Fiona Barton writes books that are exciting and suspenseful. They are hard to put down. This book did not disappoint. it was told with different points of views dealing with two girls that have gone missing in Thailand. I really enjoyed this book and will be adding it toe the collection of my branch library.

2.75/5 ☆
ARC received from NetGalley in exchange for a review. All of my opinions are my own, and are in no way affected by the exchange.

Murder mystery/thriller has never really been a genre that I gravitate towards but when the synopsis for this book was announced, I was intrigued. I did not realize that this was technically a third in a series but I figured that I could read it as a standalone.
My biggest problem with this book was the writing style. I really cant stand first person narration, ESPECIALLY when there are multiple POVs. Like why? It took me almost 60 pages before I figured out who everyone was and what was happening. It took me quite a few days to finish this which is rather unlike me. I typically finish books in about 2 days. Besides the writing style, I wasnt at all engaged in the story. At no point did I really care what happened to the girls. I thought that the format of the story was disjointed.

I did like the portrayals of the grieving parents. I thought that their feelings were well explored.

All in all, this book didnt really work for me. :(

18-year-old Alex and Rosie are taking a trip of their lifetime to Thailand. They don’t know each other very well but hope to be good traveling companions. They promise to keep in touch with their families but now a week has gone by and no word from them. Kate Waters is a journalist who tries her best to always be the first reporter to nab any news relating to this disappearance. She’s a bit distracted because she hasn’t seen her son, Jake, in two years when he left to travel the world.

Maybe I’ve just read too many books of this type. Or maybe I’ve become a psychic or something. I just always seemed to be one step ahead of this author and knew exactly what was coming each step of the way. That’s not to say that this book didn’t have quite a few “big reveals”. I just knew what they would be before they were revealed. If I didn’t know this book wasn’t published yet when I read it, I would have thought that I’d read it before. I really have no explanation as to why I knew what would happen as I don’t think the author spoiled things in any way.

The book is rather long for a thriller at over 400 pages. I can’t say I raced through it. I did care about the journalist Kate, but the young girls and their parents could be aggravating at times. Unfortunately, my commitment to the book did start to wane by the end. The ending was a bit ambiguous, too. While it wasn’t a bad book, I didn’t feel it was as good as the author’s first book, “The Widow”.

Two girls go missing in Thailand where a reporter's son is also staying. We follow the reporter, the mother of one of the girls and the detective along with emails written from the missing girl. These emails show the truth of their vacation in Thailand because everyone lies on social media.

This is a very fast paced book. Right when I think I've figured things out there is a twist. The only problem I had was that the mother's POV seemed useless. It disappeared in the middle and I really didn't miss it.

The Suspect by Fiona Barton, the third in the reporter Kate Waters series, was a great book; thrilling, suspenseful, and tragic. Told from the point of views of the Reporter, the Detective, the Mother, and one of the missing girls, this book was evenly paced and at no point did I want to put this book down.
Alex and Rosie are two 18 year old female Brits who go to Thailand before starting University. After Alex's parents do not hear from her on a scheduled phone call they begin to worry and involve the police. Shortly afterward the news is alerted to the case and Kate Waters, always on the lookout for a good story, gets involved. This story in particular attracts Kate because her own estranged son has been in Thailand for 2 years after he left college abruptly.
Although this book is the third in a series, it can be read as a standalone. I enjoyed Fiona Barton's first two books immensely and she does disappoint in this one.

This was an unpredictable read that gives the reader a few surprises which a good thriller just do. I took one star off simply because her first two books were mind blowing and this one didn't have that affect on me. Nonetheless, she's a fabulous author and this book is still worth reading.

Thank you to netgalley and St. Martin's Press for this AR in exchange for an honest review!

Thank you Berkley Books for sending me a copy in exchange for my honest review.

Kate Waters and Bob Sparkes return in The Suspect to help solve the missing persons case of two 18 year-old females traveling in Thailand. Their families did not hear from the girls in over a week and have even set-up a Facebook page to help in their search. As the search continues, Kate can’t help but think of her own son who left two years ago to Thailand and hasn’t since returned. Think there is a connection between these two? Oh, you just wait and see…

What I liked about this book is that you can jump in without having read any of Fiona’s previous books. I feel like that’s hard to come by with these type of novels. If you enjoyed watching the movie Taken and following the story of Amanda Knox, you will love this book. I enjoyed Taken and I also enjoyed watching the Amanda Knox documentary on Netflix, so this was a solid read for me. It took me awhile to get used to the many multiple viewpoints, but was completely hooked around 40% of the way through. Some parts of the story were a bit unrealistic, but it didn’t take away from the revealing twists throughout the story. It’s a nail-biter speaking as a mother myself. With that being said, I’m definitely going back and reading the other two as soon as possible.

4/5 Stars

Thanks to Fiona Barton, Netgalley, and Berkley Publishing Group for providing me with a digital advance copy of this novel.

Journalist Kate Waters travels to Thailand to investigate the disappearance of two young British girls. Complicating matters is the fact that her own son is also traveling in Thailand and has stopped communicating with her. Will she locate him and what will she discover if she does? Can she find out what has happened to the girls?

Having read and enjoyed Barton’s earlier novel, The Widow, I had high hopes for this one, and it did not disappoint. I was drawn into the story very quickly, and had a hard time putting the book down until it was done. Some of the plot points did not come as a big surprise to me, but others did. Overall, a well-crafted and well-written mystery. Highly recommend!

Note: while this novel is technically the third featuring Kate Waters, it is easily read as a stand-alone.

3.5 Stars! Intriguing premise, short chapters & a suspenseful mystery!

Can you enjoy a book even if you don’t connect with the way a book is written? Fiona Barton is an author that I always find myself a little excited to read but I wouldn’t necessarily say that I enjoy the way she narrates her stories though. I find the narrative a little bit indifferent and challenging but I wouldn’t say that it hinders my reading experience all that much though. If so, it’s minimal and it definitely doesn’t stop me from picking up her next book offering. Weird I know!

THE SUSPECT by FIONA BARTON is a slow-building suspenseful crime thriller that takes you on quite the intriguing journey that clips along at a nice swift pace. I was immediately intrigued within the mystery here and the short chapters definitely helps to move this story forward quickly. I absolutely love short chapters because they make me feel like I have to read just one more chapter.

FIONA BARTON delivers an entertaining and interesting read here that is told through multiple perspectives with chapter headings labeled “The Reporter”, “The Mother”, “The Detective” and “Bangkok Day ?” from Alex, one of the missing girls. I really enjoy and love this format but I felt like there was something missing though to make me really connect and feel for these characters. I found Alex’s perspective the most interesting and would have liked to have read more of her story.

Even though I didn’t love this one I was still entertained and thoroughly enjoyed the premise of this novel.

*This was a Traveling Sisters read*

Expected Publishing Date: January 22/19

Norma’s Stats:
Cover: Eye-catching, intriguing, mysterious, and a fitting representation to storyline.
Title: I really like the title of this book and how it played obscurely into storyline.
Writing/Prose: I am not going to elaborate on the writing because I wasn’t able to connect and fully enjoy it. I read this with my Traveling Sisters and I was the only one that felt this way.
Plot: Interesting, intriguing, predictable, fast-paced, and entertaining.
Ending: Satisfying but I have questions and wonder what is next in store for Kate.
Overall: There is something about her books that I just find so appealing and readable. Would recommend!

Thank you so much to NetGalley, Berkley Publishing Group and Fiona Barton for the opportunity to read an advanced copy of this novel.

Readers of The Suspect by Fiona Barton will be happy to see the return of Journalist Kate Waters and Police Detective Bob Sparkes. Although this is the third book in the series (The Widow and The Child were books #1 and #2) this thriller can be read as a stand-alone book as well. Kate Waters finds herself in the middle of the story when she travels to Thailand to investigate the disappearance of two travelling teenage girls. She soon realizes that her son who has been living in Thailand may be mixed up in whatever happened to the girls. As the parent of two teenagers myself, I found this story compelling -- it's every parent's worst nightmare!

Thank you NetGalley for access to an eARC in exchange for a review.

The premise here is strong and emotionally gripping. Two eighteen year old girls, Alex and Rosie, take a gap year excursion to Thailand, where they have now gone missing. Reporter Kate Waters does everything she can to get involved with the story, while dealing with her own emotional scars from her son, who has been missing for two years.

This novel takes four perspectives: “the reporter,” Kate, “the mother” of one of the missing girls, Lesley, “the detective,” Zara Salmound, and interspersed are excerpts from emails Alex sends to her best friend. The novel would have been stronger had each character taken a stronger, more unique voice. For the first portion of the novel, I had to keep double checking which character was narrating to clarify my understanding.

Regardless of that weakness, the plot here is incredibly strong and difficult to put down. After a few wrong guesses, I had the plot figured out for the last quarter of the novel. However, the doubt was still strong enough to keep me gripped into reading without taking a breath or a break. I recommend this novel for those interested in mysteries set in interesting settings.

3.5 stars rounded up to 4, for strong plot weakened by character development and voice.

Review to be posted at steffireadsabook.blogspot.com closer to publication.

3.5 STARS

Two eighteen year old girls traveling alone to an  exotic Thailand destination might mean trouble and it does...

I was immediately drawn into the story of these teens- Alex and Rosie, who traveled to Thailand for their "gap" year from college. The parents and one of the girls closest friends had been keeping up with Alex through phone calls and Facebook posts, until they suddenly stopped. I thought the chapters with the posts gave the story interest and Alex's posts to her bestie added some information she withheld from her parents (we all know teens do that).

Who lets their teens go to Thailand without a responsible adult around?   insert - FEAR

I really enjoyed the first half of the book, but the story did lose steam in the second part. Once I figured out the villian (nothing too surprising), I was ready to wrap it up, but it continued on.... which caused me to lose a bit of interest.

This is a heavy police-procedural with an intriguing setting that you may be able to solve before the villian is outed.  Try it for yourself and see if you can point to the villian!

Thanks to the publisher/NG for my review copy! Blog post closer to publication date.

Thanks to Transworld Digital and Netgalley for a copy of the eARC in exchange for a fair review.



This is told from multiple POV's, it includes Alex's mother, the reporter (Kate), the detective and emails and posts from Alex's POV as well. It all starts with an odd phone call to the reporter from her son Jake who is Thailand, but she doesn't quite get what he is trying to say and she doesn't get to speak to him. The mother is worried because she hasn't heard from Alex in days, and her Rosie's mother is worried as well, because she hasn't heard from her either. Soon the detectives are involved and everyone is wondering about the two girls.

I made this shorter than usual because there is a lot that is slowly revealed, in fact I edited out some that I had revealed after looking at the synopsis of the story. To be honest I wasn't thrilled when I saw that it would contain several different POV, but this one really flowed, you knew who each person was and their relation to the story so it worked really well together. This is one where you barely get to know the main characters, because it almost felt like an aftermath type of story. You do get chapters from Alex so you get a glimpse on what was really happening and you find out some things before the detectives or the parents do. Instead of being told as it happens you find as the story unfolds. I have read all of Fiona's books and I will continue to do so. I just love the way she tells a story.


It grips you right from the start and you never sure if you should be on the edge of your seat and your never sure who did it. I guessed and was wrong at least once well twice if I am honest. I was right with my last guess, but hey you might figure it out quicker than I did.


The suspect is available for pre-order and will be released Jan 22.

The Suspect was great! I liked the exotic location and having the girls go missing there added to the suspense. I was a little confused by the big reveal at the end. I think I'll go back and read Barton's other books to see what I'm missing.

This was a fast paced story that wouldn't let go. The characters came alive and you cared. I would highly recommend this book for bookclubs and any mystery lover.

Kate is a reporter and her son, Jake, has been in Phuket, Thailand for a couple of years. Kate and her husband rarely hear from him. Meanwhile, two teenage girls have gone missing in Bangkok and Kate wants the story, so goes to talk to the mothers of the girls to see what she can find out before heading to Thailand to see what she can learn there.

I really liked this. It’s one that kept me wanting to read, to find out what happened! It’s the third in a series, but it can be read as a standalone. I’ve read the 2nd and 3rd books now, and want to go back and read the first. I did find the personal story of the detective good, and I bet there is more background on that, as well. The common factor in the books appears to mainly be Kate, but the detective is there, as well.

The premise of this book hooked me from the start - the ultimate parental nightmare of two young girls going missing during their gap year in Thailand. I'd heard great things about Fiona Barton and had been looking forward to finally getting a chance to read one of her books.

Ultimately I was disappointed. It's like there's something missing; details that should suck you in and make it into a compelling family drama somehow...don't. It took awhile to really get going and was somewhat predictable. The story is told from multiple points of view and I wish that we would have heard more from the girls and less from the reporter main character.

Am I the only one not to like this book? I loved "The Widow" but found The Suspect completely boring.

These two girls disappear in Thailand, and Kate's son (Jake) is in Thailand. One thing leads to another and Jake becomes a suspect (or not). I mean, this didn't have any thrill. Why were two teenagers backpacking to a country of dubious security by themselves? And how old was this Jake that he needed to get away to "find himself" traveling? Then we have this long emails that one of the girls sends to I don't know who detailing their trip (as if I cared for what two girls who were dead from the beginning of the book were doing before they disappeared).

The story also has the "my daughter doesn't do drugs" and "Jake won't do drugs" lines. Probably, but what do you expect of kids traveling by themselves with no adult supervision?

I didn't like the plot, the narrative, the characters... I didn't like anything at all. I DNF it at 85% because I wasn't interested in knowing if the girls' death was an accident or not. And obviously, Jake wasn't going to be the culprit because that is not the way that books work (so I gather).

Jake has disappeared, as in 'he doesn't want to be found' (remember he was traveling to "find himself"). Initially, Kate went to Thailand to cover the story of the two girls but now she has to find out where his son (Jake) is to clean his name...

Thank you Netgalley for providing me with a free copy of this title.

4.5 stars, actually.

Although this book has recurring characters from the author's first two terrific books - "The Widow" and "The Child" - it's billed as a standalone. There's a reason for that; reading through this one, I literally forgot any familiarity with the central character, journalist Kate Waters, until very near the end. In fact, both she and detective Bob Sparkes appeared in those two earlier novels. I mention this to make it clear that readers who may have missed the first two should feel comfortable starting here (although I highly recommend reading those first simply because they're great - I gave both well-earned 5-star ratings).

This one is excellent as well; as proof, I'll note that I was happy that the few TV shows I watch with regularity were in reruns for the Christmas holidays so I could keep my nose in the book with fewer interruptions. At the same time, I must admit I enjoyed it a teeny bit less than the first two (emphasis on teeny). Timelines and perspectives jump all over the place in this one, although they're easy to follow; in the beginning, two girls take a time-out before heading to college to visit Thailand (why they picked that country escaped me, but if they'd wanted to get themselves in trouble fast, they certainly picked the right place). Now their parents have reported them missing, and Kate is all over the story - no doubt feeling a sort of kinship with the parents because her own son Jake abruptly left home to head out to "find himself" two years earlier and hasn't been seen by them since.

Gradually, bits and pieces of what happens to the missing girls are revealed and the story isn't pretty (nor, in some respects, does it seem totally believable - hence my ever-so-slightly lower 4.5-star rating). And as readers might assume early on - and Kate learns soon thereafter - they have a connection with Jake. Exactly how they're linked is for Kate and her detective friends to find out, and it may not be what Kate wants to learn. There are a number of twists and turns before the final chapter (and there's a bit of a surprise near the end that could, I suppose, come back to bite in a future book). Overall, it's quite an enjoyable book that I highly recommend, and I once again thank the publisher, via NetGalley, for the opportunity to read and review an advance copy.

3.5/5 As a frequent traveler myself, this one caught my attention. It tells the tale of a gap year gone horribly wrong. In some ways, you can take it as a cautionary tale of what not to do while abroad, but I hope people don't come away from this book thinking that traveling in developing countries always comes with this cast of characters.

Overall, I would have liked some stronger character development- especially for Kate, one of the main characters, who doesn't even seem to have any emotional connections with her own family. I think Alex's side of the story could have been flushed out a little more as well. Interesting read though, and you don't need to have read the author's previous books in this series to read this one.