The disappearance of Trudy Solomon is an old time mystery with lots of drama, subplots and TONS of characters.

Let me just start by saying this book was A LOT. There was the main plot of investigating what happened to Trudy - to Susan’s relationship with her mother and father, to the investigation into Susan being shot and shooting an unarmed black teen - which she denies.

I found the book interesting and attention grabbing throughout but I also felt like i was confused and couldn’t keep up as well. The number of characters introduced was quite overwhelming and I felt like the investigating going on in my mind ended up being a twisted web that I couldn’t keep up with.

Which this is a strong mystery read, it’s also one you have to follow quote closely.

Thank you Netgalley and the publisher for supplying me with an eARC in response for an honest review.

Forty years ago, Trudy Solomon disappeared. Today she is found alive, and mostly well, but has dementia and is not able to shed any light about her disappearance and what her life looked like after. Susan Ford, a detective, decides to investigate what happened to Trudy, and brings along her dad, a retired detective who was at the centre of the investigation 40 years ago and is eager to solve the mystery once and for all.

‘The Disappearance of Trudy Solomon’ is a multi-layered mystery novel that partially sheds light on the past and how it connects every single character in a unique way to the present. At times it can be quite hard to keep up with everything and everyone, so this story does require your focus when reading or listening to it, but to me it’s worth it in the end.

The audiobook is narrated by Rachel Fulginiti who did a great job. At first I wasn’t quite sure if I liked her narration style, but after a while it grew on me (10 hours and 39 minutes gave me plenty of time to do so!).
I particularly like how the more you listened to it, the more you – alongside the characters – could piece the puzzle pieces together to show the whole story of what happened. At times I even felt the need to grab an actual whiteboard and try to solve it alongside Susan!

Thank you to CamCat Books, NetGalley, and the author for this ARC.

Thank you to the publishers, author and NetGalley for the free copy of this audio book.

This was an interesting read, with several complicated twists. Well paced with good characters. I liked the narrator as well.

I loved this one! It reminded me of the Robert Dugoni Tracy Crosswhite series - not in any derivative way but in the fantastic writing and presentation of a strong female detective protagonist.

The audiobook narrator was marvelous and had a magnificent ability to give every character a unique voice without ever sounding melodramatic or overdone. Instead each character was voiced in a subtle manner that perfectly captured the essence of who they were to the story.

Pair that with strong writing, excellent pacing and plotting, and fantastic relationships between well-developed characters and you have a huge hit. I loved the back and forth in perspective between the historical rollout via Trudy's memories and the concurrent activity in resolving the cold case. It was managed very well, such that you were always able to keep track of what was going on and what time frame you were in, even in an audiobook format. The familial relationships were very realistic and I especially loved the father-daughter interplay.

I would love to see this turn into a series and am delighted to see it referred to as book 1. Until then, I'm going to have to look for anything else I can find from Marcy McCreary!

Apparently, books are no longer an escape from pollical nonsense. Hated the book. Hated the way BLM was harped about on and on and on. Started out well. McCreary seems a competent writer. Would never read anything of hers again because I do not appreciate being harped at.

The title is entirely off point. Trudy’s disappearance really wasn’t more than an introduction – solved quickly and easily. That also diminishes the story in that anyone could have found her. She wasn’t in hiding. So what were the police doing all those years with an open case? More of the woke crap pointing to the incompetence of the police.

The alleged concept of the story was a great idea. Too bad McCreary didn’t bother to tell that story.

Rachel Fulginiti was an enjoyable narrator.

Detective Susan Ford grows up in the Catskills, the best friend of a girl whose family owns a resort/hotel. After a falling out, the two do not speak again until Susan takes on a case with new clues. A case that occurred in their childhood. The story skips back and forth between present day and Susan’s childhood. With intertwining storylines and characters, this was a good read. I did feel it was a bit too drawn out in some places and probably could’ve wrapped up a bit sooner. Overall, it’s a book that will leave you guessing and I’d definitely recommend.
**huge thanks to NetGalley for the ARC in exchange for my honest review

The Disappearance of Trudy Solomon
(A Ford Family Mystery Book 1)
by Marcy McCreary, narrated by Rachel Fulginiti

Forty years ago Stanley and Rachel Roth seemed to have it all. They owned the old Catskills resort, The Cuttman Hotel, and it had been in Rachel's family for generations. Rachel was the gorgeous wife of successful Stanley, and they had four beautiful and popular children. Susan Ford, friend of the Roth daughter, Lori, could only dream of a family like theirs. Around the time that Lori dumped Susan when they were thirteen, Susan's family was breaking up and her mom was deep into alcohol.

In the present day, Susan is in hot water for shooting a drug dealer who shot her. After recovery from her gunshot would, she has two months to work a cold case from forty years ago. She'll be working it with the help of her retired detective father, a man who lives in a retirement center but who still has all his faculties and an itch to do more than play billiards and shuffleboard.

The audiobook narration is very good and it helped me to hang in there when I was totally confused by all the characters, twists, and turns. The three crime white boards existing in my head got so mixed up with names, places, times, and imaginary strings running here and there that it became one big black blob and never did resolve into something I could understand. Too many people, too many red herrings, just too much information for me to finish the story really understanding what happened way back then and in the decades afterward. But still, I did enjoy Susan's relationships with her father and her partner, Ray. There is even the extremely fractured relationship with her mother that held my interest. Since this is the first book in the series I'm hoping the next book is less confusing because I enjoyed spending time with Susan and her father as they sleuthed their way through this cold crime.

Thank you to CamCat Books and NetGalley for this ARC.

Marcy McCreary keeps you spellbound with this novel! There's not a thing about it that's predictable or stale. The plot is fresh, the characters are likable, and the narrator brings the story to life. As a reader, I appreciated that I couldn't guess "who did it." There aren't many plots that I can say that about. Missing/not missing. Dead/not dead. The author keeps you guessing! I don't want to give away any spoilers. However, once you reach the end, you can't see how it could have ended any differently. I look forward to reading or hearing the author's next novel.

The Disappearance of Trudy Solomon
By: Marcy McCreary
4

The Catskills are known for their hotels, and families taking summer vacations. At one time Stanley and Rachel Roth, owners of The Cuttman hotel were successful, have four children and were very well loved and people were loyal to them. Not everything is at it seems.

Forty years later, remains are found on the property. Trudy Solomon was a coffee shop waitress in 1978. She has been missing for years, and as skeletal remains are found her case is reopened. What do the Roth know?

Detective Susan Ford is on the case and as the clues come to light the unthinkable happens. Susan’s dad whose is retired helps Susan investigate.

This novel goes between Susan and some snippets of Trudy’s POV. This was my first by this author, and I would love to read more, as this is #1 in a Series.

Thank you @NetGalley, @CamCatbooks and author @MarcyMcCreary for this audio book.

ARC audiobook provided by NetGalley and the publisher in exchange for an honest review.

“The Disappearance of Trudy Solomon” follows Detective Susan Ford as she digs deep into a forty-year-old cold case. Susan finds herself under investigation after she shoots and kills a black man in the line of duty. After being cleared by Internal Affairs, Susan is permitted to return to work, but her boss wants her to keep a low profile for a while. Then a body is found. Due to the age of the remains, the cold case of Trudy Solomon, a coffee shop waitress at a Catskills hotel, the Cuttman, who disappeared in 1978, is reopened. Susan’s father, a retired detective, worked on the case in 1978. Susan is assigned to the case, and her father is permitted to come out of retirement to help out.

Despite an early break in the case, things are not as simple as they seem. The past begins to tell a story, and it is long and twisted. Soon it appears that the Cuttman family, owners of the famed hotel, hold clues to the case. As Susan and her father interview family members, it becomes clear that they know more than what they are admitting. If Susan ever wants to learn the truth, she is going to have to dig deeper and become more involved with the Cuttman family than she would like.

This book was a solid 4.5 stars from me. It was just barely under a five-star rating, and it may just be because I am very picky with my five-star reviews. In giving this review, I would also like to address some of the other reviews I have seen out there that I feel are just off the mark. First of all, there is the mysterious disappearance of Trudy Solomon. Yes, we essentially find out the end of the mystery early on in this story; however, the entire middle is a deep and twisted mystery that is not fully realized until the very end of the book. It is a compelling mystery with an interesting cast of characters and a few red herrings.

Second, as to the number of characters, some reviewers have stated it was too confusing. I find this to be way off base. There are a number of characters that interplay in the main story, but the author does a splendid job of keeping these characters identified and their involvement clear throughout. The characters are fleshed out, well-rounded and interesting. My copy of this book was an audiobook, and even in this format, the characters were clear to me and definitely not confusing in the least bit.

Third, some members have complained about there being multiple storylines. Without giving anything away, there are differing storylines, but they are all convergent. The characters in the story are players in each of the storylines, and many of the facts crisscross between them. It is all clearly relevant and wraps up neatly at the end in a final confrontation.

As a reader, I was engrossed in all aspects of this story. The overall story arc was strong and compelling. It pulled me in and never let me go. I wanted to know how the book was going to end, but I also did not quite want the story to end. I was simply enjoying it too much. I felt the story was unique, the characters likeable (and in some cases justly not), and the ending satisfying.

As noted above, my copy of this book was an audiobook, so I must comment on the narrator. I thought she did an excellent job. Her narrative pace was well-executed and kept me engaged. Her voices, both male and female, were well done. Even with a large cast of characters, this narrator offered sufficiently differing voices to keep the story clear and on track.

Overall, I loved this book. I highly recommend this book for all adult readers, especially fans of mysteries. The unique storyline was a breath of fresh air, and I enjoyed the writing so much that I’m already eagerly waiting for the next book in this series. Whether in written or audiobook format, I highly recommend you pick up a copy of this book ASAP!

Mysteries solved so often leave a trail of destruction when they are solved. However, this book, with all its many complexities and mysteries caused inter-generationally and within the community, within so many families and bystanders, this book is spectacular. The more one story starts to become unraveled, the more others are. It is a good story, filled with twists and turns.

Very impressive mystery.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for the ARC of this audiobook.
I am not usually too big on police procedural books but I really liked this one. There were a lot of characters and some surprises at the end that I was not expecting. Narrator also did a great job as well.
Definitely recommend.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publishers for the opportunity to listen to and review this arc.

Thoroughly enjoyable cold case mystery where the missing woman turns up living with dementia in a nursing home 40 years later, but just how reliable can Trudy Solomon be in solving the mystery of her own disappearance? With detective Susan and her retired cop father on the case you are in for a ride to find out. A very well plotted story with excellent characters, a believable thriller that I’d say you need to pay close attention to you don’t want to miss anything along the way. I’d definitely recommend this to my friends, and look forward to continuing the series. Well rounded 3 stars.

Many thanks to NetGalley and CamCat Books for gifting me an audio ARC of this book by Marcy McCreary and narrated wonderfully by Rachel Fulginiti - the first in a series starring Detective Susan Ford - 4.5 stars!

Forty years ago, The Cutmann Hotel, located in the Catskills, was a glamorous resort, owned and operated by the even more glamorous and perfect Roth family. At least, that's what Susan thought as she grew up nearby and was friends with one of the Roth daughters. But now, Susan is back home and working as a detective in the same department that her father retired from. A cold case from then haunts him still - the disappearance of Trudy Solomon. When skeletal remains are found, Susan and her dad start investigating only to find that Trudy is alive and living in a care home with dementia. But all roads somehow lead back to the Roth's.

This was a listen now on NetGalley and I was in the need of an audiobook, so took a chance on it with not very high expectations. But I really enjoyed this book - I loved the snippets of conversation from Trudy, giving hints as to what happened to her so long ago; I loved the relationship between Susan and her dad; and the police procedural and mystery were spot on. I can't wait to read more from this author and am thrilled that this is the start of a series.

I loved this even though it was another cop book. The performance was flawless and the characters were fun. It had good perspectives for all the players.

Detective Susan Ford grew up in the Catskills she was 13 when Trudy Solomon went missing her dad was the detective investigating the case and became obsessed. It is now 40 years later and Susan has just returned from work after her suspension for shooting an unarmed man and although tensions are still high with regards to the shooting she’s back at work and seeks permission to investigate the newly found bones that they at first believe is trudy Solomon., at first Susan believes she will investigate a murder but when Trudy is found in a retirement home suffering from early onset dementia their investigation becomes A search for foul play. Susan‘s dad also lives in a retirement home but he has all his cognitive faculties and helps her investigate the case. After all it was the one case he couldn’t solve. With occasional looks into Trudy‘s present day life the case slowly but surely becomes clear in the golden family of the Catskills the Rothy’s One by one will become front in center in the investigation. Susan has a long history with the family but nostalgia isn’t going to help her solve the case nor will the Roths. This was such a great book and I loved the narrator Rachel Fulginiti has such a great voice and I thought she brought a lot to telling a great story. The further they get into the case the more questions that arise not to mention the shooting of an unarmed African-American and it all makes for a great story in a OMG conclusion! I received this book from NetGalley but I am leaving this review voluntarily please forgive any mistakes as I dictate most of my review.

I can't decide if I liked this or not. It fell victim to what a lot of mysteries do: way too weird situations. But at least it owned up to them?


Review copy provided by publisher.