kept flipping back pages to check how certain characters fitted into the story.
Characters and scenery are well drawn and developed by the author, vivid descriptions regarding areas making you feel you were there. The book starts slowly but gathers pace as this dark, disturbing story graphically unfolds, taking you along with Kim as she finds out about her dark, disturbing past and the dangers it still holds.
I found the book difficult to put down as I wanted to find out who had kidnapped Sammy and the circumstances leading up to her abduction. An engrossing read, which will keep readers turning the pages.

A fast-paced psychological thriller with vivid characters and an intriguing premise, The Nowhere Child is an entertaining read. It's deftly plotted and has a (rare for the genre) satisfying conclusion. However, it doesn't feel particularly Australian to me and some of the characters, particularly the American cast, feel horribly cliched. I don't suspect it matters, as this book will sell in its millions!

Thank you to NetGalley for the review copy.

It's hard to review this without giving too much away.

A 28 year old woman in Australia gets approached by a man from Kentucky, who claims she is his long lost sister, who went missing at 2 years old.

There's man just released from prison; her father's secret male lover; a cultish church, a withdrawn mother...

It's an engaging read - one that you want to speed through to find out what happened. It's a fantastic thriller.

Wow! What a fantastic debut novel from Christian White. I finished it within a couple of hours as I couldn’t wait to get to the end of this thriller and find out what had happened.
Imagine finding out as an adult that your life to date had been a lie, and you had been kidnapped as a child and moved continent.
Torn between hurting the family she was brought up with and finding the truth, Kim Leamy travels to America to get to the bottom of the allegation from a stranger that she went missing as a toddler.
I’ve read several books about missing children, but this one was different in that it didn’t have the predictable “happy ending”.
Would thoroughly recommend this read, and will definitely keep an eye out for further books by Christian White in future.

Thanks to Net Galley and Harper Collins UK for an ARC of this book in exchange for a review.
This is a dark read and full of suspense.
Jack and Molly Wents youngest daughter who is only two disappears, They are distraught, Jack searches relentlessly for little Sammy, Molly is sustained by her rather bizarre faith in her church of The Light Within.
More than 20 years have passed when Kim who lives in Australia and is a photographer is approached by a man, Stuart, who claims that Kim is the missing toddler. Kim’s mother passed four years ago, so she is unable to ask her the many questions that are running through her mind. When she asks her stepfather and DNA tells her she is indeed Sammy, Kim travels to Manson Kentucky with Stuart, who is her brother to find out what happened all those years ago.
The story is told in ‘then’ and ‘now’ and the tension builds, lots of twists to the story with a totally unexpected ending.

Well-plotted suspense

A 2 year old girl disappears in Kentucky. 28 years later a man tells a photographer in Melbourne that she is that girl. How? Why?

Chapters alternate between past and present. There's a temptation to jump ahead into the present to find out what happened. It's worth resisting that temptation though, and to enjoy this well-crafted story. Hard to put down.

Recommended.

This was a great read. Very thought provoking and intriguing. A very well thought through psychological thriller. I liked how the story went back and forth from then, when the kidnapping happened, to now when the kidnapped girl was found as an adult many years later. The book had me hooked from the very first chapter. Excellent.

Really really good! I have read only half of it so far but i cannot stop! If I did not have to sleep, work and do school runs, I would spend all day reading in the bed. The story is really fast paced, no unnecessary descriptions or dialogs. The author has a talent with all these twists and turns that keep me glued to the book! Cant wait to find to find out what happened in the end and looking forward to read more books of Christian White in the future.

One of my favourite things about reading a book is the fact you are never sure of what story the pages of a book will hold. Yes, you have the book description to give you a hint, but even so a story can take so many directions. I thought The Nowhere Child would be a straightforward “girl gets taken, and then found years later” but how wrong I was this book has so much more to offer, it’s dark, genuinely twisted, layered in mystery and intrigue. I should mention the book is the debut thriller from Australian author Christian White, and what a debut, it’s superbly plotted, and one of those books that’s a pleasure to read for all its twist and turns.

What would you do if you discovered your entire life was a lie? That’s the question Kim Leamy has to face when she’s approached by a man whose convinced she’s Sammy Went, a little girl who went missing twenty-eight years ago in Manson, Kentucky. In a quest for the truth she travels to Manson where Kim soon learns that some secrets are best left buried. The Nowhere Child alternate between the past and the present chapters, ensuring the reader's attention never wanes. The chapters narrated in the past explore the impact of Sammy’s disappearance on her family and the small religious community they live in. The present chapters follow Kim’s journey to discover the truth about her past. Although the theme of a child being stolen isn’t entirely new, the authors telling of the story made this book a compelling read. As one chapter ended, and another began I found myself immersed in Amy’s story, rather like Amy I was desperate to get to the truth of her disappearance.

I found the chapters told in the past to be the most fascinating part of this book, as the author scratches below the surface of Kim’s grieving family, buried secrets bubble to the surface, and relationships already fragile begin to unravel. As to the present chapters as Kim delves deeper into her past what initially presents itself as kidnapping crime mystery novel turns into something darker and far more sinister. Every character from Kim’s past has something to hide, and as each one is revealed the web the author weaves becomes more tangled.

Although some readers may consider this read a slow builder, I thought the pace was perfect; it allows the reader to get to know the various dysfunctional characters from Kim’s past warts and all. The NoWhere Child is a heart wrenching and somewhat chilling psychological thriller which explores several different themes, love, loss, scandal, and religious cults. Christian White Debut made for a compelling read with fascinating characters, the perfect location, with a mystery containing so many twists and turns it’s guaranteed to keep even the most ardent psychological thriller readers entertained. Highly recommended

This review maybe altered slightly and edited prior to publication on my blog

I loved this book and felt the characters really believable so felt I actually went on the journey with Kim, I enjoyed the way the story built up in the present alongside the past to see how and what happened to Sammy when she went missing.
I was sad to finish it as felt so real I wanted to know what happened next!!