Lisa Gardner's stand alone Before She Disappeared is a fast paced, gritty mystery set in Boston, MA. The protagonist, Frankie Elkin is a complicated former alcoholic with no family or friends who is committed to searching for missing persons all across the country. She focuses on cases that have gone cold and those who seem to have been forgotten. With no training at all, just her people skills and quick thinking she sets out to find missing 15 year old Haitian immigrant Angelique Badeau.
What I loved: I loved the depth of the main character. She has been through a devastating loss that she seems to be punishing herself for through the whole book. Will finding the missing teen alive will somehow redeem her? The supporting characters were also wonderful, Stoney, the stone cold bar owner, Viv the vivacious cook and Emmanuel the techy brother of the missing teen are some of my favorites.
What I liked: I liked the fast pace and humor in this one. I found myself chuckling at the witty banter between Frankie and the lead detective. Don't get me wrong, this book is not fluffy. There are some intense scenes.
What fell flat: The mystery of the missing teen felt a little forced and unbelievable even though it was a unique enterprise it wasn't dangerous and didn't require captives. That is all I can say without spoilers.
Overall, a great quick read with deep characters and setting. A touch of humor and nice neat ending.

This was a great stand alone missing persons novel from the queen of suspense novels Lisa Gardner. Frankie the main character was full of demons and secrets but came across as likeable while broken. The story was enough to keep the reader engaged and the ending was definitely not what I saw coming, great read.

Frankie investigates missing cases of minorities who often slip through the cracks. She always finds her missing person... but the outcomes are never what she hopes they will be. After a particularly devastating case of a young mother found in her hidden car in a body of water, Frankie choses her next case from the various message boards that she follows, moves to the area, and begins her investigation into the disappearance of stellar student, Angelique Badeau. This case proves to be far more complicated and sinister than she had anticipated. It will take the collaboration of Frankie, the detective assigned to the case, the liaison officer, and Angelique's friends and family to find out what happened to this mild mannered teenager before it's too late.
Gardner has a unique talent of grabbing you attention from the very beginning and weaving two seemingly unrelated stories together seamlessly. While I wished that Frankie could find the peace that she desperately needs, her thoughts and actions are far more realistic and relatable than a story with a predictable conclusion. Frankie would make for an interesting sequel or series.

This book will hook you from the first chapter! So, I was excited to read Gardner's first stand-alone novel. Now that I have read it, I don't want it to end!! I want to see more of Frankie and her dysfunctional yet functional self! She has hit this book out of the park. I do not by any means read fast and I had this book done in two day! Preorder this NOW! Its out January 19, you need this!

Thank you Netgalley for this advance copy.

I’ve been hearing about Lisa Gardner for ages. She’s been on my TBR for a while. I even own some of her books, but I’ve never gotten around to reading them. Thanks to Netgalley and the publisher letting me have this book, she’s moved to the top of my “must-read” list. Holy smokes, this book was excellent. If you haven’t read any of her books, this one will be a great place to start.

From Goodreads: Frankie Elkin is an average middle-aged woman, a recovering alcoholic with more regrets than belongings. But she spends her life doing what no one else will–searching for missing people the world has stopped looking for. When the police have given up, when the public no longer remembers, when the media has never paid attention, Frankie starts looking.

A new case brings her to Mattapan, a Boston neighborhood with a rough reputation. She is searching for Angelique Badeau, a Haitian teenager who vanished from her high school months earlier. Resistance from the Boston PD and the victim’s wary family tells Frankie she’s on her own–and she soon learns she’s asking questions someone doesn’t want to be answered. But Frankie will stop at nothing to discover the truth, even if it means the next person to go missing could be her.

First of all, Frankie is awesome. She’s funny and can stand her ground and is passionate about helping people. She makes no apologies for being an alcoholic and doesn’t use it as an excuse but as motivation. Her charm makes her friends, even when she’s an outsider in every way. The plot itself was tightly-written with no annoying tropes. It’s easy to root for Frankie, even if she’s not perfect. She’s a realistic character, which is endearing. The storyline was clever and left me guessing until the end. When this one comes out in January, make a point to grab it.

This book had me from page one. Frankie's unusual "hobby" is something I've not heard of before, and it was especially interesting since there are people who do this in real life.

I was fascinated by how the plot played out via the questions Frankie asked, and it kept me guessing to the very end. I was pleased to be surprised at the end!

In addition to Frankie, several other characters come to life in interesting ways, and the author's descriptions of Haitian food had me drooling.

It was a genuine pleasure to read this book. I think I've found a new favorite author!

4.5 stars

I read something after I finished reading this book that I thought was interesting. Apparently, this is the first stand alone book written by Lisa Gardner in twenty something years. That is saying something. I personally have enjoyed many of her books and am a fan of her series. It is always nice to come back to a world that we are familiar with and characters that we have already met. After saying that, I have no other information, but I would not be surprised if this becomes the first book in a new series.

We get to meet Frankie. Frankie is a very troubled and difficult to like main character. I struggled with this the entire book. She is aware of her faults, yet that self awareness really doesn't help to make things any better. She is a recovering alcoholic bartender whose entire life is kept in one suitcase. She is on a self appointed mission to help find missing people and is a traveling nomad, going from place to place when she finds information on a person who has been listed as missing, that society - or law enforcement - has given up on. We get to travel along on this "case" that involves a missing 16 year old girl from a part of Boston that is filled with Haitian immigrants. The story is very well written and keeps up a fast pace as Frankie's actions start things moving in a previously "cold" case. There is also the mystery of her past with "Paul" that is sprinkled in to the present with snippets here and there, revealing a story by very small bits and pieces.

As I mentioned before, she is a difficult to like character and I found that I was frustrated with her often. But, I still was rooting for her and hoping that she might be able to grow and move past some of her issues as we learned more about the tragedies in her life. That is why I think there is more for us to see with Frankie (more books to come???). She was able to pull me in, even though she was a challenge to like. I WANTED her to succeed and I want to see her feel the validation that comes with being good and successful at what she does.

So...very enjoyable book. I liked it and whether this is a one and done or the beginning of more, I am along for the ride.

Thank you to NetGalley for allowing me to read this ARC. The opinions expressed are completely my own.

Lisa's FIRST standalone in decades?? WOW! What a fun story this was. It's clearly a Gardner book, yet it is still fresh. I really enjoyed the main character. Gardner spent lots of time on development of this character, which was appreciated. I thought the story was unique and definitely in-keeping with current times. Fast-paced, yet detail-oriented in the best way. Go Lisa Gardner!

This is a new stand-alone book for Gardner!! Even though, after meeting Frankie, I doubt this will be a stand-alone for long! This book was inspired by a woman named Lissa Yellowbird-Chase who is a civilian who searches for missing persons for a living. I loved the premise of this book but it was a little too slow paced for me.

Frankie was a lovable character but I wish the Paul stuff was more laid out. I still have no idea about the true inner workings of their relationship so I wish that would have been laid out a bit more.
The story of the missing persons was interesting and I love Gardners writing but I feel like there was a lot of fluff. Most time I was reading I would be desperate to skip ahead to the next part of the story. I did find the Detective Lotham to be an addicting character. For fans of Gardner, people said they saw a lot of DD in Frankie but I see a lot of DD in Lotham! Overall, I am a huge Gardner fan, so I definitely recommend this. But I think comparing this to “Find Her” I wasn’t on the edge of my seat.

Lisa Gardner is an auto-buy author for me and I love her DD Warren books. This stand alone was different but still enjoyable. However I didnt connect with Frankie or her limited back story. I didnt feel like all the pieces quite fit and the "twists" werent very...twisty. However, a good mystery and I'll keep reading everything Lisa puts out!

This novel may be a standalone, but I would definitely be okay seeing this character again in a series. Frankie is a middle-aged, recovering alcoholic who just so happens to be really good at getting people to talk and open up about secrets. Which comes in handy when you're searching for missing people. Flawed and gritty, Frankie is a fighter with intuition, a lot of guts, and a painful past. This was a really intriguing character with some fun dialogue.

Per Gardner's usual, this book is full of suspense and twists. While the beginning of this story felt slower, I appreciated how the pacing built throughout. The writing was descriptive, the plot unique, and I enjoyed puzzling out the truth behind Angelique's disappearance along with the characters.

Thanks to NetGalley and the publishers for this advance read!

I read everything Lisa Gardner writes and I was excited to see a new character introduced, and I loved her! She felt like a little bit of a female Jack Reacher. I hope we see more of her in upcoming books!!

Wow! Lisa Gardner knocks it out again! This was another 5 star book! I loved being taken into another suspenseful thriller from page one to the very end. Lisa Gardner never ever disappoints. When two local teens go missing enter Frankie who isn’t a cop but is set on finding missing ppl. Yet Frankie is also fighting her own demons too. With so many twists and turns you will be wondering how it ends! Thanks to Netgalley for my copy in exchange for my honest review all opinions are my own.

I was so thrilled to get an advance copy of @lisagardnerbks latest from @netgalley and @duttonbooks - and you guys are in for such a treat for this thriller that comes out January 19! I'm a long-time fan of this author, and this is her first standalone thriller in 20 years - and it was SO GOOD. 👏

In this book, Frankie Elkin is an average middle-aged woman, a recovering alcoholic with a lot of past hurt and regret - which is why she dedicates her life to one thing: searching for missing people the world has stopped looking for.

Her latest missing person brings her to Mattapan - a rough spot outside of Boston - and she needs to find the teen Angelique Badeau before it's too late.

Frankie isn't a cop and she doesn't have rules -making her such a great (and layered) main character. I loved Frankie, and I loved this book - and I hope Frankie gets her own series! 🙏

Follow me on IG @ books_and_bells

3.5 Stars
Although Ms. Gardner has written over twenty novels and this is #15 for me; most of my reads have been DD. Warren. In fact, her last standalone was "The Other Daughter" back in 1999! Perhaps this isn’t a standalone and will be a series..

Frankie Elkin is a recovering alcoholic and her life is a mess she has no money and no job and she is trying to escaping from her life. For the past decade she has being on a one woman crusade to find missing children, No one has asked for her help, in fact she isn’t welcomed. Since she started this crusade she has found fourteen people; however, so far none alive.

At first, it was difficult reading and understanding Frankie; she has no training or even any special investigative skills.
Love Angelique’s little brother Emmanuel and the code were great. I liked the ending.

I always enjoy reading the Author’s note and Acknowledgements at the end of the book. To me it is an inside scoop into the story ~ a story about the story!
Lisa Gardner states she got this idea from a BBC article on AN everyday person named Lissa Yellowbird-Chase who made a difference by working missing person’s cold cases. (SO there goes my thought that Frankie’s story wasn’t realistic!) Additionally there is a real Piper, a rescue cat who now enjoys a pampered life!
I also appreciate all the research that went into working with the police departments on what really goes on in streets of Boston as well as the steps taken to get fake ID. She points out that she took liberties in entertaining her readers as well providing instructions on future forgers!

Want to thank NetGalley and Penguin Group ~ Dutton for the early release granted to me in exchange for an honest professional review. Opinions expressed in this review are my own.
Publishing Release Date scheduled for January 19, 2021

I love Lisa Gardner! She does not disappoint ever. I enjoyed Before She Disappeared. The story was captivating and riveting. Thank you for this amazing opportunity to read and review Lisa Gardner's newest book.

Frankie Elkin is an average middle-aged woman, a recovering alcoholic with more regrets than belongings. But she spends her life doing what no one else will--searching for missing people the world has stopped looking for. When the police have given up, when the public no longer remembers, when the media has never paid attention, Frankie starts looking.

A new case brings her to Mattapan, a Boston neighborhood with a rough reputation. She is searching for Angelique Badeau, a Haitian teenager who vanished from her high school months earlier. Resistance from the Boston PD and the victim's wary family tells Frankie she's on her own--and she soon learns she's asking questions someone doesn't want answered. But Frankie will stop at nothing to discover the truth, even if it means the next person to go missing could be her.

I've been a Lisa Gardner fan forever, and was excited to read this new thriller. Gardner never disappoints: Before She Disappeared will keep readers guessing right up to the last scene. Highly recommended.

Years ago, I stumbled upon Lisa Gardner’s D.D. Warren series and read book five without reading the rest. When I found out it was a series, I immediately went back and read them all from book one on. It became my very favorite series and I recommend it to people all the time.

Naturally, when I saw that Gardner had a new, stand-alone book, I requested it as fast as I could.

In Before She Disappeared, Frankie, who has no police training, no formal education, and no roots, but does have plenty of flaws and an addiction, makes it her life’s work to find missing girls.

I was enthralled in this story from page one. It is so unique and real! I loved the story, the setting, the characters, the twists, and FRANKIE! I never wanted to put this book down.

I am crossing all of my fingers and toes that this is only the beginning of Frankie. It would be my new favorite series if we get to see more of her!! Four and a half stars from me!

Before She Disappeared is fast paced with several twists that keep you reading. Lisa Gardner gives the reader a new kind of heroine who keeps you waiting for her next move.

This book will capture your heart for those who have a missing person in their family and the love returned from strangers who give of their time to reunite families. The world is full of evil people preying on our young ones. I found it disturbing but unable to hide the fact it is real.
I was fascinated by the author’s descriptive details, style and the clue trail to locate a missing person.
This is a good read that you will not be disappointed. Thanks NetGalley for allowing me to read this book in exchange for my honest review.