OMG, what a fantastic book this is. There are so many twists and turns. I can’t wait for her next book to be released because I have just found a new favorite author! Thanks for writing such great great book!

“ The Vanishing Season” was the first book I’ve read by Jodi Lynn Anderson. I hear a lot about her book “ Tiger Lily” so, I was definitely looking forward to reading this one. With that being said, the synopsis does not fit the actual book. I was looking for mystery, intrigue, creepiness. None of this occurred. In fact, very little of anything occurred. Don’t even get me started on the ending. Just don’t do it! The characters themselves were not very likeable. This book as a whole is more so a romance featuring a love triangle and quite frankly, I just did not sign up for this.

I received a digital copy of this book from NetGalley and the publisher in exchange for my honest review.

I do like a good mystery and this book lived up to that. It tells of Ellery Hathaway who is a cop, but who has a secret. She has managed to change her name and lives in a pretty isolated location. Then on her birthday she receives a card which brings back her worst fears and then a person goes missing. Ellery knows that this incident is closely related to what happened to her, but she cannot share her secret without releasing her true identity. An FBI agent gets on the case and he just happens to be the man who saved her life so many years ago.
This story has you guessing and is well written to keep your interest to the end.

I didn't realize this was first published in 2017 when I requested it, but I am very happy that it resurfaced and I had the opportunity to read it.

The characters were well described. I thoroughly appreciated how the the author, Joanna Schaffhausen, had an uncanny knack for really digging into how someone who had been abducted as well as mentally and physically abused as a teen would think and behave as an adult. The addition of the FBI agent who saved her life was also a nice touch.

The identity of the person who was copying some of the methods of the serial killer who abducted Ellery was hidden until the end, although there were clues. There were a few people who I thought might be guilty including the actual person, but I never knew for sure until the pulse-pounding conclusion.

This is definitely a five star book.

First book I have read by this author and I have to say it was really good. I love mysteries and this one covers all aspects from the victim’s perspective as well as the law enforcement perspective. Looking forward to the next book in this series.

This is the first in the Ellery Hathaway series and I wanted to catch up on the one I was missing before I started the latest. Ellie, the anonymous survivor of a serial killer, has joined the police department and when she suspects a series of missing persons are related, who does she call? The falling-apart police profiler who saved her as a teenager of course. Why, because the missing are girls around the age Ellie was when she was abducted, and they are disappearing each year on her birthday. Off we go on a really creepy, uncomfortable search for the answers. Loved Elllery and can see why she became a cult favorite.

What a fantastic find this series was! This is not a story for the faint of heart. Ellery is a survivor of a horrific abduction/rape/torture that occurred when she was fourteen. After years of dealing with what happened, she is living an anonymous life (or so she thinks) as a cop in a small town far from the site of her trauma. But the past has a way of catching up with all of us, and unfortunately for Ellery, she's no exception...

I loved this first book - Ellery is a dark, damaged protagonist but striding through the darkness with her is surprisingly enlightening... The character development here was first-rate. As is typical in serial killer/cop thrillers, everyone is lying through their teeth and hiding something (if not many somethings). This layering of secrets is altogether common in the genre - what is not is the delicate way that Schaffhausen teases out truths as the novel progresses. She doesn't throw in red herrings or extraneous details; every detail is chosen carefully and revealed at just the right moment to heighten the tension and keep the reader engaged.

This was a rough read at times, but Ellery's survival (past, present, and future) makes for a fascinating read and I definitely cannot wait to dive into book two!

I tried reading "No Mercy", got 1/3 of the way through and was still confused. I kept feeling like I had missed something in the story. So I went to the reviews to see what others thought and learned that there was one that came before it: "The Vanishing Season". Since "No Mercy" got good reviews, I started on this prequel to it.

All the difference in the world! I love coming across good writers (and I mean much more than their stories), and Joanna Schaffhausen falls into that category. The bad language was slight enough that I could get through the events without cringing much, and even though I figured out who the killer was, early on, it didn't impinge on my enjoyment of the book at all.

Now I can go back to "No Mercy" and possibly read it in a whole new way, knowing the background.

I think mystery lovers will find much to enjoy in this debut book featuring a likable yet flawed female detective. Ellery is a survivor of a serial killer who hasn't let her own demons keep her from pursuing justice for others. She has a trusty, loyal dog named speed bump and lives a quiet life of anonymity by herself. Until she starts receiving birthday cards from someone who knows who she is- and then the murders begin. I really enjoyed the writing style and mystery of this well plotted debut. The interaction of Ellery and Reed worked, the pace was just fast enough and the setting well described. My biggest issue came at the end when several things played out too unrealistically for me to believe.. I will, however, keep reading the series as I'm invested in finding out more about Ellery's life

Reviews by the Wicked Reads Review Team

Avid Reader – ☆☆☆☆
M/F Thriller

Ellie is a police officer in a small town. She is known to be a strong, independent woman who isn't afraid of anything. But Ellie's past is something that haunts her daily. It's also not something that she discusses. When she notices that people have gone missing and nobody is doing anything about it, Ellie does everything in her power to get her fellow officers to listen. She even goes as far as to use her sexuality at times.

With nobody listening to her, she reaches out to the one person who might. Agent Reed is on a downward slide. He is on thin ice with the FBI and his family. When Ellie contact him, he can't help but be intrigued with her request.

Ellie and Reed are on the hunt for a killer that nobody else sees. But when the facts start to line up and more people go missing, Ellie's department can't help but see what she's seen all along. This is a fast-paced thriller that is very entertaining.

It was fairly predictable and I figured out the killer quite early on in the story, but I didn't feel that hindered my ability to enjoy the story until the end.

Triggers: Kidnapping, Stalking, Murder


Sarah – ☆☆☆☆
Just a few chapters into this book, I knew that Ellery Hathaway was going to be my new favourite heroine. She’s fabulous. Damaged but resilient. Defiant, abrasive, and a complete loner. I warmed to Ellery as immediately as I did to Jessica Jones, Mercy Thompson, or Temperance Brennan.

But while I completely fell in love with Ellery, I didn’t completely love this first book. The plot moves slowly. At one point I realised I was 75% through the book and Ellery and Reed didn’t have any real suspects. The end is exciting but I’m not sure there are enough clues for readers to guess the whodunnit alongside Ellery and Reed. I enjoyed the story but I’d like to see the plotting and pacing improve in the next books.

While Ellery is definitely the hero in this story, I really enjoyed the working relationship between her and Reed, the FBI agent she works with. Tied together by a horror story many years ago, Reed and Ellery are very different people who manage to make each other stronger. Reed is a bit of a cliché. He’s a washed-up agent on the brink of both divorce and a formal suspension from his job. Burned out cops are a bit overdone so it’s his complicated relationship to Ellery that makes him interesting. I’m not sure he’d be interesting on his own but I love him as Ellery’s overqualified and slightly reluctant sidekick.

Having already read the second book in this series, I will say that I felt like the writing gets tighter and the suspense more exciting in the second story. Anyone new to the series will need to read this one first because it is impossible to understand Ellery without it. And this book is worth a read – even if just to get to know a fabulous new heroine.

Ellery Hathaway isn’t your usual detective with a dark past. Well, she is, but not what you might think. When Ellery was 14 years old, she survived being captured (and tortured) by a serial killer. And although that killer was caught, prosecuted, and is serving the rest of his life behind bars, Ellery’s made connections between three murders in the last three years in her small town---can she figure out who’s behind this before it becomes four deaths in four years? This was a new author for me, but I found the storytelling to be on point and really enjoyed the suspense. I wasn’t crazy about “who” the killer turned out to be (I’m not going to say more on that because I don’t want to give anything away), but it was still a good book and I’ll watch for more from her in the future.

Special Note: Thanks to the publisher and NetGalley for allowing me to read this ARC in exchange for an honest review.

Excellent mystery/thriller. Well written and will hold your interest right up to the end. You will almost guess who the killer is but not quite and you'll want to keep reading to the end to find out! There could have been more interaction of Reed and Ellie with their family members but I suppose the lack of connection was explained adequately. It would be interesting if Ellie and Reed were to team up in the future or if Ellie were to be invited to join the BAU of FBI with Reed.
No book report from me, the cover gives adequate description.
I received this book as a complimentary copy for an unbiased review.The opinions expressed are my own. Thanks to the author,publisher,and NetGalley for the ARC.

Ellie Hathaway has a secret. She’s working for the Woodbury Police Department as a law enforcement officer. She moved there from Boston because of her secret. No one knew this except for one person. She had been receiving an anonymous birthday card every year for the past three years. Each year that she received the birthday card, a person had gone missing. She had gone to Chief Parker about the fact that three people had gone missing and that she believed they were connected. Chief Parker wouldn’t here of reopening the three older investigations. Ellie called the one person who knew her secret, and that was Agent Reed Markham with the FBI. She asked him for help with the three missing persons cases. Ellie had been held prisoner by a serial killer, who kept his victims for a few days before he cut both their hands off. Agent Markham had rescued A.K.A. Abigail Hathaway and put Frank Coben in prison to be executed. In fact, Ellie was the only person who survived being held by Frank Coben. Why are these people missing? Who is sending her the birthday cards? Is there a copycat loose in her small town? How many more people will go missing? Will they be able to catch him. This is a great psychological thriller! I had a very hard time putting this book down. The plot was filled with twists and turns for sure. The character development was great as well. The reader could relate to all the characters. The reader could relate to their emotions and flaws as well. All of the characters’ descriptions were very colorful and enabled the reader to become familiar with them. What an awesome book!! I am really looking forward to reading the next book!!

This first book in the Ellery Hathaway series is quite an opener. As the reader is introduced to Ellery, the story of her past is unwound as a way of helping the reader understand her idiosyncrasies. She was literally the "one that got away" from a vicious serial killer during her youth. As a police officer in a small town, Ellery believes that she can avoid the limelight and keep her past hidden. However, a series of deaths around her birthday raises her suspicions that her past is not as hidden as she hoped. When her superiors do not believe her claims of a killer, she contacts Reed, the man who rescued her from the hands of the serial killer. Together, they will follow the clues to reveal the person behind the murders and bring them to justice. It is a suspenseful read and sets-up well for a sequel.

I read so many books in this genre and when I read the description of the book it sounded like many of the other books I have read in the past BUT I was pleasantly surprised ! This book grabbed me from the very first page and kept me reading into the night. Ellery was a great likable character and the author's writing is superb so much so that I will have to look at her past books and will read any future book by this author. I especially loved that I had no idea who was doing the killing. If you like a great suspense book with no gore and just great writing then read today!

I received an uncorrected ARC of this book for an honest review. First, the bad. I know it was uncorrected, so I hope they corrected the errors on the final copy, especially the continuity errors (just a few). Now for the good, which is everything else. I thought the author did an excellent job of portraying Ellery as a damaged but persistent cop who has an insatiable need to help people no matter the cost. She's the only survivor of a serial killer as a child, saved by FBI agent Reed Markham. The book starts about ten years later when no one credits her belief of an active serial killer in her adopted small town outside of Boston. Reed had given her his card when she was rescued and said to call if she ever needed anything. She makes the call and there begins all kinds of trouble for Reed trying to help Ellery again. Their relationship is a long, circuitous road in which they appear to trust each other. This was a great story but the characters are what made it shine. I immediately read the next book, No Mercy.

When I read the synopsis I knew this was my kind of book, but sadly it just moved too slow for me and wasn’t what I had thought it would be. It isn’t a bad book, there was just a lot of unnecessary filler and lacking in areas.

well...I did not finish "The Vanishing Season" - there were a couple of things I found a little difficult to get past...1) that a policewoman in a small town (once herself a victim of a serial killer) puts together the significance of three disappearances in three years, signaling the return of said serial killer, or a close facsimile; and 2) an FBI agent (however disgraced) would agree to help out small-town policewoman, who just happens to be the girl he rescued from said serial killer. The agent doesn't need much persuading to enter this fray? A few scary moments just in the few 100 pages I read, but not enough to keep me reading.

P.S. Thanks to NetGalley and St. Martin's Press for the ARC.

Thank you Netgalley and St. Martins Press for an Advanced Reader Copy. I voluntarily read this book and the review and comments below are my honest opinion.
Ellery, a former victim and Reed the FBI agent that saved her are reunited in this The Vanishing Season. No one knows of Ellery’s past and the killer that abducted her is on death row. But when the killings begin again, Ellery is sure that some knows who she is and is a copy cat killer. A suspenseful, disturbing book with an intense ending.

WOW! I've discovered a new series!! I really like Ellery. She is a police officer, damaged by her past and working on a serial killer case. The big reveal was nicely done and I enjoyed not having Ellery fall for a hot cop and fall endlessly in forever love in one day like so many novels with a female officer. I will read the rest in this series.

Thank you to NetGalley, St. Martin's Press/Minotaur and Joanna Schaffhausen for this ARC!