This book was sent to me on Kindle by Netgalley for review…not for the faint of heart…the family dynamics are horrible…kidnapping…exploiting the girl for money and fame…dysfunctional family…the story moves slowly, at times, but all and all is a good quick read…

I was drawn in by the premise of this one - I am often intrigued by pulling back the curtain on social media influencers in fiction. However this story isn’t working for me - over two weeks of reading it and I’m only 25% in. Thank you to the publisher and Netgalley for the advance reading copy.

The perfect family, the perfect life... what more could a girl ask for?

Glamorous Chloe Cates has a perfect life. Her mother, Jennifer, blogs about every milestone, every outfit, every social gathering, and everything in between. Picture perfect moments are featured in a web series titled, "CC and Me," but behind the scenes, things are not as flawless as they appear. When Chloe disappears, seemingly without a trace, detectives must tread carefully as the case is highly publicized. Tripping over reporters and struggling with Jennifer's unpredictable nature, the police become increasingly frustrated with the case. Things aren't adding up, and Chloe's family is all too willing to keep their own secrets buried.
I perched right on the edge of my seat throughout this entire novel, wanting to know the truth about Chloe's disappearance. I loved the multi-POV style of this novel, getting to read from the perspective of Chloe's parents, the lead detective, and pages from Chloe's journal. As things progressed, I found myself with more questions than theories, as the novel was full of twists, turns, and secrets that kept me grasping at straws. I read the eARC for this novel and listened to the audiobook. Each narrator was perfect for their respective characters, especially Chloe's narrator, who perfectly portrayed a thirteen year old girl's mannerisms. I recommend this novel to anyone who loves thrillers and suspense novels!

There are love-to-hate-characters, and then there are those characters that you just can’t wait to see burn. Jennifer, the mother in Chloe Cates Is Missing, decidedly falls into the latter category. She was such a terrible mother to both her kids, a terrible wife, and so self-absorbed. I could not wait to see what would happen to her, and was hoping the whole time that she would get what she deserved! Just to prove how despicable Jennifer is: once her daughter goes missing, she uses Chloe’s disappearance as a means to gain more likes and followers for her blog.

I love thrillers about the twisted side of social media, so this book was right up my alley. I also love what I call “mommy drama” books, where helicopter parents fight for their kids in ways the kids don’t necessarily want. This book was fast-paced and fascinating, and I definitely recommend it to all thriller lovers!

The whole story takes place in the 24-hour period after Chloe is found missing, but it feels like much longer. We get to learn a little about Chloe through her diary entries, so it’s easy to feel connected to her and wish for her safe return.

This book has an interesting link between past and present: the detective investigating Chloe’s disappearance was friends with Jen as a child, until something tore them apart. I really enjoyed the scenes from the past, where we learned about young Jen and what made her the way she is today.

I couldn’t wait to see how all the separate threads of the book would come together. Once I got past the halfway point, I could not put this one down!

Yes. Everything about this was a yes. I was here for the ride and when it was over, my mind was completely blown. More from this author immediately. Please and thank you.

Thirteen year old, minor Instagram celebrity, Chloe Cates, has gone missing. Her horrible parents seem concerned but clearly not coming clean about everything, and the detective covering the case has a bunch of baggage of her own that she’s letting affect her work.

Let me just start off by saying that this novel was engaging; it definitely had me wondering what was going on. But there were things that bugged me throughout and especially near the end, when it really went off the rails.
The story was told from several different perspectives, one being the thirteen year old namesake, through her journal. Sometimes the author would attempt to write like a teenager, using abbreviations, etc., and other times not at all, which I found irritating.
Also, a few of the scenarios from the book really ask the reader to suspend disbelief. Like, reeeally suspend disbelief.
And finally, the interrogation scene was just so ridiculous. How could so many people have read this book before publication and nobody suggested maybe rewriting to make it even a tad bit authentic? It was Not. Good.
Despite the obvious flaws. though, I think that plenty of people who like reading psychological thrillers will enjoy this book.
Thanks to #netgalley and #scarletbooks for this #arc of #chloecatesismissing in exchange for an honest review.

BOOK RECOMMENDATION: Chloe Cates is Missing by Mandy McHugh
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If you like thrillers, you will like this book!
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SUMMARY: Chloe Cates is the 13-year-old influencer behind a substantial brand. But she’s no longer a child, and she’s no longer willing to shill bows on the internet. But her mom won’t take no for an answer, and now Chloe is missing…
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This book is wild. The beginning felt like a Jojo Siwa meets Jon Benet Ramsey situation and only got weirder from there. Jen, Chloe’s mom, is a narcissistic stage mom, but the more you learn about her, the stranger it gets.
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I wouldn’t say there are a lot of twists and turns to the story—it’s more like with every new detail, you think to yourself “these people are bonkers AF.” Once I got going, it was like a ride I didn’t want to get off. I think I read from 40% to the end in just a few hours. The ending wasn't shocking to me, but I still enjoyed the story as a whole.
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FINAL TAKE: This is a juicy, enjoyable thriller that I would definitely recommend if you’re a fan of the genre
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⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️.5
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This book will be available beginning 2/15. Thank you to @netgalley @penzlerpub and the author for providing me with an arc in exchange for an honest review!

Thank you to Netgalley, Penzler Publishers and Mandy McHugh for an ARC in return for an honest review.

Chloe is an up and coming Youtube star, at 13 she is rising through the ranks. Until she disappears.

What a book! This is a perfect thriller and everything you want rolled into one. It is dark, gritty and gripping. Chloe Cates Is Missing will be very popular and not one to be missed!

A thank you to Netgalley for sharing the ARC in exchage for an honest review,

I didn't like anything about this novel - not the story, the writing, and definitely not the characters, so I'm going to leave it at that.

Chloe Cates is missing ! A young Internet celebrity has disappeared. An anxious mother turns to social media for help to find her. Suspicious behaviour and false claims and revealed secrets could destroy the family,

I gave this 3 half stars would have been 4 but the ending just felt a bit flat for me I wanted more from it.

I really enjoyed the story. The multiple povs gave different insight to the story. There were a lot of twists and some great mis direction that I did not see coming at all.

Thank you to NetGalley and Penzier Publishers for an advance copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

What a gripping mystery

This was a very disturbing but good read.

Thoroughly enjoyed from start to finish and could not get enough of.

This is a must read for anyone who enjoys a good thriller!!
Absolutely loved the characters, the plot, the tension - impossible to put it down.
Certainly recommended!

⭐⭐⭐⭐.5/5

• multiple POVs
• excellent, dysfunctional characters
• twists and turns throughout

JoJo Siwa meets Hannah Montana vibes but make it psychological suspense! The multiple POVs work so well together to tell the story. The characters were well developed... I'd feel bad for them, then be shocked by their actions, then get mad at them. 😂 The "fork" and "shirt" curse word censoring was a little distracting at times, but that's just my personal irk. I couldn't put this book down and really enjoyed it!

🗣️ Thank you to @netgalley and @scarletsuspense for the opportunity to read and review this book via eARC! All opinions are honest and my own.

Chloe is barely a teenager who has been forced throughout her life to be part of her mother's social media presence. Through her diary entries we learn she is tired of being kept in the bubble her mother has created through homeschool and the curated social media life. Her real name is Abby and she writes in her diary about the friendship she strikes up with another student and then she goes missing.

This book was very twisty and kept me turning the pages to see what would happen next. The mother's control over Chloe/Abby was frightening and the fact that her husband went along with it was so strange to me.

I liked the short chapters and alternating viewpoints throughout the investigation into her disappearance. I did think I had it figured out a few times and wasn't quite right for any of them.

There were a few times where one must put questions to the side, especially in how they conduct the investigation. But overall this was a great, twisty read.

Thank you to NetGalley, Mandy McHugh and Penzler publishing for the free e-book in exchange for an honest review.

I wasn't sure about this one until we started seeing the journal entries from Abby and having different perspectives and storylines that all come together. I really liked the pacing, even though it wasn't super fast paced, but it was enough to keep me invested and concerned about Chloe. I enjoyed the suspenseful atmosphere when they were searching for the missing girls, but I did wish it was a bit shorter of a novel.

Fast paced and gripping thriller. Will leave you on the edge of your seat. The twists and turns will keep you guessing until the very end.

Thank you to the publisher, Mandy McHugh, and Netgalley for the chance to read and review this arc in exchange for my honest thoughts.

This storyline was definitely intriguing once it got to a certain point. I found it started off slow but once we got into the search for “Chloe” i found the book hard to put down.

The storyline was well written, and the characters well developed and easy to like/dislike.

I wasn’t a huge fan of how the book ended, as I feel like it left some questions unanswered, but overall this was an enjoyable read.

“ Chloe Cates is Missing” by Mandy McHugh introduces us to the Scarborough family whose life revolves around 13 year old Abby known as Chloe to fans who have followed her life since she was a toddler. Jennifer Scarborough, Chloe’s mother started the blog as an escape as a new mother but it has become an obsession- the push for success, the monitoring of view counts, courting sponsors. Jennifer ignores her daughters increasing unhappiness and as she is preparing for their next IG shoot, she finds that Chloe is missing.
When the call comes in, Emilina recognizes the mother of the missing girl as someone she shares a dark secret from the past.
As the investigation intensifies, family secrets are revealed and a possible link to another missing girl. Jennifer seems more interested in keeping both media and internet attention than finding her daughter which causes a family rift. Will everyone’s secrets be revealed in time to bring Chloe home before it’s too late?
This was an unexpectedly fun read from a debut author that I am looking forward to reading more from. I have mentioned in other reviews that I love reading about “ influencers” and this one dud not disappoint. Jennifer was as over the top, fake and so awful you can picture her in any Housewife cast. Imagine updating your IG blog while your daughter is missing?? 🤯 Jackson, the father, was just as horrible imo, not only for not speaking out but for some of what he helped with. I’m going to have to stop or we will get into spoilers but as you can tell, I loved this book and have strong opinions on some of the characters.
Thank you to #netgalley and #penzlerpublishers for an advanced e-copy in exchange for my honest opinion. This is due for publication on February 15, 2022.

A Must Read! Fast Paced And Thrilling!

What an unbelievably amazing book!!!! The twists and turns, the depths of what is right and wrong and the emotional waves you ride! Ah! Absolutely loved this one!!!

You are taken for a ride from different perspectives. Jennifer, the mom who has a nasty streak in her and a dark past. Jackson, her husband who has been going along with his wife’s crazy ideas and has he had enough? And Emilina the detective for missing children who has a past with Jennifer and that is the last person she ever wanted to see again.

All the secrets woven in are executed beautifully. The pain you feel for Chloe l, the angst you feel between Jennifer and Emilina, the power of guilt and what the right thing to do is. I recommend this book to all who want to dive into a great mystery thrill! Thanks so much for the ARC

4 stars (audible release date 1/18/22 Print release date 2/15/22)

You can read all of my reviews at Nerd Girl Loves Books.

This is a very good mystery/thriller that will keep you riveted until the end. The whole story takes place in less than 24 hours, and the tension is palpable. The story is told in short chapters through four main characters' point of view. There are plenty of unreliable narrators whose lies pile up one after another, and the author slowly dolls out twists and turns with each chapter. The ending was both satisfying and frustrating in that it leaves the ultimate conclusion to the reader's imagination.

Chloe Cates is the popular 13 year old virtual star of a blog entitled "CC and Me". Chloe is the "CC" and her mother Jennifer is the "me". Chloe's ruthless mother is the driving force behind the popular series, constantly pushing the teenager for more. Not only does the series garner money through sponsorships that supports the family's lifestyle, the series and the fabricated life it portrays is Jennifer's entire identity. When Jennifer discovers Chloe missing, she calls the police and the media, turning the disappearance into a spectacle. To make it worse, investigating detective Emilina Stone is assigned to the case. Jennifer and Emilina have a complicated past that could come back to hurt both women if they aren't careful.

As the investigation intensifies, the families secrets start spilling out, causing a media frenzy. Suddenly Jennifer sees her carefully curated life splintering apart, and a desperate Jennifer will do anything to try to clutch it back. Jennifer's husband, Jackson, sees the damage that Jennifer's ambitions cause their family, but feels helpless to stop it. He's got secrets of his own, and as the hours pass, his entire life will be laid bare.

I really enjoyed this book and highly recommend you read it. I was provided a complimentary copy of this book from NetGalley and Scarlet. All opinions are my own.

Chloe Cates is Missing is a psychological domestic thriller. The story is written in four point of views, the missing child, her mother, her father, the detective, and the missing girl's diary. The book will keep you guess. I kept changing my mind on how I thought it was going to end. I'm still not sure if I saw that ending coming or not. Overall, it was an enjoyable read for me.

This review will be shared on Amazon and Goodreads