Lives can change in the blink of an eye: a baby is born, someone dies, flames destroy buildings and people, relationships can never be the same. C C Clark's life changes irrevocably when she marries Gabriel Haddad in 1970. It changes again when he announces that they are moving from Chicago to Beruit, his home town. And, again, when their daughter Ann Marie is born. Again, when CC defies Gabriel and makes plans to visit her family in Connecticut. And, again. And, again.

In 2008, Ann Marie Neelan sits in the office of the same divorce lawyer her mother used all those years ago, and wonders how much her upbringing in a single parent home brought her to this attorney.

I was reminded of Sally Field's movie Not Without My Daughter, as I read this is powerful story of a mother's love and the lengths to which she will go to protect her children.

I read this EARC courtesy of Lake Union Press and Net Galley. pub date 02/13/18

Thank you to netgalley and the publisher/author for a copy of NO TIME TO BLINK in exchange for an honest review.

What a moving and poignant novel. This book invoked a wide range of emotions for me, from happiness and love to fear and anger. What begins as a whirlwind romance quickly turns into a frightening and unexpected imprisonment in an unfamiliar country. What will Catherine do to save her daughter and return home to her family? Told from alternating views, from Catherine and her daughter Anne Marie, this story takes you on a journey of a mother's love and a daughter's resiliency and forgiveness.

I absolutely loved this book, from the first page to the last. It was such an amazing read that I did not want it to end. I think this book would appeal to a large variety of readers. It had a suspenseful premise, but included romance, emotional struggles, and family conflict. For a remarkable read, grab a copy of NO TIME TO BLINK. You won't be sorry!

Thank you to the author and the publisher for an ARC in exchange for my honest feedback.

Catherine and Gabriel fall madly in love. They marry and she becomes pregnant. After their marriage, Gabriel starts treating Catherine differently. He moves her abruptly to his home country, Lebanon. Once in Lebanon, he begins to control her, barring her access to her family and taking her passport so that she has no freedom. This leads to an international custody case involving heartwreching decisions.

Catherine's story from 1970s Beruit is interwoven with her daughter, Ann Marie's, story set in the present. Ann Marie has never known her father or the circumstances of her early childhood. She is learning this, while navigating through a painful divorce.

The storylines were very compelling and kept me up late, wondering what I would do in these circumstances. The parallels and lessons learned between the two stories were very well done.

Do you remember the movie, Not Without My Daughter? This was the book version of it. Going back and forth between 1970 and 2008, the story was told from the perspective of the mother in 1970 and the daughter in 2008. I wish the author had just stuck with 1970 and told us more. That was the compelling story for me. And I would have liked to have stayed in it instead of getting pulled from it every few chapters.

Late in this book, there is a moment that will overwhelm you with its emotional impact. And in this moment, Dina Silver proves how smart of a writer she is. She does not tell you what's said between two characters. She shows you. She depicts their actions, letting you see, from a distance, how these two people interact, revealing to you their feelings. It is a powerful moment, one that Silver imparts with poignant - but minimal - detail.

That's what makes this book so remarkable: Silver's ability to tell a story largely through showing.

The two women at the center of the book each are forced to react to their circumstances without knowing why they are in the positions in which they find themselves. They do not know why their husbands behave as they do, yet they have to decide how they will respond. And that's life, isn't it? We never have all the answers, yet we have to make decisions based on what we know at the time.

Ann Marie's story begins the book, and Silver immediately plunges you into a mystery focused on her about which Ann Marie is unaware: "I can't believe you're the little girl." Silver then takes you into the perspective of Catherine, Ann Marie's mother. You learn about her privileged upbringing in Greenwich, Connecticut, and her passionate, whirlwind romance and quick marriage to Gabriel, a Lebanese man who soon takes her back to his homeland. Through Gabriel, Silver shows - again, shows - cultural differences, borne both of time and place. You understand that Gabriel represents freedom to Catherine, even as you hold your breath, knowing that something terrible will happen. Meanwhile, Ann Marie struggles with the demise of her marriage. All the while, Silver builds to an emotional crescendo, one that will leave you grabbing for tissues.

There are moments in this book that are fraught with anxiety and tension, and there are moments that are sweetly beautiful and even romantic. Silver lets some things remain a mystery, which makes the impact of what you do know all the more powerful.

I enjoyed this book tremendously. Catherine and Ann Marie are stronger than they realize. And when they feel themselves showing weakness, they are best served by Catherine's adage: "Put your pearls on and fake it."

No Time to Blink is brought to me by Net Galley in exchange of honest reviews. Actually it’s on the read now section, you can download it directly. Anyway, this book is written by Dina Silver, author that I just knew from this book. So it’s exciting for me to read this one, since this marked to the Women Fiction genre, my favorite. And the cover looks so beautiful, It’s dark but has some mistery to it.

No Time to Blink is about mother – daughter relationship. It’s about CC and Marie Ann who faced difficulties in their marriage life once. They both fell in love and had to faced the downslope of the marriage. Of course the two main characters is what I love about this book. It’s so real and sweet. The way mother and daughter bond together is sweet. Honestly, I care about those two. I really want to know about how things go in their marriage disaster, I want to know about CC secrets, I expect something dramatic happens!

I like how the author tells story, it’s flowing beautifully. I found no difficulty to swallow and felt the emotion of this book. Unfortunately there is no dramatic events happened after the problem arises. I can’t lie that I’m a little bit disappointed about the ending, it’s just that I was so excited towards the ending, but there is no surprise to me at the end.

No Time to Blink is an emotional read about families with money, and secrets. It is well written and the story line kept my interest all the way through. Although, I found some parts predictable it was still engaging and I would recommend it as an enjoyable read.

I can't say enough good things about this book. Yes, it brings to mind the well known Not Without My Daughter and other stories we've heard of a child being taken to the Middle East and the mother having difficulty getting the child back.

This book is different in several ways. I enjoyed the two character story line quite a bit. The book is quite fast paced and the descriptions are so well done - they just pulled me in and made me feel like I was there.

I loved the look at other people's lives - the driver, the neighbor and the shopkeeper. That added quite a bit to the overall feel of the story, in my opinion.

Check out No Time To Blink. I think you'll be glad you did. Thanks to Ms. Silver, Netgalley and Lake Union Publishing for an ARC.

"I can't believe you're the little girl" It will only take reading the first chapter of this book before you are hooked. The road to finding out what made Ann Marie's divorce attorney utter those words is an emotional story of true love.
Fans of strong mother-daughter relationships will love the alternating perspectives of the story. The reader first meets Ann Marie in present day as her marriage is ending. The reader then meets Catherine Clarke, a privileged young woman who meets Gabriel, a man her parents wouldn't necessarily pick for her. What happens next is a passionate love story with a tragic ending.
I received an advanced readers copy of this book; all opinions are my own. I highly recommend checking this book out on its release date, February 13, 2018.

This was an absolute page turner and I thoroughly enjoyed every minute! It’s a perfect selection for a book club and I could easily see this on the big screen. I love how Dina Silver weaves this story together.

Life is pretty stressful for Ann Marie Neelan. She has three kids, a multiple offender cheating husband, a doting therapist and a looming divorce. When Ann Marie Neelan first meets with her divorce attorney, Stewart Fishman she has no idea that her life is going to completely change forever.

This is the story of a whirlwind romance with an unlikely suitor. It’s reckless, it’s sexy and it’s heart wrenching. Opposites often attract but when different cultures and different expectations collide the flimsy foundation of a marriage collapses.

Ann Marie lost herself along the way. She questions who she is. Her mother helps her put the pieces together.

I received an advance review copy of this book from Great Thoughts Ninjas. All opinions are my own.

4.5 stars! This is the second book I have read by this author - I loved The Unimaginable & felt very similar feelings while reading this one. Dina Silver has a way of writing that makes the story feel so real, I couldn't put it down! It alternates POV' s between a mother & her now adult daughter- telling a story of love, loss & the bonds that hold us together! There are both beautiful and tense moments that keep you reading until the tearful end! Thanks to Netgalley and the publisher for this ARC- I truly enjoyed it!

Fabulous book. Thoroughly loved. Highly recommend!

This book is a love story from a mother to her daughter. It shows a mother's will and determination to protect and love her daughter. CC went against her family's wishes and married Gabriel. Gabriel is from Lebanon. He takes CC to Lebanon while she is pregnant. She gives birth to their daughter Ann Marie there. We learn of her life there from her journals. Ann Marie is all grown up with 3 sons and going through a divorce. Her mother comes to visit and together they relive the past. This book was fast paced and the horror CC was put through is every mothers worst nightmare. I received an advanced readers copy of the book. All opinions are my own.

Great story! Looking forward to reading more by this author! Highly recommend!

I was very surprised by No Time to Blink. By reading the blurb I thought hmm I may not like this. But I did! It was fantastic. Silver's writing is superb. The connection of a mother and daughter and the things a parent would go through for their kids were portrayed brilliantly. It made me look at these relationships and appreciate everything my mother does for me. It was a lovely love story for Catherine and Gabriel at the beginning. All of the characters were likable except for the ex husband. Anne Marie has more power than me. If he would have came in to the house any time he wanted to with me, he would definitely be getting clocked in the side of the head with a frying pan!! Thanks again for the opportunity.

I absolutely loved this book and I am so lucky that I got an advanced copy of this book and am able to have about it everywhere. It's a heart pounding book that will keep your eyes only on the book until the very last page. I read most of this book with my heart lodged in my heart as I feverishly read as fast as I could. It's fabulous and so worth picking up and reading. Happy reading!

They loved each other once, madly and deeply, and despite all the ugliness from their past, maybe she thought I would need him now more than ever.


This book is very much outside of the usual genre I read. I prefer romance or mystery at the forefront of my novels, and this was very much a women’s fiction book – but a very compulsively readable one at that!

I’d initially requested an ARC of this book based on the gorgeous cover, and I was worried I’d be unable to get into it once I started reading, but it surprised me by pulling me in instantly and making me unable to put the book down until I was finished. Two sittings was all it took!

I would have loved to see a romance angle in this – what is it like to love someone this cruel? It would have been an interesting aspect, and one I definitely haven’t seen explored before.

Nonetheless, No Time To Blink was a compelling, fast-paced read that was beautifully written. It would make a great TV film in my opinion!

Would recommend for: fans of women’s fiction told in beautiful prose and mother-daughter relationships. This one was so beautiful!

A wonderful book, one of the best out there! Ms. Silver is a talented, creative, gifted writer who is exceptionally good at what she does. The writing is beyond excellent, and I couldn't wait to turn the page. Told from the past and the current time, she weaves a story with brilliance. I can't remember the last time I was so captivated by a novel. The plot is believable and realistic, and the characters are perfectly relatable. Ten stars to this author and I am putting on my list other novels she has written. Hope they're as wonderful as this one!

I couldn't finish this one--the writing style didn't hold my attention.

I went into this book thinking it was going to be like Not Without My Daughter, which I never actually read. However, I didn't really know what to expect and I was surprised throughout. Even though setting the story in two different timelines shows that the mother and daughter eventually get reunited, how they get to that point is a harrowing struggle, and I was nervous for Catherine during that time.

I like how the story was told in two perspectives and how Catherine and Ann Marie's stories parallel each other in some ways. What they were going through reminded me of situations I've seen friends and acquaintances have to deal with (one is very similar to Ann Marie's situation). However, Catherine seemed to have it easier than the people I know, since she had wealth and connections on her side. Not every woman has this working in her favor. I felt these connections trickled down to Ann Marie a bit too. I still wanted to see both of them "win" though. They had been through enough.

Overall, this was a compelling novel that I had a really hard time putting down. Even when I did have to pause, I couldn't stop thinking of and worrying about Ann Marie and Catherine. It even made me want to read (or watch) Not Without My Daughter. When it releases in February, I encourage you to add it to the top of your TBR piles!

Movie casting ideas:
Catherine (1970s): AnnaSophia Robb
Gabriel (1970s): Elyes Gabel
Ann Marie (2000s): Emmanuelle Chriqui
Scott: Dina suggested John Krasinski, but I was picturing Eric Winter
Todd: Alex O'Loughlin
Yasmine: Morena Baccarin
Brigitte: Sarah Shahi