I thoroughly enjoyed this book which unravelled at just the right pace. The characters and their motivations were completely believable and I had difficulty in deciding who I was rooting for. I liked the use of different points of view and the rewinding of the timelines was perfectly engineered. A very well plotted and well written book.

I enjoyed this thriller a lot. The chopping and hanging between timeframes was a bit confusing and sometimes interrupted the pace, but I got why it was structured this way as it went along. My sympathies fluctuated between the different characters as it went on.

Gosh where to start. Lauren is living in Spain. A perfect life with her little boy but one that holds many secrets. As a mom my heart breaks for Lauren but no one will ever truly understand why and how she’s come to be in this situation. Yes should we dislike Lauren’s character I really tried too. And then there’s Hope who has desperately wanted a baby for so long. Their lives are intwined in a way that’s very difficult to understand. As a reader my heart breaks for them both. I could not put this book down and this tragic story will stay with me forever

I love a Ruth Mancini book after discovering this author this year. This book did not disappoint and I enjoyed dual timelines.

Thanks to Netgalley & the publisher for letting me read & review this book.

The Day I Lost You is an emotional, suspenseful read that pulled me in right from the start. Ruth Mancini does a wonderful job balancing mystery with heartfelt moments, and I found myself really invested in the characters, especially Lauren. The story blends grief, friendship, and secrets in a way that felt both tense and moving, and I appreciated how the twists were revealed gradually rather than all at once. The book starts in the present and the timeline moves backwards, which worked well.

That said, there were moments where the pacing dipped a little, and I occasionally wished for a bit more depth in some of the side characters. Still, the central storyline kept me turning the pages, and the ending tied things together in a satisfying way without being overly predictable.

Overall, it’s a compelling and emotionally engaging novel—perfect if you like character-driven suspense with a strong emotional core

This was an enjoyable read and kept me turning the pages. It did move back and forth in time which I am not a fan of.

Thanks to NetGalley and the publishers for an advanced ecopy in exchange for a review.
This family thriller takes us from then to now to uncover a whole host of lies and secrets. Good but unlikeable characters at times which is deliberate in my opinion. A crash leaves devastation and loss but so many questions unanswered.

I was really looking forward to reading this one after enjoying The Woman on The Ledge, and it definitely lived up to my expectations.
This book has everything. Domestic drama, morally grey/unlikeable characters, all told in dual timeline and POV. My favourite!
Be warned though that the subject matter here will not be for everyone. Please inform yourself before reading.

This is a novel built around the lives of people connected my a tragic accident and the mental problems it causes. Lauren is living with her child in Spain following the accident when she is suddenly required to return to the Uk to face allegations of child abduction. Drew and Hope are living a seemingly idyllic life in the country trying to save their marriage after Drews infidelity. When their lives become intertwined as details and secrets from the past start to emerge..The book explores the effects that grief can have after sudden unexpected death and also the lengths that people will go to to hide past incidents.
Although the plot was interesting I found the characters difficult to relate to and parts of the plot difficult to believe in.
However I am sure that this will appeal to a wide audience .

I loved the Woman on the Ledge and so had high expectations of this new novel. This is the story of one child and two mothers. Hope finally has the baby she always longed for - but he has gone missing. Lauren is in Spain after suffering an awful loss. Then the police arrive and Lauren insists that baby Sam is hers - she even has his passport and birthcertificate to prove it. But what is the truth? Reading the foreword by the author, we are told that her background as a solicitor and a defence lawyer has provided a layer of truth to the novel. This story might sound ‘made-up’ but there is nothing in here that she hasn’t come across in the ‘real’ world. There are so many elements in this story and with the multiple perspectives and the various timelines, you are thrown in different directions. When you think you have a grasp on the events, they slip from your fingers and you are in a different place. No character is reliable and truth and lies tumble over one another. There are also court documents and transcripts which add additional layers. Memory also plays its part - are the memories true or have they been distorted because of trauma and grief. For me, I found it difficult to know which character to empathise with - if any. The first half of the book held me in its grasp and then I felt the second half seemed to slow down even though the twists really surprised me. And it was nice to see Sarah Kellerman from the first book again. I was expecting an ending that would shock me, but I didn’t get it. For me it was a sort of anti-climax. But, for all of that, there are shocks and twists along the way as you find out what happened to baby Sam. A novel about grief and loss.

I really enjoyed the way this book was written. It’s backwards so you find out why what happened as you go through. Lauren lives in Spain with her son Sam when police come to the door saying Sam is someone else’s and he’s been abducted. The story is full of brilliant characters and the plot was superb. I liked the fact that the author is a lawyer and knows what she’s writing about even though it’s fiction. 5 stars. Thanks to Netgalley and the publishers for a copy.

Thank you to Netgalley and UK publishers for an advanced copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

I enjoyed the majority of this book. You spend a lot of time with the characters and the different timelines were woven together very well and it was easy to follow. The author built a lot of mystery around what happened and kept me engaged and wanting to know what happened.

However, the ending disappointed me greatly. The reveals were underwhelming considering all the ways I thought it could go. And the epilogue.. I just wanted to more and felt like so much of the good work was undone.

This is such a deviously twisted story that I think I am going to struggle to make any sense in my review of this book!

From the initial synopsis, we are aware that a baby has been taken. The story is told from the present day and then gradually steps back to important moments in the preceding years. This means the story unfolds and the strands of the mystery are released, small piece by small piece. It is a great way of keeping the reader on their toes and confused as to what really happened.

The author does give you information to allow you to form your own conclusions, but her version of the truth comes as a shock. The tension between the characters and dealing with the police, admitting to problems and accepting responsibility are ways of keeping the flow of the story going and keeping up the suspense and tension.

This is a clever story and one that flits between characters. You will form your own idea as to who you think is trustworthy, but some interesting developments cause you to question your thoughts. It is not until the latter sections of the book went he author finally reveals the complete truth and this for me was a shock.

This is actually quite a complex story and if I were trying to relate it, well, I would be confused, never mind who I was talking to about it! This shows the skill of the writer to keep the story easy for the reader to follow as she alternates between characters and times.

If you are looking for a psychological thriller that will keep you hooked then this is a book for you. It deals with some emotional subjects, as you would expect given the theme of the story. This is a wonderful story that I would be happy to recommend.

Until I had read the book I did not realize that it was based on a true story. Fact is stranger than fiction. The book is well written as a psychological thriller and from the view point of the three main characters involved with the abduction of a child. It also uses the timeline where you start almost at the end and work back to the beginning. A device in fiction that is being used more often.
An interesting story. I found it a bit slow in places but nothing exceptional.
Thank you to NetGalley and Random House UK for the advance copy of this book.

The Day I Lost You is a clever, twisty psychological thriller with an unusual structure that sets it apart.

Ruth Mancini’s background as a solicitor and criminal defence lawyer shines through, lending authenticity to the legal elements and to the tangled, stranger-than-fiction premise.

At the heart of the story is baby Sam—or perhaps two Sams.

In Spain, Lauren is raising her son quietly, armed with a passport and birth certificate.

Meanwhile in England, Hope and Drew’s child has gone missing.

What follows is a complex and haunting puzzle: one child, two mothers, and a web of lies, obsession, and heartbreak to unravel.

Told in multiple perspectives, with timelines moving backwards as well as forwards, the book demands attention but rewards perseverance.

The inclusion of police reports and transcripts adds to the authenticity and heightens the tension.

The opening half is especially strong, filled with odd behaviours, creeping unease, and characters so desperate in their lies they nearly trip themselves up.

There are moments when the structure feels a little convoluted and some lulls in pace, but overall this is an intelligent, layered story full of emotional turbulence.

Mancini keeps the reader guessing right to the end—every time I thought I’d figured it out, I was proven wrong.

A thought-provoking, unsettling exploration of truth, motherhood, and identity, wrapped in a tightly woven psychological mystery.

With thanks to NetGalley and the publishers for an ARC in exchange for an honest review.

Lauren is starting her new life in Spain with her little Sam, leaving her past behind her until one day it catches up to her and the Police knock at the door.

Hope and Drew are living the perfect life, or so they portray. However they have reported their son missing. The Police tell them they have found a little boy who may just be who they are looking for, can Hope see her nightmare coming to an end or is it just beginning?

I found the characters really relatable when thinking about each individual separately, their characters were so well written and developed. I was so confused and intrigued and I had no idea what the truth was going to be.
All the way through I was thinking this is a five star contender, then the twist came and it felt rushed and unrealistic.

A story about two mothers, loss and child abduction. Written from several characters self absorbed viewpoints I struggled with the pacing. Though the novel is loosely based on a true event, I found it unrealistic. However, the Spanish chapters were beautifully written and the denouement satisfying.

This is a great read! Lauren is living the dream life in Spain with her toddler, Sam, when police turn up at her door. Hope and her husband, Drew, have reported their little boy, Sam, as missing. So there is one baby and two women both claiming to be his mother; who is telling the truth?

The story unfolds by going back in time and is primarily narrated by Lauren and Hope. I found myself totally immersed in their lives, frequently changing my mind as to which one of them was Sam‘s real mother and which one I was rooting for.

In the second half of the book the pace did slow and I found my attention waning, but towards the end it picked up again and the truth was finally revealed. Mind blown!

As well as a twisty mystery, there was a lot of emotion built into this brilliant story as the two women battled with their emotions and their grief over baby Sam.

4 ⭐️ Thanks to Netgalley, Ruth Mancini and Random House, Cornerstone for an ARC of this book.

An excellent new story from Ruth Mancini linked to her previous novels with some use albeit limited of the character Sarah Kellerman.
Told throughout from the viewpoints of the various characters it's not entirely clear the exact circumstances leading to the point at which the story begins however things begin falling into place as the story develops. This doesn't mean that the reader will have worked it out before the end as there are still twists to come.

The Day I lost You is a gripping psychological thriller centred around two women Lauren living quietly in a seaside town in Spain with her young son Sam and Hope A Therapist whose baby has gone missing .This story is a compelling emotionally intense thriller that kept me guessing and doubting right until the end .A very satisfying read .Thank you to NetGalley for my ARC .