This was my first read by Lisa Gardner and I was so excited to get the chance to read this one.
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Frankie is a single woman with a trouble past. She is also a recovering alcoholic who has a unique occupation. Frankie acts as a private investigator to find missing persons long after the police give up and the case goes cold. The most recent missing girl is named Angelique and one day she left school and was never seen again.
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Frankie has to battle her demons and a difficult environment to look for clues and try to locate Angelique. She ends up working closely with a police officer, Detective Lotham and enlists the help of Angeliques family and a man named Charlie that she met at an AA meeting. The case keeps throwing up many roadblocks and it feels like Frankie will never solve the case in this amazing thriller.
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I thought this was a solid thriller and I loved so many aspects of it. Firstly, Frankie was an really great character. She is a fierce badass that isn’t afraid of anyone and does things her way even if they get her into sticky situations. I also thought the story kept me guessing as to what happened to Angelique and I never guessed who was responsible. I would highly recommend this one to all thriller loves and I cannot wait to read another Lisa Gardner book again soon.

Before She Disappeared by Lisa Gardner is a fantastic read. The story begins with a new girl in town by the name of Frankie Elkin. Frankie describes herself as “an alcoholic, an ex-lover and a lost soul.” Oh, but she’s so much more! Frankie is driven to cold cases that have stalled and are going nowhere. She finds her way to the victim’s family’s and with a keen awareness and common sense she starts putting together facts that the police might have missed or overlooked. Delving into a case of a missing teen who seems to have vanished into thin air throws Frankie into a part of town that is not only dangerous, but where she is totally unwanted. This is a fast read, and I was totally engrossed with the story line. I hope to see more of Frankie in the future works of Lisa Gardner. I Am A Fan! Thank You to NetGalley, Penguin Group Dutton and to the Author Lisa Gardner for the advanced digital copy of this great book, in return for an honest review.

Before She Disappeared is the new stand-alone novel from Lisa Gardner.

"Frankie Elkin is an average middle-aged woman who is also a recovering alcoholic. Her mission now is to find the missing people - the ones whose cases have grown so cold that no one is looking anymore. She thinks that by asking some questions she might shake something loose. And so far she's found 14 people that no one else could find.
Frankie heads to the Mattapan neighborhood in Boston - a neighborhood with a rough reputation. She is looking for Angelique Badeau - a girl with big dreams who disappeared from school one day and never came back. But there are people that don't want her asking questions and Frankie finds herself threatened - but she will never stop searching for the truth."

Frankie is a new character from Gardner - damaged and full of flaws. But you have to admire her grit and determination to find these people. The story is fast-paced and you will find yourself flying through the pages. There is a lot of info about addiction and alcoholism here. There is a big leap in logic to the reason behind Angelique's disappearance - seemed a bit forced but doesn't take a way from the story. And there are some current events that drive the bad guys.

Gardner fans should enjoy this new book. Supense/thriller should enjoy it also. Another great, entertaining read from Gardner.

Thank you Net Galley.

Lisa Gardner has done it again! It has been a couple of years since I had read one of her novels and I had forgotten how engaging her books are. From the beginning, her descriptive writing style drew me in.
Many of the characters were not completely believable but this is what fiction is about.

I do plan on adding this to our collection for patrons that prefer fast paced thrillers.

Frankie Elkins makes her first appearance in Lisa Gardner's pantheon of strong, tough women fighting for justice in Boston's sometimes gritty and gang-ridden neighborhoods, in and out of uniform, with and without police shields or cooperation.. But if this crackling, strongly plotted stand-alone gets the reception from the author's fans it surely will and winds her new ones, she won't be c standing alone for long, and I already can't wait for the sequel.
Frankie' s backstory is only lightly sketched in, but as a recovering alcoholic,, she seems bent on making amends to and on behalf of missing girls in whatever city she finds herself in. She knows how to make a place for herself almost anywhere; there's always a bar that needs a skilled tender, and people willing to talk to a good listener. Frankie's skills in both get her a job and a rented room over a bar in Mattapan, where she's on the hunt for a teenage girl who vanished from her school, neighborhood and friends and family without leaving a trace.. The people who might be able to help Frankie find her aren't cooperating, and the police make it clear that an unlicensed, unknown investigator isn't welcome to whatever information they might have.. In fact, they're not even certain that the teenager is either missing or in danger.. By the time Frankie turns up enogh evidence to convince them it's almost too late, but by then she's won the grudging admiration as well as the heart of the tough but tender cop who ought to get second billing in the seque. Both of them have histories yet unwritten, but both are characters worth meeting again.
This is a taut, well l written, engaging read, sure to hit the best-seller list.

I was so excited to read this ARC because I'm a big fan of Lisa Gardner's DD Warren series, and this is her first stand alone novel in 20 years! I thought Frankie and Lotham were both great characters, and the story was both interesting and exciting. It really came together in a surprising way. I thought the ending really fit the character. I loved this book and already can't wait for more from Lisa Gardner

When I first started to read I thought the pace of the story was slow and dragged a bit. I’m happy to say it picked up about half way through. I hope we see more of Frankie in the future. A little slow or not, I recommend good story.

As a longtime fan of Gardner’s, I was thrilled to get this advance copy in exchange for my honest review.

Frankie is a nomad, who lives on the run, following cold cases/missing persons. An addict, who now gets her high by following up on these mysteries and solving them with her Tracphone, printed maps and her wits.

This case lands her in the all Haitian neighborhood in Boston, where she takes a job bartending and getting the lay of the land while she starts investigating the nearly year old disappearance of a 15 year old girl.

I really enjoyed this novel. There were a lot of plot twists that kept me on my toes, and I enjoyed Frankie’s character. We understood her and her reasoning for the life on the move, but I wish we would have gotten a bit more of her backstory. Overall, 4.5 stars, as I did not see the ending coming at all!

I am always in the mood for good suspense, and Lisa Gardner always knows how to spin a thrilling tale! Her newest novel is Before She Disappeared and it’s a must-read. If you have read her books before, you know that Lisa is an absolute genius, writing engaging stories that suck you in.

Frankie is a woman in the middle of her life, a loner with no friends or family. She spends her time looking for missing people, as a way of redeeming her own past perhaps. Her latest case takes her to a rough area of Boston where she is looking for a teen who has gone missing. But someone is throwing up roadblock and doesn’t want Frankie’s questions to be answered. Is Frankie herself in danger?

SO GOOD.

Take a look:

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.

This will be published on January 19, 2021! Get it here.

Many of us felt that back in 2017, the new Wonder Woman movie presented a strong female character that moved the needle forward for feminism. I get it. So let me tell you ‘bout Frankie Elikin in this book: she’s a tough, gritty woman who doesn’t just move the needle forward, she blows up the whole damn record player.

Frankie’s the type of character that does for women what “A Doll’s House” did back in the late 1800s, when Ibsen wrote it. It SHOCKS us with a completely new view of how a woman can live her life. Or as another example, just going back to 2017 (the same year the new Wonder Woman movie came out), Frances McDormand played a fantastic character in Three Billboards Outside Ebbing, Missouri which showed that beauty comes in the form of strength, not what society defines as “hotness.” That a woman can be flawed and entirely imperfect and not what the patriarchy might define as ‘nice,’ yet still be a heroine because of her sheer determination to make sure that justice prevails.

That’s who Frankie is in this book. She’s an ordinary, middle-aged woman with her own demons who feels compelled to track down those who have disappeared but do NOT get media attention because they are marginalized and underprivileged.

As you know, if you’ve read Gardner before, her work is fast-paced, heart-pounding and fun, in this book, as always. I’m just choosing to focus on the character of Frankie because for me, she is the stand-out element of this book.

Book jacket blurb:
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.

YES, you should get this if you like thrillers with strong female characters and/or gritty crime dramas. It hits the shelves Jan. 19, 2021!

Thank you to PENGUIN GROUP Dutton and NetGalley for the ARC!

This review will be posted on my blog and social media closer to the publication date.

A woman who helps search for the missing moves to a new town to investigate a new case. Frankie, a recovering alcoholic, moves to a Boston neighborhood, Mattapan, to look for a missing teenager - Angelique, who moved to America from Haiti, and vanished months ago, leaving everything behind. Did she leave because of something to do with immigration or did something more sinister happen? As Frankie begins to dig in where people don't want to look, she starts finding answers people don't want her to find, and she could be in danger next. This is a cool little mystery with a new heroine that seeks to find the helpless and make a difference.

I am a huge fan of Lisa Gardner, and I am grateful to NetGalley for providing me with the ARC. While I really enjoyed this novel, and found it to be a solid read, it is not one of my favorite Lisa novels of all time. One reason for this might be that I was a little sad that this one is not set in the DD Warren universe and seems to be a stand-alone character, but it also is not as much of a twisted thriller as Gardner’s pervious works. I guess time will tell if this novel remains separate from the DD Warren universe or it this will be a new series that at some point might bring the main character into DD’s realm.

The main character in Before She Disappeared, is a missing person private investigator by the name of Frankie. She specializes in cold cases that have either been given up on or overlooked. Frankie is an interesting character. She is a very driven person who does not let anything stand in her way when it comes to solving her cold cases, and she is also a woman with a past that is mysterious and checkered. We learn more about the missing girl Frankie is working to bring home than we do about what drove Frankie to AA and now drives her to solve this cold cases. I am hopeful that if this series continues we will learn more about Frankie’s past and the trauma that so clearly shapes her life.

Even though the plot of this novel was not as darkly twisted as pervious titles, it still was an interesting read that kept me guessing as I tried to figure out how everything Frankie uncovers fits together. Gardner does a good job of keeping all of these balls in the air as she drove the plot forward, and ultimately tied all of the multiple threads together for a satisfying conclusion.

My one concern about the novel is that it deals with a white character trying to solve the murders of primarily people of color, the case that most prominently is focused on in this novel is that of Angelique- a Haitian teenager living in a predominately Haitian neighborhood. And while Frankie does address “white savior” issues in the book, I do wonder how people of color will feel about this character and the setting of this novel, which is something that I, as a person not of color, cannot speak to with any authority or insight.

I have read almost all of Lisa Gardner's books and this one was my favorite of them all. I absolutely loved how the story captivated me from the first pages. I loved the Boston setting and I loved Frankie. I hope that this might become a series and we see Frankie again looking for missing persons. Amazing book. Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for the advanced copy.

We meet Frankie Elkin, a not-so-young anymore woman with an addiction and a secret. As the story gets going, we will learn more about these two bits of darkness. Both are a big part of her, and both play a role in her current life.
Frenkie finds people. She is not a private detective, she has no experience in law enforcement, and she works for free. But she can find people that only the family cares about: the young, the strays, the vulnerable, and the unimportant.
Now, Frenkie finds herself in Boston, looking for Angelique Badeau, a 15-year old schoolgirl who disappeared almost a year ago. Living in a bad section of Boston, aren’t particularly interested in this latest disappearance. But Frenkie is. She takes a job as a waitress at Stoney’s, and lives above the establishment, sharing a space with Piper, a house cat with an attitude.
Frenkie has a way with people. She’s good at asking the right questions—and not necessarily the same questions the police asked. Haunted by her past, but determined to find Angelique, Frenkie meets more and more people. Some are friendly, some are just fellow travellers on the complicated public transport system. Some aren’t. Others even shoot to kill.
Frenkie is a heart-warming character, and one whose secrets become familiar to us as the story progresses. She asks the right questions. And she cares.
Before She Disappeared also asks the right questions. What if the missing girl would have been a rich girl from privilege, instead of a girl of Haitian descent raised in a poor neighbourhood? What if she wasn’t a very smart girl, determined to get a good education?
The story picks up the pace when it gets going, and is hard to put down. The characters are very well defined, and both the setting and the general atmosphere are entrancing. What a read!
In the end, everything comes together nicely with some unexpected twists. A very recommendable read again, for people who like stories with a solid background, excitement, and (let’s not forget) cats.

An amazing thriller that I just couldn’t get enough of. Really interesting characters that ring true this kept me going to the last page.

Full review online in late January.

Frankie Elkins investigates missing persons cases, cold cases of those whose disappearances have long remained unsolved. Frankie has no investigative experience, and isn't pretending to be a cop or a private detective. She is a civilian, leaning into the perks of having no red tape to contend with; while somehow managing to ask the right questions, poke the right bears, and use her single-minded focus as an limitless resource to do what the police can't...find answers. And though she is without training, and heeds no rules, she uses her wit and her recovering addiction background as a tool to talk to people and uncover clues.

The plotline and the mystery of the story is rather unique. I'm not sure I've read one like it. It twists and turns, the pieces never seem to quite fit, much less seem to actually belong to the same puzzle, and yet it did all inevitably make sense. Recommended read. Although listed as a standalone novel, it's possibly the beginning of a new series by Lisa Gardener

After the last book I read, I knew I needed something that I would enjoy immensely. A few pages in and I was so right about choosing to read Before She Disappeared. I love Lisa Gardner (one of her books is the only one I've ever stayed up late to finish, and I read a lot of books). This is her first stand alone in 20 years, and she delivered. I would not have guessed the ending, and I was appreciative of the fact that she explained how the character reached that conclusion in a fashion that was easy to understand; other books sometimes aren't able to do that well. I would definitely recommend this book.

I’m shaken, slowly crying, barely gathering right words to tell how I wholeheartedly loved this book and how deeply affected me with its resonating, realistic, deeply layered character portraits! That’s why Ms. Gardner is one of the most brilliantly talented authors who creates broken but willful, fighter characters with tragic pasts.

We’re introduced to brand new character Frankie Elkin: a recovering alcoholic, a loner, survivor of tragic past, having no proper place to call her home, no people to call friends, family, acquaintances, carrying her limited belongings including a phone, a few clothes, a whistle at her backpack.

Her mission is finding missing people who are given up by police and who are no longer remembered by public or never cared by media.

She keeps looking for them as her redemption of tragic event she’d faced ten years ago. She keeps searching them to keep her sanity intact, controlling to urge to start drinking. She wants to save lives because of the guilt feeling has been eating her alive and slowly killing her for years! But when it gets dark and when she is alone by herself, her nightmares start chasing her again! At those darker times she calls her survivor which saved her from herself 10 years ago. That’s how she spends her days and nights: finding girls, running away from her inner demons.

She found all the missing 14 people she’d be looking for but none of them were found alive!

She’s definitely old school; she never carries smartphones, trying to find her way out in big cities’ complex transportation system by using her maps. But she’s good listener and she really knows how to ask right questions which may be her secret weapon to make the people talk and get the right clues out of their mouths to be on the right track of her cases.

Now her last case dragged her to Mattapan, Boston: a very rough and dangerous neighborhood with its mostly Haitian population. Some of them moved to the states after losing their homes at the big earthquake for security reasons.

Frankie came here to find 15 years old Haitian girl Angelique Badeau who goes missing after school 11 months ago and nobody hears from her. She connects with her aunt and her little tech genius brother Emmanuel to offer her free investigation service, getting a job at local bar and a room sharing with one of the wildest cats reminds you of baby panther.

Of course locals get suspicious about a skinny white woman prying around their neighborhood and they want to know her real agenda ( 15 minutes fame, bribery money, insanity etc.) but she slowly finds her way to make them trust her and give the crucial information she needs.

She also gains trust of Detective Lotham who conducts the investigation ! Their sizzling chemistry between them may put the entire neighborhood on fire!

They find out Angelique’s disappearance may be connected with another case: another smart student, 15 years old Livia who is sister of drug dealer. As they dig deeper, they start to realize the case they’re working on so much complex, dangerous than simple case of two girls’ disappearances!

Overall:
Well balanced paced, action packed, smart, hooking up, addictive writing style, mind blowing characterization made me fall in love with this book over and over again so my final words about this excellent reading experience are: please take my five gazillion stars and give me at least 10 more Frankie Elkin books!

Millions of thanks to NetGalley and PENGUIN Dutton for sharing this amazing digital reviewer copy with me in exchange my honest thoughts!

I cannot wait to read the next adventure of Frankie Elkin!!!

Oh how I love anything written by Lisa Gardner. Thank you so much Netgalley for the advanced copy of this book, I was SO excited. At first I was a touch disappointed that it was a stand alone and not one about her other characters I have grown to love, but that passed quickly. Frankie has just as much spunk and bad ass attitude as all the other females Gardner writes about! She is a broken woman who spends her days trying to solve missing person cases...rather than focusing on her own personal painful memories. And she is pretty darn good at it. She drives local police crazy by managing to find answers from witnesses that they could never find themselves, and brings to light new evidence they missed.
This book wasn't as twisty and dark as some of Ms.Gardner's other books but it had just enough suspense, witty banter and interesting characters to make for a great read. I hope we get to read more about Frankie in future books, because I thoroughly enjoyed this one!

An amazing book! A new character for Ms Gardner, Frankie goes from town to town looking for missing person cases where the police are at a dead end. Frankie is written as a strong, likable character who considers herself broken. There are many twists and turns in this story, and it’s hard to put the book down. It’s definitely a page-turner!! I’m hoping this is a beginning of a series. Anyone who likes a good mystery will like this book. I received an ARC of this book from NetGalley and the publisher. All opinions expressed are my own.