This was a page turner.

It starts strong with a mother, Alex, and her three year old daughter, Lottie, heading to a wedding in Florida. Their relationship is not a normal mother/ daughter relationship. Lottie throws a tantrum on the plane and after she’s called out on it by her mom she curses the other passengers.

Things turn when she goes missing at the wedding. It turns guests against Alex, the mom, and everyone is a suspect.

It gives a look at both sides of the mother’s case. Those who support her and those who blame her. It shows pieces from the media sharing each opinion.

The end is also surprising. It’s a great story and would recommend.

Wow! It is quite a while since a book gripped me as much as this one did. I literally could not put it down and read it in one sitting, finishing it in the early hours of the morning.

If you are looking for a well written, compelling and fast paced thriller with lots of twists then look no further.

Highly recommended!

A missing child – my most favorite trope – and I was hooked. Lottie disappeared from a wedding proceedings and it was hell on earth for mum Alex

My second book by author Tess Stimson, I was quickly taken over by the mystery and the pain that rocked the world of the mother.

The story was realistic in its emotions. But therein started my niggles too. The story dragged in the midsection. The prose needed more red herrings. Some parts were slightly unbelievable.

Overall I loved the premise and the twisted ending which blindsighted me completely. I had fixed my focus on another suspect… But I was so wrong.

I enjoyed that I was hoodwinked, and if the mid section had been sharper, this would have been a rocking thriller.

My first read by this author, and would definitely look up her other books in future. I loved the fast pace and was gripped throughout. Some exciting edge of your seat twists too. Great character development too!

⭐⭐⭐ Thanks to #netgalley for the ARC in exchange for a fair and honest review. A fast paced thriller that had me thinking just when I thought who had stolen Alex's daughter during her friends wedding, I was hit with another misdirection that I had fallen for. A twisty fun thriller read #tessstimson #stolen #netgalley #tea_sipping_bookworm #litsy #thestorygraph #goodreads #bookqueen #bookstagram #thriller

It takes only a single moment….or in this case four hours. And poof, a child is gone.

Alex has flown half-way around the world, from the UK to Florida to attend a destination wedding of her best friend Marc. Alex’s three year old daughter, Lottie is to be one of the bridesmaids.

It happened in the blink of an eye. All it took was for Alex to look away and Lottie vanished into thin air.

The nightmare begins, the clock is ticking…

No stone left unturned.

Is Alex going to un-cover the mystery of what happened to her dear Lottie? Am I going to spill the beans and reveal anything? Of course not! Pick it up and find out for yourself!🤣

Tess Stimson writes a crafty, taught psychological thriller that will keep you guessing all the way through.

Once again, I was duped thinking I had this figured out nearly from the start. And couldn’t have been more wrong!🤦🏻‍♀️

The ending is a bit ‘out there.’ So be prepared to suspend some believability. I was also left with a few unanswered questions. Overall, this book grabbed my attention and held it throughout. Hope it will do the same for you!

Posted to: https://books-are-a-girls-best-friend...

Thank you to NetGalley and Avon Books UK.

Every parents worst nightmare. A really good pyscological thriller with lots of twists! I'd highly recommend.

You know… I am glad I gave this book a chance because at first I couldn’t get into it. I really started to enjoy the characters though and I think after the first couple of chapters the storyline really started to flow!

Alex's 3-year-old daughter, Lottie, gets kidnapped while they're attending a wedding in America. The search for little Lottie becomes worldwide, but despite this, the leads fail to bring any progress.
Will Lottie be found? Who took her?


I have enjoyed the author's previous book, so I was excited to get my hands on this ARC.
The blurb sounded right up my street, and the start was promising. However, I found that the story was slow, and it dragged uneventfully for a long time. It only picked up halfway through, and yes, from then on it had me really hooked.
The book had some pretty shocking twists, and the ending was jaw-dropping, but because it took so long for the story to grip me, I couldn't justify giving it more than 3 stars.

Gosh that was dramatic! I know my views aren’t inline with the majority but really the ending was so implausible as to make me laugh out loud. The author used every trick in the book to stretch out the story but they’ve all been used before just not all in one book. Sorry not a fan.

Stolen by Tess Stimson Narrated by: Stephanie Racine, Indra Ove, Colin Mace, Aysha Kala, Josie Dunne, Beth Eyre was excellent. I wasn't quite sure at the beginning but once I got into this audio I loved it and I was hooked!
When Alex Martini and her 3-year old daughter, Lottie, travel from London to Florida to attend the wedding of Alex’s friend, Marc. Everything is going swimmingly........The sun is shining and everyone is happy But then, Lottie disappears during the reception.
The authorities are quickly called and the media are on it and its all over the media..........With the local authorities and the public looking for Lottie; Are they going to find her before it's too late?

Wow, this had lots of twists and turns throughout and I really enjoyed it. Not Sure on some of the narrators But I stuck with it and enjoyed it. I felt they did not have the passion behind them like some narrators have when I listen to these audio books.

However, I would recommend the Book But not the audio sorry.

Big Thank you to Avon Books UK via Netgalley for providing an audio of Stolen by Tess Stimson for review.
All opinions expressed in this review are entirely my own personal opinions.

It's the second book I read by Tess Stimson and I have been quite impressed by her storytelling skills and psychological insights. The plot of Stolen is about yet another child disappearing but it has some differences. Lottie is nearly four years old and goes with her mother Alexa to a friend's wedding in Florida. The wedding is posh and partly on the beach. Alexa is a widow, Lottie's father Luca died in the Genoa's bridge disaster. Therefore nothing strange with wanting to have sex with another guest, she disappears for a little while thinking that Lottie will be looked after by other guests. When Alexa returns Lottie is nowhere to be seen. What follows is the usual media circus, with the accusations that at best she wasn't a good mother and at worst she had killed her own daughter. Yes it's all very Madeline McCann and how often the victim is verbally lynched, especially if a woman.
The police doesn't seem to make any progress and no one knows where Lottie is. What follows is a long series of red herrings, misleading leads and several huge twists. I found the description of Alexa's grief as very accurate, sensitive and quite moving. She might not have been the world's best mother, but Alexa loved her daughter and missed her terribly. Overall, it's a good book with many psychological insights, what spoiled it a bit was the ending, extremely spectacular but a bit too far fetched. It could have worked just as well without pushing it over the top, but still an above the average psychological thriller.

Just okay but nothing to write home about...
This was a slightly different take on the missing child trope and although it grabbed me from the start it fizzled by the end. Alex is an interesting character, well drawn and believable even though she's a little unreliable. I felt her frustrations with herself, the media and public opinion. Her daughter, Lottie, is not the typical 'perfect child', she's obnoxious, demanding and a bit overweight. The writing is good with a quick pace and lots of misdirections and red herrings. I was invested enough to finish but it just left me feeling 'meh'. The mystery was compelling enough but I thought there were too many plot holes created by the less than satisfying ending. So in conclusion, while other readers may find the positives outweigh the negatives, for me it wasn't the case.

Alex Martini is a lawyer in London. Her husband, Luca, died when a bridge collapsed. Their daughter, Charlotte (Lottie) is 3-years-old and a willful child. She is pretty with a head full of blonde curls, but she is overweight and if she doesn’t get what she wants, she throws major temper tantrums.

Although Alex is extremely busy with her job, she has agreed to fly she and Lottie to St. Petersburg, Florida for a destination beach wedding where Lottie is to be a flower girl. But at the wedding reception, Lottie goes missing and the police are called in. Now, over two years later and after many international searches, Lottie is yet to be found.

This story goes in-depth to the emotions that Alex goes through with hopeful sightings that turn out not to be Lottie. There are a lot characters brought into play here all with their own background and baggage. Readers see how hard many agencies work to try and find missing children. This story is very gritty and sad in many ways. I wasn’t wild about Alex, but I liked Quinn even with all of her faults. Alex’s father is a real love. I’m sure readers will have many different opinions about this book which is actually a good thing. Do read it and see what you think.

Copy provided by NetGalley in exchange for a fair and honest review.

My first book by Tess Stimson and won't be my last. This was a rollercoaster ride! Such great twists my head was spinning. Well written and definitely captivating characters, I was sucked in until the end.

Stolen is a detailed journey into the experience of Alex and holds the reader's attention until the last page...
I like how Stimson has linked the real life case of Madeleine McCann into the story, which helps to give an authentic feel to the plot...also Strimson has included media reports and interviews!
The character development of Stolen is good. The characters are realistic and interesting. Been a 29 year old mother as well as a Human Rights Lawer isn't an easy task so when her daughter is kidnapped whilst they attend Alex's friends wedding Alex is beside herself with worry...
As the story progresses we see a lot of questions asked, and a change in direction as the investigation becomes worldwide and the media and police suspect Alex...
I would recommend reading Stolen to lovers of Physiological Thrillers, as it is an enthralling page turner that looks into betrayal, resilience, and the power of a mother's love as the impact of missing children comes to light!

Thank you NetGalley, author Tess Stimson, and Avon publishing for giving me a free arc of this book in exchange for an honest review. All thoughts and opinions are my own.
4 stars
This was my second book that I have read by this author and continue to enjoy her writing. This story is about a missing child and the courage a mother has to continue to search for her child when all hope seems lost. The author did a wonderful job crafting characters that were not your typical "good" vs "bad," but had a lot of gray within their actions and personalities. The writing and the pacing made for an easy read that allows the reader to fly through this book in no time. The twists and turns within the story were well placed and unraveled perfectly. The author included a lot of different themes that help the reader examine the motives of the people and events that take place within the story. Such themes were: single parenting, betrayal, race, the media, and so much more. The ending was a complete shock and very satisfying. Overall, I can't recommend this book enough to those who are fans of domestic thrillers. I look forward to another new release by this author in the future.

Stolen is a book I whizzed through, I loved how each chapter wasn’t that long but left you on a cliffhanger of some sort making it impossible to put this book down.
Alex apis going to her friends wedding in Florida she is going with her wilful three year old Lottie, the flight has just about been bearable with Lottie only having one major meltdown. Now they are here on the beachfront with Lottie as a flower girl and she behaves beautifully. After the ceremony everyone walks back to the hotel for the dinner and party. Alex looks for Lottie but she can’t find her but how long ago was she actually seen? Minutes turn to hours and hours turn to days but Lottie is still missing feared taken or drowned it is an awful mystery and Alex can’t sleep or eat.
There were so many twists and turns in this book it was unbelievable but believable at the same time, I loved how this played out and never got anywhere close to the ending, which was worth getting there for. There were quite a few likeable characters as well hidden away at the start but became more obvious as the book progressed which was a pleasant change.
I would like to thank Netgalley and Avon Books UK for this ARC I received in exchange for an honest review.

I was intrigued by the blurb of this book and wow, I was not disappointed! What a story. The characters were interesting and relatable, and the plot had been turning the pages like never before. I couldn’t put it down! The twist at the end was also a massive surprise and I was very pleased with how loose ends were tied up and the story ended! I went straight onto Amazon and added some more Tess Stimson books to my basket. I thoroughly enjoyed Stolen and can’t wait to read more of her books in the future. I will definitely be recommending this book.

Stolen by Tess Simson. Alex is a single mum after the death of her ex husband Luca. Lottie is Alex’s daughter, Lottie would never wander off with a stranger, so when they are at a friends wedding and Lottie goes missing, Alex immediately fears the worst. The search for Lottie soon goes beyond the wedding venue and soon the suspicion turns on Alex. This story covers the search for missing Lottie. I loved this book, even though at the beginning it was hard to read, as it’s every parents worse nightmare, it immediately gets the reader hooked with it’s intensity and as soon as Lottie goes missing you need to know what’s happened to her. Even though this book is fiction, it could happened, we all know it’s happened before sadly with Madeleine McCann and I think that that’s what grips you, the need to know this little girl is ok. It’s undoubtedly an emotional read, I felt frustration towards the characters, for example when Alex would act before thinking, I felt the characters hope and desperation that this time it would be Lottie they found and I felt shocked when things happened that were unexpected. There was plenty of intrigue and guessing and thinking for certain that you knew who took Lottie. This book it’s safe to say anything but predictable and keeps you guessing until the end. The great thing about this book that it keeps it’s pace, that’s why it’s a page turner because you never know what over on the next page that might be a clue to finding Lottie. The author is great at leaving you in suspense at the end of a chapter, where normally I would get to the end of a chapter before putting the book down, to do something or go bed, the suspense you were left hanging in would want to make you read more. I would have read this book far faster, had my parents not been visiting, it’s definitely one you won’t want to put down. I will be recommending this book to everyone. ❤️