A very unexpected read on domestic violence and the need to escape the situation at home. Officer Ellie gets a frantic call from a woman Nova that her child Lily had been kidnapped by her husband. Nova had run away from his house to escape his abuse, and apparently, he had found her and taken the child to punish her. Ellie investigates, goes to the husband Martin's home, but there is no trace of child Lily ever being born, but instead there is a file at the local police station about Nova's violence, psychosis, and community sentence. Who is lying and how will Ellie get to the truth?

My first book by Carrisa Ann Lynch, and OH MY!! What a book!! This was both a thriller and a domestic noir. The story was told from the POV of three women Ellie, Nova, and the owner of the cabin Nova had rented secretly. The story took its twists and turns, each character leapt off the pages at different times. At one point, I was not sure who, the husband or the wife, was lying. I too didn't see evidence of child Lily, hence that made me doubt their statement versions.

I liked the rigmarole which was created, it felt like I was in a house of mirrors. The story was clear in its investigation but so confusing in the evidence given by all of them. I liked Officer Ellie. Sometimes being a woman in an essentially male dominated career is difficult, but Ellie carried off the mantle of strength proudly. Domestic violence was shown well, and I was really scared of Martin and his brand of evil.

Alas, my niggles... I wanted more of a thrill, the story, though complete, lacked a certain X factor to pull me in completely. But the onus of that could be on me personally. I have great expectations from the stories I like. Making the beginning read faster and the ending slower would have helped.

Overall, a gripping read which took me on a merry ride for a few hours.

After suffering years of mental and physical abuse at the hands of her husband, Nova takes her young daughter and runs like hell. Having no friends or family to turn to since having been isolated from everyone by her smooth and smarmy husband Martin she flees to an isolated, furnished cabin that she has rented with the help of someone she met through an app on her phone. In the morning, her daughter Lily is gone and this story takes a twisty turn from domestic violence to psychological terror.

This is quite possibly one of the strangest books I’ve ever read. There are so many twists and turns that every time you feel like you’ve got a grasp on the story, it slips straight through your fingers. Even at the very end I had to read back over the last section to really make sure it had sunk in properly.

Now that is not to say that it’s a bad book, because it’s really not. It’s one of the first books in a longtime that genuinely shocked me at times, and it was so much better than the predictable mystery I expected.

It’s hard to say too much more without spoiling any of it, so all I’ll say is it is definitely worth a read!

I've never read anything by this author before but when I read the blurb, I knew it was going to be right up my alley.

I'm a big fan of mystery/thrillers so I was really excited to start this book. The beginning was a little slow for me but not unbearable. About 1/2 way through the book it begins to pick up and then I found myself really interested in where it was all going. I really liked the fact that the chapters were shorter. I like to read whenever I have a few spare minutes and really dislike when I can't get through a chapter rather quickly and have to stop in the middle.
My only real dislike/complaint was the ending did feel a tad bit rushed or sudden but that did not detract from my overall feeling about the book. I am adding the other books this author has written into my summer reading pile.

Thank you netgalley for the advance copy of this title in exchange for my honest review/opinion. Wow! I read this in two nights and lost a lot of sleep because i just had to get to the wrap up. Great psychological thriller! I'll be excited to seek out more books from this author.

This is probably my fiftieth missing child novel this year but it’s one of the best - fast paced, well written with brilliant twists and turns. Told from multiple points of view, you are confused and intrigued and thoroughly entertained. Can’t wait to read more from this author.

Wow, what a thriller ! This was my first book by this author and can't wait to read more and share this with my book club! I

Really enjoyed how each chapter was told from a different characters perspective, it kept the suspense going throughout to try and figure out what the actual truth was. Will certainly be keeping an eye out for further books from Carissa Ann Lynch.

A little girl has gone missing. Lily was last seen being tucked into bed by her adoring mother, Nova. But the next morning, the bed is empty except for a creepy toy rabbit. Has Nova’s abusive ex stolen his “little bunny” back for good?

At first, Officer Ellie James assumes this is a clear custody battle. Until she discovers that there are no pictures of the girl and her drawers are full of unused toys and brand new clothes that have never been worn… Is Ellie searching for a missing child who doesn’t actually exist?

This one messed with my mind a little bit, it had all kinds of creepiness and suspense that just sucks you in and holds you until you finish the story.

Thank you #NetGalley for the ARC of Without a Trace by Carissa Ann Lynch
Pub Date: 05 Apr 2019

Absolutely LOVED this book an couldn’t put it down. Loved the fact that each chapter was told from the point of view of each character. Really good storyline that had you really trying to figure out who did what or where they would eventually have played there part in the plot. Definitely one to read an even more so if you like to be the detective yourself but without the answers being as obvious as you might think but plot keeps you guessing an questioning till the end. Ending came together really well with all the questions an plot queries answered. Really reccomend this book.

This was a very satisfying read. It started out slowly but in a good way. Then around the half way point it became even more interesting, with small twist and turns, usually at the end of each small chapter, and it was impossible to put it down until the end. My only complaint (that's why I didn't rate it a full five stars) is that the ending felt a little too quick and sudden. Maybe it was because of me, that I read it too quicky because I wanted to know how things went and so I didn't enjoy it as much as I could have, but I still think that if there were some more pages in the last two or three chapters, describing in more depth the emotions of the main characters and what they thought would happen next, it would have been a great bonus. Still a very entertaing novel and I will recommend it to my friends and I will also look forward to anything the author will write in the future.

4-5 stars! Holy cow! Looking for some thrills, chills, and mind boggling twists and turns? Here’s your book! This is one of those that is absolutely gut wrenching to read at times, but also so dang shocking in how many twists the author can pull out in one book, you can hardly put it down! My second book by this author and definitely not my last! She’s an amazing, amazing, and thriller writer, and makes sure to bring the thrills, chills, and shocks thriller lovers crave! A must read for my fellow thriller lovers!!

Lily’s gone! Did someone take her?
Unless she was she never there…
A little girl has gone missing.
Lily was last seen being tucked into bed by her adoring mother, Nova. But the next morning, the bed is empty except for a creepy toy rabbit.
Has Nova’s abusive ex stolen his “little bunny” back for good?
At first, Officer Ellie James assumes this is a clear custody battle. Until she discovers that there are no pictures of the girl and her drawers are full of unused toys and brand new clothes that have never been worn…
Is Ellie searching for a missing child who doesn’t actually exist?

Thank you very much Netgalley for giving me a chance to read and rate this amazing book!

This book. I utterly went into it convinced I knew how the whole storyline would go. NO. So many twists and turns, I would be wrong as soon as I had a theory. This story could be a Lifetime movie or something in that vein. It was a nice break from recent stories I could riddle out from the covers. An enjoyable, must read. Thank you to Netgalley for allowing me to pre-read this in exchange for my unbiased opinion.

I really enjoyed this book. I finished quickly as I didn’t want to put it down. I liked the plot twists and couldn’t wait to find out how it ended.

In an attempt to escape from her abusive husband, Nova and her young daughter Lily sneak away to a cabin to hide. All seems safe until her daughter goes missing. But when Officer Ellie James arrives, there’s no evidence of Lily ever being there. Then Nova goes missing. Told from three alternating perspectives, Nova, Ellie, and neighbor Clara, Ellie tracks down clues to determine if Lily is real and if so, where has she gone?

The subject matter is the book’s greatest strength. As a thriller, it’s passable, but the domestic violence/spousal abuse storyline is the best part. The detective work was a bit weak... are we really supposed to believe a police officer doesn’t know how luminol works? Overall, I really liked Clara as a character and wish we’d had more of her and less of Ellie.

Lily is missing She was last seen being tucked into bed by her adoring mother, Nova. But the next morning, the bed is empty except for a creepy toy rabbit. Has Nova’s abusive ex stolen her?
Nova calls the Police. Officer Ellie James feels that these cases should be resolved in court and as Lily’s parents were married the father has parental responsibility so has a right to take his daughter. But Officer James finds Nova very strange. She cannot see signs that Lily was in the house. Children’s clothes are new unused. There are no pictures no drawings no evidence of a child.
When questioned the neighbour says she has not met Nova or her child Then Nova’s husband said a child does not exist.
Thought this was a gripping psychological thriller. The characters are well drawn. There are secrets everywhere.
I really enjoyed this one and would recommend.

I enjoyed the book and really liked it. Waiting to hear more from the author. Thanks to the publisher and NetGalley for the arc.

Loved this thriller! Great storyline, character depiction and the writing just flows. Kudos to the author who truly managed to bring the story to life. I enjoyed the book very much and will definitely make sure to read more by this talented writer.

This book is full of twists and turns. Nova is a mum on the run from her abusive husband, trying to ensure her daughter Lily’s safety. But then Lily goes missing and we start to wonder if she was ever real at all.

I found the writing style very dramatic and subject matter was terrifyingly realistic. However, the story itself did not ring true and there were a few procedural points that stood out as being incorrect.

I liked the way each chapter was narrated by a different character as this gave depth to their individual stories. All in all I enjoyed this book and I would look for other reads by this author. Thank you to netgalley and the publishers for my copy.