Another great book by author Lisa Jewell. Invisible Girl is a character driven psychological thriller. It reads much like an Agatha Christie novel. Each chapter features one of the characters. And each character could be involved in the disappearance of 17 year old Saffyre Maddox.

The cast of characters are:
Husband and child psychologist Roan. Saffyre was once a patient.
Wife Cate. A woman that knows her family has secrets and plays amateur detective to get answers.
Children, Georgia and Josh. both seem to be normal teenagers. But have many secrets.
Owen the neighbor, awkward and vulnerable. Accused of being inappropriate with two of his female students.
Alicia the girlfriend of husband Roan.
Each have a reason to be involved with the disappearance of Saffyre.

This is a fast paced book that will keep you up at night just to find out "who did it"?

Thank you NetGalley for the opportunity to read and give an honest review.

This was an intricately pieced together, slow burn of a story. The story is slowly revealed and the twists exposed many suspects. There are a lot of characters to keep track of and none of them are particularly likable. This story was peculiar and I had a hard time getting invested. This was a psychological mystery with a shocking conclusion. It was fine but not my favorite of the authors. My thanks to the publisher for the advance reader in exchange for my honest review.

I really enjoyed Invisible Girl. This chilling thriller is the fourth Lisa Jewell book I've read, but not since The Girls in the Garden, the first one of hers I read, have I given one a five star review.

Jewell weaves three very different families together into one engrossing story. Her characters are very well-developed, and I think we've all known "real" people like those in the story. This makes Invisible Girl so much more effective at getting to our emotions. You're thinking, "How could he/she do that to her/him?" and "What is wrong with you, girl/guy!"

I could really relate to Cate's fierce protectiveness regarding her teens, and if you're a mom, you probably will too. All of the characters will get to you in one way or another. They're so layered and they hide their layers well. Therefore, it's astonishing when they do something so unexpected! It's undeniably a big part of what makes Invisible Girl such a great thriller.

The setting is incredibly creepy, though if you were on the outside looking in, you probably wouldn't think so. You'd see an affluent, desirable neighborhood. You wouldn't see the coldness or disconnect there. It's the perfect backdrop for Invisible Girl.

Invisible Girl will keep you turning the pages, and you'll stay up way past your bedtime just to finish it. I read it in a little over a day because, try as I might, I couldn't stay awake for those last few chapters. You are going to want to add this incredible novel to your TBR piles.

Thanks to Atria Books and NetGalley, I received an ARC of Invisible Girl. I was not required to leave a review. Invisible Girl will hit the shelves in the USA October 13, 2020.

I enjoy Jewell’s novels and find them to be less dark and scary than others I am drawn to (B.A. Paris, Riley Sager, etc.) Her latest is an enjoyable thrill ride that starts out a bit confusing, but comes together neatly in the end. There were several times where I flipped back to the beginning of the book to try to piece together the story (which wasn’t necessary to follow the plot, I just like to try to figure out whodunit). It is told through the POV of three characters - Cate, Owen, and Saffyre. Saffyre is a teenager whose former therapist is Cate’s husband, and Owen is Cate’s neighbor. I don’t want to give too much of the plot away so I’ll leave it at that. Pick this one up if you’re looking for a good thriller, just in time for spooky season!

Lisa Jewell serves up another compelling, twisty thriller sure to keep you on your toes. A teenager, Saffyre, goes missing, and the investigation homes in on a single man who has all the markings of the culprit. The man's neighbors also are connected to Saffyre, and what unfolds is a thriller that keeps you guessing. We get chapters from three different characters, Saffyre included, and the story didn't go where I expected. This was the perfect book for me to read right now, and I'm so grateful to Atria for the ARC.

A tale of suspense, wit lots of guessing and shady characters! This story is told from the POV of three characters , who lives in close proximity to each other . When Saffyre goes missing , they’re are dragged into the investigation and as the police tries to unearth her kidnapper , the truth will tear a family apart and some people lives will never be the same .
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Honestly , I’m still trying to figure out how I feel about this book. It was an interesting story and there was a Mysterious element that keeps you interested , but I’m left confused , and unfulfilled . There were something that were brought up that I feel weren’t resolve , and the ending , with the final twist leaves things open for reader’s to make their interpretation.
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One thing that really bothered me a bit was the treatment of owen both by the Media and by his neighbors just because he was a bit shy and uncomfortable . I wished his innocence was clear .
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I think the suspicion surrounding everyone helped to push the story along, but it also helped to confused the story because of the things that were left unresolved .

Lisa Jewell did a great job crafting a story with several possible suspects, each with their own possible motives. The story was told through three characters, Cate, Owen and Saffyre in alternating chapters with each of them bringing a different perspective to the unfolding events. The plot was quick and kept me guessing as to how it was all going to unfold and come together in the end. With the slow build up, I felt a little disappointed in the ending, it felt a little anticlimactic and left me wanting a little more drama or "wow I didn't see that coming". A worthwhile addition to your TBR pile, especially if you're a Lisa Jewell fan.

I read this book in probably 3 days. Usually when I read a mystery/thriller, I can somewhat predict the ending. I could not with this book-which is what kept me hooked! From what I assumed was the perfect husband, turned out to be NOT that.

Thank you to Atria Books and Netgalley for the gifted copy of Invisible Girl .

I'm usually a Lisa Jewell fan but this book just did not keep my attention. I found myself putting it down and not wanting to finish. It was long and drawn out and at about 100 pages in I was still wondering, what is the point of all of this? We got a suspected cheating husband, sexual assault, a unsafe neighborhood, bratty children, a snooping wife and a stalker....It is just a lot.

Saffyre is keeping a hefty secret. Wrecked from being dumped by her therapist, she’s taken to spying on him. While it seems unconventional, that spying allows her to see secrets that involve not just him, but the neighbor, Owen as well. Owen is going through a lot, and it’s because of that stress that things are further going awry in his life. We watch this story come together in pieces, told from alternating viewpoints, in this riveting read.

I’m always amazed when people have issues with the way the story is told. It’s because it’s broken up amongst many characters to come together in a complete picture that makes this such a thrilling read. Her characters are vivid and deep, and they are relatably flawed. They’re also keeping secrets. We parse our way through the ones that seem insignificant, to the ones that can be life-changing. A lot is going on in this one, and Jewell tackles some tough situations such as depression and sexual assault. Overall, a thrilling and suspenseful read. Thank you, Atria Books, for sending this along.

I'm having a very hard time deciding how I feel about this book. I have so loved the last few I've read from Lisa Jewell so I was very excited for this one. It is good. In some ways, very good. Again, she brings together compelling characters with so much depth and backstory. It all unfolds beautifully for the reader. I think the problem for me was that they unfolded so independently that they didn't seem to belong in the same novel. I needed her to bring the story together earlier. The concluding action and wrap up was head spinning. And not in the best way. I really needed a friend to be reading it at the same time so we could discuss. Regardless, I'm rounding up to four stars. A little given just because it's Lisa Jewell and I love her writing. Thank you to Atria Books/Netgalley for the ARC of this. I hope others will read and review so I can compare notes.

This was a slow burning psychological thriller told from 3 POV's - Saffyre, Owen, and Cate. Saffyre's POV is told from the past and slowly builds up to what happened to her on Valentine's night. Saffyre is a troubled young girl whose past with her family and her psychologist Roan (who is also Cate's husband and Owen's neighbor) haunts her. I enjoyed her POV the most from this book, whereas Owen was a weird character and Cate was a sad wife and mother.

There were a lot of questions going on in my head while reading this book - primarily what happened to Saffyre and who played a role in her disappearance? There were a few twists that i didn't see coming and I enjoyed this book much more than her last book.

This was an interesting story. It delved into multiple people's lives. Giving you perspective from multiple points.

Owen is a teacher and a completely lonely man. He still lives with his mother and has a horrid time connecting with people. No real friends to speak of and only alcohol for company its no wonder trouble finds its way into his life.

Saffyre hasn't had an easy life. A traumatic event has been dragging her down. No matter how hard she tries to get over the events, nothing makes them fully disappear. So when an opportunity presents itself she latches on without looking back.

An story that is wrapped in secrets and lies. A road that twists and turns until you finally have the whole picture revealed.

3.5 stars. This was an enjoyable family drama/ physiological thriller.
Strangers lives are mixed together, causing havoc and chaos. The Fours family gets mixed up in the disappearance of a former patient of Roans. What happened to Saffyre? Where did she go and what was he involved in? Meanwhile across the street Owen from the outside looks like a strange man in his thirties, living with his aunt and has no romantic life. Soon everyone thinks Owen has something to do with her disappearance. Once he's arrested things slowly start coming out, about him, Saffyre, and the whole Fours family.

I read this one fast I really wanted to know what was going one and wade through all the lies a secrets kept by the small town and the people involved. I enjoyed the pace and the unlikable characters, as well as the likable ones. I liked the story but something was off for me. I can't put my finger on what. Over all it was a good story, just not one of my favorite Lisa Jewell book.


Thank you Atria book and netgalley for my review copy!

Invisible Girl
A Novel
by Lisa Jewell
Atria Books
You Like Them
General Fiction (Adult) | Mystery & Thrillers
Pub Date 13 Oct 2020 | Archive Date 27 Oct 2020

One of my favorite genres is Mystery and Thriller. I liked this book, but not as much as some of Jewell's other novels. Thanks to ATria and NetGalley for the ARC.

4 star

Lisa Jewel is an auto-read author; I don't even read the descriptions for her books, as I always know what I'm going to get. But I sure wish I did with this one.

I have a pretty high tolerance for dark content in books, but after a horrifying incident in my city a few years ago, this is a topic that really shakes me. The book is based around sexual assaults and one of the points of view is from a man being introduced to the incel underground. This was hard to digest and triggering. But Jewel is a gripping writer and I told myself to trust her capable storytelling hands to give me something worth sticking around for at the other end of all this darkness. And she did.

This book had a noticeably different feel than Jewel’s other books. It’s a little more muted, a bit more character driven. The actual mystery/thriller storyline is almost a subplot, the focus a lot more on the treatment of women, the female characters and the growth (or demise) of the male characters.

This is how I was able to read through the incel undertones. We weren’t just given a bad guy who was an incel, Jewel explored the conversations around it, conversations around views of women, how they think, how most men aren’t even fully aware that their words, approach, interactions are anything but innocent.

I enjoyed this book a lot, but in a much different way than I usually enjoy a Jewel book. It actually reminded me a bit more of the first book of hers I read, The House We Grew Up In which is not as psychologically thrilling as the books that follow, but more of look at the dynamics of a family with poignant prose. This felt like it fell somewhere in between her new and old work and the dynamic really worked.

I received an ARC in exchange for an honest review. Thanks, Netgalley and Atria Books!

Hands down my favorite Lisa Jewell book yet! I enjoyed the alternating character POV chapters; it was a great way to develop them all, and each of them see different, yet intertwined pieces of the story. But you need them all to put the pieces together.

Definitely a fast-paced and engrossing read!

3.5 rounded up

“There in the common playground at school, or in the sixth-form common room, all eyes were on me, but at night I did not exist, I was the Invisible Girl. Invisibility was my favorite state of existence.”

There was something different about this story as compared to the other two I’ve read Jewell’s - Then She Was Gone and The Family Upstairs, the reason I got back on the thriller wagon! I loved her usual character development which was engrossing, but a little too dragged out, and slowed down the entire story. It was the case with her two books I read, but it still had things happening in between propelling the story forward. With ‘Invisible Girl’, the first 2/3 of the books were focused a lot on the characters with nothing much happening.

The story was told from 3 different POVs – Owen Pick, a weird 33-year-old guy, who had been single his whole life; Cate Fours the mother of a family who had just moved into the neighborhood, living there temporarily, and Saffyre Maddox, a 17-year-old girl who had been self-harming since she was 10.

Owen Pick gave me the creeps in the beginning. He was a computer science lecturer, who taught 16-18 year olds, whose mother died when he was 18. His father was almost non-existent and always had excuses not to spend time with him. He lived with his Aunt Tessie, who didn’t treat him like a nephew and didn’t even allow him to enter her living room. Georgia Fours, Cate’s daughter, suspected that he stalked her one day when she was walking home from school and gave her really weird vibes. He was accused of sexual misconduct and was given a 2-week suspension from school. But as the story progressed, I was given the impression that he was just a misunderstood guy.

Cate Fours, a physiotherapist and mother of two teenagers – Georgia and Josh. Her husband, Roan was a child psychologist and was busy most of the time. Ever since their move to Hamspstead, he seemed even more distracted, and oftentimes going off for his runs and once Cate caught him heading to the tube station, something he rarely did during a workday. Their marriage almost ended one time when Cate suspected him of having an affair but immediately felt guilty when Roan was outraged and accused her of being ridiculous. Maybe she was overthinking again. One of Roan’s clients happened to be Saffyre, who was with him for three years.

Saffyre felt she wasn’t ready to be on her own yet, and still unwanted to be under Roan’s care. She seemed to be pulled and charmed by Roan’s ability to stop her from self-harm and was attracted to his looks. So, when she saw him again, she decided to follow him and saw that he wasn’t the man he portrayed himself to be and she was utterly disappointed. But that didn’t deter her from stalking him and continued to do so even when she befriended Josh, Roan’s son. In him, she found a true friend and started feeling better about herself.

Then one day, on the night of Valentine’s Day, Saffyre went missing. Interviews and suspicion led to Owen Pick, the weird, creepy neighbor, who was the last to have seen her alive. Cate was relieved now that the suspect had been apprehended. But her intuition made her feel otherwise. Her husband’s nonchalant behavior towards the case was unsettling, her son’s reaction and sudden outburst one day caught her by surprise. Something didn’t sit right. What was it? Did they catch the right guy? If so, then why was she feeling edgy? If not, the neighborhood was still unsafe.

Meanwhile, Owen was trying to defend himself, telling the police they had no evidence whatsoever to apprehend him. If he was guilty, why would he implicate himself by telling them he saw Saffyre the night she went missing? But his suspension from school, his regular visits to an incel (involuntary celibates) website and date-rape drugs found in his room made him the most possible suspect even though it proved nothing and had no connection to Saffyre. He tried to point the investigation towards the founder of the incel website, Bryn, whom he met, but apparently, this person didn’t exist.

Was Owen as guilty as he looked? What was the reason for Josh’s sudden outburst? Why didn’t he tell Cate about his friendship with Saffyre? What was he hiding? And why Roan didn’t seem to care at all?

This is the 3rd Jewell’s book I’ve read so far, still good, but not my favorite. ‘The Family Upstairs’ was the best! It still haunts me today. ‘Invisible Girl’ was a very slow burn for a thriller. It only picked up towards the end of the second half. Was it worth it? In a way, yes, because when it picked up, it was like you were suddenly on a bullet train. But I also felt a little cheated because of how the story was directed and veered me very, very far away from the track.

This book made me realize how much we judge a book by its cover and how easily we let others influence our thoughts about people whom we find different from us.

Overall, a decent thriller and I’m excited to see what Jewell has next! Her books have been consistently good!

Invisible Girl brings together a group of seemingly unrelated people - Owen, a lonely teacher who was suspended from his job as a teacher after being accused of sexual misconduct, Cate and Roan, seemingly happy parents of two teenagers, and Saffyre, a former patient of Roan's psychology practice. As their paths cross, the story unfolds, leading up to and following Saffyre's disappearance. ⁣
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This is a fast paced story that does contain references to self harm and sexual assault, so reader beware.

Lisa Jewell has been a go-to author for a number of years. Her books are uniquely themed they are mysterious, suspenseful and keep me guessing.

Invisible Girl released last month in the UK and for us folks in North America it hits bookshelves in a couple of weeks.

I’ll confess that this got off to a slow start for me, I was a little confused with the cast of characters and how they fit together. But really I didn’t need to know the connections right away but just needed to sit back knowing the author would connect the dots.

So there is this family that obviously has secrets. To be honest I found them to be an odd bunch, they just had that vibe. The mom, Cate, is one of the view points. She made me nervous and paranoid.

Then there is the weird guy across the street, Owen Pick he lives with his aunt and yea he is a tad strange also and another POV. There were some things I didn't need to know about, but alas it was needed for the story (like an online presence called incel - didn't know it was a thing).

Add a 17 year old girl named Saffyre (which is a cool name) and this makes for some interesting dynamics, she is final POV. It was hers that I enjoyed hearing from, as her past comes to light I couldn’t help but have motherly feeling for her. But her actions left me scratching my head at times.

So basically this book is about some odd characters that somehow are connected.
It wasn’t until the last half of the book where I was really invested, that had me doing a marathon read.
I'd call this a darker Lisa Jewell book, I was forewarned back in January when I had the awesome privilege of meeting the author.

While this might not be my favourite Jewell book, that honour goes to Then She Was Gone, though it might change as I continue reading her backlist.