A gripping story about the deep desire to have a child and the lengths some will go to fulfill that need and the gut-wrenching fear of every parent - losing a child. I couldn’t put this book down!

I never could have guessed at the beginning of this book what was about to transpire. This story kept me on my toes wondering what would happen and what had happened in the past. Libby and her son, Ethan, are on a much needed vacation. Adorable little Ethan loves to run into elevators and push the buttons. The only problem is when Libby fails to stop the doors from closing and Ethan seems to disappear into thin air. When CCTV footage shows an adult taking Ethan, Libby’s life is turned upside down. We find out who is after her child and why. Libby’s story is both bittersweet and heartbreaking. As the author delves into Libby’s past, it is revealed that Libby may not be so innocent. A fantastic read for lovers of suspense!

Thank you to Netgalley, Haylen Beck, and Crown for my ARC in exchange for an honest review.

One of my favorite genres: thrillers.
This book did not disappoint. The relationships between mothers and daughters can be so fragile and unique.

Libby and her son Ethan journey to a resort hotel for vacation. When Ethan rushes into the elevator alone, he disappears. Security videos show that he has been taken by another woman. When Libby and the police catch up with the woman, she claims that Ethan is her son. The book alternates with the past, where Libby and her husband are working with an agency for a surrogacy adoption.

I had a hard time putting this book down. It was suspenseful and engaging. It unraveled at a nice pace, and the back and forth in timelines really worked. Overall, well worth picking up.

Lost You by Haylen Beck is a novel with a unique twist on the relationship between a surrogate mother, an adoptive mother and the child they both want. However, the extremes they will go to in order to have and keep him make this novel different than many others that tackle this same subject. A quick read with enough twists and turns to keep you interested, it unfortunately suffers from unlikable characters, a lack of character development and some very questionable decisions by them which make you question what the author was thinking. The relationship between Libby and her husband is the big question mark here...why on earth would they pursue surrogacy when their relationship was so rocky and how could he allow her to keep writing checks to the agency when their marriage was a shambles? Thank you to the author, Crown Publishing and NetGalley for an ARC of this novel for review.

The ending saved this for me. I have to stop with the child abduction stories. This is a bit different though and does offer some surprises but I need a break from them.

The characters were not likable. There is a lot of thinking going on in this story which is meant seemingly to round out the characters and add depth to the story but still too much. Other than that nitpick the writing was good.

Definitely give this a chance as I said I have read too many of this genre lately... I would read more by this author.

Thanks to NetGalley, the author and Crown Publishing for a copy in exchange for a review.

This book started with a bang. You are dropped right into the middle of the action. It was the set-up for a great thriller.

This novel had a lot of potential and the author is very good at painting vivid, heart-pounding action scenes. Early on I thought we were heading to a King Solomon-type resolution based on the opening scene, especially with the extensive details about the head of security. I was intrigued and engaged. I had lots of questions and couldn't wait to see how it played out.

Unfortunately, that is only 1/4 of the book. The rest of the story just fizzled out as it moved into the past to set up the motives behind the opening scene. That is where it really dragged for me. The storytelling bogged down here. The characters never fully came to life and the ending was flat.

I didn’t really like the main characters despite them having extremely compelling reasons that should have made them sympathetic. Maybe there were just too many reasons? After a while, a batch of new details were revealed that ventured into Lifetime Movie territory for me. Toward the end, I rolled my eyes when mentions of priest abuse and sexual harassment showed up in the backstory. This is where I really lost interest.

I read an advanced copy so I felt obligated to finish the book and give it a fair review and to find out how that opening scene was resolved. It was disappointing. I really wanted to like this book. It could have been five stars if the book continued as strong as it started. It was a 2.5 for me. Rounded up to 3 for GoodReads.

Thank you to NetGalley and Crown Publishing for an advanced read in exchange for this review.  

Libby is about to go on a much needed vacation with her 3 year old son, Ethan.  Her husband left them, so she is a single mom.  Things have been looking up as she just sold her first novel.  While on vacation, Ethan disappears.  Police find him, but the woman who took him refuses to give him back.  She says she is his mother.  DUN DUN DUN.

This book is sad.  Everyone is flawed.  However, I thought it could have been a much shorter read.  There's a lot of unnecessary filler.  The twist is something I have not read before, so it has that going for it.  The author spends too much time on the unnecessary parts of the story.  This is where the author loses me as a ready.  It's an okay read, but please, cut out the unneeded parts!

Thank you! Thank you! Thank you! Beyond amazing I enjoyed this book so very much. The characters and storyline were fantastic. The ending I did not see coming Could not put down nor did I want to.

Thanks to NetGalley for a Kindle ARC of Lost You.

This is my first book by the author and I'm not sure if its my last. Too soon to tell. Just because I did not like Lost You does not mean I may not like his next novel. But the odds are not good.

Lost You follows Libby Moore, a woman desperate for a child, and Anna, a woman desperate for money.

Each woman embarks on a dangerous journey to achieve their individual goals; Libby's quest for a child and an opportunity for Anna to stop waitressing, climb out of debt and get her feet back on the ground.

But the decisions each woman makes brings them closer together for a finale that ends in their mutual destruction.

There was a decent twist in the end but I couldn't help feeling, as I was reading, that I read this story before. Or seen it in a 80s Lifetime movie.

The plot was also bogged down with unsympathetic characters and unnecessary filler, such as Anna's down on her luck backstory, the clinic she visits and the people she meets there.

Libby and Ann were too similarly flawed and unlikable for me to differentiate between the two; both women are desperate for different things, both women have low self esteem and are always worried about their appearance and that they don't belong anywhere.

Case in point: when Libby travels to the resort with her son, she points out (numerous times) how the monied tourists reeked of wealth and privilege and were always staring at her because it was obvious she did not belong.

Second case: after Libby's son is abducted and the police are escorting her to wait in a secure location, she can't help but worry about her appearance and fret over what the hotel guests must think when they gaze upon her disheveled appearance.

Seriously, dude, your child is missing and you're still worrying about what others think?

Grow the f**k up!

Look, I don't mind unlikable characters, or characters with no morality, but give me something to like; a brilliant mind, a diabolical scheme or a sinister agenda. Nope, nothing here but a bunch of sad sacks.

The author also gives us a little background on the bad guy, I guess to make us care or understand his perspective, but in a story like this, a little goes a long way and there was just too many details. Also, I already didn't care about anyone so more info did not help anyone's cause.

Before I hit the midway point, the writing began to sound like a monotonous drone in my head and all the drama and violence toward the end so overwrought that I ended up skimming the last several chapters since I could see where all this was headed

I can't recommend this, not even for the semi-decent twist, because I didn't like the writing, the characters, and the predictable story.

I really enjoyed this book, the characters were well developed. It had an interesting plot. I would be interested in reading more

YES! My first thought when I started reading this novel because of how good it was right at the beginning. Do yourself a favor and read this one! Haylen Beck is an amazing writer and I am so happy that I was able to read this novel. The characters are superb!

So, I started reading this and I almost just stopped. I just kept thinking: this old plot again?

Um...I was wrong. This is a very different plot full of unexpected twists.

I still didn’t love it – but I didn’t hate it. My main issues were that I didn’t like the characters and I thought the plot was a bit..too too? I just never bought into it. But I sure was curious about how it all would end.

3.5 stars. The author managed to surprise me. I’d try the author again.

*ARC Provided via Net Galley

Lost You is the kind of book that took a couple of days to process after I finished reading it. The complexity of the story begins from the start, leading the me on a journey through some interesting twists and turns. Some of the twists made me ache for Anna, while others made me ache for Libby. The mysterious Mr. Kovak was also someone I grew to love and wanted to know more about. The ending was not what I expected and found myself wanting more of a resolution. It seemed to end too fast. I would highly recommend this book to other avid readers. Thank you to Net Galley for the opportunity to read the ARC..

Not generally my type of book (crime fiction) but I was surprised at how much I enjoyed it, simply for what it was, and despite mentions of things like Facebook and Twitter (I might be old-fashioned but for some reason I always feel like it cheapens a story, but in this book it plays a big part so i'm not sure how you'd get around it). Not literature by any means, but a good page-turner. It's a quick read, something fun for vacation or on winter break.

Just when I thought I was enjoying a relatively dark thriller, it took a plunge into black hole-level darkness. And I loved it!

Libby and her son Ethan have a great bond and are excited to spend some time together on a much-deserved vacation. It’s apparent Libby has some reservations (aside from those at the hotel, heh) but she allows herself to let loose. Of course right when a mom lets herself relax is when things start to go very wrong...

I appreciated how Beck told the story, revealing details little by little to weave a complex story that comes down to a mother’s love... and a mother’s love.

I received an advanced copy of this book in return for an honest review.

Thanks to Haylen Beck, Crown Publishing, and NetGalley for providing me with a digital advance copy of this book.

Lost You is a twisty psychological thriller about two women fighting over a child that they both believe is rightfully theirs. This novel captured my interest quickly, but unfortunately, it didn’t work for me in the end. I found the characters unlikable and their actions hard to understand. Beck did a good job with a major plot twist that I did not see coming, but that was not enough to redeem the novel for me. Still, if you are looking for a quick read for the beach, this may be a good choice.

Libby and her three-year-old son Ethan take a trip to a relaxing Florida resort that ends with Ethan being kidnapped by another woman who claims that she's his real mother.

When the police begin investigating, it becomes clear that Libby has secrets of her own, and what follows is a twist-y psychological thriller about how the two women are connected—and which one is Ethan's real mother.

What appears at first to be a fairly straight-forward plot about a woman desperate for a baby and a shady surrogacy clinic becomes something even darker and sadder. The two women, Libby and Anna, are given sufficient character development to elicit sympathy for each of them, which is crucial to the success of the story.

As we delve into the past to uncover what first brought them together, we come to understand the motives and desires that cause them to make difficult and at times unforgivable choices. Ultimately, a mother's love for her child is stronger than anything, and it's compelling to see what happens as this instinct kicks in for both characters.

Ultimately, this was...fine. It held my attention and was a very fast read. I personally prefer my thrillers to be more literary, but if you crave a decent genre read this will certainly do.

I read a lot of thrillers and mysteries, and get frustrated with the same plot again & again. When this book started, I thought I knew what the out come would be. Then, a little detail, a little thought and i realized i was wrong. Every time i thought i kmg few the outcome, there was a change up & i was left guessing, grasping. I finally just let myself be taken on the ride & i'm so glad I did. I didn't see the finale at all, I was eagerly reading the next page & couldn't stop!
What a thrill ride! Wish i could read it all over again for the first time! I don't often give out 5 stars, and am debating on this one, but i think I'll go for 4.5 rounded up.

Many thanks to net gallery, author & publisher for this amazing ride!

Libby needs a break. Three years ago her husband split, leaving her to raise their infant son Ethan alone as she struggled to launch her writing career. Now for the first time in years, things are looking up. She's just sold her first novel, and she and Ethan are going on a much-needed vacation. Everything seems to be going their way, so why can't she stop looking over her shoulder or panicking every time Ethan wanders out of view? Is it because of what happened when Ethan was born? Except Libby's never told anyone the full story of what happened, and there's no way anyone could find her and Ethan at a faraway resort . . . right?

Great fast paced read with well developed characters. It had some disturbing moments that made me cringe. Also the ending of the book felt a bit rushed however it was a solid plot and an excellent book!

Thank you #NetGalley for the ARC of #LostYou
Pub Date: 06 Aug 2019