Excellent debut novel from a new force in the crime writing world. Fabulously written with some great twists. I read this book in one sitting and looking forward to the next novel.

When Grace Bryson disappeared she was at her 3rd year outdoor birthday party. No one noticed where she went .. or why. All her family knows is that she is gone.

It's been 14 years and Grace has never been seen again. Her parents have moved far away to try to get rid of the grief of losing their younger daughter. Her big sister, Elise, has never forgotten and has never given up looking for her.

Now married and pregnant, she sees her sister. She can't believe it .. her sister is there. Elise tries to follow her and gets a bit of information. But no one in her family really believes her .... there are lots of blonde blue-eyed girls with freckles across their nose. But Grace is adamant that this was her sister.

But where has she been all these years and what really happened to her? Elise plans to find out.

This is a well written psychological look at a parent's worst nightmare.... how it changes the entire family's lives.... how the media portrays what they think happened ... how parents handle their grief while in the spotlight. And when is it time to abandon hope?

The reader hears from the sister, the parents the aunt and uncle, the police, the family liaison officer who plays a major role in this family. It's a real who-dun-it that kept me riveted from the very first page.

Many thanks to the author / Sapere Books / Netgalley for the digital copy of this Psychological Drama. Read and reviewed voluntarily, opinions expressed here are unbiased and entirely my own.

This was my first experience with this author and overall it was positive. The story has the potential of being fantastic. However, there were too many different points of view. I think it would have been less confusing if the story was in third person or only a few characters were in first person. When it jumped from Elise to Grace to Jack and so on it was difficult to remember who is talking. Perhaps it’s just me, but I want to lose myself in the characters of a book and due to the amount of POV changes I was not able to.
The only other problem was it was a bit predictable on who the bad guy was. Needs to stick with one POV and not give so much away early on.

Overall an entertaining read and would recommend.

I loved this story of a child who goes missing during her third birthday party and a chance sighting in a supermarket of a girl the missing girls sister is convinced she is her. Only problem is she is the only one who thinks it can be her and needs to convince everyone to investigate it. This story is told in separate chapters from each of the characters perspective.

Abduction was a really good quick read of a thriller, and I quite enjoyed. Although a bit predictable, I think the author did a good job of weaving a decent story.

A story about a family’s worst nightmare, one you don’t even want to imagine, and yet we know that it happens!
The book is written so we know the thoughts of the person who is currently thinking or working on finding Grace or whom we are following at that time.
While I figured out the ending or who was the culprit early, I had to keep reading to find out if I was correct, and sadly, yes, I was right!

I received this book through Net Galley and Sapere Books Publishing, and was not required to give a positive review.

What I liked about this book was the way it was written from all angles and using the emotions of each of the characters, which I thought was very well done. I asked myself when reading it of how I would feel/ cope and the honest answer was I don't know! So for Gillian Jackson to consider everyone's thoughts was impressive as I felt they were pretty accurate.
I guessed who the accomplice was quite early on just by a tiny snippet and the fact that I am suspicious of people in these scenarios.

I thought all in all that this was a good all round thriller and would appeal to someone who likes a drama without the gore.

An exciting story of a child abduction 14 years earlier from the perspective of the major characters. There were parts of the story that were quite predictable or expected, but i still enjoyed it. Suspenseful when needed, but a bit slower than I normally like. I’d give it 3.5 stars if I could.

Several previous reviewers said that earlier editions of the book needed to be edited better, and from what i saw, it was. The problems previous readers say needed changed appeared to be remedied.

(I received an advanced reader copy of this book in exchange for my unbiased review).

Rating: 3 stars

Thank you NetGalley for an advance copy of Abduction in exchange for my honest review!

I am very conflicted about this book. There was a very particular quite formal writing style throughout the book which was a little strange, and I wasn't really sure if it is the general writing style of Jackson or if all the characters were supposedly similar personas.

The actual plot of the book has good strength to it, but it was executed that well. Most of the book was stating facts and there was a lot of repetition of these facts so it was a little dull to get through; there was also no suspense or tension, it was all laid out and you sorta knew what was coming. And it was only right at the end that the twist came, which I had already figured out.

I did like the characters, Jackson does a good job of making you empathise with them.

Good story, but needs a little work!

The Bryson’s host a birthday party for their 3 year old daughter, while the children play hide and seek in the garden their 3 year old daughter Grace goes missing never to be seen again. 14 years later Grace’s sister Elise is convinced she spotted Grace now a teenager at the local shopping centre. How can Elise convince everyone that Grace is alive when the family have grieved the loss of their daughter and the police have marked the case as cold? If it is Grace then who took her and where has she been for 14 years?
The premise for this book had me really excited, told from multiple character points of view we hear the story of the day Grace went missing and the current events taking place. I love a multiple narrative but I found in this book the story overlapped a little too much. At the start of each chapter I felt instead of the story progressing forward I was reading the same thing again as the previous chapter but in another characters words. The book was fairly predictable not just the “who did it” but with how the whole story would play out. Those things aside I did actually like Jackson’s style of writing and I finished the book quickly. This book would be perfect for you if you love a Law & Order episode that wraps everything up efficiently or just need an easy read.

This story Abduction, brings you into the lives of the family and Detective Sergeant when three year old Grace Bryson is abducted in broad daylight from her own backyard.
A party to celebrate her third birthday is over before the cake is cut. Little Grace playing hide and seek with her friends in her backyard gardens is never found. You can feel the unimaginable fear and pain that set in on the family.
The story is told through the eyes of those closest. The mother Margaret, the older sister Elsie, an aunt, uncle, and the Detective Sergeant Jack Priestly, liaison to the family.
Margaret and her husbands initial shock, horror and devastation is numbing. Possibilities of what could have happened are too horrific to dwell on. Questioning of the parents are painful procedures. The days, weeks, months and then years go by with no results. It’s like she vanished into thin air.
Elsie, at just nine when Grace disappeared, never gave up searching in the years to follow. Never believing that Grace was gone for good. She was sure she would “feel it” if her little sister was dead.
In the first several weeks liaison Detective Sergeant Jack Priestly was at their home daily then weekly and then monthly updates and finally only occasionally. His affection for the family mixed with heartfelt devastation at not finding Grace ate at him. He felt the comparison as his family, wife and two sons, was intact and well. He now kept contact but just at holidays. With no leads the case grew cold.
Elsie’s pain at the loss of her little sister was keeping her from ever fully being happy. How could she justify happiness when Grace was still missing. The faith that Grace was out there and still alive was constant and Elsie was always searching every stranger she encountered. Now married and expecting her first child her search was desperate. She needs to find her before the baby come. When at the mall she sees someone by chance who she is certain is Grace. She must find out this girls name and where she lives.
Her husband and uncle feel it’s just hormones and a strong desire for it to be true. No one takes her seriously. After fourteen years the desire for this to be Grace is overwhelming. Her only hope is Jack Priestly.
The mystery of who would do such a horrendous act and what happened will keep you guessing. Step into their shoes in this well written story that keeps you hooked.
Thank you NetGalley, Gillian Jackson and Sapere Books for granting me this ARC I am giving my honest review.

What do you do when the unthinkable happens?

8 August, 2000

A carefree birthday party goes horribly wrong. The children scatter to play hide and seek.

But one little girl never returns.

Three-year-old Grace has vanished without a trace.

Fourteen years later

With the case long-since gone cold, Grace’s family have done their best to move on. But her sister, Elise, has never given up hope.

And now Elise thinks she may have found her… Is Elise going crazy?

Could Grace really have returned? And if she has, where was she taken…?

Well, I was finding parts to unbelievable. Just seem to me a bit off .

Thanks NetGalley and publisher for allowing me to read this book. Thrillers and mysteries are my favorite genre, that is why I enjoyed this book. It had everything, the sense of unsolved puzzle, the family involvement and good ending. Even though I guessed who is the person of interest (considering how many thrillers I have read, it is not that surprising), I enjoyed the narration, dialogues and the whole feeling of the book. If you are looking for a good read, this is the one.

Absolutely fantastic had me gripped!!! Loved it! Can't wait for more from.this author. Storyline was great, characters were easy to.connect with

Thank you for the advanced copy

Good characters and short chapters made this a good read. Guessed the culprit early on in the storyline but this did not detract from my interest. Would definitely read this author again. Thanks to Netgalley and the publisher for the chance to review it

3.5/5⭐

Thank you #NetGalley for an advance copy of Abduction in exchange for my honest review!

I don't know what thrillers about missing children have, that they attract me a lot. I always enjoy them despite the hardness of the situation and do I had to read this book!

How can a child disappear like that in her own house? Where did she go? Did someone take her? Are the parents involved?

I loved the doubts I was coming with as I kept reading. I kind of liked Grace's (the missing child) parents but they would try to look as innocent as possible, wouldn't they?

I liked the police investigation. I liked to know the story from the Family Liaison Officer point of view as I think it's something different.

I liked the fact that the chapters weren't especially long and that they were told by a few different characters. I like when this happens as you can see the story from different POV.

Now, the mystery got solved literally just a bit after half way through. Once I knew what had happened I was like: Mmm, what's gonna happen the rest of the book? And I kind of lost interest.

Another thing that I didn't really like was that they got everything so "easy". The got the clues at the first try, everything seemed to fit perfectly, everyone was kind of cooperative and helpful... I don't know, it felt surrealistic. I wanted a bit more of drama.

I found Jane's character to be more like a person on her late 20's rather than a teenager. She was so mature, asked so many good question, had amazing reasonings, behaved so well that I found it weird.

The final twist didn't surprise me a lot. I hadn't thought about that person all the way through but I kind of expected it.

This book had an amazing first half, but once I knew what had happened, I lost interest and that's why I gave it 3.5⭐

Thanks Netgalley and the publisher for the advance ecopy. This is about a three year old girl who is abducted from her birthday party and her sister Elise fourteen years later seems to believe she has seen her. It starts off fourteen years later and bounces back to the abduction. Gives you the prospective of the family and also the abductors. The tension builds the further you get into the story. Started off a little rocky for me but was worth it in the end.

You're 9 years old. Your 3 year old sister disappears from her own birthday party, being held in her own home. The impact of her disappearance is felt through the entire family. And then fourteen years later, you see your sister, not just someone who looks like her.
As a parent, I can only imagine the distress and long lasting impact your child going missing must have on you. The topic gives plenty of scope for emotion and drama. Sadly, I didn't really get much emotion from the book.
The book is written from multiple viewpoints and given the subject matter, that has the potential to work well. Sadly, the book didn't flow well. I didn't feel there was much distinction between the voices and often I felt that I was reading a journal entry.
The writing itself felt clunky and whilst the book was no complex and was an easy read in that sense, I found it difficult because of the clunky writing.
I did guess the outcome of the book at a reasonably early stage but that is not necessarily surprising given how many books I read.
Overall, I like the idea of the book and think this could have potential to be further explored and developed to make this a more enjoyable read.

I was so excited to read this, as the premise sounded pretty unique and I’ve never read anything by this author before. However, I was pretty disappointed by the whole experience.

If I’m honest, I just didn’t think the writing was very strong. If you didn’t read the character name at the start of each chapter, you would have no idea at all whose perspective it is - all of the characters talk and think exactly the same as everyone else. The dialogue was odd - very flat and monotone, and also completely unlike how real people actually talk.

I also really wasn’t impressed by the plot. It dragged on, endlessly, and then suddenly all got resolved right at the end with a massive dump of information. This was unnecessary though, as it was blindingly obvious who played a part in the kidnapping from the very beginning.

Overall, a real disappointed. My advice - save your time, and don’t bother.

I found this story very long winded and feel that a lot more action and speculation could have been placed in many different parts. I enjoyed the fact that we saw the events from all points of view and not just the immediate family. Seeing it from the point of view of Family Liason Offer added a different insight into the book. But I feel this has the potential to be even more than it was.