One day Carla receives a call that her father, whom she has not seen for fifteen years, is in a hospice and dying. She decides to move into his house and discovers, hidden in a box in a cupboard, her father’s journals and newspaper clippings about three boys who disappeared in this town in the 1960s and 1970s, one of whom has never been found. She decides to investigate these disappearances in order to find out what connection her father has with them.

I have a rather mixed opinion of this book. I had a hard time getting into it. The mix of different points of view lost me more than helped me understand the story and get involved. I didn’t manage to get attached to the characters and that’s something important for me when I read a book. I also had a hard time with the fact that you can forgive things, in my opinion, unforgivable, to a person who is on his deathbed.

The story itself is interesting, it deals with difficult subjects that need to be talked about. I just don’t think I was the target of this book.

Thanks to NetGalley and Bookouture for giving me the opportunity to read it.

Carla Allen has had no contact with her father Rob for years due to his abusive and coercing behaviour. However when his neighbour rings to say he is in a hospice she rushes straight up to his hometown to see him. Once there she finds a box with notebook's and newspaper articles over 40 years ago about 3 young boys who went missing, 2 later found dead and one still missing. Why has Rob kept these? And what connection does he have with the boys?
I must admit I struggled at times with this book, I couldnt relate to the characters I guessed pretty early on what had happened and I'm afraid to say it was only the fact I wanted to know if I was correct that I persevered with the story. However it was well written and it won't stop me reading another book by Jennifer. Many thanks to Netgalley and Bookouture for the advanced copy in exchange for my honest review

Bonus star alert! This was one of the best books I’ve read this year. It had all the elements of greatness, amazing characters that are beautifully written, a dark twisted plot containing missing a missing child and murdered children in a town full of secrets. The suspense was start to finish and while the suspect was fairly obviously to me from the start it did not affect the story at all. I could not put this one down, I’ve carried my book around with my nose in it while cooking, cleaning and even taking a walk. So when I say literally unputdownable I mean it. This had my heart pounding and was soul crushing at times. In evoked fear, sadness and even sorrow throughout. I’m sad that I have finished reading it. Absolutely a must read! Top of your list!

"They’d used his school photograph in the newspapers. His blond hair neatly combed, smiling for the camera. I thought, you will disappear, Johnny. This will be the last photo taken of you."

“The Vanishing Child” is my first Jennifer Harvey book and it’s so good!!!.

Carla receives a call from her fathers neighbour saying (actually pleading) for her to visit him as he hasn’t got long to live, she reluctantly agrees to come see him one last visit before he dies.

She stays at her fathers home and starts exploring finding a box with newspaper clippings and notebooks. After reading them she discovers something terrible happened a long time ago three kids were kidnapped but only two bodies were found. She suspects her father might have been involved or knows who the kidnapper is but he was around nine or ten at the time of the incident so she starts to investigate asking the locals, she finds that they don’t want to talk about it giving her a cold shoulder.

From then on it escalates to a gripping story which had me hooked till the end.

Will definitely check her other books.

Rob Allen is dying. His daughter abused and estranged from him many years ago is contacted by his hospice nurse. Reluctant to see him Carla returns to his hometown to open a Pandora's box of mystery. Her father is in and out of reality. He desperately wants to see his family but is reluctant for them to know the secrets he harbors. Carla finds a beautiful and mysterious box full of clues. Her mother, sister, and finally her romantic interest becomes involved in solving the mystery. As the story unfolds it appears that Rob Allen has secrets he wants to be revealed, but where are they? Somehow, it seems he knew something about the murders of three boys in the 60s and 70s. How much did he know and when? It has been so long ago will it be solved? Can Johnny ever come home again? Thanks to #TheVanishingChild#NetGalley for the opportunity to read and review this book.

Good read with interesting characters.
I had a hard time getting into the book in the beginning, but so glad I stayed with it. I thought the storyline was a bit predictable, but was intrigued of how it all happened and why.
I received an advance copy of this book in exchange for my honest review.

I really cannot imagine how it must feel like if one day your child goes missing. I know you want to protect them, but loving them means also letting them go a bit and letting them grow. You still see your little baby in them when you look at them, but they grow, little by little and become young adults. Time to give them more freedom and responsability.

Every day your child leaves home, you hope they will come home safely and they do. Until one day, they don't...

Every minute they are gone, you die a little.

The story is interesting and not very fast paced. This is because the main character Carla did not know what to believe. In fact she did not want to believe what she discovered and she did not know whether she should go on or stop her investigation. I understood her completely. I could not make up my mind either about the culprit and kept going back and forth. What I had in mind was almost impossible, I hoped, but what really happened was even worse.

A great story about family and how you can forgive a lot as soon as you find out what happened in the past. 4 stars 

Thank you

This was more drama / suspense than psychological thriller but overall kept me wanting to see what would happen next and made me feel all the feels.

This is an emotional, and at times, tough to read story that will pull at your heart and then put your stomach in knots!
Carla's estranged father Rob, is now terminal and on hospice care.
She has not seen her Dad in years. He was not a pleasant man and his family left when he continued with his abusive behaviors so long ago.
However.... Carla feels she needs some closing with him and it is now time.
What she will quickly learn, is that there so many awful secrets that need answers and for the sake of other people involved, the journey to find these truths will now begin!

This novel is a quick read and it will have you waiting with anxiety to get to the end!
My favorite character was Cece, A strong, loving woman who has been hoping and waiting.... Just waiting....

This was an okay fast read. But just okay. The storyline was early on predictable, leaving no page turning suspense. Additionally, I thought that one of the author’s messages - that if you had an abusive/traumatic childhood it was okay to be abusive as an adult - was not appropriate. A very generous three-star rating I give this book.

Carla is contacted by her estranged father’s neighbor that he has entered hospice. She reluctantly agrees to come see him one last visit before he dies. When she arrives, he is not aware she’s there, but he mutters a name. Upon returning home and exploring her father’s house, she comes across a wooden box that is tucked away in a panty area of the house. Inside, a notebook with articles about three kidnapped boys who disappeared from the small town many years ago. As she reads the notebook, she comes across the name that her father muttered and she tries to figure out the connection and why her father kept tack of these news article.

Carla takes the opportunity to whisper the name to her father on one of her visits to him in hospice and it greatly upsets him. When Carla brings up the three boys to the neighbor, her demeanor abruptly changes from warm and welcoming to panicked and guarded. What is it about the kidnapped boys that sets these people on edge?

The prologue of the book hooked me, made me excited at the possibilities of what was going to happen. Then as I started the first few chapters, I felt a bit of a drag. I wanted to get into the meat of the “why” and “how” someone would do this to the boys that went missing. But I stuck with it and the story began to pick up speed. As Carla starts to find more clues and trust her instincts, the story started to come together in a way that turned into that point on a roller coaster where it gets going until it stops. ⭐️⭐️⭐️.5

#netgalley #arc #thevanishingchild

Took me a while to get into this book but overall it was a good, well written read if not a bit predictable in my opinion. The storyline was interesting but wasn't an edge of seater for me although it was a bit harrowing in parts.

Thank you to Netgalley and Bookouture for giving me the opportunity to read this book.

This book tells the story about Rob who is living his last days in hospice and his daughter goes to say her goodbyes. She had a terrible childhood with him and they hadn’t spoke in like 15 years. But she goes to see him and finds his hidden diary about some boys that went missing many years ago. Why does he write about them? Does he know what happened to them? There are disturbing details in this book but I got through them. I wanted to see how it would end. Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for this early release in exchange for my honest review.

It's impossible to put down a book that deals with missing children and a dying man who might know something about it.
I thought that there was really not that much of a mystery about who killed the children, but it was still interesting to find out how it all unfolded and why--and how that affected his family.

Thank you to NetGalley for an advance digital copy of this book.

Once I picked this one up, I was hooked and needed answers, and along with Carla that finds the box, we are on a journey to solve some horrible crimes.
Her father is dying and now she needs him to answer questions, and it seems everyone is against her, her mother, sister, and the entire town.
A page-turning read, that makes you want for a better outcome, but having to accept the facts.
I received this book through Net Galley and the Publisher Bookoutour, and was not required to give a positive review.

Wow. What a suspenseful read! When Carla starts looking into the disappearances of 3 boys from a small town from decades ago, she gets more than she bargained for. The local community doesn't want her digging up old painful memories, but she can't let it go. This book will keep you on the edge of your seat! Such vivid, visual characters that I felt I knew personally. I can't wait to read more books by this author!

This book and story kept me hanging off every chapter. I couldn't put it down untill I knew what happened. And it was fast paced for me plus fantastic

The vanishing child by Jennifer Child was an excellent read which I finished in one sitting! This was a compelling and thoroughly enjoyable read from start to finish with a great storyline, interesting cast of characters and all capped off by skilful writing. It's well worth your time if you appreciate great storytellers. ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

Forty years ago, a boy called Johnny vanished, never to be seen again. This was after two other local boys went missing, only to be found murdered. In the present, Carla goes to visit her father who is dying in a hospice. While looking through his house, she finds a box containing her father's diaries and news clippings, all about the missing boys. Her father refuses to discuss it, but when Carla speaks to Johnny's mother Cece, she feels determined to find out what happened to the missing boy all those years ago. Will the truth make things better for everyone, or could it have devastating consequences for Carla...? A suspenseful and emotional read that keeps you turning the pages until you find out the truth. Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for an advance copy of the book in return for my honest feedback.

I would like to thank netgalley and the publisher for advance copy in exchange for an honest review. I have never read the other books by this author, but after reading this, I plan to go back to. When Carla finds out her estranged father is dying, she heads back to his small hometown where she finds old newspaper clippings of missing boys. Carla’s wheels start turning, was this innocent fascination by her dad who was the same age as the missing boys or something sinister. I really enjoyed this book and finished it in one sitting, had to read to the end. I searched for it on Goodreads but it is not listed yet so I will add my review there once posted.