This book was absolutely engaging. I found myself huddled in bed with a nice warm cup of tea trying to figure out what happened to Betty, and the Cornish Cleaver. This book was wonderfully reminiscent of older Agatha Christie mysteries and I was absolutely charmed by the wonderful descriptions of her small (albeit sadly fictional as I figured out on Google maps) town. The characters were wonderfully flawed and I was continually surprised by the twists and turns that this lovely story took. I highly enjoyed it and would recommend it to anyone looking for a wonderful vacation or airplane read.

Thanks to the publisher, via Netgalley, for the opportunity to read and review this title.

This was a quick read for me and it shifted between past and present, which caused me to frequently retrace my steps. The setting is a mid-fifties hotel in Cornwall where a group of reporters are living while they cover the story of a serial killer nicknamed the "Cornwall Clever". Our protagonist is Betty, a fifteen year old girl, who helps her mother run the hotel. Betty has a school girl crush on one of the reporters, Mr. Gallagher. Mr. Gallagher knows this and exploits it in more ways than one.

I never really bonded with any of the characters. Betty's mom has some sort of mental health issue which is compounded by the stress of running the boarding house and trying to take care of her's and Betty's future, on top of which she drinks too much. Periodically, her depression becomes overwhelming and she takes to bed while Betty ends up taking over her responsibilities. Betty's best friend Mary seems to only be using Betty as bait to attract a boyfriend of her own. Mr. Gallagher tries using Betty as a source for local gossip, but then becomes caught up in Betty's romantic ideas.

In short, I couldn't find anyone to like in this story although I did feel sorry for Betty.

On top of all of that, the ending felt rushed and confusing. I can't say I'd recommend it.

In 1956, the seaside town of St. Steele in England is besieged by a series of murders of young women. Betty Broadbent, a precocious fifteen-year-old, lives at the Hotel Eden with her mercurial mother who is the manager there. As Betty strikes up a friendship with John Gallagher, a much older reporter who is staying at the Hotel Eden and reporting on the murders, she discovers a forbidden attraction to the man even as she soon believes that she has uncovered the identity of the murderer.

Therein lies the dilemma, as if Betty reveals how she knows who the murder is, she risks implicating John in his illicit relationship with her.

Powell alternates between 1956 and fifty years later when a woman named Mary is coming to terms with the ghosts of her past as she feels that if she had gone to the police with her suspicions decades before, a man she thinks to be innocent wouldn’t have spent so many years in prison.

The suspense surrounding the murders in the small fishing village is heightened by the alternate storyline featuring Mary’s 21st century life. As the two storylines brilliantly converge, the secrets of the past are finally unearthed leading to a breathless and unanticipated conclusion.

Ooohhhh my goodness!! So between the fabulous book cover and intriguing synopsis for The Unforgotten, I was instantly captivated . I literally finished this book in a day because I had to get to the bottom if what exactly happened in the small English village of St. Steele over 50 years ago!!!

I love mystery/thriller’s and Laura Powell did a fantastic job of coming up with an original storyline that kept will keep you guessing until the very end!! I had a couple of thoughts of the who, what, where and when, but I was 100% wrong—love that!! When the mystery was revealed my jaw hit the floor!!! I thought Laura Powell did an amazing job of time hopping between 1956 and present day throughout the novel, the back and forth added so much suspense. Layered amid all of the mystery was a touching romance that was both heartbreaking and heartwarming and everything in between! The Unforgotten is a solid 5 star read that would make the perfect book club selection!!

The Unforgotten is a lovely mystery. Set in Cornwall, the atmosphere is deftly created. Young girls are being murdered in the idyllic village of St. Steele. Betty Broadbent, 15 years old, is as afraid as the other girls in the town are but she is distracted by falling in love with one of the reporters covering the case. He is staying at the boarding house Betty helps her mother run.

Powell's portrayal of young love is as touching as her ability to conjure up the brutal murders against which the love story is played out. Betty is a vivid drawn character with whom I fell in love. Young, proud, fierce, yet vulnerable, she is the heart of the tale. Her relationship with her unstable mother, her longing to love and beloved pulled me in and kept me engaged throughout the entire novel.

Most of the story is told through Betty's eyes but it is a welcome choice when Powell switches the point of view to let us know things we otherwise would never have known, even as the mystery is solved and the killer finally known. There are many shocks and surprises in this work but, for me, its greatest strength is the story of love and loss, of weakness and power, and the balance among these things.

I strongly recommend this book not only for mystery lovers like myself but for those who enjoy an unusual love story, the bond between lovers but also the other bonds we form. Along with the usual love story, there is also the relationship between Betty and her troubled mother. We see how deeply Betty is able to love and how much she's willing to do for the person she loves. This is sometimes a gift and sometimes a curse. But, in this story, it is always of interest.

I want to thank NetGalley, Gallery Books, and Laura Powell for the opportunity to read this lovely book.