The Day I Lost You Lucy Mancini

5 stars

I found this book completely absorbing. It begins with Lauren who is living in Spain with her young son, Sam. We are told that her partner will be joining her at a later date but not who he is or if they were actually married. Then, one day the police come knocking stating that a couple in England Andrew and Hope have had their child stolen and they are convinced that Sam is their child.

So begins a story full of complex situations. Who is really Sam's mother and father, Lauren or Hope? Why is Hope's husband Andrew so loath to involve the police if Sam is their child? What happened to Lauren to make her steal a child if she indeed has. She has Sam's birth certificate and passport so how can Sam belong to Hope and Andrew?

The story is told through the mouths of the 3 main characters all of whom are hiding things and we gradually piece together the complete story. I spent the first third of the book not actually being able to work out if Sam was Hope's, Lauren's or one of the women had acted as a surrogate for the other.

I really enjoyed reading this book but I did feel that the ending was unrealistic, however the author says it is based on a true-life case that she dealt with in her career.
I would recommend this book , I found the story very moving and really felt for all the characters involved.

Karen Deborah
Netgalley

I really enjoyed Ruth Mancini’s last twisty read – The Woman on the Ledge so I was excited to pick up her latest standalone thriller – The Day I Lost You.

Lauren is living her life in Spain with her son Sam, but when the police come knocking insisting to see Sam’s paperwork, there may be more to their life than meets the eye.

The story is told through the perspectives of Lauren and Hope, the two mothers in the case and Andrew, one of the fathers. This change in perspective per chapter kept you guessing throughout and you saw the same events from different viewpoints which kept me engaged as a reader.

I love a twisty thriller and The Day I Lost You certainly keeps its cards close to its chest in order to keep the reveals and twists punchy and difficult to predict. Whilst this is usually my favourite type of read, I actually think this is the downfall of this book. I genuinely found it difficult to know what was happening or what had already happened - there’s a big reveal at the end where everything is laid out but I’m not really sure I actually understood the plot, which is unusual for me. This isn’t helped by the jumping of timelines in chapters which is done with very little narrative signposting. In order to keep the reader guessing, certain characters are also often described without using their names as well which also kept me confused.

I also think I didn’t really empathise with any of the characters which didn’t help. Lauren is probably the one you try and relate to as she’s the first person you are introduced to, but it’s obvious something is not being revealed about her and the more you learn about her, the more unhinged she seems. Hope is the same, there’s too much being held back about her character that you don’t trust her either. Andrew is written to be unlikeable by his actions, so there’s no-one with whom we trust or feel sympathy for throughout.

Overall, The Day I Lost You is a twisty read, but to the detriment of the plot, which I found made very little sense by the end. Thank you to NetGalley, Random House UK, Cornerstone and Century for the chance to read the ARC in exchange for an honest review.

This is an interesting story which changes timelines regularly, so much concentration is needed.
Centering on married couple, Hope and Drew, young mum, Lauren and baby Sam. Whose baby is Sam?
The book lost pace in the middle section but overall is a good read.

3* Sadly, too much suspension of disbelief was required for me to fully enjoy this.

This book isn't badly written but it doesn't have the tension and/or suspense that the blurb and opening allude to. It was more eye-rolling in a 'yeah, right' way than anything else.

It had people who can live with their consciences despite going something wrong. It had unlikable characters - I think I actually found the neighbour the most believable one. I didn't believe in the ending, especially in how callous a child's emotions and psyche were being put at risk. What about years to come, when the truth outs, when he has flashbacks to times with mummy #1, pseudo-daddy #1, then real mummy #2 and real daddy #2? Selfish bunch of people who deserved to have that poor child taken off them and given to a family that'd always put him first.

ARC courtesy of NetGalley and Random House/UK Cornerstone for my reading pleasure.

A gripping, twisted book that kept me hooked until the end.
A stolen baby. Two women desperate in their love for a child. This has everything, betrayal, tragedy, love, admittance. It is a brilliant read that I would highly recommend.

This was a very confusing story of high tension. What actually happened, changes dramatically during the story and all is well by the end.. A very unusual story line.

The Day I Lost You is a fast-paced, twisty and complicated thriller from the author of The Woman on the Ledge.
You really need to concentrate to keep up with this story, told from the perspective of the three main characters and also different timelines.
Anna arrives in Spain with her baby Sam, at around the same time as another baby, also called Sam goes missing from his home in England- but why can’t his parents report his kidnapping to the police?
Based on a true event the author encountered, this really does keep you guessing!
I did lose interest in the middle of this - it became very confusing but was definitely worth persevering with, I feel it deserves a second read when clues will jump out. For this reason, I’m giving a rating of 4.5, rounded up to 5. Thank you to Netgalley for the advance copy in return for my honest review.

lauren and Charlie are Planning a new life with baby . They are really happy. Hope and Drew are working on their marriage issues while looking forward to the birth of their awaited child. One night changes everything for both couples.
Loved this book from start to finish. It is a tale of how decisions we make can impact our lifes and those of others.

I enjoyed reading The Woman On The Ledge last year, and was pleased to have the opportunity to read and review The Day I Lost You. Once again, Ruth Mancini has shown that she is a fabulous writer, and her latest novel is incredibly fast paced and twisty, full of unreliable characters and secrets and lies. I read it in one day and I didn't want to stop reading until the end.

The Day I Lost You is written from the perspectives of all the central characters. This is a great technique, as most of them are unreliable (for a variety of reasons) and this made me question everything! It goes back and forth in time. I will admit that it took me a while to get my head around the time structure, but it was very effective in building the tension and intrigue. Ruth Mancini is brilliant at leaving crumbs of information and allowing the reader to try and fill in the gaps. I really wanted to know what had happened and I was often wrong!
I'm not sure which characters Ruth Mancini wants us to feel sympathy for, but my sympathy lay with Lauren throughout most of the story. Although she was unreliable and often did things that came across as a little creepy, she was clearly unwell and this influenced her behaviour. In contrast, I found Hope slightly cold and it was difficult for me to warm to her.

The novel is brilliantly plotted and although I wasn't always sure in which direction the story was going, I absolutely loved the ride!

Ruth Mancini is definitely an author I will keep looking out for!

Initially extremely confusing...are there 2 Sam's and why is Lauren so jumpy if her Sam is really hers? The plot gradually unfolds and it becomes apparent what the relationships between the 3 adult lead characteres are- with some unexpected twists along the way.
I found the ending a bit rushed and unlikely- I can't say why without spoiling it but the outcome was not what I expected and how they got there was not really dealt with.

Well that was quite a ride, twisty and turney but all came to together in the end, a great plot, fast becoming a favourite author of mine

This is the story about what must be any parent’s worst nightmare, their child has gone missing. This is Sam’s story but who is/are Sam’s parents. Written in multiple timelines and from multiple POV’s, together with transcripts of police, court and telephone records, this is a story almost told in reverse. At times I did find this a bit confusing and had to backtrack. Inspired by a true case that the author dealt with in her legal capacity.

Briefly, Lauren and her son Sam live in Mantilla de Mar, Spain. They have a happy life until the police turns up saying they believe that Sam is not Lauren’s child. In fear of losing her son Lauren runs away with him. Hope and Drew have longed for a child so when Hope finds out she is pregnant they are so happy, until baby Sam goes missing. Then a child matching Sam’s description is found in Spain.

The three main adult characters are all flawed. I wasn’t sure that I really liked any of them. Both women are so desperate for a child you can imagine they would do anything to achieve their aims. A slow burn story with the exploration between right and wrong a key point in the story. I genuinely couldn’t decide who the mother was until the reveal. An emotional and compelling read.

Lauren is living in Spain with her son Sam.
Hope is a therapist, happily married with a so Sam but he is missing and police tell her Sam is living in Spain with Lauren, but Lauren can prove Sam is her's and Hope can prove Sam is her's, but who is telling the truth?
It's difficult to find out the truth so it keeps you wondering who is telling the truth so keeps you wondering all the way through, a great read definitely recommend.
Thanks to Netgalley for the ARC and I give my honest review

Lauren is settled in the quiet Spanish town of Mantilla de Mar with her son Sam, however the police turn up on her doorstep with the allegation that Sam is not her son. From this point on the story twists and ebbs and it's hard to know who is telling the truth. Lauren is clearly a loving mother but is Hope telling the truth that she is the mother of Sam and why is her husband Drew telling a different story?

Mancini tells the story backwards beginning in the present and ending at the point of revelation of the true story. At point this does make the story quite convoluted as Mancini leads us down blind alleys and plays with our ability to identify the truth. This is a gripping mystery as you're not sure who is telling the truth and what the terrible tragedy is which is at the heart of the novel. It's also worth noting that the characters are not the most likeable as each has their flaws and at times they behave quite bizarrely to hide the truth of the situation. All in all this was a great mystery read. With thanks to Netgalley and the publisher for a copy of the arc in exchange for an honest review.

A great thriller, at the heart of which lies a question - who is the mother of baby Sam? Half way through I figured out who the real mother was and before it was finally revealed what had happened and why I had also figured out the why. But that didn't detract from my enjoyment in reading the book or stop me wanting to read to the end. I thought this was a well-written book which clearly led the reader through first Lauren's story and then Hope's before circling back round to shed more insights onto the backgrounds and interactions between them both. I can't say I found it 100% believable but the author says at the beginning that the story is based on a real case she came across in practice as a lawyer so that suggests that often the truth is, as they say, stranger than fiction. Overall I'd give this a solid 4.5 rounded up to a 5. Thanks to NetGalley for providing me with this ARC in exchange for an honest review.

A great thriller but a little confusing at times with the tooing and froing of time lines. On the whole a decent read, Thanks to NetGalley for an ARC.

I enjoyed this book and had a good time with it. However normally different timelines don’t bother me, but in this I found it hard to follow and I ended up confused in parts.

I really liked the author writing though so I would definitely read more of their books.

A really enjoyable read, hooked me from the start and kept me riveted to the end. Very well written twists that I just couldn’t have predicted and a lovely ending to a sad series of events. Characters are likeable even though flawed and the story highlights that there is a thin line between right and wrong or good and bad.
My thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for the opportunity to review and to the author for your excellent storytelling.

Lauren is recovering from a traumatic event and moves to Spain to start a new life with her little boy, Sam.

Hope and her husband appear to have built the perfect life for themselves after a series of miscarriages, including a beautiful home and a gorgeous child. But then they contact the police to say that their son Sam has been taken.

So, is this the same child - and if so, who does Sam really belong to? Searching for an answer to this question is more convoluted than you might think. Because in this latest offering from the talented Ruth Mancini, nothing is as it seems. And I really do mean NOTHING!

So twisty it might give you whiplash, this is an absorbing read that's well worth your time.

A nice satisfying read :-) For the full review go to https://www.tumblr.com/joebloggshere/785860560044556288/the-day-i-lost-you-by-ruth-mancini-this-is-a