Cover Image: Without a Trace

Without a Trace

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Member Reviews

Excellent book! I was really impressed with it. Great story and good, believable characters. 4/5 stars and will definitely read more by this author!

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I really enjoyed this book, written from three different but interwoven points of view you gradually get the full picture. Or you think you do? Or do you? It’s one to keep you guessing right until the end. Is Lily real? Was she ever there? Is her mum insane? Did her dad take her?

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I received this book from NetGalley in exchange for my fair and honest review.

This was the first book written by this author that I have read. I enjoy suspense/thrillers its one of my favorite genres. I found this book a little strange as it jumped from character to characters point of view. Nova has ran with Lily from her abusive husband, and then the first night Lily disappears. Is there actually a Lily, that is one of the main questions or is Nova a whack job. I enjoyed that the book wasnt a long one, so that I got the answers before I got to the point the overall style of the book turned me off. I'm not saying this wasnt a good book because it actually was, just that I have never been a big fan of books jumping for character to chacter constantly and their point of view. I would give this book 3.5 stars.

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Thank you netgalley for providing this ARC in exchange for an honest review.
This was an intense domestic murder mystery. From the time Nova takes her daughter to a safe cabin to escape her abusive husband to the end, we are on a constant rollercoaster trying to figure out the truth. The author draws a complicated story that involves a group of women trying to protect each and their secrets. Although I felt lost a bit as it all unravels in the end it all comes together quite simply. Enjoyable if not a bit too convoluted.

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A little girl has gone missing. For Officer Ellie James it appears to be a clear custody battle until......
There seems to be no evidence that the child ever existed.
If you’re looking for a great, easy to read, crime novel, this one’s for you.
The chapters, written in 1st person and from 3 different POV’s, are short and punchy. It kept me guessing until the very end.
The only downside for me was that maybe it was all tidied up a little too quickly at the end.
Overall I enjoyed it and would like to thank NetGalley for sending me an ARC of this book in exchange for my honest review.

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An interesting read. A woman's child goes missing. Was she taken or did she ever really exist? A very clever book in relation to domestic abuse and dominance. I do not want to give too much away but can say that the book is full of twists and a really shock ending.
Cleverly written in dedicated chapters between the characters which provides the reader with insight into each ones own journey and lives. I would have liked a chapter from the girl's view maybe at the end but a great book that was really well written.

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This book is built in layers. Each characters adds a layer to the story, with a change in direction with each layer. There is no clear cut crime, yet there is definitely something going on that the police cannot see. Carissa Lynch has done a great job of telling a disturbing story with enough clues and differing stories to keep you interested. A definite must read.

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This book follows a little girl that is taken from her home in the night. However when the officer investigated the case there is no evidence of a child having existed. A thrilling read that I would recommend to a reader who is a fan of mystery.

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I received a copy of this book from  the publisher through Net Galley. What follows is an honest review. 

To sum up a 48 chapter novel that could have been 30 chapters is about , a newbie cop (Ellie) also knows as the "cop killer" who is on a quest to find missing persons Nova and her 4 year old daughter Lily who ran away from home to escape domestic violence/abuse from her husband Martin, and Clara (Al/Neighbor) who helps Nova escape via hidden knitting app.

The novel it self is a quick read, with multiple POVs of the characters through out the novel which connects them all together. The opening page was what got my attention, however a few of the characters could have been left out. I felt like the story was dragging by chapter 20 and it was getting very repetitive close to the end.

The ending wasn't something to jump up for, it was random like it was just thrown in to finish the novel, because of how long it was.

I've never read a Lynch novel before but I will definitely be looking her up.

TRIGGER WARNING: This novel does contain, domestic violence/abuse, kidnapping and murder.

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I read a lot of books in this genre, and this was a satisfying, quick read. It’s told from multiple POVs. It took a bit for me to figure out how the one character fully connected to the others, but it was a nice surprise when it all came together. Numerous twists and turns kept me guessing throughout, and it was interesting to see how it all came together in the end. I’ve never read anything by Lynch before, but I will check out her books in the future.

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A thrilller that had me guessing. I really enjoyed the storyline and because of that it was a quick read.

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There is something about the books in which little kids disappear without a trace. It is just so unsettling.
This book had the creep-factor of all those kind of books out there.

A little girl went missing in weird circumstances, in an abnormal manner and her mother gets frightened beyond explain and tries to reach out to her child.

The twists are also present in the book, mainly because the plot is carried by three narrative voices, Ellie, Lily and Clara. Each character has a backstory and also a secret so there is plenty of room for dirty actions and plot twists.

A good book. I did enjoy it a lot.

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This book had one of the most intriguing plot lines I’ve ever encountered in thrillers, at least from what I could tell in the synopsis. It is about a mother who reports her daughter missing, and when the cop that’s one of the main characters gets there, she sees no trace of a child ever having lived there. Is the mother lying, or is there more to this story? What a plot.


While I wasn’t disappointed-in fact, I was quite on board to know what was going on- I couldn’t help but feel a disconnect in the way the characters were portrayed and some of the things they did, and the superficial way the story was handled. It was a strong plot, a really good one, but I found the execution a bit lacking. I thought there were some holes left in the story, and some things were swept under the rug, but still, this didn’t take away from my enjoyment and excitement much. One little matter that could be the exception to this would be the use of triple dot at the end of sentences. There were too many, it felt like the sentences never truly ended, or the characters were always unsure of what they were saying. I just hope this was fixed during publication.

Apart from all this, I liked that the story was told in multiple viewpoints. This enabled me to see the whole picture from many different angles, which is something I always enjoy in my reads. But the most important thing to mention is the real life-and very serious- issues the plot handled. I was glad to see that there were messages to receive from this story, and the author wasn’t even subtle about them. It’s always nice to read a book that puts social issues at its core and doesn’t shy away from criticism.

I’m adding three spoonfuls of this story into my hodgepodge.

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A great suspense thriller that draws you in from the start. Told from different view points, all totally reasonable but all cannot possibly be true. Who’s telling the truth and who’s lying is not easy to spot. Keeps you hooked right to the end.
Thanks to Netgalley and Carissa Ann Lynch for the early e book copy.

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A little girl is missing and the only thing left in her bed is a toy rabbit after her mommy tucked her into bed the night before .. could it be her abusive husband.. without telling the story I will say that this book drew me in, the whole time I was thinking that maybe Nova was a basket case and needed some type of mental attention. Maybe or maybe not. You really have to read this book. It was filled with suspense and twists that made me want to keep reading. I would love to read more from this author, hopefully their will be a continuation in this story. Thank you to Netgalley for an advanced readers copy in exchange for my honest review. #netgalley

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This is the first time that i have read a book by this author and judging on this book alone, i just cannot wait to read more. A very gripping read and is easily one of the best thrillers that i have read in a while. I very seldom write what a story is about, as i prefer one to read the book for themselves, but i can highly recommend.

My thanks to Netgalley and the Publishers for my copy. This is my honest review, freely given.

(Awaiting Amazon to publish my review).

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Awesome thriller! Suspense was incredible. I made it mots of the way though the book with no clue at all who the kidnapper was. Never saw the whole "Al" character turning out the way it did. The author did a great job creating characters that were believable, while they were actually hiding dangerous secrets. Highly recommend this book if you are into thrillers, especially ones about kidnapping.

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Oh my! I absolutely LOVE everything about Carissa's writing style. I have adored every book I have read by her, and this was beyond exciting. I thoroughly enjoyed the detail and level of personality that was given to characters. It meant that I was kept on my toes, throughout the read, and really enjoyed trying to guess what might happen next.

The pace is fantastic. It really kept the book flowing well and is exactly what I expect and love in a thrilling read. It was written so well, that I often felt a part of the story and was fully submerged into the plot, wanting to know what had happened.

I honestly cannot recommend this book enough. It is truly a must read!

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A little girl is taken from her home in the middle of the night, most likely by her abusive father. But when Officer Ellie James investigates, she turns up more questions than answers. Why are there no photos of the little girl? Why her drawers filled with clothes that have never been worn? Does the missing child even exist?

I really liked the premise for this one, but ultimately found it middling in every way. I didn't care that much about any of the characters, so I just wasn't invested in what happened to them. and so many sentences ended "..." that I found it jarring and distracting.

This wasn't a poorly written book, but it wasn't a well written one either - for me it was firmly in that no-mans land of adequate books I've read once but wouldn't read again. decent premise but ultimately unsatisfying, and I thought the "twist" fell flat.

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I like that there were short characters in this page Turing thrilling novel. Creepy story will keep you guessing and up all night....

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