Great character development. I was drawn to both Rosie and Anna. I wanted both to find what they were searching for. I felt the anguish they both felt as they discovered pieces of their past. I enjoyed the alternating chapters and the glimpses into both families. The story was well written and kept moving. It held my attention and I didn't want to put it down.

Wow this book was intense from the moment I opened it. It never let up the entire time, and it was like a rollercoaster crashing to a halt at the end. Loved it!

I liked the book being told by the two sisters in alternating chapters. The author did a really good job representing these two girls as you got a good feeling for their lives. The book was just told so slowly with very little suspense or mystery.

'A Girl Named Anna' is an electrifying debut that will have readers flying through the pages to find out the truth in the end. There were a lot of aspects of the book that I really enjoyed and only one that disappointed me a bit (and had nothing to do with the book itself). In my opinion, the story felt like a template that has been done time and again only with differing details put in. This isn't anything personal to the author or the book. It's almost impossible to create a wholly original story about any topic anymore, so the author did her best to make her book stand out from the rest out there and did a pretty good job doing so.

The plot is basically laid out for you in the description. You pretty much understand what's going to happen going in, so for me it was more about the journey than the ending. I loved discovering all the twists and turns, secrets and lies, and all the other juicy details that made this story so fantastic. The main characters, Anna and Rosie, were both wonderful. They were quite different yet had so much in common. Most of their differences were due to their completely different upbringings. Each girl was incredibly realistic with good traits and qualities and also flaws that made them human. I loved getting to know each girl throughout the story and seeing them grow and change as the book progressed. The secondary characters were well rounded and realistic as well and I didn't find any of them to be flat or stereotypical.

The major thing for me is always the writing style of a book - it can literally make or break a book for me. The author told the story in the first person point of view, from alternating perspectives between Anna and Rosie. I think that this was absolutely genius and a perfect fit for the book. First person is almost always my favorite because I believe it allows the reader to get to know the narrator on a deeply personal level that other writing styles just can't achieve. This book was no different and the fact that the author chose to have dual narrators made the story all the more fascinating to me. I loved getting to really know Anna and Rosie throughout the book - their inner thoughts, emotions, memories, fears, dreams, and everything in between are shared with the reader. By the end of the story, I felt like I had experienced the entire book alongside each of the girls, see everything play out from their perspective. It was a perfect fit for the novel and I can't think of a better way to tell this complicated and layered story. The raw talent and intuitive storytelling ability made it really had for me to believe that this is the author's debut. If I hadn't known beforehand, there's no way I would've believed it. This is definitely an author I want to hear more from and I'll be keeping an eye on her. Highly recommended for fans of mystery, thriller, suspense, psychological suspense, and contemporary fiction.

Good story line. What starts out as an abduction of a three year old English girl from a Florida theme park turns into this dark psychological thriller about religious cults, religious fanaticism. The story begins 15 years after Emily was first abducted. Her family in England have no leads, don't even know if she's alive or dead. Meanwhile Anna has just turned eighteen living with her highly religious and strict mother. This turns into a page-turner with a number of twists along the way.

Short and sweet review. I like it, I didn't completely love it, but it did have some really great aspects to it. I think I am just burnt out on this genre. However, people who still love Thrillers, and suspense novels, I think will really enjoy this one, as it had some great elements.

What an interesting concept, to follow a girl that has been taken, as well as the family that she was taken from and show how it has affected all of them over the years. The first half the book dragged on for me but the rest was better!It has some great moments!

This story is told through two different points of view. Anna has always been a rule follower, a good girl, doing what Mamma tells her. However, when she turns eighteen, she goes to Astroland, a nearby amusement park. While she has never been there, she is confused by how familiar everything seems. Rosie's sister has been missing for years, and her family has never been the same. The money set aside in a trust for the search is running out, and Rosie decides that she must find her sister herself.
The majority of this story is very predictable, with an interesting twist. It was an emotional and compulsive read, with a satisfying conclusion.

Anna lives in a quiet town with her Mamma, who is very strict and religious. One day Anna does deceives Mamma and goes to Astroland even though it’s forbidden. While there, Anna begins to have a feeling that she remembers this place and then she receives a letter from a mysterious man addressed with a different name. Is this a coincidence?

Rosie has grown up in the shadow of her missing, older sister Emily, who was taken from a theme park. On the 15th anniversary of her sister’s disappearance, Rosie is determined to find out what happened to her sister.

Although the book was fairly predictable and the ending felt rushed to me, I did find myself enjoying the story.

I received a reviewer copy of A Girl Named Anna by Lizzy Barber from the publisher, Mira Books, through NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

I received a complimentary copy of this title from the through NetGalley. Opinions expressed are my own.

Eh. I wasn't super impressed by this book. The back and forth POV was a little too frequent and the heroine was very not like other girls. It felt like the same old string of titles.

A Girl Named Anna was fast-paced and thought-provoking. I loved the alternating points of view between two narrators. I could easily see this novel adapted for the screen.

I received an eARC of this book from NetGalley in exchange for my review. All opinions are my own.

So, I believe that this book was originally published in 2018 under the title My Name is Anna but was recently released in September 2019 as the title I am reviewing it under, A Girl Named Anna. I couldn't find out why (Google let me down), but I think the first title was probably the better fit, especially since the line was actually used in the book.

Here's the story: Anna is an 18 year old girl who lives with her mom. Mom is uber religious and seems to have some OCD tendencies. Anna and her boyfriend go to Astroworld for her birthday (even though she is forbidden from going there for some reason) and she has a flashback or a memory of having been there before. The book alternates between Anna's story and Rosie's story. Rosie is a teenage girl who's family was torn apart after her sister was taken from, you guessed it, Astroworld.

The book itself took me some getting into, because it started off really slow. Then it started to get good, and by the time the two characters were putting the pieces together the book was 88% done, so the ending felt a bit rushed. I would have liked to see how things were handled after they figured out that Anna was the missing girl. I feel like so much could have been done with this book, and it fell flat in the end. I also read the synopsis that painted it as a thriller, but it wasn't very thriller-y. The suspense just wasn't there for me. It was NOT a bad book, just more of a family drama than a thriller, and I wish the ending would have gone a little longer.

Lizzy Barber's A Girl Named Anna is a slow-building powerhouse of a story about two families who are linked by the disappearance of a little girl fifteen years before the book opens. Parts of the plot are a bit on the predictable side, but it did not detract from my enjoyment of the book as a whole.

For long as Anna can remember, it's been her and her mom against the world. Her mother might not be the warm and cuddly mother she's seen on TV, but the two of them have an unbreakable bond just the same. On the day she turns eighteen, Anna disobeys her mother's rules and visits Astroland, Florida's biggest and most famous theme park. All her life, Anna has listened to her mother's lectures about how to avoid sin and ensure a place in Heaven, but just this once, Anna wants to do something normal for her birthday.

As soon as she and her boyfriend enter the park, Anna begins to see flashes of what feel like memories from her past. Of course, they can't be real memories since Anna has never been to Astroland before, but with every moment she spends in the park, the strange sense of familiarity grows stronger. Eventually, all of this becomes too much for Anna, and she leaves the park and returns home, only to discover a mysterious unsigned letter address to her. Who is the note from, and could there possibly be a connection between it and the flashbacks Anna has been experiencing?

Rosie has grown up very much in the shadow of her older sister, who disappeared when Rosie was still an infant. Emily's disappearance has forever scarred her family, and now, as the fifteenth anniversary of her abduction draws near, Rosie finds herself once again shoved into the limelight as her parents plead for information about their missing daughter. Rosie has mixed feelings about all of this. Obviously, she wants to learn what happened to Emily all those years ago, but she also wants a chance at a normal life, a life that hasn't been marred by tragedy.

The story is told in alternating chapters from the point of view of both girls, and it didn't take me very long at all to figure out that Anna and Emily are the same person. (This isn’t a spoiler – it’s revealed early on.) Normally, I would have been a little disgusted with a mystery that felt so obvious, but Ms. Barber managed to keep me fully engaged. Uncovering Anna's true identity is only the very tip of the iceberg, and I flew through this book to learn the answers to the numerous questions about what really happened on the day Emily disappeared.

Both Anna and Rosie are likable heroines, and I was especially pleased with the amount of depth the author gives to each of them. They're both dealing with a lot of unknowns, and Ms. Barber captures their uncertainty beautifully. These are characters who are fully fleshed out, the kind of people I could easily imagine meeting on the street.

This is one of the darkest thrillers I've read in some time. I can't say too much about what makes it dark without spoiling things, but please don't go into this book expecting it to be an easy read. Instead, be prepared to be well and truly creeped out in places. I actually found it difficult to fall asleep after finishing the story. The plight of the characters just wouldn't leave my head.

A Girl Named Anna is the first book I've read by Lizzy Barber, but I definitely plan to seek out more of her work in the not too distant future. She's an author I'm glad to have discovered, and I urge fans of intensely plotted thrillers to give this book a shot.

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I really loved this debut novel by Lizzy Barber.

I really enjoyed that the narrative was written from two perspectives, Anna and Rosie whose story revealed itself in alternating chapters. The reader knew more than Anna and Rosie and I was on the edge of my seat waiting for the story to catch up to what was in my mind.

This is such a well written book that is expertly paced with a perfectly timed progression.

The characters were complex, complicated and well fleshed out which I really appreciate.

I loved the twists and turns and especially the ending. Read the epilogue!

This is a compelling read and honestly cannot believe this is a debut author.

I highly recommend this book.

I was really excited for this book when I saw it on the site and I have to say it did not disappoint, I found it to be so original, well written, and riveting. It had such a great slow burn theme going, I found myself completely emerged. Look forward to more by this author!
Will be highly; highly recommending!

Rosie and Anna lead very different lives on different continents but something connects them. Rosie lives a normal teenage life with friends and technology with her parents and brother while Anna's life consists of school and church with her strict mother. Rosie is determined to find her sister who has been missing for 15 years and was kidnapped at an amusement park. Across the world, Anna is wondering why she is having odd memories spurred by a visit to an amusement park she's never been to. It is a great mystery from both of the girls' viewpoints, The end is heartbreaking for many involved.

If you like psychological suspense, then this debut novel by Lizzy Barber is the book for you. I rarely reread the synopsis before I got into a new read - I figure if I have it, there was some reason I wanted it so I just go in blind. For some reason, I decided to reread the synopsis on this one (I think because I have about 3 different books on my TBR with the name Anna in the title) and I'm glad that I did because knowing this is suspense fiction definitely made a difference rather than expecting the typical faster paced thriller.

From the synopsis we pretty much see we are going to be getting Rosie and Anna's stories and the chapters vary back and forth between their POVs. You already know where the book is going, it's the journey to why these things have happened that will keep you riveted.

Admittedly, this book burns slooooowly. It wasn't until around the halfway point that I was feeling slightly hooked. It's pretty obvious where this book is going but I have to say - Barber does a fantastic job in really making you feel for these girls. Rosie, who is always in the shadow of her sister Emily, who has been missing for 15 years. Anna, whose mother is overly protective, is extremely sheltered and has a weird feeling about her past, something her mother hates to talk about. A plot line gets in, which is similar to ones we've seen before (you'll have to read this to know what I'm talking about), but it is always one that fascinates me.

Ultimately, as an avid suspense/thriller reader, there's nothing really new here. HOWEVER, Barber writes exceptionally well and I applaud how well she pulled these all together and I did feel my heart strings pulled a few times at that ending.

An abducted child, a family mourning the fact that they don’t know if she is dead or alive, and a Momma who lives by the word of God while keeping her child very close to her side. It is not hard to see how it all comes together. Yet, once I started the book I could not stop. I was intrigued to see if Anna would be able to come into her own now that she is 18. Would she be able to find happiness outside of her mother’s house and would her mother let her? Rosie’s story broke my heart. She’s lived in the shadow of her sister’s abduction almost her entire life and does not know how a family without this hanging over them would normally live. Rosie’s only goal in life is to find her sister and put her family back together.

This was not an easy book. There is tension in every paragraph yet there is also hope. There is hope that Anna will find herself, there is hope that Rosie will get some answers whether they are what she wants to hear or not, and there is hope that all the truths will come out. I could anticipate what was going to happen next and admire the way Anna respected her Momma enough not to jump to conclusions or abandon her.

A Girl Named Anna is a book that isn’t unique its story but there some twists and turns that make it different from the other’s that are similar. I enjoyed the book and would recommend picking up your own copy.

Thanks to the publisher for the free advanced copy in exchange for my honest review

3/5 stars

I really enjoyed this story and the premise, I just think this book fell victim to being mismarketed. When you go into a book expecting a thriller and it turns out to be a slower burn suspense, then that kind of takes away from the reading experience. That doesn’t mean that the writing wasn’t great and that the story wasn’t intriguing! I was expecting more of the sinister cult elements, but we don’t get into that until closer to the end. As a warning, there is some content that involves abuse.

Make sure to go into this book knowing its more of a mystery at its core than it is a thriller. If I had anticipated a slower burn then I feel like I would have enjoyed it more, but in this case it felt like it was dragging in some places. We alternate between the perspectives of Rosie and Anna – two girls that are somehow connected despite being thousands of miles apart. How will their stories converge?

I thought the characters were well-developed and you really got a feel for the girls and the lives that they lead. One living in the shadow of her long-missing sister and the other sheltered by her religiously fanatic mother. I always love the alternating perspectives in mystery novels, but I think this kind of gave away some of the suspense and the reveal.

Overall, I would definitely recommend this to those looking for a slower burn mystery. It was a binge-worthy read and while you’ll probably see the twist coming, it was still very enjoyable! I will be keeping my eyes peeled for more from Baker in the future.

I went into A Girl Named Anna expecting some sort of kidnapping mystery/thriller. However, this is more a domestic drama as the “mystery” is obvious from the beginning. This was well pieced together and I was caught up in the story. The plot is well paced and the writing consistent. I was a bit letdown with the tidy ending but overall, this was a fast read from a debut author that I look forward to reading more from in the future. Thank you @harlequinbooks for this advance reader in exchange for my honest review.