This is the ninth in the Sarah Winston Garage Sale Mystery series.
Sarah’s landlady and friend, Stella is kidnapped. The kidnapper has decided to make life difficult for Sarah. She isn’t allowed to call the police & is sent all over the surrounding area doing tasks for the man.

I haven’t read this series in order. I had no problem keeping up and following the storyline and characters’ backgrounds.

I enjoyed the mystery and the misdirections only added to the intensity of finding out who was behind it.

This mystery was top notch and I can’t wait for the next. In the meantime, I’ll catch up on the four I have recently purchased.

Wow! In Absence of Alice, Sherry Harris takes the standard framework of a cozy and turns it on its head, making it one of the best books I've read this year. Harris's Garage Sale series has become one of my go-to cozy series because of her cast of characters, her nuggets of garage sale information, and her intriguing mysteries, but this one is on a whole new level. I don't expect edge-of-your-seat suspense and tension when I read a cozy, but it's certainly front and center in Absence of Alice. I was genuinely worried about what was going to happen to Sarah's friend Stella. The kidnapper seemed to know everything Sarah did and everyone she spoke to, and Sarah's emotions at not being able to confide in her nearest and dearest touched my heart.

I was so happy to see that my wish came true after reading the previous book in the series, Sell Low, Sweet Harriet. I wanted more of Harriet, and I got it in Absence of Alice. And-- wonder of wonders-- Harris managed to distract me enough that when the kidnapper's identity was revealed, I was totally gobsmacked. That very seldom ever happens, so I'm always thrilled when it does.

Author Sherry Harris stretches the limits of the typical cozy mystery by putting her main character in an extraordinary position and making her fight her way to the conclusion, but she still remains true to the form. My eyes even welled with (happy) tears at the end, so be forewarned and have tissues handy. Don't worry if you haven't read a Sarah Winston Garage Sale mystery before. Harris gives you the information you need to keep up with the story and let me tell you, this is a story that I don't want you to miss!

Absence of Alice is a well written and entertaining cozy mystery. Loved the plot and character dynamics. Mystery fans will love this book. I received an advance ebook from the publisher and Netgalley and this is my unbiased review.

This is a clever mystery filled with twists and turns. A)ice has hired sarah to go through her junk before she sells it because she wants to make as much money as she can off of her stuff. While sarah is busy going through alices things, her landlady stella gets kidnapped. There is so much going on in this book. The characters are likeable. The story got my attention in the second chapter. I wanted to hurry up and finish it so I could find out who the criminal is. I read it in one afternoon. I really enjoyed this book . I would recommend this book.

The Absence of Alice is an enthralling, dark, unusual, and just plain fun cozy mystery.

Someone is taunting Sarah. She has seven days to find her landlady and friend Stella. But she must follow the kidnapper’s rules.
1. No talking to the police, your DA boyfriend, Seth, or your mobbed-up neighbor, Mike.
2. Continue your daily routine.
3. Complete all my daily tasks.
The first task is discovering a dead body in a deserted house. The body is dressed garishly as Alice in Wonderland. When Sarah calls the police, she is punished by the kidnapper by speeding up her deadline. What is the kidnapper’s purpose? Is he trying to punish Stella, Sarah or both of them? And why is Alice in Wonderland spread throughout the clues?

OMG, I just loved Absence of Alice. It is a real challenge to solve. The characters are fully fleshed-out and felt like old friends by the end. Plus it’s a blast to use my favorite childhood book, Alice in Wonderland, as a plot device in a cozy mystery. I have read thousands of cozy mysteries and the plot of this one is totally unique. Do yourself a favor and pick this book up! 5 stars and a favorite.

Thanks to Kensington Books and NetGalley for a copy in exchange for my honest review.

Absence of Alice by Sherry Harris (Sarah Winston Garage Sale Mystery #9) 3.75 stars

I read last years entry "Sell Low, Sweet Harriet" and was intrigued. When the opportunity to review this book came up I jumped at the chance. Sarah Winston is a garage sale expert and works on a commission basis. Her latest client Alice Krandle is sure she has a fortune on her hands because Zoe, another garage sale contractor offered her a set sum for the entire contents. Not only does Sarah has to deal with Zoe, a competitor and ex-employee, but her landlady Stella has been kidnapped. The kidnapper sends Sarah to a empty house where she finds a dead body dressed up in a Alice in Wonderland costume. The kidnapper dictates the terms and threatens Stella's life. Sarah is warned that if she contacts the police Stella will die. Who can she trust and can she save Stella from a grisly fate.

This is not your typical cozy mystery, at times it reads like a thriller with a clock ticking in the background. Stella has able help in this situation because Hannah her part-time helper is an ex-FBI negotiator. I had no clue as to the identity of the villain. The various supporting characters in this series is more a hindrance than help, since she has to avoid law enforcement and her boyfriend Seth, a local DA. The book was suspenseful, but final chapter fell a little flat for me.

Thank you Netgalley and Kensington Books for this ARC.

Sherry Harris has written another first class cozy mystery with book #9 in the Sarah Winston series. It works as a stand alone but, if you enjoy Absence of Alice as much as I did, you will want to play catchup. Sarah has come a long way from being a military wife to a new life as a garage sale organizer with a new man in her life. Her life is going well, business is good but it isn't meant to last. While she is pulling things together for a new client, Sarah's dear friend and landlady, Stella vanishes. Then the games begin - somebody has kidnapped Stella and Sarah is the focus of the kidnapper. The demands are made to Sarah with the first command - don't contact the police. That doesn't stop Sarah from enlisting the help of her friend Harriet, a former FBI agent. Now Sarah has to do what she is told to do by the kidnapper, try to figure out who is pulling the strings and find Stella - all the while trying to run her business.
I'm glad I started this book in the morning because I read it in one sitting. It kept me engaged from the beginning and left me saying Wow at the end. It was complex with many threads that kept me guessing. The regular characters were present with some new ones added. As for the tone, there was a serious edge to this cozy but not enough to move it out of the cozy category. It was a very enjoyable read.
My thanks to the publisher Kensington and to NetGalley for giving me an advance copy in exchange for my honest review.

Latest book in the Sarah Winston garage sales mystery series.

A lot of bizarre things are happening in this story. It looked like a prank, which was deadly serious. Sarah's friend is kidnapped and she receives strange messages. The kidnapper also hints that he will know if she contacts the police.

Sarah sets off on a search to find her friend while trying not to ask the police for help.

Content warning: Gun violence

This is one of my favorite cozy series. I read all of this authors books. She creates delightful charcters and fun mysteries. Thank you to the publisher and to Net Galley for the ARC for review. My review opinions are my own. This is the 9th Garage Sale mystery.

We return to our protagnist Sarah and her busy garage sale business. She enjoys her business and has branched out over the years successfully to now arranging sales for wealthy clients with antiques. Her current client has a house full of antiques that Sarah must price and arrange for sale. She is busy with the job at hand when her landlady and her best friend is kidnapped . The kidnapped contacts her and tells her not to contact police. Sarah being a savvy smart sleuth calls her friend formally in the FBI to help. The suspense builds and I honestly had not idea how it would end. Very well done to the author ! All the returning charcters are here that we love and they join in with Sarah to help find her friend . The sleuth was one of the best I have every read in a cozy ! It was so suspenseful and exciting I read this book from cover to cover. I cannot wait for the next in series.

I highly recommend this entire series and this as my favorite in the series .

Terrific. Fantastic addition to a great series. It kept me guessing and I was wrong. Sarah's adventures had me flipping the pages. Nice characters and good relationships.

This is the second book I have read by Sherry Harris, and I am truly delighted to have discovered her works! It turns out that this book is from a garage sales mystery series, and it has several books leading to this one. However, I was very pleased to discover how easy it was to read as a stand alone book! Many series I have read have not been as easy to follow when picking up in the middle. I was thrilled to experience this book, and to have references to previous stories within the storyline of this book that made it so that I could easily understand current and past relationships.

The thing I love most about how Ms. Harris creates her mystery stories is that they are absolutely not easy to predict the endings! All of the characters that you will need to know are within the storyline, but the way each relationship is revealed keeps the mystery well intact until the very last chapter or so. This is perfect! I also loved the final twist in this story that I truly did not see coming! It totally made for a perfect ending!

I will absolutely be seeking more stories by Sherry Harris. I love her humorous way of spinning her tales! I found myself laughing throughout this story...even at moments that would otherwise be quite tense. This is a wonderful talent for an author to have!

I received a complimentary copy of this book from Kensington Books through NetGalley. Opinions expressed in this review are completely my own.

Someone has kidnapped Stella! Sarah gets the call AND the warning that she should clue in the police or anyone else, which means her boyfriend Seth, who is a DA, or her neighbor Mike the mobster. But, she's got Harriet, a former FBI negotiator working for her now and no one said Harriet can't help! This latest installment in a long running series is delightful and fine as a standalone, although I especially enjoyed watching the growth in Sarah's character. When the series started she was a military wife who did garage sales; she's since divorced, moved, and expanded her business into online sales. She's got a lot on her hands, btw, with Alice, who thinks her stuff is worth more than it probably is. This felt a little darker than some of the earlier books but it's a very good read. Thanks to netgalley for the ARC. The ending, btw, was a surprise, even to me, a fan and regular reader of the genre. Eagerly anticipating the next one!

Absence of Alice by Sherry Harris brings murder, mystery and suspense to a cozy mystery set in Ellington, Massachusetts. This is the ninth book in the Sarah Winston Garage Sale Mystery series.

Our protagonist, Sarah started a business two years ago organizing on site and online garage sales. Her latest client, Alice Krandle, is sure she can make a lot of money from the antiques and art work that she owns. Meanwhile, Sarah’s landlady and friend, Stella is kidnapped. Unfortunately, the kidnapper has decided to make life difficult for Sarah as well. He contacts Sarah with a list of rules including “Don’t call the police” as well as having her run all other town doing tasks. Sarah can’t get questions out of her mind. Who has kidnapped Stella? Why are they contacting Sarah? Should she abide by the rules? Will Stella be rescued? Is Sarah’s life also in danger? While she jumps to meet the kidnapper’s demands, Sarah is having to continue to work with clients on their garage sales as well as her own upcoming anniversary garage sale on the town common.

This novel continues to feature many of the reoccurring characters that are Sarah’s friends that I have come to know and enjoy spending time with as well as a few new characters to bring variety and twists to the story. Sarah’s growth over the course of the series is clearly demonstrated as well as how she interacts with and feels about the other characters.

This story brought more suspense and anxiety to the table than previous novels and is therefore somewhat darker. However, it is still a cozy mystery without the gory details being explicitly shown. Sarah’s emotional state and her ability to “think on her feet” play a large role in this novel. So does her resilience, courage, hope and love. There was a fast pace from scene to scene and the subplots tied together well. The tension, stakes and action built up to an exciting ending. Themes include murder, kidnapping, friendship, relationships and trust.

Overall, this was an intense cozy mystery that quickly drew me into Sarah’s world. I felt like I was trying to help her find Stella and identify the kidnapper. It’s the seventh book I have read by this author and I am looking forward to the next one. I recommend it to those that enjoy the genre. This can be read as a standalone novel, but I would recommend reading the series in order to gain more insight into the characters and their backgrounds.

I received a complimentary copy of this book from Kensington Books and Sherry Harris via NetGalley. Opinions expressed in this review are completely my own and are not biased in any way. Publication date is currently set for December 29, 2020. This review was originally posted at Mystery and Suspense Magazine.

3.75 stars

This latest entry in the Sarah Winston Garage Sale series features the characters we have come to know. Sarah was a military wife in her previous life. After a divorce, she re-invented herself as a professional garage sale organizer in a small New England town, and now she has her own apartment, a circle of friends, and a boyfriend.

This time out, Sarah is shocked to get a phone call from a kidnapper who says he is holding her friend Stella hostage. He threatens Sarah with her friend's death if she divulges the kidnapping to anyone and gives her a series of clues and tasks to complete. The clock is ticking as she tries to track down Stella before it's too late.

The plot is a bit over the top but full of suspense. You could read this as a standalone but previous experience with the other books in the series helps with background. Thanks to the publisher and to Net Galley for providing me with an ARC in exchange for my honest review.

Absence of Alice is a fantastic new entry in the Sarah Winston Garage Sale Mystery series. In a nutshell, Sarah's friend Stella is kidnapped, and when the kidnapper contacts Sarah demanding she complete certain tasks for him and forbidding her to contact law enforcement, she of course is ready to jump through hoops to ensure Stella's safety. This entry is a bit darker than the other entries in the series, and man my emotions were high while reading - I don't think a cozy mystery has ever made me feel so many feelings before! Great mystery with a really interesting set of suspects. The series has also seen some really interesting new characters, to include former FBI hostage negotiator Harriet Balliou, who makes a reappearance in this book, the continued conflict from Zoey, and the introduction of another intriguing character, Rosalie's nephew Emil. There's a lot to love here and II'm really looking forward to the next book.

Yes, yes, yes! Here is another hit by Sherry Harris in The Absence of Alice. My first cozy mystery was a book written bu Harris and that is what kept me reading more. I love the characters and how developed and social they are with others. Almost like you are in the book while reading it. I highly recommend this book if you love mysteries that will have you rooting for the protagonist right away.

Thank you to netgalley as well as the author/publisher for allowing me to read this book in exchange for my honest review.

Someone doesn't like Sarah Winston and has set out to cause people she is close to all sorts of trouble. When she receives a phone call telling her to follow absurd instructions or her friend Stella will die, she thinks it is a joke. That is until she discovers Stella never made it to Los Angeles.. Cautioned not to call the police of her boyfriend Seth, Sarah tries to stay busy with her latest garage sale client is Alice Krandle. Alice is sure she can make lots of money selling her antiques through a garage sale. Distracted by the crazy scavenger-like search from the kidnapper, Sarah isn't at her best. She enlists the aid of he friend Harriet a former FBI hostage negotiator and they soon discover what is behind this bizarre threat. Another terrific, entertaining book by Sherry Harris

This is the first of this series that I have read, but it will not be the last. Like cozy mysteries it was easy to dive right into this volume of the series, I have the first book already on reserve at the library. While I enjoyed this book, I have to say I’m not certain it truly felt like a cozy mystery which is what I was expecting. That being said, I have a wide array of genre interests and I really enjoyed this story. It was fast paced and kept me on the edge of my seat. The amateur sleuth, Sarah, is certainly put in a tough spot in this story but she is resourceful and a very like able narrator. The book starts with a bang with Sarah getting a call from a mysterious man claiming he has kidnapped her best friend.

WOW, that was one crazy trip down the rabbit hole. This cozy was as intense as the Hatter is MAD. I do not know how garage sale guru and professional organizer, Sarah Winston, was able to keep her head or her wits about her. Great plot developement, just like a well played chess match, and there are a slew of players. Sarah has to rely on her wits in order to find her friend and landlady, Stella, who has been kidnapped. Instead of a ransom, Sarah is told to follow the clues. Clues that are as nutty as the March Hare and as confusing as Wonderland itself. I was able to mark one or two possible suspects off the list but it took me rereading a few passages just to be sure. My heart ached when Sarah's ached, for her missing friend, for having to lie to her love, and for knowing that she had lost the trust of those she thinks highly of, but what would any of them do if they were in her shoes. She was determined to do as instructed until she couldn't. What a story! I think I need a glass of wine and a bianco pizza!

This was a great read. From the beginning I was hooked, and deeply invested in the hunt for Sarah's best friend.
The author, Sherry Harris, of building the intrigue and did a great job of moving the story along. She created some exceptionally tense moments.

If there was any criticism, it was the the perpetrator was just a little unbelievable. However, this didn't detract from my overall enjoyment of this mystery thriller.

I haven't read the others in the series and found it stood apart as a separate novel very well.

With thanks to Kensington, the author and #NetGalley for my advanced reader copy in exchange for an honest review.