kidnapping, suspense, scary-parts, scavenger-hunt, threats, law-enforcement, small-business, small-town, Massachusetts, amateur-sleuth

Stella is Sarah's friend and landlady but she is absent because she was kidnapped by someone with a malicious sense of humor with the greater intent of making Sarah go through hoops and suffer guilt. The suspense is intense and the plot twists are quite diabolical but there is no violence and sometimes there is just the right touch of humor. While this is one in a series, it easily stands alone. Excellent reading!
I requested and received a free ebook copy from Kensington Books via NetGalley. Thank you!

This book will hold great appeal to lovers of mysteries which also have strong, appealing characters, terrific descriptions and amusing dialogue. I was excited to learn the author has a back catalogue which I can now enjoy!

Absence of Alice is the 9th in the Garage Sale Mysteries by Sherry Harris. Sarah Winston, who has made a business of organizing garage sales, receives a message that her friend and landlady Stella has been kidnapped. Whoever has taken Stella knows a lot about Sarah and tells her that if she goes to the police (including Awesome Stella’s boyfriend), the D.A. (Sarah’s boyfriend Seth) or Mike (hmmm, possible mobster and the person who often helps Sarah out of a jam), then Stella won’t be returned alive.

The mystery was fast-paced and well-crafted. The suspense almost made me read ahead! I love that Sarah is a resourceful, independent protagonist with strong emotional ties and believable relationships. As Sarah rushed to beat the clock, complete each “task”, and follow the trail of clues, this reader couldn’t help but wonder if this would turn into a deadly scavenger hunt for both Sarah and Stella! I voluntarily reviewed an advance reader copy and all opinions are my own.

This is the 9th installment in the Sarah Winston Garage Sale Mystery. Sarah is getting ready to help her next client (Alice) get her ready for garage sale in which she already has a generous offer for the entire lot but she feels now that with Sarah’s help she can get even more for what she has to sell. Sarah is also excited as she has now been in this town for two years and is feeling good about what she has built when she gets a phone call that her friend Stella has been kidnapped. She is advised not to contact the police and with this being a small town, Sarah is convinced that whoever has done this has a way of finding out what Sarah is up to. Sarah has to balance her business and now with following the clues that is being left for her to find Stella’s kidnapper and save Stella from being killed. She is doing her best to act as normally as possible. The story has lots of twists and turns and keeps you guessing along the way. This is a unique series as there is no formula here and each story offers a good solid plot and the story keeps you engaged until the very end. Great series and this installment does not disappoint. In fact, I think this series just keeps getting better. Highly recommend.

This was my first time reading a book by this author and I was pleasantly suŕprised.

The plot had enough surprises to sustain my attention. The characters were very well depicted.

Thanks to Netgalley this free copy. Ì am leaving my honest review.

Absence of Alice by Sherry Harris started slow and gradually drew me in. Thanks to Netgalley for the opportunity to read this good book. Sarah Winston has been the owner of a garage sale business for 2 years. She does a garage sale for her friend Alice and discovers a body. Another one of her friends, Stella, gets kidnapped. Sarah goes on an adventure to find Stella, but then the police begin interrogating her. Glad I stuck with this book, it was pretty good.

This was my first garage sale mystery with sleuth Sarah Winston. First thing I can say is it will not be my last. Sarah finds herself in a sticky situation when her landlord is kidnapped! The kidnapper has lots of rules for her to follow or he will kill Stella. This one had so many twist and turns at every chapter. The mystery was exciting and I didn’t figure it out until the very end. A lovely cast of characters and ideally little town. This one was fantastic and I can’t wait to catch up with the series!
#AbsenceofAlice #NetGalley

I recently read Sherry Harris' first book in her new series (From Beer to Eternity) and was hooked on her characters and plot, so I immediately dove into her Garage Sale Mystery series. Harris perfectly captured the life of military and ex-military families when she created Sarah Winston, and the stories are engaging. In the latest, Sarah is caught between the proverbial rock and a hard place, as she must solve the the mystery without turning to her friends. Though a series, the Garage Sale mysteries do not need to be read in order.

Thanks to Kensington Books for access to a digital ARC via NetGalley.

Garage sale organizer Sarah Winston markets, prices and values items for her clients. In a sinister and devious plot, she is forced into the horrifying position of making impossible choices which are infinitely harder than object valuations. She is led through a labyrinth of problems, each unexpected, each calling on her to draw on her wit and intellect.

An unconventional cozy mystery, Absence of Alice is all about suspense which is a wonderfully refreshing surprise. The story has substance and depth. I found myself unable to put it down to break for lunch! Such a smooth and easy read, start to finish. The unique cleverness of the plot is the biggest draw for me. The author had me guessing and re-guessing, scrutinizing each character to bits. Everything just works seamlessly...thoughtful, smart and engaging.

Seeking a different mystery with gripping dark elements, yet still a cozy without the violence? You really should read this, my favourite thus far in the series. Brilliant. An easy 5 star.

My sincere thank you to Kensington Books and NetGalley for providing me with an ARC of this riveting book in exchange for an unbiased review. Much appreciated.

With thanks to Kensington Books and NetGalley for the ARC.
Description
For bargain hunter extraordinaire Sarah Winston, starting life over in Ellington, Massachusetts, has been a true trash-to-treasure success story, except when there's a run on dead bodies...
Sarah's latest client, Alice Krandle, is sure she has a fortune in antiques on her hands. She's already gotten a generous offer for the whole lot before her garage sale has even begun, but she thinks she can earn more with Sarah's expert help. The problem is that while Sarah's sorting through items from decades past, her landlady, Stella, faces a clear and present danger.

Review
OK, I have just found another favourite cozy mystery author. I thoroughly enjoyed reading this book and I became so invested in finding out what happened to Sarah, Seth, Harriet and Stella et al that I read the whole thing in one installment. Excellent pace and enough twists and red herrings to keep the guessing game going throughout. The conclusion surprised me and was very well described. I am looking forward to reading more work by this author and I would highly recommend this series to any cozy fan. Try it, you will not be disappointed.

Having not read the previous books in this series, I wasn’t sure what to expect. But I was pleasantly surprised and impressed with the story, the characters, and the mystery; the plot had a few twists and turns to keep me guessing and it each chapter moved at a zippy pace without throwing too much at you.

Another garage sale client has Sarah Winston busy as she plans her own sale to celebrate the two year anniversary of her business. It’s the perfect time for a sadistic person to kidnap her close friend Stella and send Sarah on a wild goose chase as the timer runs down on the time allotted to find her friend before the kidnapper kills Stella. Between balancing her business and looking for her friend, while keeping those closest to her and the police out of it, there’s not much more Sarah can do than play the sick game. As Sarah pieces together clues, can she solve the mystery before others are hurt, or she herself becomes the victim?

This is one of my must read series and every book is better than the last. Though this one is the best one so far! Ask mea gain when book number 10 is released and I’ll probably say the same…they truly do get better with each entry.

Never been much into yard sales, slowly but surely this series has won me over with Sarah, the main character. Well written with plenty of twists and turns to keep in interesting. Great addition.

This book has lots of suspense to it. I was biting my nails all the way though it. I love the characters and felt bad for Sarah throughout this book. It's a fast read and the mystery is thrilling. #AbsenceofAlice #NetGalley

Great addition to the Sarah Winston Garage Sale Mystery series.
As Sarah is prepping a sale for a client, she receives a phone call telling her that her friend;landlady Stella has been kidnapped. She is told not to contact the authorities and is given things to do while trying to find Stella with the clock ticking. It also appears that Sarah is being monitored somehow. The identity of the kidnapper was a complete surprise.

Reading this series makes me i had to energy to get up and see what treasures I could find at yard sales. The characters in this series.

3.75 stars

This book took me by surprise. Not your typical cozy mystery; an engaging storyline filled with twist and turns. Enjoyed the plot, characters and the final reveal. Would recommend.


Thank you to NetGalley, Sherry Harris, and Kensington Books for the ARC of this book.

As a big fan of Sherry Harris, and Absence of Alice is the best book in this series.
Sarah Winston is an unforgettable character, full of charm, wit, and dedication, to her friends, business, and family.
In this book, Sarah is working on a garage sale for a client, but when a strange phone call sets off a string of events that has the potential to hurt the ones she loves, she must go against everything she believes in to find the answers.

I felt that this book was like an odd scavenger hunt, having Sarah wait for clues, racing against the clock, and keeping most of it from those she loves the most.

I had no idea how this was going to play out, but I was not prepared for how it ended. I was stunned, I still am actually, which proves just how excellent this story is.
I can't wait to see what happens next in this exciting series.

Sarah Winston is preparing for a garage sale when she receives a phone call from a stranger saying he’s kidnapped her neighbor Stella, and unless Sarah does what he wants without informing the police and friends, he will harm her. The kidnapper gives her 6 days and many tasks to figure it out.

I’ve read all books in this series but I was still surprised to find this is already number nine. While the others were enjoyable, Absence of Alice hits it out of the park and takes the series to the next level. The reoccurring diverse characters of course help make the series wonderful, as does the addition of a new relative of the DiNapoli’s, but the mystery and stellar plot of this book really make it stand out. I enjoyed that Sarah wasn’t continually back and forth to the base, and the plot was unique and hard to figure out who was causing the trouble. It was a totally unexpected ending that I didn’t see coming. As usual I love reading about garage sales and the Boston suburbs.