Emma Hunter is a writer and investigative reporter who is chosen to search for a young girl who went missing. But is it just a plan of two sisters. Cannot really go into much due to a big chance of spoiling it for others. Thanks Netgalley and the publisher for the advance ecopy.

This is book 3 in the The Missing Children Case Files. Investigative journalist Emma Hunter has yet another case to investigate. Another girl has gone missing bringing back bad memories for Emma as her own sister is still missing and this latest case bears many similarities. A horrific story involving paedophiles and vulnerable children. There will be another two more book in the series of the Missing Children. A gripping and haunting read.

I really enjoyed this book and the way it jumped between ‘then and now’. Also really liking the character of Emma, so much to the point I had to go and buy the first book ransomed! It was so easy to get into and I found myself just wanting to read on.

Number four in this series.
Emma is asked for help from a missing girls mother
This case is eerily like the case of emma’s missing sister two decades ago.
Will Emma find the girl and will she get closer to finding out what happened to her sister.
Another great book
Thanks NetGalley

I can’t believe you have done this to me again and just ended the book on a cliff hanger like that. Please hurry up with the next book as I really can’t wait any longer. This book defiantly does not disappoint as a body is found in the burned out shell of the film studios. As Emma once again butts head with law enforcement and a certain police woman she is yet again drawn into another missing child case but is everything what it seems.

Emma Hunter is again on the hunt for a missing child. She had been asked for help by the parents- much to the disgust of the police inspector, who is far from friendly. Freddie, her friend whose story inspired her first book, has been released from jail for burning the studio where so much abuse had taken place. Jack the policeman who had been her co-investigator in the search for missing children calls her to say a suitcase has been found containing bones whilst the ruins of the studio were being cleared- could this be the sister who started her obsession with the missing? Confused? All I can say is, read this great series from the start then you'll be ready for this next instalment! Along with Emma's narrative we have Jo-Jo's (or Kylie's) story. The pace never lets up & as in the past I was left desperate for the next instalment.

Thanks to Netgalley & the publisher for letting me read this book- can't wait to see where Emma goes next!

Beautifully written book full of tension and drama. Had me gripped so much that I read it in one sitting. Thoroughly enjoyed this book and I am looking forward to more from this author. Highly recommend.

Thoroughly enjoying this series,lots of twists and turns. We have a new case to investigate mixed in with the continuing story.

Discarded is the fourth instalment in an unmissable crime series featuring
investigative journalist, and bestselling real crime author Emma Hunter. Emma doesn’t get an easy ride this time round, as well as her ongoing search for her sister Anna, a nine-year-old girl has gone missing. Eerily the case has many similarities to Anna’s disappearance two decades earlier. This is a hard-hitting, gritty series that deals with some difficult and potentially traumatising themes, but I should point out the author shows great sensitivity and there aren’t any descriptions that are explicit. 

Each book in the series feels darker than the last and Discarded is the most hard-hitting in the series so far. The main and ongoing theme running through all these books is Anna’s disappearance, each book takes the reader one step closer to finding out what happened to her. This book is hard-hitting as it reveals the monsters who hide in plain sight. It also tells the heartbreaking and horrifying story of the victims that have been taken and find themselves in the clutches of a paedophile ring.

This series is such a brilliant read, and it’s incredible to think the author has written the whole series in just over a year, it’s obvious he has put a lot of effort into Anna’s story It’s been exceptionally well-thought-out, with an intriguing plot that combines suspense, tension and lashes of mystery. This series is turning out to be nerve-shredding M.A. Hunter is leading the reader a merry dance before we find out what happened actually happened to Anna, but thats what makes these books such an addictive read. Discarded ends on a HUGE cliffhanger which leaves me impatiently to wait for the last two books in the series. Highly recommended.

Loved this! So good, so exciting, so gripping and great story. Can't wait to read more by this author - absolutely brilliant.

Just like with all the previous books, I went straight into this fourth installment of The Missing Children Case files from Case 3 because I was still hooked. This book comes closer to the truth that Emma Hunter has been looking for all along, with a suitcase of bones potentially opening the door for the answers she has never given up on finding. But when she starts to realise that these bones, along with another long missing child's grave could be opening up an even wider, and more horrific crime than first thought, Emma and Jack struggle with who to trust.

Quite often by book four in a series, I find myself starting to slow. The series can lose momentum, or I start to disengage. But not this series. Before I realise it, I am on the last page. Reaching for the next book. Needing to know what happens next. I am as invested in Emma’s journey as Emma herself at this stage! She has really drawn us in as a character, and made us feel that we all need to find out how to solve this mystery. There is a lot at stake. Lives, and much innocence. Another cracker of a read!

*I received this book from NetGalley for review but all opinions are my own.

Another great addition to this addictive series. The series gets better and better with each instalment
I’m loving the development in the subplot and the characters too

M.A Hunter has fast become one of my favourite writers. There’s such hope written into the stories even though the subject matter can be heavy. This novel continues the story of a writers quest to find her lost sister and helping other families reunite with loved ones along the way. I can’t wait to continue reading her well fought journey.

Thank you NetGalley for this amazing arc

I’m absolutely loving this Missing Children Case Files series, but if you haven’t read the first three, don’t start here; you need to go back to the beginning and start with Ransomed. If you haven’t been following from the beginning, you really won’t have a full handle on true crime author Emma Hunter and the tragedy that has defined her; her sister Anna who has been missing for over twenty years. Everything Emma does, she does with Anna in mind, especially now that some clues to what really happened to Anna are starting to surface. Emma can tell she’s getting closer… and there’s a shocking twist in this book as it’s revealed to the reader (but not Emma) just how close she really is.

The series deals with some difficult and potentially traumatising themes, with abducted children forced into abusive situations and some of them, yes, discarded, as per the title. The discovery of a young girl’s long-buried bones in a suitcase trigger a new avenue of search for Emma and her friends in the police force, and then some photographs are emailed to Emma’s agent which point to conspiracy at a very high level, something which isn’t resolved here but is obviously going to be a focus later on.

I’m not always a huge fan of books which end without resolving all the major mysteries - it can feel like a con to get you to buy the next in the series - but each book in this series focuses on its own major case, tying up that one in the book while unlocking more parts of the overarching mystery of what happened to Anna. It’s cleverly done, and far from annoying me, it has me on the edge of my seat waiting for the next installment! Five stars for a great read - but make sure you start at the beginning of the series to get the full enjoyment out of it.

I would like to thank Netgalley and HarperCollins UK/One More Chapter for a review copy of of Discarded, the fourth novel set in Dorset to feature true crime author Emma Hunter.

Emma is still investigating the disappearance of her sister, Anna, 21 years ago when another local girl goes missing and her parents ask for her help. Then news comes that bones of a teenage girl have been found and they might be Anna’s. Is it a coincidence that she is sent a photograph of a missing girl at the same time?

I enjoyed Discarded which is an even darker novel than its predecessors, although I don’t feel the plot is as clear cut and it leaves many loose ends. The novel is once again split into two with the then dealing with the kidnap and grooming of a young girl and the now dealing with Emma’s current activities. The grooming is hard to read and I skim read some of it, preferring a big picture to the detail. Emma’s activities are much more focused on uncovering the paedophile ring and its victims hinted at in previous novels, rather than having two separate investigations. It gives the novel a more bitty feel and a much greater sense of unfinished business.

The other novels probably work as stand-alones, although as I read them in order it’s difficult to tell, but this one feels like a prelude to the remaining two. That’s a bit woolly, but there are definite developments in this novel and that’s the best way I can describe it without spoilers. These developments took me by surprise and I’m still puzzling over how to take them, but, whatever, they are an excellent appetiser for the next one.

Discarded is a good read that I have no hesitation in recommending.

Another brilliant installment in this fantastic series, I love how it leaves you right on a cliffhanger at the end of each book. I can't wait to find out how this is all going to end!

Not disappointed in the 4th installment. I really think we are one step closer to finding out what happened to Emma's sister, Anna.

This one really threw me as the twists and 'then' and 'now' were all mixed up name wise. I really thought we found Anna, but alas could it just be a play on names? I liked it.

This one was interesting in many ways, the cases are all starting to circle each other and I can't wait for Emma to uncover exactly how they all connect. And seriously, I'd like to jump in the book and help the woman sort her romantic life out. Ha.

I'm ready for the next one and so bummed it's not out yet. LOL.

Thank you to Netgalley and Harper Collins UK (One More Chapter) for this review copy.

Eagerly awaiting book 5!

Book 4 in the Missing Children Case Files series.

Another day, another missing child or, in this case, a clever bit of misdirection with two girls named Joanna! This book moves the narrative forward quite a bit in the hunt for Emma’s sister but I can’t say much about the plot this time as it would all be very spoilery. You do get the sense though that the paedophile ring Emma is hunting down is bigger than anyone thought, has been around for a long time and has some very important people protecting it.

The links between the former St Francis Home for Wayward Boys, Pendark Studios and the video files found on Arthur Turgood’s hard drive are now hard to deny. Emma’s friend Freddie, abused as a boy at the home, knows more than he has let on and the more Emma pushes the more he clams up. Jack is despondent as eight months of investigation by a 20 strong dedicated team has only resulted in one more child being identified from the videos on the hard drive. Emma also has a new admirer in Rick, a rather cheeky but charming PCSO (police community support officer) so her relationship with Jack is still yet to get off the ground.

I did enjoy this book and I’m getting a sense of what happened to Emma’s sister Anna but I can’t say anything about it. There are two more books to come and I hope I will get a chance to read them now that I am fully invested in the series. It does make you think though about how many children have been brutalised for the sick pleasure of some individuals with more money than morals. The more these things are brought into the light, hopefully the sooner we can end it. It I have to say though, when I hear about privileged people in my own country getting away with abusing women or children it doesn’t fill me with confidence. But I do know that it won’t end if we stay silent! My thanks to Netgalley, HarperCollins UK, One More Chapter and M.A. Hunter for providing a copy to review. My opinions are my own. This one and the previous 3 books are available now.

I would firstly like to thank Netgalley and the publishers for allowing me the opportunity to read this book in exchange for an honest review.

My favourite book yet! So many questions... Book 5 can't come quick enough!!
The whole book subject is a difficult one, but it is amazingly written from start to finish. Raw, captivating and riveting, I found myself constantly at the edge of my seat. Not only are the cases heart-stoppingly thrilling and dark, but Emma's search for Anna is still very much the heart of this book. I am firmly invested in Emma and her story!
With suspenseful tension, shocking twists and turns, and an ending reveal that made me very very excited for the next book, this is absolutely a must-read!

Discarded is the fourth instalment in The Missing Children Case Files series, featuring investigate journalist, bestselling author and expert in finding missing and abducted young people, Emma Hunter, which explores a paedophile ring and the methods they use to traffick young girls. Rick Underwood, a Police Community Support Officer, turns up one Sunday morning at Emma's door in Weymouth, Dorset claiming he has been sent to bring her into the police station on the island of Portland. Apparently, a nine-year-old girl went missing from her home in Portland yesterday afternoon and the parents have insisted she be brought in to assist the investigation due to her high success rate in bringing children home safely. She meets with DS Robyn Myers and is filled in about the missing girl. Joanna ”Jo-Jo” Neville was last seen yesterday afternoon by her younger step-sister around three o'clock. They head into the interview room where Tina and Trey Neville, Jo-Jo's parents, are waiting. It isn't long before she crosses paths with her old nemesis, DS Zoe Cavendish. Her contempt and disdain towards Emma has been evident since their first introduction to one another and she makes no attempt to hide her feelings or set them aside for the good of the case. Meanwhile, Emma's colleague and love interest DS Jack Serrovitz is investigating Pendark Film Studios; right before Freddie Mitchell set the Studios in Newbury ablaze, he extracted half a dozen filing cabinets filled with receipts and invoices tying hundreds of individuals to the place. They were now in Jack's possession.

The land on which the studio once stood was now under development and a suitcase had just been discovered containing remains that had now been taken to the morgue, and Emma realises it could be Anna, her older sister who disappeared twenty-one years ago at the tender age of nine and who had been spotted at the studios before she disappeared. When they arrive at Basingstoke and North Hampshire Hospital, forensic pathologist Dr V Chang takes a look at the bones but can't tell a great deal about the victim. On top of all of this, Emma has begun receiving emails of missing children sent to her via her agent, Maddie Travers and begins to believe that in the attached photos the victims appear to be older than the age they vanished and considers that the emails could be coming from a perpetrator who is taunting her about his crimes. Can she and DS Serrovitz find Jo-Jo, get to the bottom of who the bones belong to, find out who is sending the photographs and uncover evidence about what happened to Anna? This is a riveting, enthralling and darkly thrilling read with a tightly woven plot and characters you are now so invested in that they feel like old friends. The multiple plot threads have the potential to become confusing and convoluted but Hunter's precision plotting allows them all to be gripping and exceptionally easy to follow. I loved that we got to find out more about Anna's disappearance and the impact it's had on Emma and you really feel for her. There's tension, drama and reveals aplenty and Hunter's use of several superb twists and red herrings shake up the story whenever you think you have guessed its direction. A simply breathtaking procedural. Highly recommended.