Review: The Night She Disappeared by Lisa Jewell

THE NIGHT SHE DISAPPEARED

Lisa Jewell

Publication date: September 7, 2021

Genres: Mystery, Suspense, Thriller
Format: Audiobook
Source: Overdrive
5 STARS

2017: 19 year old Tallulah is going out on a date, leaving her baby with her mother, Kim.

Kim watches her daughter leave and, as late evening turns into night, which turns into early morning, she waits for her return. And waits.

The next morning, Kim phones Tallulah's friends who tell her that Tallulah was last seen heading to a party at a house in the nearby woods called Dark Place.

She never returns.

2019: Sophie is walking in the woods near the boarding school where her boyfriend has just started work as a head-teacher when she sees a note fixed to a tree.

'DIG HERE' . . .

A cold case, an abandoned mansion, family trauma and dark secrets lie at the heart of Lisa Jewell's remarkable new novel.

GOODREADS | AMAZON | BOOK DEPOSITORY

In The Night She Disappeared, Lisa Jewell masterfully weaves together three timelines to tell the story of Tallulah Murray, a young mother who disappears from her small village without a trace, along with her boyfriend Zach.

Some fifteen months after the disappearance, mystery writer Sophie moves to the same village with her partner Shaun, the new headmaster of a boarding school. While exploring the woods behind their cottage on the school grounds, Sophie finds a chilling sign attached to a tree: Dig Here. Sophie unearths evidence that leads to more questions about what became of the young couple. She is drawn deeper and deeper into the mystery and becomes consumed by what became of Tallulah Murray.

I loved the structure of The Night She Disappeared. The alternating timelines kept me fully immersed in the story, both past and present. Jewell provided Tallulah’s point of view in the months leading up to her disappearance, which made it obvious that all was not as it seemed in the life of the young woman. In present day (2018), we have the points of view of both Sophie and Kim, Tallulah’s mother.

Kim is frantic when Tallulah fails to return home after a night out with Zach. What could have happened to her beautiful girl? Tallulah is a devoted mother who would never abandon her child. Kim’s frustration grows when she contacts Zach’s mother, a woman who is seemingly unconcerned and believes the two kids took off to escape the stress of parenthood. Kim learns that Tallulah was last seen at the rambling country estate of a new college friend, Scarlett Jacques. When confronted, Scarlett claims she barely knows Tallulah. But what of the others who were at the house that night – do they know more than they are telling?

Jewell brilliantly created a mounting sense of unease as the story progressed. By the night of the disappearance there was a simmering tension, intensified because, as the reader, you know that by morning something will have happened, and Tallulah and Zach will not be seen again.

The Night She Disappeared was a riveting, character-driven, slow-burning suspense that kept me completely enthralled. With intricate details, people and events not truly as they seem, and information parsed out bit by tantalizing bit, Jewell fashioned a story that was utterly compelling and totally immersive. I was listening at every opportunity and was utterly captivated by the narration of Joanne Froggatt. Her voices were distinctive, I always knew which character was speaking, and the nuances she gave to each voice, particularly Tallulah’s, brought each character to life and had me envisioning every scene in vivid detail.

I have been reading Lisa Jewell’s novels for almost twenty years and I am confident in saying that The Night She Disappeared is her best yet. This one is not to be missed. ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

Lisa Jewell is the #1 New York Times bestselling author of nineteen novels, including The Family Upstairs and Then She Was Gone, as well as Invisible Girl and Watching You. Her novels have sold over 5 million copies internationally, and her work has also been translated into twenty-eight languages.