K L SLATER – MESSAGE DELETED***

Mixed feelings over this one. The premise is intriguing which is why I requested the book.

Saffy receives a series of texts from her best friend Leona asking for help then they mysteriously disappear. And when she visits Leona knows nothing about them.

Background to this is the fact that Poppy, Saffy’s younger sister, was attacked a few years previously by someone in her house. Saffy and her husband have broken up and Saffy wants joint custody of their son Fox. And Saffy has had a breakdown.

It starts well enough and is gripping to begin with and easy to read. But the ending seems almost from a different story, with Enid Blyton-ish hideaways and lets it down. For me, none of it held together at the end. More cobbled together to explain the beginning and provide answers to solve the problems. Couldn’t wait for it to end. Enjoyed the first three quarters.

I really enjoyed this thriller. From the beginning when Saffys friend Leona messages her to come over and then deletes them denying any knowledge of sending I was hooked. This was a page turner. I loved the different points of views from Saffy, Leona and Poppy where you can gradually build up a picture of their lives past and present. There was a great mix of characters with some of them being more unhinged than others. The book is full of secrets that are gradually being revealed and with a police presence building its only a matter of time before the truth comes out and I couldn't wait to find out. Suspenseful with a good story line I will be recommending

Wow. I can hardly find the words to describe how exciting this book is. From the very beginning I had so many questions. Why was Saffy so afraid of everything and everyone? Why didn't she have custody of her child? What was going on with Leona? Was Mira too good to be true? I raced through the story almost breathless with anticipation so keen was I to get some answers. But I couldn't have imagined just how many twists there would be before I would find out just what was going on. KL Slater always produces the goods when you want a great psychological thriller and this one is well deserving of 5 stars.

Thanks to Netgalley and the publisher for an ARC of this book.

Well always know what you are getting with this author another fantastic read with great charecters and a twisty turny story from beginning to end

This book was just ok. A typical whodunnit mystery. The ending did have me intrigued but found it dragged a bit in the middle and the twist wasn’t as good as I would have liked. However it was fast paced and easy to read if you want a quick thriller for the summer!

I had just finished a series of books where every relationship was toxic and most of the men nasty controlling types , so i was a bit disappointed to find another in this novel as i could have done with a change. However there was a lot more to this book with many life long secrets kept from friends and siblings and lots of overlapping plots.
And what a start! The intriguing "message deleted" getting Saffy rushing to go and help her long time best friend leona thinking she is in danger only to find things surprisingly normal at face value.
Then when Leona, Ash and daughter Rosie go missing Saffy falls under suspicion.
Saffy and her sister Poppy are tied together by traumatic events in the past and i thought their relationship was very realistic with both of them having been left very insecure. I also liked the description of Saffy and Leona's friendship over the years.
The police feature relatively little in the book and the rest of the characters take it upon themselves to try and find leona and her missing family.
It is a very good psychological thriller , fast paced and i had not trouble reading it in three nights.
thanks to Netgalley and the publisher for the ARC.

This had me hooked from the start. Lots of layers, twists and had me turning those pages to watch it unfold. With characters you love to hate, secrets and lies I just couldn't put this down

This story was not quite as gripping as her past books, but definitely worth a read.
Thanks to NetGalley and the publishers.

"Message Deleted" by KL Slater is just what I want in a thriller: pacy, page-turner with lots of twists and turns. The book had me gripped from the beginning and every character was a suspect in my mind. Ok, some of the relationships were questionable but hey this is a great book so I don't care.

Good read. A woman gets messages from her friend saying she’s in danger at home. However, when she rushes round there to help her friend denies all knowledge and the messages have been deleted. What is going on?! Interesting plot and characters you care about. Recommended.

With many thanks to Netgalley for this free arc and I am leaving this unbiased review voluntarily
Overloaded with tension and suspense this is a riveting read. I was hooked from the opening chapter as the author took me on an addictive and twisty ride. The chapters were well worked as it went through different timelines which added to the suspense and intrigue. Maybe slightly unbelievable at the end but this was still a cracking read so just go with the flow! 4.5⭐️

This is a gripping thriller - loads of twists, just what you expect from KL Slater (allbeit some annoying and inaccurate views on how the courts would handle child arrangements)
Saffy is mid interview when she gets a text from her best friend Leona - can’t speak, don’t text, just come - she drops everything and races over to Leona’s house. Halfway there the message disappears. Leona swears she knows nothing about the message, leaving Saffy perplexed. Saffy leaves after being reassured that all is well but she isn’t convinced. A short while later she is proved right when the police turn up on her doorstep to tell her that Leona, Ash, her husband and her daughter Rosie are missing in suspicious circumstances and that she is very much a person of interest in their investigation.
This is the beginning of Saffy’s nightmare

This was... fine.
A relatively entertaining whodunit, however I won't be rushing to read any other books by this author. I didn't enjoy the writing style, which was present tense and largely involved telling rather than showing. None of the characters were in the least bit likeable and they all made the stupidest of decisions, including the totally incompetent police.

As a K L Slater fan I was looking forward to this book and I wasn't disappointed
Lots of twists and turns I finished this in a few days

The butterfly effect, plot twists, plot turns nd a great thriller of a read. Is it perfect - no. Did it keep my interest - yes.

Message Deleted opens very promisingly. It's an interesting premise = what would YOU do if a friend and her small child went missing? There's sympathy for Saffy and her predicament, and the story is a good one, but things quickly begin to slide...
I couldn't accept that anyone would act like Saffy does, even under pressure? The information she keeps from the police, talking to the media, her investigations trying to find out more about the disappearance; none of it rings true and that undermines confidence in Message Deleted as a novel. Perhaps I could overlook the faults if they made a great book, however at the end of the day Message Deleted is spoiled for me by the writing and major doubts about the accuracy of police and legal procedures.
The language grates (we're in Nottingham UK but we have "flashlights" instead of torches and "purse" for a handbag), the child's chatter feels all wrong, and too much of the dialogue is stilted and clumsy ("successfully knocking the knife out of ....'s hand" and "...as she tries, unsuccessfully, to scratch and pummel his face". The writing simply isn't tight or sharp enough.
And I'm no legal expert, but would someone arrested and charged with murder being allowed out on bail the same day? Would someone in custody awaiting trial be allowed visitors who would likely be appearing in court as witnesses? Could the police "dismiss" charges or would that be the CPS or a court? I also had my doubts about the main bad guy facing additional charges of "assault" and "actual bodily harm" when the severe nature of the injuries and the intent behind them would surely warrant more serious charges such as attempted murder, wounding with intent or grievous bodily harm?
So, all in all, a good story, but for me rather poorly told.

When Saffie receives an urgent message from her friend Leona, which is then deleted, suspecting she needs help Saffie rushes to her friend’s home to see what she can do. However, on arrival, Leona seems fine and says she hasn’t sent the message.

When the family mysteriously disappear, as Saffie is the last person to see them, the police arrive at her door to investigate what happened. This is the beginning of a gripping, fast paced thriller which keeps you glued to the page. There are events from Saffie’s past which gradually unfold, and Leona’s husband seems devious and controlling.

The story is set mainly from two perspectives and viewpoints, which gives a more rounded account of the main characters and secrets from the past. Well written, this is a roller coaster ride, full of twists and turns, exploring the background of various characters, making you consider who the perpetrator could be. The author really gets inside the characters, and you feel empathy for Saffy and her sister Poppy. The tension increases as the story unfolds.

This is the first book by K L Slater which I’ve read, and thoroughly enjoyed.

A thrilling fast paced mystery with a unique protagonist in Saffy who is fierce yet highly vulnerable. Loads of twists and turns that I didn't forsee and an insightful exploration into toxic female friendship. I thoroughly enjoyed Message Deleted and raced through it to find out what had happened to the missing family.

Firstly thank you to netgalley for the opportunity to read this.
So I was intrigued and gripped from the description of this book and I was not left disappointed.
Definitely a page turner.
What would you do if your waiting to go into a job interview and your best friend since you were in high school sends you three messages “can’t talk” “don’t text or call” “please just come” then within seconds your left with this message has been deleted!! Saffy don’t like leonas husband so she instantly thinks something bad has happened. Upon arrival Leona don’t know anything about any messages that was sent to saffy! Something does not add up! Then saffy gets news that Leona, ash and Rosie are missing.
Every character has a motive to want to get rid of Leona or ash (the husband) therefore everyone is a suspect!!
Told from different times and pov of the main characters which adds to the suspense of the storyline.
Saffy is very overprotective of her sister poppy and her best friend Leona and at first your thinking “this woman is overbearing and annoying” but we find out the reasons behind it all.

If you like a heavily interwoven thriller with a great deal of female perspective then this is one for you. The initial 'hook', a troubling text message received at the most inopportune moment, at the start of a job interview, kicked the whole saga off. Saffy became immediately concerned for her best friend's wellbeing, rushing from the interview to find out what was going on.
There are very few clues for the reader throughout the novel to grasp what's going on so there's quite a debrief at the conclusion. This I found rather annoying and not at all immersive. The novel has at it's nub the idea that from a couple of lies early on in one's life, a veritable butterfly effect can ensue. The sad thing was, that this was only revealed towards the end.