A good read overall but not the story I was expecting. I thought the synopsis was misleading. There are 2 stories intertwined in this book. In places it is confusing and in some places not believable. But the overall plot is good.

Thank you to Netgalley for my copy.

The book centers on Carrie, whose sister was kidnapped 20 years ago when she was babysitting her, as well as Melanie, who escapes a potential abduction situation herself and ends up living on a remote island with her family.

This book just didn't do it for me- I found that there were too many coincidences that tied the story together, but were unlikely to happen in real life. Also, the decisions that the characters made were often so irrational that I couldn't buy that people would actually make these decisions.

There was a bit of a mystery involved but the twist at the end really wasn't all that surprising, and I could not decide whether the author led the reader to figure out or whether it was meant to be a surprise.

I would not recommend this book, overall. Just too many things that didn't make sense, and a lack of thrilling/mysterious qualities to counteract. Thanks to Netgalley for providing a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

Detective Carrie Flynn has never fully recovered from the kidnapping of her little sister when they were young girls. She was grudgingly watching her sister when she was taken. She saw the kidnapper, but was unable to remember his face. Now as a detective, Carrie is trying to locate Melanie Wilson, who has been reported missing. The police continue to go over a recording that they received which should be a clue, but what is the voice trying to tell them? The story was a little confusing for me and I found myself going back and rereading some parts to understand what was happening. I received an advance review copy at no cost and without obligation for an honest review. (by paytonpuppy)

The Quiet Girls by J.M. Hewitt

Carrie will never forget the day her little sister was kidnapped and never seen again. Twenty years later Carrie, now a detective, will never forget the blank face of a man that has since remained in her memories and her nightmares.

Carrie is snapped back into reality when eleven-year-old Melanie is reported missing. Strangely, it was her school that had reported Melanie missing her own parents, which we soon discover its because it seems like they too have vanished into thin air. Carrie believes nothing good is to come when people are missing, and is determined to find out what made the family so desperate to hide from the rest of the world. Carrie vowed to herself to find and save Melanie because while she couldn’t do the same from her little sister, she might have a chance in saving another girl’s life.

I love thrillers. Thrillers are probably one of the top 3 genres that I tend to read. I crave the suspense, the mystery, the twists- and if I can have all of that in one book I’d be the happiest person in the world. Now, did I get all three in this book- unfortunately no.

Maybe its because I’ve read so many thrillers that I can kind of predict where a plot is heading towards before we actually get there. Perhaps it’s the writing that throws me off, or the multiple POVs that aren't usually my cup of hot chocolate.

One of the problems that I had with this book was the amount of subplots. In thrillers you do expect to find yourself tangled in a web of mysteries as the author is hoping to distract you from finding out the twists or the reveals too early on. However, in the case of this book the subplots weren’t really that interesting and it seemed like they were placed there for filling up the pages.

The writing was enjoyable and I had no problems with the author’s writing style at all, so that is definitely a plus.

On the other hand, I felt like some of the situations that these characters were going through were also quite unrealistic, and I found myself getting frustrated with a couple notable characters who made such irrational decisions (but if that was the author’s intent then I applaud her for doing it right). Also you can tick character development off the list too.

I will give the author credit for the build up to the climax. This was when things started to pick up and I did find myself getting really excited to see what happens next. I did find the overall plot intriguing enough to continue reading the entire book.

When the great, “shocking” reveal happened, I really wasn't surprised as it was quite predicable- you could practically see it from a mile away. Also the ending was probably the weakest part of the entire book, and I would have rated it higher if not for how unrealistic the ending was plus I have a mountain of unanswered questions.

Overall, it’s definitely not my favourite book by this author, and I will still be willing to check out her other books in the future.

2 stars.

Thank you NetGalley and Bookouture for providing me with an advanced reader’s copy and allowing me to review ‘ The Quiet Girls’ by J.M. Hewitt.

In The Quiet Girls, we learn a bit more about Carrie, the main character, and what happened to her sister who was kidnapped 20 years previously. The book is very well written with different storylines and interesting characters. I loved the descriptions of Pomona Island and overall, this is a very good mystery which I would recommend. Looking forward to the next installment. Thanks to Net Galley for my ARC

Missing children send shivers down the spine of every police officer so when eleven year old Melanie is reported missing by her school Detective Sergeant Flynn is determined to do everything in her power to find her.  Melanie doesn't realise how lucky she is to have Carrie on her case; the detective knows first hand what it's like to lose someone, her sister disappeared twenty years earlier and not a trace of her whereabouts was ever discovered.

This is the second book in the Carrie Flynn series which is becoming a very good set of novels to look out for. There is a lot happening in this story, covering a lot of different issues, but it was easy to follow and in fact I could see where more could have been added rather than taking anything away.

Carrie is very sympathetically written and the relationship with her partner Detective Constable Paul Harper is evolving well.  The gradual thawing of her frosty, overly private, nature was nicely done and they are becoming an effective partnership. The only problem I had was very close to the end, no spoilers, when some events seemed to be glossed over. Apart from that this was a great read and I hope there will be a third book in due course which I have no doubt will be at least as good as this one.

I was able to read an advanced copy of this book thanks to NetGalley and the publishers in exchange for an unbiased review and would recommend it to anyone who enjoyed the first book or likes a character driven mystery to dive into.

I really enjoyed The Quiet Girls by J M Hewitt. It’s the first book I’ve read by this author and I was impressed.

It starts off twenty years in the last. Carrie has taken her little sister Hattie out for the day but Hattie has gone missing. Carrie shouts, screams her name, but nothing. Hattie has gone.

Cue the present day and eleven year old Melanie is reported missing. With each report of a missing child, Carrie’s heart starts beating faster. She’s looking for clues and coincidences. Then Carrie receives a call from a mysterious young lady, from the same place Melanie appears to have gone missing.

I found this book to be gripping, in fact I read it in just over a day. Carrie and her partner Paul make a good team and as started at the start of the review I look forward to reading more of this authors books.

Thank you to NetGalley, Bookouture and the author for the chance to review.

I loved the look of this book reading the blurb etc and was looking forward to hearing carries story however it was 2 sories in 1 that came together at the end it was very confuseing and hard to belive and the ending diddnt actually tell you what hapoend

I liked this book but when I got to the end, I felt it was wrapped up too conveniently until I read the epilogue and quickly changed my mind. It's a great story that I found impossible to leave down and as it's a series, I will be getting the first and waiting for the third. I would like to thank the publishers and netgalley for letting me have the book to review and the opinions expressed are entirely my own views and are completely unbiased

I was going to rate The Quiet Girls 4.5 but after thinking about the book and its ending I give The Quiet Girls a solid 5. This book will stay with me for a long time.

The Quiet Girls is several stories within the one, each with their own twists and turns.

You learn more about Carrie and what happened to her when her sister was kidnapped and murdered. Carrie has blocked out what happened that day.

Two families move to a deserted island ; each for different reasons. Harry just wants to keep his daughter safe but its too late for that as Melanie knows too much about the predator in town.

I don,t want to give anything away but the stories merge, the pages fly by.

Twists and turns you won't see coming.

I can't wait for book 3 in the series. I will be first in line to buy it.

Please take time to read the author's notes at the end of the book.

Thanks to NetGalley and Bookouture for letting me spend time in Carrie's world.

I’d like to thank Bookouture and NetGalley for giving me the opportunity to read ‘The Quiet Girls’ by J M Hewitt in exchange for my honest and unbiased review.
When 11-year-old Melanie Wilson is attacked by a man in a mask her father Harry decides that together with wife Alice they should move to Pomona, an uninhabited wasteland not far from their home in Salford, Manchester. He persuades Gabe Hadley, his wife Liz and their teenage twins Lenon and Willow to accompany them. Can the two families become self-sufficient and live a safer life? Meanwhile, DS Carrie Flynn and DC Paul Harper are trying to track the whereabouts of the Wilson and Hadley families as the children have been reported as missing from school. Carrie knows she must find them as she still has nightmares of her own little sister Hattie who went missing twenty years ago aged six.
This is the second in the Detective Carrie Flynn series and a great improvement on the previous one. ‘The Quiet Girls’ increases my understanding of Carrie and Paul who have a friendlier working relationship and I feel a greater sympathy towards Carrie on learning more about the loss of her sister. The plot is cleverly thought-out, there’s drama, suspense, excitement, twists and turns, and a gripping conclusion that leaves open the possibility of a third in the series. I’ve enjoyed this thriller, reading it in twenty-four hours, and am happy to recommend it.

I am so enjoying this authors books you thought book 1 was good wait till you read this its brilliant is so love the main character Carrie .and I hope Paul and her get together in next book .3 girls go in to house something happens one of the fathers who has a few problems thinks moving to an island Pomona will help him to keep his daughter safe he invites another family harry is so excited but his wife Alice is not as happy about it but as the story unfolds all is not what it seem s I cried at the end of this book so cant wait for book 3 a must read

A gripping mystery that kept the surprised coming. It was a really interesting story and a really clever mystery. I enjoyed the way everything gradually unfolded through it the book. I hope there is more to come.

I really enjoyed this book. It has several unexpected twists. The Quiet Girls kept me very interested to see what would happen next. I haven’t decided if I am happy with the ending. Maybe it’s left open-ended for a sequel?

a very complex but well written plot full of twists and turns that leave you gripped

Well worth perserving as at times you will get frustrated

The Quiet Girls is going to get quite the mixed review from me. I loved some parts but found myself getting really frustrated at other sections. You need to suspend belief completely.

After their daughter is attacked Harry and Alice decide to leave their lives behind and move to the deserted island of Pomona. (Which is actually a real place that I had no idea about. Check out the Wikipedia page it’s so interesting!) Now this section of the story I found the most exciting, I mean it’s never going to happen in the real world but that’s part of why I love diving into a book! They’re joined by another family with teenage twins.

All three of the children are reported missing by the school and the police begin to investigate. Carrie is the main officer on the case and not holding anything back....she sucks. She’s also got a backstory of her sister going missing when she was a child, she was present but can’t remember what happened.

Up to this point the story still held a great chunk of my interest, it’s extremely well written and the plot wasn’t anything that I’d read before. (Well apart from Carries backstory...)

The ending is the most frustrating part. Everything comes together, the mystery is completely solved and tied neatly with a giant sparkly bow on top. I didn’t like it. I didn’t buy it. Unfortunately that’s not how real life works.

With a better ending this review would have a lot more praise. I’d give The Quiet Girls 2.5/5 but I’ll round it up to 3 since I really did like the first parts of the book.

Wow!! This one hell of a cleverly written book with different storylines all happening and seemingly unconnected or are they ? Well watch out because this a book that is full of surprises and twists galore with a cast of characters that are so damn odd and dysfunctional it makes for one hell of a good read.
The plot is complex and not easy to describe without giving things away I would say that at first for me it seemed a bit disjointed at first but stick with it because it’s well worth it and a very well crafted read
I read the first book in this series and I really enjoyed it but I would say this one is even better and totally addictive.
Well recommended for lovers of a good mystery and looking forward to the next in the series.
My thanks to NetGalley and Bookouture for giving me the chance to read the ARC in exchange for my honest opinion.