I just finished “My Name is Emily Ray” by Michele Dominguez Greene and it was an excellent thriller! It’s the story of an FBI agent, Emily Ray, who was kidnapped as a child and now hunts kidnappers herself.

Being a kidnapping victim herself, Emily has lots of internal demons to slay and I feel like the author really described Emily’s emotional rollercoaster really well. You will feel what she’s experiencing.

Overall an excellent twisty thriller with great potential for the follow-on stories in the series. This book
Earned a solid 4 stars from me!

Thank you to the publisher and NetGalley for the complimentary advanced reader copy in exchange for my honest review. This book publishes on May 27th. Go read it!!

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Arc from NetGalley.

Thank you! THANK YOU! this was an absolute fantastic read! If you love Frieda… this. This should be your next book. There is so many fine tuned details and descriptions I felt like I was part of the detective group investigating this myself. I was on edge and I yelled “shut the front door! WHAT!” At least twice while reading this. You do not see or expect any twists just pure anticipation of learning what happens to this little girl then BAM out of left field something hits you, you could never predict.

Do yourself a favor and read this book!!

My name is Emily Ray by Michelle Dominguez Greene is the first book in a series and a new author to me.
FBI Agent Emily Ray oversees the Card team (Child Abduction Rapid Deployment). When she leads a team of investigators when a young girl Josie Vance from Cove Park California vanishes. She is the best of what she does as Twenty-eight years ago she was one of them. She was abducted and kept captive for 5 years until her escape.
Josie Vance seems to have similar looks to Emily and as they investigate the kidnapper send messages to Emily that only Emily would know, form all of them years ago when she was held captive. Her captor from years ago died in a fire but when she identified him did, she get it wrong. Further messages and going over old forensics, that the captor of Jose Vance is her old Nemesis James Tibbs!
By reading the blurb of this book I know this book was going to be good. But after reading I didn’t now how good this is, and I tell you this is a fantastic book. This is a suspenseful and well-paced book. The storyline totally engaging and emotional in all different way. The characters are well plotted especially Emily with her current job and the flashbacks of her time in captivity. You can feel the emotion coming off the pages. I couldn’t stop reading this and I would think this would make a great TV series. I can’t wait for the next one as I noticed its out in July. 5 stars from me.

First and foremost, a huge THANK YOU to NetGalley, Storm Publishing and author, Michelle Domínguez Greene for providing me with a copy of this publication, which allows me to provide you with an unbiased review. Publication date is currently set for May 27, 2025.

🤩 WOW 🤩, 10/10 for one of the most surprising reveals in a book that I've read in a while. I have to say, I never saw that one coming.

My Name Is Emily Ray is the first book in a brand new series, Special Agent, Emily Ray, and, as the title gives away, features FBI Special Agent, Emily Ray. As head of the CARD UNIT (Child Abduction Rapid Deployment) of the FBI, it's Emily's job to locate, find, and rescue children who are the victims of an abduction. It's not a job for the faint hearted. On their last assignment, although Emily and her team were successful in locating the missing child, the team did not arrive in time to find the child alive.

The reader learns that Special Agent Ray has a unique connection to each of the missing children her team are tasked with finding. When Emily Ray was just seven years old, she was abducted by a man called James Tibbs and held captive for eight years; at which point she was able to flee from her confinement and was reunited with her family. Since that time, Emily has made it her life's work to locate missing children and return them to their homes.

In this instalment, the CARD UNIT has been tasked to find young Josie Vance. Seven-year-old Josie seemingly disappeared without a trace from a local playground, while under the watchful eye of her nanny. As the team's investigation begins, Emily uncovers chilling evidence suggesting that her (own) past may be about to collide with the present.

The author writes that she has been fascinated by the emotional journey of people who survive complex trauma and questions why some people are perceived as more worthy than others; and why some children (or people) are valued and other discarded. It's an interesting topic of research. Another important question to ask might be, what happens when the narrative is switched?

There are themes at play here which may trigger some readers: child abduction/abuse, and mental health issues like PTSD and OCD. However, this reader thought these were all handled with a high level of care and skill; and were covered off no more than as necessary to fit in with the scope of the story.

There have been plenty who have slotted this one into the psychological thriller genre; but I'm not sure how I would categorise this one. Mystery. Thriller. Most definitely. Psychological thriller….I could be swayed, those surprising reveals definitely messed with my mind!

With thanks to NetGalley and especially to Storm Publishing for the much appreciated arc in return for an honest review.

Fast paced, engaging, detective thriller that I couldn’t put down. The major twist happening midway through the book was unexpected and a welcome change from typical thrillers. If you’re a fan of Dexter/CSI then this is right up your alley! Very much read like a fast-paced movie and could easily see this becoming a series. I’d definitely read another book on Emily Ray to see what she gets up to next!

Thank you to NetGalley, Storm Publishing, and author Michelle Dominguez Greene for an advanced copy of My Name is Emily Ray in exchange for an honest review.

The new case was Special Agent Emily Ray's worst nightmare. Another child abducted and the clues all point to the man who had abducted Emily and held her for years. Except that he had been killed twenty years ago. Unputdownable thriller with a diabolical twist.
I requested and received a temporary uncorrected digital galley from Storm Publishing via NetGalley. Pub Date May 27, 2025
#MyNameIsEmilyRay by @micheledgreene #SpecialAgentEmilyRayBk1 @stormbooks_co #intense
#crimethriller #suspense @goodreads #*****bookreview @bookbub #thestorygraph @booksamillion @barnesandnoble @bookshop_org @bookshop_org_uk #NetGalley @kobo @librarythingofficial @waterstones #childabduction #fbi #suspense #ptsd #rituals #ocd #predators #strangerdanger

First up I don’t recommend starting this book late at night because it will have you hooked and it’s hard to put down.

Wow wow wow, this book was amazing from start to finish, it had me completely hooked. I didn’t expect any of the plot twists, in fact I was way off base with my initial thoughts * spoiler incoming*

as I thought it could have been John grice to get her off the team so he could take her job!

It was amazing to read about how much Emily had overcome and it was also a breath of fresh air for an author to still include how therapy and triggers can happen despite the main character being incredibly strong, it’s not weak to seek help

Overall an amazing book, I can’t wait for the next one!

What a great fine! When Emily was 8 she was kidnapped and held captive until she is in her teens. Decades later she is the lead in kidnapping cases for the FBI, drawing on her own experiences. Happily married with twin girls Emily gets called out to a kidnapping that eerily resembles her own. But how can that be when her kidnapper committed suicide soon after Emily was found? This well written story flowed easily and I eagerly looked forward to reading it every time I put it down. I sincerely hope this is the first of many Emily Ray novels.

I really enjoyed this book. I am sometimes in two minds when the main detective has 'baggage' that connects them with the case. However I thought this worked very well. The impact of Emily Ray's past has led her to a career finding abducted children and this case reflects back and involves her own abduction. A well crafted story with good strong characters.

FBI Agent Emily Rae specialises in investigating child abductions, particularly poignant she was, herself, abducted and held captive for years before she managed to escape. Her current case involves the abduction of Josie, a 7-year old. The case revives memories, flashbacks and becomes even more personal as time passes. Initially quite a slow burn, then a complete exposé of something followed by an increase in pace and tension as Emily digs deeper to find young Josie. Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for an advance copy.

First things first, I thank Netgalley and Storm Publishing for this ARC!

Maybe I should have had a closer look at the blurb, then I would have seen this is part of a series. Not that I mind it. I just prefer standalone novels, seeing I have a habit of needing to finish a series once I did start it....

Anyway, it was still a great book, and I do love the character of Emily Ray! It was twisty, and suspenseful with the dark and cruel topic of young children being abducted, most likely to meet a horrible fate, and all of that kept me clued to the pages. So much that I surely would lie when I say I am not going to keep an eye out for the next book of this series!

Title: My Name is Emily Ray
Series: Agent Emily Ray Book #1
Author: Michelle Dominguez Greene
Publisher: Storm Publishers
Genre: Mystery Thriller, True Crime
Pub Date: May 27, 2025
My Rating: 4.6 Rounded up!
Pages: 279

When young Josie Vance vanishes from Cove Park, CA leaving behind her light-up sneakers, Special Agent Emily Ray leads the investigation to find her. Emily can relate to Josie as twenty-eight years ago she was kidnapped and held prisoner for eight years by James Tibbs and finally escaped. Now she is happily married to Antonio and they have twin daughters Juliana and Eliza who are six years old – same age as Josie.
However Emily has have issues connected to the kidnapping.
~I was into Emily’s story and her quest to find the kidnapper and figured that was her issue. I honest was clueless that it would be what it was!

This was a nonstop - truly unputdownable read for me!
Love Antonio and hope that in "Hayley Hope is Gone" Book #2 we hear more about him.
This is my first Michelle Dominguez Greene and I will definitely read another additionally look forward to the next Emily Ray.
I live in SoCal so love all the familiar landmarks plus I do know how to pronounce La Canada.

In Ms. Greene’s ‘A Letter from the Author’ = She tells us she has been fascinated by the emotional journey of people who survive complex trauma.
Questions why some people are perceived as more worthy than others; why some children or people are valued and other discarded. And what happens when the narrative is switched. So this story is also suspense as well as the kidnapping of young Josie Vance.
I recommended this story and also encourage you to be sure to read the author’s thoughts in her letter to readers.

Want to thank NetGalley and Storm Publishing for this early eGalley.
Publishing Release Date scheduled for May 27, 2025.

Absolutely loved this book. “Emily Ray” is fantastic as the main character. She’s strong, tough, and will do whatever it takes to solve her cases…….even if it means going rogue from the FBI where she is head of the CARD unit.


Although some of the content is sad and can be hard to read Ms. Greene did a fantastic job with this story.
I am so excited to see what comes next in this series.

WOW, WOW, WOW. This is one of the best books I've read, ever, it's amazing.

Special Agent Emily Ray leads a team of FBI agents to rescue abducted children and hunt down the perpetrators. She is so focused and determined to find these kids because she was one of those kids but she was lucky enough to escape.

I can't put into words how good this story is and I'm sure it will be a hit when it's published. I read this is the first book in the Emily Ray series and can't wait for the next one.

It was a good twisty book that had enough twists and turns to keep you reading till the end.
Thanks to Netgalley and the publisher for letting me review the book

This was such a good read. Emily Ray is in charge of finding a kidnapped little girl with parallels that link back to her own kidnapping as a child. The narrative fits between the present day and Emily’s kidnapping when she was younger weaving the two stories together looking for links. The present day chapters are preface by the day and time starting from when little Jos was taken.. the action all happens in such a short amount of time that I could absolutely feel the energy as time moved on and so much police activity was happening. Behind the kidnapping and the police work those also Emily Ray the wife and mother who is trying to hold her family together and be true to them. There is love in this book as well as kindness, which makes it special.

I could not put this down! Such an easy read, I loved how fast paced this was, the plot was PLOTTING - I loved the twist. Emily was such a likeable character, and I can’t wait to read more in the series.

I would recommend this book to anyone that loves a thriller!

My Name Is Emily Ray is book one in the Special Agent Emily Ray series.

When a child goes missing Special Agent Emily Ray is called back to her hometown to help on the case. Emily can't shake the feeling that this case is eerily familiar to her own. Will Emily find the missing child before it's too late? I highly recommend reading to find out.

I really loved this thriller story with it's twists, and can't wait to read book 2! This is a new to me author but I can't wait to get my hands on more of her books! I would recommend adding this book to your TBR!
I think the author did a fantast job with the storyline, and the characters. I would recommend making sure you have time to read this book because if you are like me you will not want to put it down.

Prep yourself for the chills to be coming down your arm each chapter of this book. I was so shocked by the ending! Loved the suspense.

This one surprised me. It was a brilliant book and I didn't not see the biggest twist coming. I saw some of the other twists beforehand, but the big twist shocked me which is a really great thing for a thriller to do.