This book was a thrill ride and kept my attention throughout.

Natalie and Michael go to New York with their two children for a vacation. Michael goes out for pizza when they arrive, but when he gets back Natalie and their children, along with their belongings, are gone. He is sure they must have been kidnapped. Later he discovers that they must have left willingly. Michael embarks on a frantic search for his family.

Natalie has been dealing with insomnia for awhile. She never gets much sleep and her delusions are getting worse. She doesn't know who to trust. Michael has a secret deep in his past that he has carefully buried and kept hidden from everyone. What is going on? Where did Natalie go and why? What is Michael hiding? Finding the answers is a great adventure.

This was a page-turner for me and I raced through it trying to find the answers to what was really happening. I was surprised how it turned out. It was an emotional read filled with tension.

Thanks to St. Martin's Press through Netgalley for an advancee copy. This book will be published on May 10, 2022.

Strong Cat And Mouse Tale Actually Harmed By Final Reveals. There is no escaping writing about my feelings about this book without up front stating that while the first of two final reveals was a decent twist - not great, given the story to that point, but serviceable enough - the second one in particular was just lackluster, lazy, and didn't fit with the rest of the book at all. And for it to be the epilogue of the book only leaves the reader disappointed.

Which is sad, because the book before that point, and even during the course of the first reveal, is a nail biting cat and mouse game that had me invested from the very beginning. A man comes back to his hotel room in NYC from getting his family pizza... only to find barely a shred of evidence that they were ever there to begin with. From here we get a dual-timeline-ish tale where we see both husband and wife and the one's efforts to find the other while the other tries desperately to hide from the one seeking them, and this part of the tale is deftly told showing Palmer's usual skill at maintaining a solid level of tension throughout the tale. With a better ending, this tale could actually have been one of Palmer's stronger ones. As it is, it is simply middling. Which is still a great tale from a great storyteller, simply not this particular storyteller at the top of his game. Still very much recommended.

After reading the reviews for Goodreads, I feel like I read a different book than everyone else. I saw many 4 and 5 star reviews, but unfortunately, this book did not live up to my expectations. The main problem that I had with this book was the fact that the resolution involved two characters that were hardly mentioned at all in the story. It kind of made the rest of the story seem pointless. It also took me awhile to get through. I fell asleep every time I picked it up. I would definitely recommend Palmer's other previous books over this one. Because this is the first miss for me by this author, I will be sure to check out future books. Thank you to the publisher for giving me a digital ARC of this book.

D.J. Palmer is great at writing twisty thrillers! This is my third book by him and I'm still impressed at all the twists. With that being said, this wasn't my favorite of his but it was still a good mystery.

The book starts off with Michael and his wife Natalie and their kids arriving at a NYC hotel. Michael goes out to get pizza and when he returns to the hotel, his family is missing. He thinks that they have been kidnapped but quickly learns she has left on her own. Their marriage had been rocky as of late but he doesn't know why she'd want to leave and take the kids.

This book was interesting but also a tad bit on the slow side. However, I really liked the twists and found they made the book better.

Thank you to the publisher and Netgalley for an advanced copy. Opinions are my own.

I received a digital advance copy of My Wife is Missing by D.J. Palmer via NetGalley. My Wife is Missing is scheduled for release on May 10, 2022.

My Wife is Missing begins with Michael returning to his hotel room to find his wife and two children have disappeared. Convinced they have been kidnapped, Michael first tries the police, but circumstances around the disappearance turns suspicion onto Michael.

Interwoven into Michael’s search for his family is his wife Natalie’s story leading up to the disappearance. Natalie is plagued by both insomnia and questions about her husband’s current and past activities. Deep in sleep deprivation, Natalie is unsure what clues she has actually uncovered, and what might be merely hallucinations.

While this story does have several twists and reveals, I was unsurprised by any of them. With the exception of one small turn at the end of the story, I guessed all of the twists within the first quarter of the novel. I am curious if other readers had this experience, or if I just happened to “see” this story from the very beginning. The result for me was that all of the turns in the story made logical sense, but none brought a new perspective for me.

I also had a bit of trouble with the narrators of the story. We get the story from current day Michael, and past Natalie. There is enough in the story to establish them both as characters, and both are potentially unreliable. This is what did not work very well for me. For Michael in particular, the questions about his narration were all deliberate withholding on his part, without a real reason for him to keep information from the reader. There were several instances of him telling us that he was not telling us something important. For me, this quickly becomes a bit irritating as a reader.

Overall, My Wife is Missing was a logically put together story, that lacked the surprises I wanted in a suspense/ thriller. I would love to hear from other readers to find out if they had a similar experience, or if I just lucked into seeing how the layers of this story fit together.

I’ve long been a fan of DJ Palmer’s books. I liked The New Husband and loved The Perfect Daughter. My Wife Is Missing is no different.

Told in alternating perspectives between husband and wife, Michael and Natalie, My Wife Is Missing is a twisty adventure. You’re unsure whether to believe either of them. Natalie is hallucinating due to insomnia and took off with her two kids. Michael has been unfaithful and is hiding a dark past. I loved the twists and turns, quite literally, as Natalie races across the country with Michael not far behind.

I read this book in two days. It is written in my favorite format for thrillers: multiple perspectives and short chapters. It was an easy and fun read and I highly recommend it to other thriller fans!

Thank you to St Martins Press and Netgalley for the review copy! All opinions are my own.

Cleverly written and thoroughly captivating. D.J. Palmer offers a fantastic domestic thriller with unreliable narrators, well-crafted characters, and a dynamic storyline of past and present. Palmer meticulously envelops readers into the narrative by carefully pacing the plot and unraveling every tiny, twisted detail. Love it. Highly recommended.

Thank you to #NetGalley and #stmartinspress for the ARC of #MyWifeIsMissing, which was read and reviewed voluntarily.

#bookfluence #djpalmer #tbrstacks

I don't like to try to figure out books as I'm reading them. I like to read just to be entertained. This one was pretty easy to figure out early on. Oh wait, no, it wasn't. Finally, I got it. No, I didn't! This one will keep you guessing. Mike's wife and children are missing. Well, not exactly missing... I don't want to tell too much but I think this book will keep you engaged and wanting to read more!

The book was fantastic!! I am always so eager to read a book by D.J. Palmer because I know it’s going to be good.

If I wasn’t getting an ARC copy, I would definitely be purchasing this book the day it was released. The thing I really loved about My Wife is Missing is the constant back and forth of who the bad person was. I was honestly changing my mind every other chapter because the author gets you so convinced that first the wife is crazy, then the husbands crazy. It’s a constant back and forth, and I loved it!

The narrator for this audio did a great job as well. It only took me 2 days to listen because I was so enthralled in the story I had to know the ending,

I highly recommend My Wife is Missing. And any other D.J. Palmer book as well!

Michael Hart comes back to his hotel room with pizza for his family only to discover they are not there. His wife, Natalie, and their kids, Abbie and Bryce, have disappeared along with their luggage. Quickly, it’s revealed she took the kids and left voluntarily. Michael is distraught and sets about tracking them down with the help of a detective. Natalie has been suffering from insomnia and has not been herself. Is this why she ran? Or is she trying to hide from her husband?

This was a fun, twisty thriller. It’s told in alternating POVs of Michael and Natalie as well as flashing back to before the disappearance. There were lots of secrets that came to light and I wasn’t sure if we had a reliable narrator or not until the end. Some of the twists I saw coming but some I didn’t. It was a little repetitive and dragged a little in the middle but I read it quickly and had to know what happened. The characters were not very likable and I don’t feel the way Natalie did things was reasonable or smart. I was never sure who to trust and who was at fault in the marriage. If you like domestic thrillers I think you would enjoy this.

3.5 stars

A family that goes on vacation in New York, but soon enough the husband can't find his wife or the kids. They disappeared. Did they leave by choice? Did someone make them leave? Have they been kidnapped ?

As the story unfolds we find out more about this family and their dynamic prior to the NY trip. Things are never as they seem to be.

D.J. Palmer does a good job misdirecting the reader. Even though the book is a bit slow in the middle, it has a good ending.

Thank you NetGalley and St. Martin's Press. for allowing me to read this book!

Nope. tThere were so many sentences that were so wordy and unnecessarily stuffed with big words. For example: “…Natalie’s cadre of conjured concubines, an amalgam of the real women…” just rubs me the wrong way and makes reading unenjoyable

I'll be totally honest, I was starting to get a little bored with this one. Just when I was feeling pretty meh about it, the next page stunned me just like a flipped switch. I'm always impressed with Palmer's writing and should know better than to give up hope!

Review of My Wife is Missing by D.J. Palmer:
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

A weekend getaway to New York City with the family quickly turns into a something of a nightmare for Michael Hart when he returns to the hotel room with pizza, only to find his wife and two young children missing. His initial thought is that they were kidnapped so it comes as a shock to him when he finds out that Natalie left on her own accord with both children - and that it looked like it was all planned. Natalie had her reasons for running but telling anyone would only endanger her and the kids. So.. she runs. But as she’s on the run, her insomnia catches up to her and it’s hard to trust anyone, including herself. The police are curious about why Natalie ran - and Michael has his suspicions but sharing the truth about his past would implicate himself. Has the past that Michael tried so hard to hide finally catching up to him?

Yet another mind-bending book by D.J. Palmer and deserving of all five stars! This book screams Dateline plot. Family drama, hidden past, secret life, suspense. The book immediately starts off intense, drawing you in and setting the stage for a gripping series of events while the middle is somewhat of a slow burn but keeps readers engaged with every deep lie, only to get to the final blows connecting everything together. Told between dual timelines and alternating point of views, each new twist and revelation is an unexpected surprise. I could not have predicted the ending despite how much I tried. So many theories and every single one of them wrong.

Thank you @StMartinsPress + @Netgalley [#partner] for gifting me with an early readers copy in exchange for an independent and honest review. My Wife is Missing will be out on shelves next week so preorder now so you can start reading on Tuesday!

What an enjoyable book. What is thought to be a family vacation is actually an escape. Natalie does not feel safe with her husband. So, she decides to run away with her children. Her husband will not stop till he tracks her down. Funny because he teams up with a detective with the same agenda!

I can't give too much away but this book is packed full of drama and suspense!

This is for both the audio and ebook version. 4 stars! ⭐️ ⭐️ ⭐️ ⭐️
Thank you to NetGalley, Macmillan and St. Martin's Press for the early listen/read. Loved the narrator she did a great job with each character. Easy to distinguish between the characters. What a great suspenseful story. D.J. Palmer is one of my favorite authors when it comes to suspenseful/psychological thriller stories. The author does a great job keeping you hooked until the very end which usually ends in an explosive ending. Did not see that coming.
Highly recommend

Wow, what an amazing read! This book was impossible to put down. It was really exciting not knowing what would happen next. The twists were surprising and expertly executed.

Michael & Natalie Hart and their two young children are spending the week in New York City on a family vacation. Museums, family fun, and possibly even a little repair on a crumbling marriage.
Checked in, bags ready to unpack, and a pizza in hand, Michael comes back to an empty room and his family nowhere to be found. Convinced they have been kidnapped he is shocked to see they left willingly.
Secrets will be unearthed, and between a sleep deprived wife and a paranoid husband who can you really believe? This book was super addictive and kept me guessing and on edge the whole time! Just when I thought I had it all figured out we took yet another turn. Although the final twist wasn't my favorite I am still glad to have read this book. DJ Palmer's writing draws you in and is action packed start to finish. Very little fluff and all suspense. Thank you to St. Martin's Press & NetGalley for an ARC in exchange for my honest review. Four stars.

The good: twisty turns, secret pasts, red herrings. The bad: all the repetition and dragging on. This book could easily have been 50 fewer pages and provided for a much tighter more suspenseful reading experience. I get wanting to make the reader wait and needing to fill in the space between the initial event and the reveal, but I don't need to go over the same things multiple times. I'd prefer a story that keeps things tight. Perhaps had that happened, the twists might not have felt so obvious as well? I enjoyed the book but felt like I missed out on the opportunity to have read a much better version of the same story had some judicious editing taken place.

Thank you to the publisher for my copy - all opinions are my own.

This was a good read - solid, dependable and interesting. While this one didn't blow my socks off and doesn't really throw out any mind boggling twists, it was overall just a great book to spend an afternoon with.

I enjoyed the pacing and I love a book that moves perspectives on character. I loved the element of Natalie having severe insomnia that really lent a sense of uncertainty to what was going on. I loved that Michael had shady secrets that he is hiding, but the reveal of those secrets was bit by bit which kept me interested. I loved that the plot was a husband tracking his wife as she goes on the run, but in a way that was believable from a resource and ability perspective.

Definitely a great book to meander over on beautiful spring afternoons.