4.5 rounded up. To be honest, I did not have high expectations for this book based on its title and description. "The Nowhere Child" and "girl finds out she is a missing person" seemed like a story that has been done way too many times times to really be interesting and unique. I was very wrong. I read this book in less than 2 days-- I apologize to my own children for neglecting them while I devoured this book!

One thing that makes "The Nowhere Child" different is its setting- partially in Australia, partially in the USA. I like the comparison of the settings as well as how it forms Sammy/Kim's life. The author also works with two different timelines very well- in these types of stories, I generally prefer one timeline. In this particular book though, both sides of the story really complemented each other well. Sammy/Kim goes through a lot of emotions as she discovers that she is not who she thought she grew up to be- her thoughts are actions make sense, for the most part. I take issue with some of the poorer choices she makes for the sake of suspense on the author's part. Yet, the pacing of the novel, the twists, and the plot make "The Nowhere Child" an exciting, quick read.

Thank you to Netgalley, the author, and St. Martin's press for providing me with an advanced copy of this book. It was well-worth it and thoroughly enjoyable.

Thank you to Netgalley for giving me the chance to preview this book. This story is very complicated with two timelines to follow along with quite the cast of characters! Then throw in a cult, trauma, conspiracy, and lots of snakes. It certainly kept my interest, and I never figured it out until the ending was revealed at the very end of the book. Imagine someone coming up to you as an adult, and telling you that they believe you are their kidnapped sister, who was taken when she was 2 years old. Christian did a wonderful job on this, his first novel.

I felt a bit confused in the first few chapters and it took me a while to get on track. I enjoyed the story even tho it felt a bit predictable at times. Would definitely recommend

Thank you to St. Martin’s Press and NetGalley for the advanced readers copy in exchange for an honest review. I’m always on the lookout for well-written mysteries. The Nowhere Child did not disappoint. Kim Leamy’s life is changed when she learns that there was a child abducted 26 years earlier from a small town in Kentucky and that she may be that child. Each chapter oscillates between the past when Sammy was abducted and present when Kim meets her long-lost family members and in doing-so solves the mystery of her abduction. The Nowhere Child is very readable and well-paced. While I found the plot a little predictable, I enjoyed all of it. This is Christian White’s first novel and I will definitely be on the look-out for his future publications.

This book was recommended by some other librarians. Although well-written with well developed characters and seamless dialogue, thematically it just didn't appeal to me, personally. I don't intend to finish this one.

I received an ARC copy of this book from the publisher and netgalley for my honest review.

This award winning novel by Australian author Christian White makes its US deut in January. This mystery kept me guessing until the end! Its dark and has twists that truly surprised me. Not your typical book that the ending is obvious from chapter 1!

#The Nowhere Child# NetGally#
Christian White

Kimberly Leamy is approached one day by a stranger. He shows her a picture of a young girl and asks “Does she look familiar to you? She answers “No, I don’t think so, should she?” He answers “She’s been missing 28 years. . . . . . . . . . . . I think you are Sammy Went.”
Thus begins the mystery of The Nowhere Child. The author is very thorough in the unfolding of the mystery to who Sammy Went is and the events that lead up to her disappearance and the resolution of the mystery. The story rotates between 28 years earlier in Manson, Kentucky and the present day in Melbourne, Australia. There are quite a list of characters in the book and readers have to keep up with them and their relevance to the storyline. Some unexpected turn of events, lead up to the conclusion.
This book explores how we grow up with our identity explained by our family, our environment and by our preconceived notion of who we think we are. Sometimes, we can discover that that is all false and we have been deceived. This novel keeps you wondering how events like this can occur and how it can change your own world without you even knowing. Thank you to the publisher and NetGally for an advance read copy of this novel for a fair and honest review.

I was intrigued when I saw the memo in the email from the editor from St. Martin's Press Minotour Press raving about this book. It came with high praises and an invite to read this book. I went ahead and downloaded this book. Wow! What a wild ride! I was hooked from page 1! I have no regret and I understand why it's well liked.

This book is a psychological thriller/suspense that keep you on your toes. It is full of action, investigation, emotions, and who's done it.
It's about a young woman who was approached by a so called investigator telling her she's not who she is and she may possibly be the kidnapped child from 26 years ago. In a denial at first, she goes on a roller coaster journey in search of her own identity while solving her own abduction mystery. She meets up with her family she never knew of, in Kentucky with her own brother who found her in Australia. Her world literally fell apart when she learns of her DNA testing and couple of truths from her step father.
The story alternates between the past and the present. I could not put the book down. Wow, the conclusion....Cannot spoil the story here. It was very satisfiying for me. I was rooting for the heroine all the way.
The book was brilliantly written and did fall into cliche genre of thrillers. It is very different, shocking, entertaining, and believable.

For those of you who like the thriller, action, mystery and supsense, then this is the book for you.

I received this ARC from St. Martin's Press/ Minotaur Books through Net Galley in exchange for my unbiased and honest review. Thank you.

Very suspenseful, quick read, several twists, thanks Net Galley for the opportunity to read a new author.

The Nowhere Child was amazing! I really enjoyed this book. I had no idea where it was going but I loved the story so much.

EXCELLENT!!! 5 stars!!!

The Nowhere Child was different from any other psychological thriller I have read in a wonderful way, I ate up every bit. I loved all the little clues dropped that kept me guessing and reassessing. I would highly reccomend The Nowhere Child and will be on the look out for anything by Christian White.

Thank you Netgalley and St. Martin’s Press for allowing me to read this superb book in exchange for my honest review.

***Will post to Goodreads on 12/22/18 and Amazon and Barnes & Noble on the release date.

The concept is intriguing: an Australian woman is presented with evidence that she is actually an American child who was kidnapped when she was very young. On a journey to find out what happened to her, she travels to the US, where she discovers that her mother was involved in an evangelical snake-handling cult, that her father was in the closet and having a affair with the man who became the prime suspect in her kidnapping, and that numerous old family friends were all involved to some extent. But Kim, the protagonist and sometimes narrator, doesn't seem to have a lick of common sense or critical thinking skills. She takes people at their word, abruptly leaves her job to to to America, and sneaks around trying to figure out who dunnit. While none of the book's characters are particularly deep, Kim's narrated sections are painful to read because of the character's flat aspect and lack of brains. If I hadn't gotten this from netgalley and committed to review it, I'd never have read the whole thing. Overall it both lacks depth and nuance and still manages to be wordy and move slowly.

“”” I had to snoop through his Kindle instead. In my experience, a bookshelf – digital or otherwise – usually painted a pretty clear picture of the person who stacked it”””
“””control is an illusion”””
Imagine someone approaching you. From a different country. Only to tell you he thinks you’re the long lost missing two year old. Where do you even begin to make send of that?!?! This book is an amazing, fast paced (I finished in one sitting), twist and turns, who done it and why!? I could not put it down until I found the truth. Hard to believe this is a debut, and I cannot wait to read more from this author!!!

3.5
This was interesting, different. Some people complained about the writing but I had no problem with it. I liked the plot and the characters. There were some things that didn’t seem so likely (getting back a DNA test so quickly is one that sticks out, getting to Australia was another). There were times that the things stalled for me I did like the way the author switched back and forth in timeframe building the way the story unfolded. There were a few surprises throw in there too. The ending took me by surprise and was satisfying. I would recommend this one.

Thanks to NetGalley, the author and St. Martin’s Press for a copy in exchange for a review.

Chilling a true page turner from the opening pages. What would you do think if you found out your whole life is a lie that you were kidnapped as a toddler that your parents are not really your parents that you have a family in the Us Unputdownable so well written highly recommend,#netgalley #nowherechild #st.martins

There are seven books listed on Goodreads with the name The Nowhere Child or something very close to it. I suspect there are 100's, if not 1000's, of other books with the same plot. An adult finds out that the parents that raised them are indeed not their parents and their entire life has been based on a lie.

Been there, done that, right?

Well, I can assure you that you've never read it done as well as this debut effort by Christian White.

While I read lots of books that grab my attention and I find nearly impossible to put down, it is only on extremely rare occasions that a book snatches me up by the shirt collar demanding my attention until the turn of the final page. I found myself up until after sunrise completely absorbed in this story, heavy eyes, nodding head and all.

The Nowhere Child offers up a varied cast of characters that are so damaged and flawed and, for lack of a better word, human. Each given breath by Christian White's incredibly engaging writing style. Never once did this story stall, continuously moving with purpose towards what you know will be a tragic truth.

If I could offer some unsolicited advice to the author and publisher it would be to change the title and the cover of this book. I almost passed on it because of these reasons and in doing so I would have missed out on what is sure to be one of my more memorable reading experiences this year.


I received an ARC from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

Imagine if a stranger suddenly approached you revealing that you had been kidnapped as a 2-year-old and the family who raised you were not your biological parents. Kimberly finds herself in that position as the man shows her a photo that quite clearly is her as a young child. What follows is a whirlwind of events that take her from Australia to the States as she attempts to find out the truth behind her birthright. Alternating between past and present, the novel follows her and her brother's search for answers to what happened and why. It also gives us a look at a very fundamental church whose members are rigid God-fearing, snake-handling people who sometimes lack the compassion to see anything outside of their own beliefs. Hard to believe this is a debut novel as it's tightly written and kept my interest all the way through!

The Nowhere Child wrestles with the ramifications of learning that your entire life has been a lie and how to reconcile the family and life you’ve lived with the family you’ve just found out about. This psychological thriller will hold your interest from start to finish. Great book, great story. My thanks to Netgalley for the advanced copy in exchange for an honest review.

The Nowhere Child by Christian White is the bestselling debut thriller of psychological suspense about a woman uncovering devastating secrets about her family and her very identity…

Australian photographer Kim is confronted by a stranger from America with something she refuses to believe. She's been told that her whole life has been a lie, and that she isn’t who she thinks she is. This is one story you'll have to read to find out why this stranger shows up out of nowhere to unravel her entire life.

Thanks to #NetGalley and #stmartinspress for this advanced copy or #TheNowhereChild.
Pub Date 22 Jan 2019

Stuart Went, masquerading as American accountant James Finn, travels to Melbourne where he seeks out Australian photography teacher Kimberly Leamy and tells her that she’s actually a girl who vanished from her home in Manson, Kentucky in 1990 when she was just two years old. Stunned, Kim is unable to believe her loving mother was a heartless kidnapper but Stuart soon convinces her that she is actually his sister, Sammy.

Kim travels from Australia to America to meet the family she never knew she had. But the mystery of that kidnapping may put her in unexpected danger.

This quick-read story offers an interesting premise as it ponders the consequences of learning that your entire life has been a lie. How could the loving parent who raised you actually be responsible for kidnapping you, for stealing you away from your real family? And how do you reconcile the life and family you know with the family you’ve just discovered?

Aside from some unnecessary coarse language and a few bewildering, overly-violent scenes, the story unfolds without any real surprises. The characters, excepting one or two stereotypes, are reasonably well-crafted, but readers may find it difficult to establish empathy with them.
Long before its reveal in a last-minute plot twist, astute readers will easily solve the kidnapping mystery, but the straightforward story plays out fairly well.

However, an awkward de rigueur subplot involving a homosexual affair adds nothing to the narrative and detracts from the telling of the larger story. And, from the beginning, the cult subplot [definitely not for the faint of heart] seems to serve only as a thinly-disguised target for the vilification of religion.

Alternating between the present day and the time of Sammy’s kidnapping, the story unfolds as expected but the predictable narrative fails to build suspense, leaving the reader feeling as if it’s all rather pedestrian.

I received an e-copy of this book from St. Martin’s Press/Minotaur Books and NetGalley.
#TheNowhereChild #NetGalley