This book grabbed my attention right away and I raced to the end. There was lots of twists and turns the ended was one I was not expecting fantastic.

The story’s is told in past and present tense which will keep you hooked till the end will definitely be recommending this book to all thriller book lovers.

This was my first read from this author and definitely won’t be the last.

One of my favourite suspense authors and one that I read everything she releases is Carissa Ann Lynch who funnily enough I discovered through another author whom I followed as Carissa at the time was published under her agency. I fell in love with her books and continued to follow her writing I have enjoyed all of her books and her latest one The Summer She Disappeared was no different. The other thing I loved about this particular book is that it follows one of my favourite tropes of a past/present mystery. Willow Roberts is back in the town her family used to summer in as they owned a lake house. With both of Willow's parents now deceased and recently divorced from her ex-husband she has decided to come back and renovate the Lake House to either live in or sell. It has been twenty years since she was last here, that was also the summer her best friend Ruthie disappeared without a trace. What happens though when one of the builders calls her and she finds a body in the closet at her Lake House? The body matches the description of Ruthie, the day she vanished. On closer inspection, something is not quite right and so begins a journey for Willow to track down what happened that Summer, face some old memories, and discover the truth of where Ruthie, or at the very least, killed her. I do have to admit, I was slightly disappointed with the ending when we do find out about Ruthie as it seemed rushed for me as did the part where Willow comes back twenty years later face to face with Ian Ashcroft. However, overall, this was another great read and a thriller/author I recommend to be added to your reading lists.

I love books about friendships and buried secrets so knew I would like this one and I wasn't wrong! Told in past and present perspectives, the novel revolves around Willow and Kathi Jo who become best friends when Willow and her parents begin spending summers in the lake town where Kathi Jo lives. But Kathi Jo is a wild one, attractive, flirtatious, and eventually hooks up with Blake whose parents are wealthy but troubled. Following along on her coattails, Willow tries to imitate and fit in, but it's clear she's an outsider. Creepy and twisted, the novel reveals the many sides friendship takes as these teens and their often-negligent parents navigate life without knowing what will unfold!
Thanks to NetGalley for this ARC!

Thank you to Netgalley, the publisher and the author, for an ARC of this book, in exchange for an honest review.
"The Summer She Disappeared" is the 3rd book that I have been lucky enough to read by Carissa Ann Lynch.
It grabbed my attention right away & didn't let it go until the final twisty & unexpected ending.
I enjoyed the author's writing style, how she told the story by using the present & past timelines.
I can't wait to read Ms. Lynch's next book.

I received a gifted copy and am providing a review.

Willow and her family are not rich by any means. Instead of big, expensive summer vacations, they travel about forty minutes away from home (Branton) to Hillendale for the summertime. Basically, only shifting locations, but still … the scenery is different. Willow meets Kathi Jo and they become fast friends.

The following summer, it’s back to Hillendale. Kathi Jo has changed. She’s now hanging out with Blake, Tommy, and Trevor. Chloe, Blake’s sister, doesn’t bother hanging out with them. Willow never felt she fit in with this crowd, always thinking she was being judged by them. This is the summer some terrible things happened. This is the summer they wish they could all forget. This is the last summer Willow and her family spent in Hillendale.

Fast forward quite a few years and Willow finds herself back in Hillendale, trying to fix up the lake house so she can sell it or rent it, since it’s hers now. Being back in Hillendale brings back a lot of memories and a lot of questions - the main one being what happened to her friend.

If you like a tale told in a dual timeline, with a couple of storylines mixed together, give this one a read in 2023. There are dropped hints of what happened that fateful summer that will keep the pages turning until the answers are revealed.

"I know what you did. It’s time to come clean about that summer."

This story is told in two timelines. When Willow was a girl entering her teen years and in the present as an adult. They converge to uncover the secrets behind her best friend's disappearance.

The present chapters were so riveting for the first 20% but then quickly became fillers that didn't add a lot to the story or forward the plot. The past chapters, however, were engrossing and basically told the whole story. I really enjoyed this read.

The Summer She Disappeared tells the story of Willow, who, growing up, visited her family's lakehouse every summer. As a young teen, she meets Kathi Jo, and the two quickly become best friends. The "past" chapters focus on three consecutive summers: 1998 (when Willow and Kathi Jo meet), 1999 (when they meet the 'boys'), and 2000 (when Kathi Jo runs away). Twenty years later, Willow inherits the lakehouse and is forced to move back. The "present" chapters focus on Willow, as she relives all her childhood memories and faces the brutal truth of what happened all those years ago.

I thought the dual timelines were well-done; in particular, I really enjoyed the "past" chapters. They reflected the innocense of young teenhood and the subsequent challenges of growing up. Willow misses the days when it was only her and Kathi Jo and their imaginations. Kathi Jo is becoming focused on boys, clothes, and make-up. I did not find the "present" chapters to be as engrossing. Most of the character development was done in the "past" chapters. Finally, I found the end to be pretty predictable. Overall, I enjoyed The Summer She Disappeared and would recommend it.

Another great read by Carissa Ann Lynch. Dual timelines and amazing characters make this work perfectly! Lots of tension, lies and manipulation.
So many twists and turns.
Thank you NetGalley for the opportunity to read and review this book

I loved this one. The back and forth past and press tied this together perfectly. The terror and fear this inspired. I have a weakness for settings and stories like this the atmosphere makes the book that much better. I loved the characters, loved getting to know them. The plot was well done and the story moved at a perfect pace. Suspense and plot twists are woven throughout. A perfect cuddle on the couch read.

This book was just ok to me. It centers on Willow, who returns to the lake town where she spent her summers as a child upon inheriting a vacation home from her parents. Willow has great memories of spending time with her friend Kathi Jo, but hasn’t returned since Kathi Jo’s strange disappearance ~20 years ago. The story is told entirely from Willow’s POV, but alternating between the current time and the summers from when she was a teen.

It’s clear that there is more to Kathi Jo’s disappearance than it seems and that someone doesn’t want Willow back in town. Some of the stuff that happens is pretty creepy, though I felt that the identification of the villain was predictable. I struggled a bit with why Willow was so enamored with Kathi Jo to begin with- they only spent a few summers together and it seemed like only the first one was all that special to Willow.

Overall, I walked away from this book underwhelmed. The ground was laid for a good story and it wasn’t a boring read, but it never really reached the potential I expected. Thanks to Netgalley for providing me with a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

Thank you to Netgalley for the opportunity to read this book in exchange for an honest review.
This book is told by the main character Willow, over 2 timelines one set in the later 90s and one in the present.

Willow returns to her family’s summer house after her parents have died. During her renovations, a “dead body” is found in one of the closets. Willow believes this to be her childhood best friend. Willow tries to uncover the truth about what happens that summer.

There are a few twists and turns but I was underwhelmed I felt this book could have gone further.

For the synopsis I was really looking forward to reading The Summer She Disappeared but for me the book never really got going. I was expecting a tense and gripping thriller but in all honesty found the book quite slow going and a bit lacklustre. I’m sure others will love the book but it wasn’t for me. Thank you to NetGalley, Harper Collins UK, One More Chapter and the author for the chance to review.

Willow has inherited her parents’ lake house that she has not been back to since her teenage years, two decades ago. Her family came here every summer until the one when it all went wrong. Her best friend Kathi Jo ran away and was never heard from again. After that, Willow’s family never returned and she did her best to move on with her life. Now that her parents have passed away and she is divorcing her husband, moving into the lake house once it’s fixed up sounds like the perfect plan. She rents a small apartment close by to keep an eye on the renovations. And once the summer ends, she can find a new teaching job and really start fresh. But then the body is discovered.

Now the memories of the past are dredged up and she can’t stop thinking about all the time she and Kathi Jo spent together. The narrative is split between the present and two decades ago, when their friendship began. Meeting as young teens, they enjoyed going on adventures and making up tall tales to entertain themselves. But as the years passed, their interests changed and so did their friendship. Kathi Jo began dating Blake, a typical wealthy and arrogant young guy, always accompanied by his less impressive friends, Tommy and Trevor.

Willow reluctantly tagged along to their hangouts, although she wasn’t as into smoking and drinking. When she and Kathi Jo visit Blake’s mansion for a party, she realizes that this is the norm for Kathi Jo, who has also grown close to Blake’s older sister Chloe, unbeknownst to Willow. As the rest of the gang lives at the lake year-round, she’s more of an outsider they only see during the summer and she begins to notice how much she misses out on during the school year. Then their last summer together builds to a tragic end that ties in nicely with the present narrative and leads to a stunning conclusion. You may see it coming as I did, but I was glad the author went the way she did with the ending as it was quite inventive.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for the ARC.
Another good one from Carissa Ann Lynch. I’ve read several of her books and enjoyed them all.
This one wasn’t as good as some previous ones but it was a fast and easy read and it had a good ending that I really didn’t expect. Willow was a likable character but most of the others were not.
I felt like to me there were some loose ends with tommy and with Trevor but they didn’t really play a big part either.
I still look forward to more books by this author.

As with all Carissa Lynch books that I have read so far, this one has some huge twists and turns that you just could never guess. Or at least…I didn’t. And I’m usually good at that!

The Summer She Disappeared is both slower-paced and fast moving. It’s a quick read, but it is not as full of adrenaline as some of Lynch’s other books. The book is bifurcated, focusing one half on the present day, which is a meandering tale of unwinding the mystery of what happened in the past. The second half is focused on the past, and is faster paced, telling us the story of what actually happened. When they clash together at the end and everything is revealed, it becomes very clear that what happened…only happened because of the secrets that were kept, and horrid misunderstandings. Had the truth come out in the past…an accidental death wouldn’t have been thought to be murder.

I loved this book. It kept me hooked from the very beginning, and invested until the very end. However, the ending really surprised me…in more ways than one. The ending itself…the “whodunnit” moment…was incredible. All of the scenarios I had come up with were not even close, and the actual ending was so much better! However, it was also surprising because it just kind of ended abruptly. When the main character figures out what happened, she passes out in a very compromising situation. The adrenaline built up…and I was concerned, wondering how she was going to get out of it. But, we don’t see that. It isn’t explained. The next scene we see is the culprit getting arrested. I feel like there was something missing there. I feel like maybe one more chapter was needed to kind of clear that up. That’s the only reason I can’t give this one full stars.

All in all, this is a terrific book. I would recommend it to anyone looking for a good mystery.

Loved the drama! So many twists and turns throughout kept me guessing until the final pages. Summer adventures littered with teen angst, family rifts and more. So good.

Thank you NetGalley for this arc

A secret has been kept for twenty years, until now…

A new home. A new start. An old nightmare.

Inheriting a house was supposed to be the perfect escape for Willow Roberts. But the home is in a town she hasn’t been to since childhood, when her friend ran away.

Twenty years later Willow is back. Nothing has changed, but everything is different.
Then a body is found, and Willow knows exactly who it is.

Now Willow must face the truth.

What really happened the summer her friend disappeared?

Each character had a purpose and each did their job to make the story captivating. I also loved how the book was written. This author wrote part of each chapter in the present and part of the chapter in the past. This really made the story for me as you were able to see what was happening now and compare to what had happen back then. It made the story run so smoothly by doing.

In conclusion, the plot, the characters and all the twists in this book made this book an enjoyable read. I would definitely recommend it and happily give it 4 stars

This book is due to be released in February 2023

Many thanks to NetGalley and Harper Collins UK for an advance copy in return for a fair and honest review

This is a clever idea for a story that turns out to be about a long ago murder. Willow Robert’s used to come this village twenty years for holiday in her parents’ seaside home. She got to know other young people and they became a group. Then her best friend Kathy Jo disappeared and the mystery was never resolved. Now Willow is back to have the house renovated and leased. The discovery of a mummy in the image of her friend makes her realise that someone is playing with her over what happened all these years ago. The story keeps offering up tasty clues and ends satisfactorily. Readers are sure to be captivated from the beginning because it is not certain where the story is going. It is a well constructed, well written book and I recommend it.

My Review:
Loved!!!!! This was not my first rodeo with this author and it won’t certainly be my last. This was a short and very fast paced read that was so enjoyable to me. It felt like I was watching a movie unfold right before my eyes. I couldn’t get enough of it and raced through each chapter so I could find out what had happened. Now let’s talk about why I enjoyed this book so much. First, let’s talk characters. Every character worked perfectly with this story to make this a wonderful book. There was not one character that was out of place or that didn’t make sense. Each character had a purpose and each did their job to make the story captivating. I also loved how the book was written. This author wrote part of each chapter in the present and part of the chapter in the past. This really made the story for me as you were able to see what was happening now and compare to what had happen back then. It made the story run so smoothly by doing this. Lastly, my favorite of every book, the ending. I’m still shocked and speechless. I didn’t have a clue. I’m like what and really. When an author can do this then they deserve all the hearts I can give them. This book did not disappoint and I will be reading more of this authors works in the future.

In conclusion, the plot, the characters and all the twists in this book made this book an enjoyable read. I would definitely recommend it and happily give it 5 Hearts❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️

Willow is going through a divorce when she inherited her family's lake house. Seemed like the perfect time to get away. While she is renovating the house the secrets from 20 years ago come back to haunt her. She used to spend her summers at the lake house as a teen, that is, until her best friend disappeared. Everyone, even Willow, thought she ran away. Someone is sending messages to Willow about that summer. That fateful summer that Willow didn't tell the truth. What did happen to her friend all those years ago? Someone knows and isn't going to let it go.

This book bounces from the past to the present telling a story of the ups and downs of going through the teen years. It's frustrating at times, only because it does a good job of truly portraying the teen attitude. It makes you think about how you acted as a teenager, the frustration and the drama. It's an easy read that keeps you interested from the first chapter. It throws in a few twists and turns and the ending is a surprise.

Thank you to Netgalley, HaperCollins UK, One More Chapter and Carissa Ann Lynch for an advanced copy in exchange for an honest review.