Rene is destined to find her sister Lauren who she thinks everyone else gave up on...but is she too late or is she wrong that her sister is simply missing?

The synopsis of this book had me incredibly excited to read it, but to be completely honest, this book had me incredibly confused almost the entire book. I had absolutely no clue what was going on and found the way it was written to be hard to understand. I think the ending was able to wrap up a lot of my questions and make sense of what I read, but it just wasn't satisfying. I ultimately just felt that it was too confusing and I had to constantly push myself to keep reading it.

The book lives up to its description as a twisty psychological thriller. I was completely blown away by the story line and it had me in the edge of my seat the entire time till the very end.

Lauren Is Missing written by S.J. King was one hell of a crazy thriller that plays with your mind. I have never read a thriller like this one before that played with my head so much, I mean it feels so wrong to have loved this book because of the heavy topics that were involved, but if you read this book, you will understand why I feel this way. Lauren Is Missing is raw, powerful, real, emotional, confusing, heart breaking, and manipulative. This thriller was so dark and intense that I was on the edge of my seat the entire time, let me just say, this book would be perfect for spooky season. I didn't know who to cheer for, I didn't know who to root for, I felt like my mind was being played with because the characters and the story itself were so manipulative. Lauren Is Missing is a story of hope, family dynamics, and resilience, it's raw, poetic, abstract, and ultimately confusing. There were just so many shocking truths, twists, and secrets revealed. The ending had me screaming WHAT THE FUCK JUST HAPPENED????? The haunting elements were just so surreal, it felt like there were spooky creatures surrounding me just waiting for my heart to fall out of my chest. I applaud S.J. for writing this most dark and twisted mind game thriller. I can't recommend Lauren Is Missing enough, please have this book on your spooky tbr and have your calendars marked for July 2nd, 2025 because this is the type of thriller that you won't want to miss out on. I know this book is extremely dark and creepy, and it does come with a lengthy list of trigger warning's, so please check them out before reading this book, I will also have them listed down below in my review.

THANK YOU TO NETGALLEY AND STORM PUBLISHING FOR AN ARC OF THIS BOOK IN EXCHANGE FOR AN HONEST REVIEW!!!!!!

TRIGGER WARNING'S
Opioid Addiction
Animal Abuse
Starvation
Alcoholism
Drug Consumption
Child Abuse
Suicide/Suicidal Thoughts
Captivity
Grooming
Violence
Physical Abuse
Emotional Abuse
Manipulation

"You only miss things when they are gone".

"Find what's lost. The truth. The real story. You can free us all".

"The not knowing every day is an endless killer".

"When people know your secrets, they can use them".

On December fourteenth, Lauren Fisher went missing when she was just thirteen years old, mind you that was her mom's birthday as well. The Fisher family isn't normal by any means, they all keep secrets from one another, they start arguments from one another, and they are physically and mentally abusive towards one another. Lauren is kept in The Hole, which is utter black hell, darkness, and underground. Lauren has her ankles and wrists strapped so she can't escape, The Hole is sound proof so no one from the outside world can her screams and whimpers. Lauren has been told by her captor that he's protecting her from freaks that would do terrible things to her, yet he's the one that's the freak, he abuses Lauren, he starves Lauren, he grooms Lauren, he's such a manipulative bastard. After rumors have started swirling around school that Lauren is a whore and she's a troubled child, things go from back to worse within a blink of an eye. Lauren is super naive, she never trusted people who loved her, but she trusted people she shouldn't have trusted in the first place. During Lauren's time in The Hole, we as readers get her point of view of her time and thoughts while she's in captivity, but we also get a backstory of why she was abducted by this sick man who I won't name because you need to read this book to follow all of the secrets. My heart absolutely shattered for this young girl after reading everything she went through. It was so hard not to scream out loud when something unthinkable would happen to Lauren, it's like you were sitting there waiting for something horrific to happen, but you never wanted it to come because it was just foul and heart breaking.

Rene Fisher remembers the day her sister Lauren went missing and never came home. Rene spends everyday taking her pills and looks at photographs to try and remember her free spirited sister Lauren before the day she vanished and never returned. The only thing Rene remembers about the day he sister went missing was the velvety petals of a yellow rose and how this rose looked on a stone step in the snow on the night that Lauren went out and simply never came home. During her grieving process, Rene is told so many lies, so she doesn't dig deeper into what really happened to her sister. Rene doesn't talk to her father because she believes he played a role in the disappearance of her little sister, she occasionally speaks to her mother but hasn't fully cut off contact because Rene still believes there is hope in bringing her sister home. To Rene, a dragonfly is a message to not give up. Rene lives in her basement apartment which consists of a door with four locks, and she writes a list every single morning before getting out of bed. One day out of the ordinary, Rene receives a letter that says "November. Wednesday. Lauren is alive. I think. He's going to kill me. I'm going to die in here". Now, let's enter Jane into the picture. Jane is the woman who lives at a house in Meadow Close when she sees a young girl under her rose bush, covered in bruises, scars, and a patch of skin buckled like melted plastic. This girl has an unknown notebook that she holds close to her chest and never lets it leave her line of vision. You all need to read this book to watch everything unfold and how everything will be revealed in the end after your mind had been played with, because like I said before, Lauren Is Missing is such a mind game of manipulation.

Thank you to NetGalley for the ARC of Lauren is Missing by S.J. King.

This story was gripping and kept me interested from the very first page. The author skillfully weaves together multiple narrators and timelines, creating an atmosphere of uncertainty where you’re never quite sure what—or who—to believe. This narrative style adds to the mystery and kept me guessing until the end.

I appreciated how the shifting perspectives deepened the suspense and made each character feel complex and real. The plot moved at a good pace, and the twists were both unexpected and satisfying.

Overall, I thought Lauren is Missing was a compelling read and definitely worth picking up if you enjoy psychological thrillers with unreliable narrators and layered storytelling.

A well written, excellent psychological thriller with a twist. It combines the past and present, taking you on an emotional journey of kidnapping, survival, confusion and revelations. Highly recommended.

.This story is told through multiple POV, in a 'before' and 'today' timeline.
Fourteen year old Lauren went missing 8 years ago, believed by her parents to be dead. Her sister, Rene, is the only one who still believes she is out there. Lauren is left of her own free will, but now she can't leave, and only Rene is still looking.

This was a fabulously dark and twisty psychological read. Every few chapters left me second guessing what I thought I knew and what I expected to happen next. My opinions of different characters varied throughout as my mind stumbled over the many questions the chapters threw out. Was it the parents to blame? Did they not look hard enough? Why is Rene not pushing harder for the truth? Why don't the police take Rene seriously?
We see the difficulties families go through and how age and maturity reveal the truths we thought we knew as children. The big reveal when it came answered all my questions and laid out for me a great twist I hadn't seen coming.
This is my first book by the author, and after reading this brilliantly thought out story, I know it won't be the last.

Lauren is Missing is a whirlwind of a mystery thriller told in dual timelines, before and after, in multiple perspectives. Sisters Rene and Lauren grow up in an uneasy home environment. Eight years ago at the age of 14, Lauren walked out of the house and didn't come back. Many believe her to be dead but her sister thinks differently. Rene lives alone in the haze of medication to cope so the reader is always questioning her lucidity. She needs an outlet for her sorrow and yearns for her mother yet her mother is offhand at best. As the story goes on, layers of secrets are peeled away revealing the hows and whys of decisions and actions. A generational curse has gripped the females in the family, including Nanna.

Jane watches in disbelief as an unkempt and unhealthy-looking young lady dig up a notebook in her garden. When questioned, the troubled young lady tells her this was her home. Jane and her husband discover far more lurks beneath the surface as they help connect the dots.

This is an unusually raw and emotionally arresting psychological thriller and I didn't expect this level of emotional investment in the characters. But they were drawn so realistically it was impossible not to get sucked in. Disturbing darkness is pervasive and the tension is almost unbearable in the best way. I wanted to tear through it yet wanted to savor it. For me the best aspect is the intense and insightful characterization which ripped my heart out. The writing is stellar and evocative. I really enjoyed my time with this novel.

This book was shocking, but in a really good way!

The twists in this book were better than most new thrillers on the market. At some points I thought I had figured a twist out, just to be thrown for another loop! The twists all made perfect sense too, they weren't written or thrown in specifically to trick the audience. The author left breadcrumbs that made me think, and that looking back totally lead up to the twists.

The only thing that I am not a fan of is the way the dialogue is written and the switch from third to first person back and forth between chapters. The issue I had with the dialogue was that it was easily lost in the rest of the paragraph. Instead of using quotation marks the author either used apostrophes or italicized text. I full understand that is a style choice made by the author, but I was not a fan and it did make it hard to read at times. Apostrophes are easily lost in text and I would have to reread sections when I realized I had clearly misinterpreted something that was said. The Italicized text was not difficult to read, but it was an interesting choice to have a single character's dialogue be almost completely in italics.

Overall the story was well written, compelling, and heartbreaking in the right places. Would recommend!

Lauren is Missing is a well-crafted story of a girl who goes missing. I mean, obviously, just look at the title. LOL But this book was not what I expected. S. J. King's crafting of the before and after is stunning. I can't remember ever reading a book like this, and at first I was a bit confused as to who was when. But the story artfully revealed itself, taking me along for an amazing ride. I highly recommend this book to anyone who likes psychological mysteries. Warning: there are scenes of domestic violence that may be triggering for some.

The story unfolds in a haze of shifting memories, eerie letters, and creeping dread. Especially as the past cracks open and what spills out is anything but comforting.

3.5 ⭐
This is a well written, psychological thriller that I am sure that lots of readers will love but sadly it didn't really grab me.
This story is written over two timelines, before and after and from several points of view. I did find it a bit confusing at first but I soon got used to the authors style of writing.
Lauren went missing as a fourteen year old and eight years later she is still missing. Rene , her sister, is desperately trying to find what happened to Lauren when she disappeared from the the tow path by the side of the canal.
There are several theories and several suspects, most people think that Lauren is dead...........Rene isn't one of these people, she thinks that Lauren is still alive, even after eight years but no one is interested in helping her search.
This is a good psychological thriller but I must admit that I guessed the outcome about half way through the book, perhaps I read too many psychological stories.
I didn't particularly like any of the characters and I thought the story was way too slow moving, hence the 3.5 stars
Thank you Storm Publishing and Net Gallery for this ARC, my review is totally voluntary.

Oh my! For a long time I couldn’t tell if I loved this book, or hated it. At the beginning I thought I knew what this dark thriller was about. A girl is missing, her family is struggling. Halfway, I had no idea where this book was going. 100 pages left, I started to see what had to be really going on, but I still couldn’t really believe it. And the ending still blew me away! I actually cried! What a crazy, powerful, twisty read! Absolutely 5 ⭐️

old in multiple timelines, Lauren is Missing focuses on the disappearance of Lauren, a troubled fourteen-year-old. Her sister Rene is convinced that Laurean is not dead, but no one seems to believe her. Can she get anyone to help her?

Get ready for a wild ride! S.J. King crafts a tale that keeps you on the edge of your seat—a tense story of unreliable narrators and deception. What seems like a very straightforward thriller will jerk you around when you least expect it.

Advanced reader copy provided by Storm Publishing. All opinions are my own.

This book had me hooked from the start. There were bread crumbs throughout, but I didn’t catch them until later. I was so invested in the story, then I tried piecing it all together, and in the end, I was NOT disappointed. I loved every second of this. Do yourself favor and put it on your TBR. Thank you Storm Publishing and NetGalley for the ARC!

I would like to sincerely thank Netgalley, the publisher, and the author for allowing me the chance to read this book in exchange for an honest review.

To begin this review, I want to clarify that this was by no means a bad book; however, I also do not consider it the best book ever. In this narrative, we encounter a story that features multiple perspectives and a dual timeline, which is a creative and unique concept. However, I believe it was not executed well, leading to confusion in the reading experience and a muddled plot. Additionally, I think the plot itself was an intriguing idea, certainly one that could draw in many readers. Moreover, the characters in this narrative were well-developed, but I feel they were also flawed and could have benefited from further fleshing out. In conclusion, while this narrative was interesting, it could use some refinement and editing before its final publication.

I've always loved a good thriller book, however when you combine that with a perfectly suspenseful mystery story it was everything I didn't know I was missing in my life. When Rene's sister Lauren goes missing at fourteen Rene's whole world changes. They tried everything to find her but years later with no leads and no answers the case has just gone cold however Rene doesn't believe that her sister would just leave like that and is determined to find out what happened. This book jumps between Rene and Lauren but then it also switches to our other main character Jane. Rene and Lauren talk about when Lauren was captive and Rene was determined to bring her home (which was my favourite part by far) and Jane's point of view how she now owns Lauren and Rene's old home when she finds a young girl mysteriously in her garden. I loved trying to figure out how both stories would connect in the end. Even though there was multiple switches I found this book very easy to follow and to get lost in. I loved the characters but it was the plot that really stood out for me. This book was extremely well written and I couldn't get enough of our characters Lauren and Rene. Their parts in this story were just captivating and left me transfixed on what was going to happen to them. This was a great read however it was the plot and character development that really pushed this book over the edge for me. As this is a new author to me I was very impressed with the writing style and the character development even though the plot could have been very dark and complex it was anything but. Fantastic job and I can't wait to see what she comes out with next because I will be first in line to check it out. The thing I loved most about this book was we had all first person perspective so the plot with Lauren was great especially since I had a feeling from the beginning she was going to be an unreliable narrator, which I have a love hate relationship with. Check out this book for sure, you will be pleasantly surprised at how mesmerizing it is. The ending was fantastic and left me speechless.

LAUREN IS MISSING BY S. J. KING.
Release date set for the 2nd of July 2025.
This book suprised me big time with my emotions. I felt so sad at times while reading.
Really great and loveable characters.
There's multiple POVs but so easy to follow along.
This is my second book by S.J. KING and I very much look forward to the next one ☺

Wow, I can't believe what I just read 😱! Lauren Is Missing was brilliant, fantastic, and twisty in a grand way, and the shocker was delightful. 💫💫💫💫💫

Lauren has been missing for 8 years, and even though it seems like her parents have given up on her search, her sister Rene hasn't given up. We get Rene and Lauren's point of view, past, present, and future. We are privy to the emotional, physical, and psychological abuse that they both endure. It seems like their experiences are mirror images of each other. Rene is Lauren's saviour. Will she save in her time?

Thank you, Netgalley and Storm Publishing, for this thrilling ARC. All opinions are entirely my own.

3.8⭐ I was not expecting the story to be a dark psychological thriller, some of it was hard for me to read, ( I was so upset by the dog scene) so sometimes I was pushing through to get past and other times I was pushing through to see where the story was going to turn. I did like the twists ( I didn't see that coming) and the multiple povs and if you are looking for an eerie and gripping thriller with an end you don't see coming pick this up on 7/2/2025!
thank you NetGalley, Storm Publishing and S.J. King for the ARC. This is my second read from King, and I will look forward to her books each time the release

Pretty confusing at first but it all comes together in the end. I mostly enjoyed it, my first read by this author.