Two teenage girls go missing and then their badly beaten bodies are found in the city park. One is dead and the other is clinging to life.

Bill Price the father of Summer (the girl who is still alive) runs to his daughters side. Life can't seem to give him a break. He lost his wife a few years ago to an accident and now his daughter is in a coma. Bill makes it his mission to find out who harmed his daughter and killed her friend, Haley, however things make a turn for the worst when he finds out the girl laying in the bed in a coma is Haley and not his daughter Summer.

Bill pushes himself further into the investigation intent on finding out who is responsible but he might just end up with more than he bargained for as the unraveling of secrets proves how little we really know about the people we love.

I found this book entertaining enough but was slightly disappointed because the mystery element of the story, wasn't suspenseful as it is loosely based on the true life story of Laura van Ryn and Whitney Cerak. If you aren't familiar with their story you can find it HERE.

There is a lot of drama, a lot of weird things are happening and it's fairly predictable but it is an easy read as Bell knows how to tie things together and simplify them.

I received a copy of this book from Netgalley in exchange for an honest opinion. This book had an interesting plot, the series of events were a bit predictable, however it never stopped me from wanting to continue reading to find out the outcome. The author kept the mystery of the twists and turns coming, and you really felt the anguish of the character of Bill, Summer's dad. His reactions were understandable, however in the real world I'm not so sure the police would have let him get as far as he did being involved so much in an ongoing investigation. However, I would recommend this book if you are looking for a quick read that will keep your mind racing until the end.

David Bell writes a thriller that keeps you wanting to find out the truth. As a parent, it's hard to imagine the feeling of thinking your child could be badly injured or possibly dead. Then he throws in these great twists to keep you guessing until the end. I will definitely read more by this author.

Another winner from David Bell! David Bell has a way of writing his characters that makes you feel like you've known them for years, instead of just meeting them in this book.

The plot moves at a steady pace; this is not a fast paced book but you need to invest the time to really grip what's happening in the story.

I couldn't even get through the fifth chapter of this story. This is the third book by this author that I haven't finished.

Bring Her Home had a slow start but once I got into it I could not put it down. The book is fast paced with twists and turns, some a bit hard to believe at times. It's pretty easy to guess who the guilty party/parties is but you have to keep reading to find out why! I would definitely recommend this book to a friend.

Thank you NetGalley for the copy of Being Her Home by David Bell that I read and reviewed.
This book had parts that were very predictable and and told many times before so that was a bit disappointing but then it has other parts that were fresh and new that made the book so much more. I wish the author would have kept with new ideas and not went down that boring predictable road that most readers could figure out right away.
I was torn with what to rate the book because like I said I liked part of the story and I hated part of the story so I am giving Being Her Home three out of five stars.

Berkley Publishing Group and NetGalley provided me with an electronic copy of Bring Her Home. I was under no obligation to review this book and my opinion is freely given.

Bill Price has already faced tragedy in the past year, with the untimely passing of his wife. Raising his teenage daughter Summer alone has not been without its challenges, but Bill's resolve will get tested in ways that he never expected. When Summer and her best friend Haley disappear, the investigation brings up past history that Bill thought was behind him and alternate theories that have shocking implications. Will Bill, along with his sister Paige and Detective Hawkins, ultimately be able to bring Summer home?

Bring Her Home was equally frustrating, interesting, and thrilling. The author did go for the cliché more than once in this book, which ruined the flow. The twists did bring the novel to a thrilling high, but it was not enough to resurrect this book from good to great. One twist was a complete surprise, making me wish that more of the book followed its lead. The characters were well developed, but the moments in the plot where the author chose to go with the expected path took away from their realism. The author telegraphed the ending a little too much, so the conclusion did not elicit a response from me. Readers who like suspense and mystery/thrillers might like Bring Her Home.

This book is about a father who’s daughter goes missing one weekend. Until they get a anonymous call and two girls are found in the park. One is dead, one is barley hanging on both completely unrecognizable due to their injuries. Unfortunately this father’s nightmare is just beginning.

All i could say through this book was OMG! And Wow! It twisted you and turned you until you were convinced everyone is guilty of everything. And hey a few times I was right mostly because I accused everyone. I loved this book and it had me completely hooked from the first chapter.
Definitely a 5☆ book! If you like thrillers this should be on your list!

I had heard raves about this book and Bell's prior ones, so I was very excited to be approved for a copy. The story follows two missing girls, only one of whom survives. It is a totally gripping, creepy tale and I could not put it down, so eager was I to know the truth behind what had happened. This won't be by last book by the talented David Bell!

Three and a half stars: A book with a strong, suspenseful mystery and lots of twists that kept me turning pages, but when all was revealed, I didn’t think the story was cohesive.

Bill is doing his best to keep it together. After a couple of horrid days, his daughter has been found. Summer is badly beaten, clinging to life, but she is alive, unlike her best friend, Haley. Bill quickly learns that things are going to get worse before they get better. Who did this to his daughter and why? The more he digs, the more troublesome things become. Did he truly know his daughter?

What I Liked:
Bring Her Home is a page turner. I loved the suspense and the mystery and the jaw dropping twists. *This one kept me guessing up until the startling conclusion. If you are looking for a good thriller, this is one to pick up.
*The twists were outstanding. I can’t give too much away, but there were some things that I didn’t see coming. I liked that this one kept me on my toes, and just when I thought I had things figured out, *Mr. Bell would throw in another stunning surprise. If you are one who likes twists, this book delivers.
I liked that this one deals with the complexity of family relationships. Bill is forced to reexamine his relationship with his fifteen year old daughter, and in doing so, he must also deal with his own issues. I especially liked his realizations regarding his sister, Paige. Paige was my favorite character in the book.
*The ending was well done. It concludes without any lingering questions. I liked the way it all played out.
*I listened to the audiobook version narrated by Jon Lindstrom. Mr. Lindstrom does a great job with the voices.
And the Not So Much:
*While I loved the twists and turns, when all was laid out, I wasn’t thrilled with how the story came together. Some things weren’t exactly believable, such as the situation with the homeless man in the woods. While other things weren’t throughly explained. Finally, I didn’t like that events that seemed important weren’t really even related to the case.
*I had the bad guy pegged almost immediately because I think the author gave too much away. It was still fun to guess the motives and figure it all out, and I certainly couldn’t have gotten it right with all the twists.
*I wish that Bill was more likable. I got frustrated with this because he is rash, impatient and doing things that impeded the police investigation. I hated the way he constantly took matters into his own hands. I found home frustrating.

Bring Her Home is a fast paced book with an exciting mystery and heaps of suspense. I loved that I was constantly guessing and on my toes with this one. Once all was revealed, I found some things unbelievable, and I thought overall the story lacked cohesiveness. Still it was a page turner, and I enjoyed the mystery.

I received a copy of this book from the publisher in exchange for an honest review. All opinions are my own, and I was not compensated for this review.
Posted@Rainy Day Ramblings.

This was my first David Bell novel and I will definitely be looking for more. Bill Price's fifteen year old daughter, Summer, and her friend Haley disappear. Haley is found dead and Summer beaten badly. As Bill, looks for answers he discovers many secrets. I found this novel extremely readable and quite the page turner. It had way more focus on the characters than many thrillers. I did not find Bill very likable, but I did particularly enjoy his relationship with his sister Paige and his daughter. There are tons of great twists and turns and sub-stories in this novel. Loved it!

BRING HER HOME is the new thriller from David Bell, bestselling author of Since She Went Away and Somebody I Used to Know. This is a gripping character-driven thriller that deals with the fate the fate of two missing teenage girls.

A year and a half after the tragic death of his wife, Bill Price’s fifteen-year-old daughter, Summer, and her best friend, Haley, disappear. Days later, the girls are found in a city park. Haley is dead at the scene, while Summer is left beaten beyond recognition and in a coma in ICU.

The more time Bill spends with Summer, the more he wonders what happened to her. Or if the injured girl in the hospital bed is really his daughter at all. What was the reason for the beating and the murder?

The answers to the present are buried in the past!

Now I can’t explain any more of the plot for risk of spoilers. You will just have to read it yourself to find out why?

Short suspenseful chapters, a gripping plot with realistic characters makes this novel a definite winner! Highly recommended!

Many thanks to David Bell, Berkley Publishing Group and Netgalley for the ARC.

Sometimes who you want people to be makes you blind to who they really are. With BRING HER HOME David Bell exercises his capacious talents for imagination and piercing storytelling with enough twists and turns to satisfy even the most jaded reader, keeping them engaged from the first page right up to the surprising ending.

In this powerful tale of a father working his way through unthinkable tragedy, Bell takes readers from one surprising turn of events to another with barely enough time to catch your breath between each new revelation.. Readers hungry for an emotional and tense roller coaster ride of a novel are sure to have that hunger satisfied.........and then some.

This is my first foray into the world of David Bell. Therefore, I am unable to make any comparison to other works. I can't speak to which is better. However, what I can say is, I enjoyed this book. Yes, it is a mystery filled with many twists and turns, but for me, it was more that.

Bring Her Home gave me a firsthand look into a grieving man's life. Dealing with loss is a difficult road for one travel and to do so twice in a short space of time could not have been easy for Bill Price. I may not have agreed with how he approached the situation, but I completely understood his actions. We each grieve in our own way and I saw Bill's actions as his way of coping. I could relate to what he was going through. His feelings of helplessness, guilt, and anger leaped off the pages.

The portrayal of Bill along with the supporting characters was the driving force behind my enjoyment of this book. Mr. Bell created convincing characters, who were easy to care for and I was eager to discover what would become of each of them.

I consider a well-written mystery to be filled with suspense, unexpected outcomes and one which keeps me guessing from start to finish. Bring her Home encapsulated these criteria for the most part. There were a few events that threw me for a loop and for a time I kept trying to figure out the identity of the villain. There were many possible suspects. However, as the events unfolded and actions became clearer, the identity was no longer a mystery. The motive eluded me for a majority of the story, but then it too became clear after a while.

This is a story that one needs to approach with an open mind. One should never go into this story with any preconceived notions as doing so may cause disappointment.

The story was well written and the pacing for the most was good. However, there were aspects of the story which moved a bit slow for my tastes. As a result, I had a difficult time getting through these areas which tainted my experience to some degree. There is not much more I can say regarding this story without giving away the plot. Therefore if you are curious about the events that transpired in this story and you enjoy mysteries then you need to experience it through your own eyes.

Conclusion/Recommendation
Overall, this was an OK read. It was not mind-blowing, but it kept me entertained. Would I read more from this author?
Definitely, yes

I finished my first David Bell book!! I must admit that this one did take longer than expected to finish, I think it had to do more with myself than the book.

Personally, I feel like the book falls between 3.5 and 4 stars. It’s not that the book was boring, I was definitely intrigued and needed to keep reading, however, I was not in dire need to want to finish the book quickly.
“Just a year and a half after the tragic death of his wife, Bill Price’s fifteen-year-old daughter, Summer, and her best friend, Haley, disappear. Days later, the girls are found in a city park. Haley is dead at the scene, while Summer is left beaten beyond recognition and clinging to life.

As Bill holds vigil over Summer’s bandaged body, the only sound the unconscious girl can make is one cryptic and chilling word: No. And the more time Bill spends with Summer, the more he wonders what happened to her or if the injured girl in the hospital bed is really his daughter at all.

When troubling new questions about Summer’s life surface, Bill is not prepared for the aftershocks.”


I enjoyed the plot and the twist and turns the story takes. Throughout the book the author made sure to add suspense and also to throw in some jaw droppers. Most of the characters are well developed, however, Bill irked me, I understand the position he is in and how hard all of this maybe on him but for some reason he did not sit well with me.
Normally, this would be a quick read but like I mentioned before, for me, it took longer than I would have liked.

Thank you Netgalley & the publishers for my copy in exchange for an honest review.

David Bell creates so much suspense and twists with this very suspenseful book.. This book kept me on my toes and had me reading into the night. Great book!! Look forward to reading more books in the future from this author.

This book had me turning pages as quickly as possible. I did not see any of those twists coming, which is a big plus in my book. I did feel like the pacing was maybe a little more drawn out than I'd like, the timeline seemed... IDK, questionable, I guess. It seemed like a month had passed, but it was only eight days in the story (at one point). Even with those things, I still give this a five-star rating because I was so hooked the entire time and finished it in about a day. I'm trying to write a thriller myself, so I know how hard it is to get all the aspects just right. A big thanks to Netgalley and the publisher for a copy of this.

The novel opens with Bill, a widower, facing every father’s worst nightmare. His fifteen-year-old daughter, Summer is missing (along with her best friend, Haley). Days later, the girls are found in the park. Haley is dead on the scene and Summer is badly beaten. Bill is left begging his daughter to fight for her life but also begins to wonder if he knows his daughter at all. As Bill searches for the truth, he discovers more than what he thought.

Instead of going for the gusto, Bell opens subtly and slowly draws his reader in. I felt instantly intrigued. From the first pages, Bell does a superb job at setting up lots of questions for the reader to continuously ask. I really loved this; when I read, I love to be active in my thought process trying to figure out the plot and where the author plans on going.

One of the other things I enjoyed was the plethora of twists in the middle of the novel. Especially since I am completely tired of the big, shocking, one moment twists that so many thrillers have these days. I felt like this made the story even more eerie and ominous because it felt so real; this truly could have been a story that could happen to anyone.

As for characterization, I felt like Bill was relatable and the story felt very real; I really appreciated that!

I was able to guess pretty early on parts of the resolution of the novel but Bell did bring in some complex details that I would never have guessed that amped up the ending for me.