A taut thriller and sometimes an uncomfortable read. Disturbing and tense,it takes the reader to unimaginable places, and deals with highly uncomfortable subject. Skillfully, written, the ending is satisfying,justice being served. Just proves, nobody is necessary who they seem...

A real page turner, I enjoyed this book and couldn't stop reading. I was willing our heroine on in her fight to find and save her children. Sad in places and touching too.

Thanks, NetGalley and Penguin random house for the opportunity to read this book in exchange for an honest unbiased review.

Oh my, did this book draw me in, I was hooked form the start and was up all night reading it, there was no way I could rest until I knew what happened.
Audrea was finally plucked up the courage to leave her bully controlling husband. She packs up the care and makes a run for it, taking her two young children with her. She is so afraid of being followed she sticks to country lanes.
En-route to her friend in California via the Arizona she is stopped by the local sheriff who takes her into custody (he planted a bag of drugs in her boot). She is locked in a cell and her children are taken someplace safe.
Audra is determined to be reunited with her children, however the sheriff is not being totally honest (surprise surprise, after all he did plant the drugs). He tries to convince Audra that at the time of her arrest there were no children in the car and she must have killed them and dumped them before she was stopped.
The FBI children protection services are called in and the press are all over this unfolding story. Audra is on a race to find her children and prove she has done nothing wrong. Maybe Danny is her knight in shining armour, he comes along to help her on her quest.

With Audra in her car were her ten year old son Sean and six year old daughter Louise. They had been driving for some time; taking the back roads – fleeing Audra’s abusive husband – would she ever know peace? As they neared a turn off to settle for the night, Audra was pulled over by a local sheriff for a misdemeanour – and from that moment on, things went downhill fast. Before Audra knew it she’d been thrown in jail and her children had disappeared. But then the sheriff declared she was alone in the car when he stopped her…

Suddenly the FBI and missing children advocates, plus the media were on the case; in Audra’s face. Everyone said she had something to do with her missing kids; was Audra going mad? But no, she was stronger than that – she was determined to find Sean and Louise if it was the last thing she did.

When Danny heard the news reports of the missing children, chills ran up and down his spine. It was so reminiscent of what had happened to his family five years prior. Before he could think it through, he was on a flight to the small town which was the centre of the latest major event. Danny was sure he could help this poor woman locate her missing children. And just maybe it would give him some answers as to what had happened to his own family.

What would happen to Audra? What had happened to the children? And what was the dark evil that was lurking throughout the quiet little town?

Here and Gone by Haylen Beck is a breathtaking psychological thriller that held me fast in its grip until I turned the final page. The build-up of tension was incredible – the suspense; the heart-in-your-throat feeling was intense! An incredible novel, Here and Gone is one I highly recommend.

With thanks to NetGalley and the publishers for my digital copy to read and review.

This was an interesting novel that certainly kept my attention. However I must admit I didn’t think it was the most original storyline. Without wishing to give away too much information the story itself was relatively predictable, the motives behind the crime will probably be obvious to most avid crime fiction fans early on. However despite that, this book was an absolute page turner.

Books are often described as ‘roller coasters’ and without wishing to sound clichéd this is a perfect description for this novel. As soon as the police stop Audra you know that bad things are going to happen, and when they do the reactions of the characters will have you on the ‘edge of your seat’.

Cliches aside, I thoroughly enjoyed this novel. The writing is superb and I really liked the way that this was a story that relied on good writing to push it along, not just throwing in twists and turns at every moment. The descriptions of the characters and the emotions they are going through are gripping. The overall premise is about a woman and her fierce desire to protect her children, no matter the danger to herself. The sheer determination of Audra will keep you turning the pages.

To me this felt different from a lot of novels written about women protecting their children. Audra was a person who teamed up with a man. Yet she didn’t expect him to rescue her or her children, she was going to do that herself. There is violence and some disturbing details in this story, but it is all relevant to setting the atmosphere.

Wow. Great read, the pages just kept turning. So much crammed into one book and very cleverly put together. Police corruption, domestic abuse and the love of a parent..... All hard hitting subjects.
What i particularly liked was the ending. It was well developed and just when you think the book is finished....... There is more. Sometimes that is missing from a book but was well done here. Thoroughly enjoyable.

Here And Gone

An unsettling claustrophobic terrifying ride of a thriller.

Audra is fleeing New York and her abusive husband with her two children Sean and Louise. Her goal is to get to her friend in San Diego when she is pulled over by the cops for a minor traffic offence. Whilst being searched the cops find a bag of marijuana in her boot that she claims she knew nothing about. She is placed in the police car under arrest while her children are put into a different car so they are separated. When she arrives at the police station her children are not there. The children have been abducted, Audra is then accused of killing them.
I was gripped after the first five or six chapters and couldn't put it down until finished ( good job I had the day off, shame about the housework ;)
There is a small amount of violence in this book but nothing graphic.

Oh wow! What a superb thriller. I'd be very surprised if I read a better thriller this year. I started this in bed one evening and I didn't sleep before 4am! I often hear of unputdownable books but this one breaks the mould. Once started, you will want to finish. Just try to stop reading after chapter 5! If you only read one thriller this year, make sure it's this one. I heard the film rights have been sold. Truly, I cannot wait.

Was thrilled with this book. A fast, pacy, exciting read that wasn't too gory or graphic yet full of nightmarish horror. Easy to read despite the subject matter, I was quickly pulled into the story and looked forward to reading it every evening.
I enjoyed how the back story of the characters was fleshed out so that their actions made sense and everything was tied up well on finishing. A really good thrilling read.

Here and Gone is a child jeopardy thriller, a popular trope in the suspense/thriller genre because nothing creates more anxiety than our fears of children being lost, stolen, or harmed. This novel plucks every nerve of anxiety and paranoia.

Audra is driving through Arizona on her way to California when she is pulled over by a small-town sheriff who arrests her for drug possession after illegally searching her trunk and finding marijuana that was not put there by her. Arresting her, he has a deputy come and take the children to where they will be safe and calls for a tow for her car. After she’s booked, she asks the Sheriff where the deputy took the children and he replies, “What children?”

A brilliant beginning that had be immediately captivated and eager to see her vindicated and her children back safe and sound. Soon the F.B.I. and the State Police are all questioning Audra asking her what she did with the children and the American media has her convicted of murdering her children in a news frenzy similar to JonBenet Ramsey. Search parties are looking for bodies, not the children she is certain are alive. The Sheriff and Deputy have the power of the law and that credibility that makes her seem unhinged to the FBI officer Mitchell leading the federal investigation.

Meanwhile in San Francisco, Danny sees the news that painfully parallels what happened to his wife, a tragedy that led her to kill herself. He is certain the same thing is happening again – corrupt pedophiles using the dark net pay corrupt law enforcement officers to steal children so that the parents are suspected of murder. This is not a spoiler, we know this very early in the book when the pedophiles chat about their upcoming acquisition in their dark net forum. He goes to Arizona to see if by helping Audra, he might find out what happened to his daughter five years ago.

This is not a mystery, this is a thriller. We know who did it and why, we even know how they did it. The only question is whether Audra and Danny can find the children in time and win the day.



After its brilliant opening, Here and Gone went downhill pretty quickly. Audra is repeatedly told she has no right to a lawyer because she has not been arrested or indicted. That refers to the Sixth Amendment right to counsel that does not attach until court proceedings begin, but we have right to counsel from both the Fifth and Sixth Amendments. The Fifth Amendment right to counsel attaches during custodial interrogation and they were interrogating her. She was not free to leave. She had right to counsel.

But that is not what disappointed me the most. It was Audra whose life fell to pieces when she married Patrick who made her become an alcoholic by buying wine and putting it in the fridge. He did not open the bottle or pour it in a glass. She did that on her own. He also had a doctor prescribe pills to help her sleep and so on. She took them gladly. She became addicted, was hospitalized after what appeared to be an overdose. I get that her husband was awful and so was her mother-in-law and yes, he was an abusive, controlling monster. But he did not pour the alcohol down her throat. Eventually she quits drinking and pills, after a nun tells her that her husband was an enabler. He was not an enabler, he was an abuser. But buying a bottle of wine does not make anyone an addict without their full cooperation. It’s a terrible message and makes for an unsympathetic heroine.The back story is just bizarre and does not make me sympathetic to Audra. Also, the idea that she is then instantly better once she knows why she’s drinking (bad husband made her do it) is one of those things that get most books tossed.

There was one bright spot, Audra’s son Sean. I would read a book about him.He has pluck and brains. He is self-controlled, observant and perseveres. I am unhappy that his efforts to save himself and his sister result on delaying their rescue with more casualties and violence. They would have been better off if he had sat crying in the corner. That is another aggravation with the story. Grit should not be punished, particularly with kids.

The dark net forum is a bit bizarre as well. There’s a new person who does not follow the protocols. There’s squabbling like any online group…and impolitic chatter from the new member. This would lead me to infer that it was possibly infiltrated, which might have been an interesting way to complicate the overly simplistic plot. After all, we know who did it and why…so it’s just a matter of switching the balance of power to win, it’s disappointing that there was not some third wedge into the conspiracy.

Anyway, the police are corrupt. The state police and most of the FBI are sexist, brutal men operating at about 14% capacity. The subordinate FBI agent would die if he had to think in order to breathe. Even the competent agent is not that competent and is more reactive that proactive. It’s disappointing all around.

So yes, this book began with a brilliant premise, but it was frittered away with one-dimensional characters, an aggravating backstory, and a simplistic plot that disappoints again and again.

Here and Gone will be released July 13th. I received an e-galley for review from the publisher through NetGalley.

Loved this book! A fast paced, edge of your seat, tense thriller that gripped me from start to finish. I read it in just two sittings.

Many thanks to Netgalley who provided me with this ARC. I chose to read it and give a voluntary and unbiased review.

Here & Gone is a thrilling and nailbiting book that depicts a situation that felt realistic and scary at the same time.

I think the beginning was my favorite part, as I got super nervous while reading Audra's encounter with the sheriff. You could feel the heat, the silent violence, the threats, the tension. I could picture it all in my head.

The whole book is a big "gaslighting" episode and it makes you feel so powerless that you wish you were there helping the main character get her kids back. It reminded me of Little Deaths by Emma Flint, although that one had a mystery component, whereas this one was more a straight-forward thriller.

Perhaps, the fact that there were no surprises is what prevents me from "loving" this book a bit more. I thoroughly enjoyed it and I admired Audra and Danny's determination, but I thought the forum messages meant that there was someone else involved, and instead, I found the "chase" a bit predictable overall.

This book was such a tense, nerve wracking experience, I couldn't put it down! Really thrilling, loved it.

There is a saying, “Hell hath no fury like a woman scorned”. Well believe me if you think a woman can loose the plot a bit over a bloke just think of the uncontrollable force that would be released if she was fighting for her children.  This is the stuff that nightmares are made of so be prepared for an adrenaline rush that a pace maker would struggle to keep under control. Welcome to Silver Water and Sheriff Whiteside.
I don’t think I have come down yet from reading this book, OMG what an incredible journey. Audra Kinney was on the run with her two young children Sean 10 and Louise 3 from her abusive wealthy husband and controlling mother-in-law, a nightmare of a relationship that she had been trapped in. Now she had the chance of escaping New York and making a life with her children with a little help from a friend that lived in California. She got as far as Arizona.
Who the hell would even consider believing that she hasn’t done away with her two kids, especially with her seedy background and then ranting on accusing the Sheriff and his Deputy of taking her kids. The whole darn town hated her, no correction, with newspaper coverage the whole darn state hated her.
This is such a must read thriller, that will tie your stomach in knots and make you want to kill. This story is told through many voices some heart breaking and others full of greed but the most terrifying are told through internet messages, these are chilling and haunting. The author delivers hope and despair in the same sentence playing with every emotion and pushing anyone sane to the brink of madness in this story. It is a race against time but there is still the odd good guy ……………..
I wish to thank Netgalley and Vintage Books for an ARC of this novel which I have chosen to review.

Where do I start, Here and Gone grips you from the first page. A fantastic thriller which was hard to put down. It does bring to life every woman's nightmare when you are travelling on a lonely road in the middle of no-where. I felt so scared for Audra.

Here and Gone by Haylen Beck is a nail-biting, jaw-clenching, heart-stopping thriller. It is the story of a vulnerable mother and her young children caught up in the powerful and corrupt web of a greedy policeman who procures children for a paedophile ring. Due to her dubious past, the children's mother has difficulty convincing others in authority to see the truth. With help from unexpected sources, good prevails, but at what expense? Highly recommended. Thanks to Random House, UK Vintage Publishing, Harvill Secker and NetGalley for the ARC.

This is an absolutely gripping thriller by Stuart Neville, whose books I adore, here writing as Haylen Beck. This is a story delivered through multiple viewpoints, and interspersed with reports and emails in the narrative. It has the frightening premise of an abused mother losing her precious children, facing condemnation and accusations, and her hunt to locate them. Audra Kinney is on the run from a nightmarish, controlling and abusive husband, Patrick, and the pending court custody hearing. Fleeing New York, she is driving through Arizona with her smart and clued up eleven year old son, Sean, and her three year old daughter, Louise. Its a beautiful day, the eventual destination is San Diego, California, where Audra hopes to be safe.

She is pulled over by Sheriff Whiteside who finds a bag of marijuana in the car. He calls in Deputy Collins, a woman cop, who takes charge of the children. On being taken to the station, a worried Audra asks about her children and is met with the response of what children? Audra's life tips into panic stricken and terrifying territory. We learn the details of Audra's history with her rotten husband, and his ghastly mother. Audra's life slips into a world where she faces accusations from Patrick, child services, the police and the FBI. The media coverage results in a man from another part of the country seeing the TV reports, he just happens to have come up against similar horrific experiences to that of Audra and makes the decision that he is going to do all that he can to help. As Audra frantically searches for her children, she has no idea of just how devastating the truth will be.

This is a tense, beautifully written, superbly plotted, and fast paced read. The characterisation is done really well, you feel and root for Audra, a flawed and strong woman, whose world collapses when her children are taken. Beck captures the atmosphere and fear that results in a missing children case. A wonderful and thrilling read that I highly recommend. Many thanks to Random House Vintage for an ARC.

This is a spine chilling story that will stay with me for a long time. It was a much better book than I expected it to be. It is a fast paced thriller with shocks the whole way through. Very well written and well worth reading.