*Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for this arc in exchange for my honest review*

A great thriller - I would recommend it!

42% of the way through and I’ve decided to give up. I’m mildly interested as to what’s happened/going to happen, but ‘mildly’ just isn’t enough for me.

The story is told from multiple POVs. I liked the characters. It is full of twists. The writing is good and the story is gripping. The ending was not what I expected.

Jenny Blackhurst's "The Girl Who Left" is a gripping psychological thriller takes readers on a tumultuous journey of secrets. The story revolves around Kathryn Starling, a woman haunted by a traumatic past. Kathryn never had a 'normal' childhood and the book sees her past catching up to her on the eve of her best friend Elsie's abduction. In an effort to provide Elsie's family answers Kathryn goes on a solo mission of returning back to where it all began and bringing the family & small town some closure.

As the narrative unfolds, secrets buried in the past resurface, creating a web of intrigue that keeps you guessing until the final page. One of the book's standout features is its exploration of the power of family bonds and the lengths to which one will go to protect loved ones. The twist at the end was really good and took me by surprise!

Overall, this book is a riveting psychological thriller that seamlessly blends suspense, family drama, and redemption. Prepare to be captivated from the first page to the last. Thank you NetGalley, Jenny Blackhurst & Canelo for this arc.

A fantastic read, lots of tension throughout and the characters were great. I couldn't stop reading. Good twists at the end too.

A fast paced thriller that is sure to grip, thoroughly enjoyable read and one to while away the long winter evenings

Really enjoyed this thriller about a five year old girl who goes missing on Anglesey 25 years to the day after a child who is her spitting image disappeared. Gobbled up this one and loved the setting, dialogue and characterisation

OK. This book is not for me. Sorry. But I felt robbed of my time spent in reading. Don’t get me wrong but it didn’t do anything foe me.

Still, thanks to Netgalley for the ARC!

I really connected to the characters. The setting made me feel like I was there. Great plot, pace was fast and the book kept me entertained. The ending was superb . I thought I knew what was happening but I was wrong.

Nooooooo!!!! That ending!!!! I NEED MORE!! My one and only complaint is that I’ve been left with a craving of more!!!

This is a book I have devoured in just hours, I have no regrets. We are introduced to Kathryn and Jordan- siblings who’s father is serving a life sentence for the murder of a five year old girl.

“𝗜𝗳 𝘆𝗼𝘂’𝘃𝗲 𝗲𝘃𝗲𝗿 𝗯𝗲𝗲𝗻 𝗶𝗻𝘃𝗼𝗹𝘃𝗲𝗱 𝗶𝗻 𝗮 𝘁𝗿𝗮𝗴𝗲𝗱𝘆, 𝘆𝗼𝘂 𝗸𝗻𝗼𝘄 𝘆𝗼𝘂𝗿 𝗹𝗶𝗳𝗲 𝗶𝘀 𝘀𝗽𝗹𝗶𝘁 𝗱𝗼𝘄𝗻 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗺𝗶𝗱𝗱𝗹𝗲 𝗶𝗻 𝗮 𝗰𝗹𝗲𝗮𝗻 𝗹𝗶𝗻𝗲. 𝗘𝘃𝗲𝗻𝘁𝘀 𝗮𝗿𝗲 𝗲𝗶𝘁𝗵𝗲𝗿 𝗕𝗲𝗳𝗼𝗿𝗲, 𝗼𝗿 𝗔𝗳𝘁𝗲𝗿. “
This phrase has stuck with me. Tragedy and trauma never goes away and it always been before or after. Everything seems to be measured by this timeline. This is how it’s been for the characters involved in this one.

This is tense, gripping and completely addictive. I have felt as though I have been watching the events of this one play out. This is realistic and believable, guaranteed to send shivers down the spine of the reader.

This has been completely unpredictable and been a book I have devoured. I literally thought I had this figured out then BANG, a twist thrown in that completely pulls the floor from under you.

This is my second book by this author, both have been fantastic reads which have pulled me in from the beginning. This is an author to watch out for and I definitely want more!! Blackhurst is definitely on the #thrillerqueens list for me.

🌟🌟🌟🌟🌟

Twenty five years ago a five year old girl Elsie was snatched from her garden and has never been found. She had been playing with her best friend Kathryn, whose father Patrick confessed to her murder and was subsequently sent to prison. Kathryn and her family had to leave the community due to their shame and their neighbours anger, Kathryn has never forgiven her father and has visited him regularly to ask him where he has buried Elsie. Then on the twenty fifth anniversary of her murder, another five year old girl goes missing from the same house as Elsie had lived. Is there a copycat murderer at large as Patrick is still in prison or did he give a false confession and the real killer is still at large? Kathryn decides that she must be brave and return to her old home town to try and find answers but as she starts digging into the past she realises that her own life could be in danger. This is a very gripping and fast paced thriller that kept me up late to finish it. A really enjoyable read.
Thanks to Netgalley and Bookouture for giving me the opportunity to read and review this book.

A good read
Guessed the ending halfway through
Still enjoyed it though
Plenty of twists and turns
Thanks NetGalley

Twisted secrets are galore.

Twenty-five years ago, five-year-old Jenny Button was taken from her back garden on the Welsh island of Anglesey, it sent a massive backlash through the community, especially when a local man confessed to the crime.

The family had to escape because of the shame and disgust of the other islanders. Katherine, the daughter, must live under an assumed name, to hide her identity when she later goes back to Anglesey.

If we fast forward 25 years, another child goes missing from the same house! As the secrets unravel, the conclusion is frankly so shocking, that it takes your breath away! It is beautifully written, but a depressing tale.

Galadriel.

Elite Reviewing Group received a copy of this book to review

Thanks to Netgalley, the publisher & Jenny for the ARC.

A fast paced thriller, difficult to tear yourself away from. Well written and expertly crafted.

I will admit that I thought I had figured the whole thing out, and was a bit disappointed thinking it was going to be a sort of JBR twistaroo at the end. But it wasn’t - and once that surprise got me there were several more to follow.

What’s worse - believing that your family is capable of killing? Or believing that they are accepting a wrongful accusation to protect someone else - and not knowing why? And when you can’t trust your family, the authorities, or the press, and your friends are limited to a single cranky neighbor; sometimes you need to take things into your own hands.

Dark thriller that had you hooked from the off. The book was very well written. Great plot. Very exciting. Fast paced to get your heart racing. Loved this book. More twists and turns than a roller coaster to keep your interest

When Kathryn was 5 years old, her father was arrested for murdering her best friend. Twenty-five years to the day, another little girl disappears from the same home, bringing Kathryn back to the area to try to make sense of her past. This was really good, although I guessed from the beginning what had happened to Elsie. I did not guess what happened to Abby, though, and the story itself was good. I would read more from this author. 4 stars.

Another great read by Jenny Blackhurst.

Child abduction is one of the most horrific crimes one can commit……
But what if you are the one who started a chain of events and didn’t even know it?

This is a tale of family and the sorrow one can cause for the entire family and the surrounding family friends. It’s about trying to atone for the mistakes of a family member only to discover that person may be innocent after all.

A must read you will be happy to have read.

I received an ARC of this book from Canelo via NetGalley in exchange for my honest feedback. This was a very suspenseful novel that I could not wait to finish. I am not sure I ever read a book set in Wales, so it was interesting hearing a few words of the language and reading about the landscape. It seems like all books are told from multiple POVs these days, but this one really worked. I found the ending to be shocking - this is a positive because I absolutely did not predict it, but a negative because I didn't like what actually happened. Although the characters were well-developed (Detective Grant for sure but even down to Nora the B&B owner), the ending was not believable in my opinion - not sure why the characters involved would have made the decisions they did.

I love Jenny Blackhurst and this book solidifies why. A twisty page turner with a jaw dropping ending. I couldn't put this down!