Member Reviews
This was a rough one for me to get through. The beginning was pretty good but once Noelle got “kidnapped”, I felt like nothing really happened. It got very repetitive (take a drink every time you read the words “plan” or “Porsche”). There was a bunch of loose ends, such as Sarah & Justine that I felt were a bit rushed over in the end. Also, Kari’s character just bugged me since she was so flaky with Noelle. This one left me bummed out
*Thank you to Jessica Payne, Bookouture, and NetGalley for an ARC in exchange for an honest review*
Previously published at https://www.mysteryandsuspense.com/make-me-disappear/
“This book is for anyone who can identify with a relationship that seems good in the beginning and looks clean on the surface but evolves into something sinister. Sociopaths and narcissists walk among us, and they’re harder to identify than most people realize.” –Jessica Payne, Author’s note.
This book is so much fun. I loved every minute of it, reading it from cover to cover in one sitting. I even laughed out loud at many parts, though essentially this book is about a kidnapping. Someone coined the term “disbelief suspenders” and it fits this book perfectly. Make Me Disappear is so over the top that you have to put your “disbelief suspenders” on to make it work. It is completely crazy.
Noelle, a cardiac nurse, has been dating Dr. Daniel Ashcroft, an anesthesiologist for a while. At first, everything was perfect. Daniel is everything Noelle could want in a boyfriend; handsome, attentive, and rich. But as time goes on, he becomes more and more controlling; putting a keystroke app on her computers and phone, installing cameras in her house and controlling her work schedule to fit with his. There is nothing Noelle can do that Daniel won’t know about. She even believes he is somehow involved in the death of her beloved aunt Beatrice and has made threats regarding her cousin Kari’s pregnancy. She wants to break free but wants nothing to happen to her cousin. One day, trapped inside an internet café during a rainstorm, she sees an ad for an extreme kidnapping site. You pay ex-felons to come and kidnap you.
According to the author’s note, at the end of the book, these companies actually exist. Noelle plans her own kidnapping. She’ll be taken out of Seattle and send word to Kari when she is safe. One night, when she is getting ready to meet Daniel for dinner, a masked man comes into her bedroom, grabs her, and puts her in the trunk of his car. Noelle is finally free. But she soon realizes she has truly been kidnapped, by someone else rather than the company she actually hired to kidnap her. But who has ordered her kidnapped? She believes it is Daniel who had her taken to scare her. But is it? Who else would benefit from her being kidnapped?
As Noelle forms an alliance with her kidnapper, Jack, who has his own secrets and revenge on Daniel, she intends to make her boyfriend’s life difficult by doing little things such as turning off the heat in his house and stealing his car. When she finds out he is preying on her pregnant cousin, her annoyance turns to rage. Things never go to plan and soon Noelle and Jack are playing gotcha with Daniel, pursuing each other from California through Oregon to Seattle. It all becomes a little hilarious and nutty. We find out she is as devious as anyone else in the book. If you love karma, this is your book. Make Me Disappear is told from two points of view; Noelle and Daniel. Daniel’s point of view was frightening, as the reader realizes he does not know his sociopathic tendencies. Everything he did made perfect sense to him.
The ending of this book really takes the cake. Jessica Payne wrapped it up perfectly, and the reader is stunned. The characters are funny, interesting, and more devious than the next one. What a debut! I can’t wait to see what Payne comes up with next!
An enjoyable book. My rating is 3.5. Interesting premise. I enjoyed the two points of view. I felt the story was a little slow in areas. The characters kept me interested in the story. The storyline was a bit thriller-lite, but was a good read.
An ok thriller. Definitely followed the formula with twists, but they were predictable and I didn’t care about any of the characters. Thanks to Netgalley and the publisher for an advanced copy in exchange for my honest review.
Awesome thriller, great twist. Main character annoyed me here and there but I enjoyed the story. Thank you NetGalley for this ARC
Make Me Disappear is Jessica Payne’s debut novel.
Noelle is a nurse in a relationship with well respected anaesthesiologist Dr Daniel Ashcroft. She thought she was lucky then starts to hear rumours about his ex girlfriend who vanished without a trace. She can’t simply leave him so arranges her own kidnapping in order to escape - but it’s not that simple. A great psychological thriller with a great twist at the end that will keep you guessing throughout. Thank you to NetGalley, Bookouture and the author for the chance to review.
📚Make Me Disappear ✍️ Jessica Payne
Debut novel from Jessica Payne publishing May 16,2022
Authors debut novel! Based in Seattle, Noelle is in a relationship that seems too good to be true until it’s not. Meet Noelles boyfriend, dr. Daniel Ashcroft 🤢. I hated him immediately (and I don’t ever use the H word) 🤣🤣🤣 he’s an antagonist pig. Creepy how I even felt watched while reading this. Noelle is desperate to get away from this creep. Found myself rooting for her the whole time.
Thankful for the chance to read this before publishing date. This book started out real strong but I felt it was missing something. ⭐️⭐️⭐️/5 still looking forward to reading more from this author in the future
🖤🖤Favorite Quotes:
“You share yourself, who you really are, and that’s when people realize you’re as complicated as they are”
“You’re playing with fire, my love. Don’t mind me while I turn up the heat”🔥🔥🔥
The beginning was great! Then it got to the middle & wow it really dragged. I had very high hopes for this to only be disappointed. I feel like more could of been done to keep the pace up and be interesting. However, I really appreciate an arc copy for Make Me Disappear in return for my honest review!
This is a great debut novel! There was a lot of action and suspense. It lacked an OMG twist moment for me because I felt the twist was predictable and lacking excitement but I still really enjoyed reading this book. I was very invested from beginning to end!
ARC received via NetGalley in exchange for an honest opinion.
Thank you Bookoutre for a copy of Make me disappear by Jessica Payne. This is a face paced, creepy thriller from the author about being in a relationship that is too good to be true and when Noelle finds out that it is and the guy is a control freak, things start to go wrong. This story has well-developed characters and did enjoy it most parts but I found as a delved further into the story that for me personally it got a bit too far fetched and unbelievable. It is worth reading and this is a great start as an author’s debut novel. I would like to see how the author writing develops. 3.5 stars from me.
15Glory Creed
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Make Me Disappear by Jessica Payne
Make Me Disappear
by Jessica Payne (Goodreads Author)
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Read in April 2022
Thank you to NetGalley and Bookouture for the opportunity to read and review this book.
I'm usually not a fan of books comparing themselves to others in their publishing notes or ad copy in hopes of riding the coattails of a successful one, but in this particular case I think they nailed the comparison to Gone Girl and The Couple Next Door in this particular case. This story, from a plot and feel perspective, feels like the perfect marriage of those two novels. It has betrayal, action, mystery, and most of all plot twists.
If you like dual perspective thrillers and complicated relationships, this would be a great one to pick up.
My only real complaint is how much I hated the male antagonist (though I'm fairly certain it was the point to hate him). At points the misogyny felt a bit over the top, but I suppose if I'm infuriated the author is doing something right.
Overall a really solid debut novel. I'll be looking out for whatever comes next for Jessica Payne.
Crossposted to goodreads at: https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/4669734370
Thanks NetGalley for the ARC in exchange for an honest opinion.
A solid debut novel with all the right ingredients. Enough twists to keep me reading and invested to reach the conclusion. However it lacked that OMG factor that gut punches.
A good thriller keeps you guessing and makes you scratch your head. This definitely did that for me. I saw the twist from the beginning, but there were twists that kept me turning the pages. The characters were well developed, and the plot was put together well. This was a fun read!
What an incredible debut novel Jessica Payne! I could very easily have read this in one sitting if I didn't have to get up for work! This twisty thriller certainly kept me guessing all the way through and went to places I did not see coming at all. Always a good thing in my opinion.
Now this was a story we have heard before - but it is nothing like you have read before, believe me!
In the beginning, Daniel, a charming and handsome doctor, is the perfect boyfriend. Noelle is happy. But soon she starts to see another side to him - he is controlling to the point of hiding cameras in her home, knowing her passwords and work schedule. She has tried to get away once and it didn't end well so she has to try harder this time. Arranging her own kidnapping - now there is a plan. But things never so smoothly do they? This is the start of a wild ride but who will win this race?
I highly recommend this book, it will have you turning pages into the night.
Thanks to Jessica Payne, Netgalley and Bookouture for my advanced copy of this book to read. Published May 16th.
Make Me Disappear by Jessica Payne was a fast-paced page turner. The story immediately drew me in and kept me reading late into the night. Clever twists and turns kept me guessing right through to the end. An engaging story of manipulation and revenge, this one was a winner! I am looking forward to more by this author.
This was an amazing debut novel! Yes, there are books out there that are similar, but this book has it's own character. I read this in one sitting (despite of me suffering from covid 😅), and still got hooked.
What I liked about it was how easy it was to follow. The short chapters help, and definitely loved multiple POVs. I'm not a big fan of "billionaire guy falls in love with a regular girl" type of story, but Daniel was rich, but it wasn't bragged much. Like, we know he's rich but it didn't revolve there. Also with Noelle, there's a background story there, enough for me to understand her. This book was f*cked up enough (in a good way) for a psychological thriller 😁
I would've given this a 5-star if I didn't guess the ending. Hahaha! But overall, for a debut novel, this was a good one! Would love to read more from Jessica.
OH WOW!! What a debut!!! Jessica Payne wove a wonderful suspense thriller that gripped me from the very beginning. I could not stop reading. After every chapter I NEEDED to find out what happened next and what new twist would be revealed. I loved the dual POVs, the timelines, and all the twists and turns. Getting to be in Daniel’s mind was disturbing and enlightening and creepy all at the same time. Nothing was what it seemed and I had no idea who to trust or what information to trust. I felt just like Noelle - questioning everything and not sure who or what to believe.
I love mysteries/suspense thrillers because I love to try to figure the twists and mysteries and see if I was right by the time I finish. In this case, there was a lot I didn’t see and by the end I was reeling, like Noelle was, from all the revelations. For that I gave this book 5 stars and will be recommending it to my friends and recommending it in my book groups. I am definitely a fan of Jessica Payne and will read whatever she writes next.
Thank you to NetGalley, the publisher, and to Jessica Payne for this ARC in exchange for an honest opinion and review.
Setting up ones own kidnapping--a fresh and unique plot. Unfortunately, I wasn't hooked right away. It took me a little while to really get into the story. But, boy, once things got going it was non-stop, heart racing, twists and turns.
Noelle would seem to have the perfect boyfriend. Dr Daniel Ashcroft. Charming, good looking a real catch. However, as their relationship develops. He see's the perfect wife and mother. She see's herself trapped in a loveless controlling relationship.
Daniel spies on her at every opportunity. Has secret camera's installed. Knows her passwords. Noelle begins to realize that leaving him isn't going to be easy. Especially when she finds out a previous girlfriend just disappeared without trace.
The only thing she can do is hatch a plan to form an escape. However, is she creating more danger for herself.
Thoroughly enjoyed this book. Even though I cant believe the character Noelle would have ever got herself in so deep.
Many thanks to Netgalley and the publisher for the opportunity to see an ARC
This book had me hooked since the very beginning! I had no idea where it was going to go and let me tell you, it did not disappoint! Amazing read and I highly recommend! Thank you NetGalley for this ARC.