The Night She Disappeared

July 19, 2021
In this excellent thriller from bestseller Jewell (The Family Upstairs), Tallulah and Zach, both 19, disappear after a date night that starts at a pub and takes the unmarried couple to a country estate in Surrey, England. Left behind is their infant son, whose care is assumed by Tallulah’s distraught mother, Kim. A year later, Sophie Beck, a writer of cozy mysteries, moves into a cottage near the estate with her partner, Shaun Gray, who has just accepted a teaching position at a local school. While Shaun prepares for the new semester, Sophie discovers a hand-lettered cardboard sign in the garden that reads “Dig Here.” When digging reveals what might be a vital clue to Tallulah and Zach’s disappearance, Sophie joins forces with Kim, who has never given up hope that Tallulah is still alive. Together, the two women search for the truth of what happened. Not every plot twist is plausible, but the backstory makes readers question everything they think they know as things cleverly unfold. Jewell is in top form in this suspenseful, satisfying story. Agent: Deborah Schneider, Gelfman Schneider Literary.

July 1, 2021
In England, a young couple, parents of a small child, disappear without a trace. A year later, a novelist moves into the area and soon finds herself caught up in the mystery of what happened to the missing couple. Did they run off together, leaving their child behind? Did one kill the other and then flee? Were they both murdered? Jewell takes an interesting approach here, telling the story through alternating chapters set in the past and the present, showing us the events leading up to the disappearance and the novelist's search for the answer to the mystery. Jewell, who burst onto the literary scene with 1998's Ralph's Party, is skilled at keeping readers on their toes, always challenging our expectations of where a story is heading. Many times during the course of this novel, readers will find that their theory about what happened to the missing couple is completely wrong because the author has led them into a trap. If you like to be kept guessing, this one's for you.

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September 24, 2021

Tallulah and her boyfriend Zach, both 19, embark on a much-needed date night that begins at a bar in a picturesque village and migrates to a remote English country estate called The Dark Place. When they do not return home, Tallulah's mother Kim experiences months of palpable grief even as she cares for their infant son, steadfastly believing they will return. A year later, cozy mystery author Sophie Beck and her partner Shaun move into a home on the grounds of Maypole House, a nearby school that caters to the wealthy. When Sophie encounters a sign in their yard that simply says "Dig Here," she sets aside her writer's block and becomes intrigued with the story of the teens' disappearance. Befriending Kim, who never relinquishes hope, amateur investigators Sophie and Shaun reopen the cold case, revealing multiple unfolding dramas previously hidden. VERDICT Jewell (Watching You) uses three closely aligned timelines to unpack the events leading to a soul-crushing crime; these shifts in time and points of view are mildly confusing. Plot twists are deftly incorporated while remaining highly unlikely. Yet this satisfying suspense story is rich with emotional depth and delivers a steady dose of uneasiness. For fans of Sophie Hannah.

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