First, the chapter headings are fun. I SHOT A MAN IN RENO, THE BEST BURRITO, all set the tone. Have You Seen Her is a gripping thriller about a young woman who is running from her past. Cassie Peters has left her life in New York City behind and is now working as a search and rescue volunteer in Yosemite National Park. When a young girl goes missing, Cassie is drawn into the investigation and soon finds herself in danger.
The novel is well-written and suspenseful. McKenzie does a great job of creating a sense of urgency and tension. The characters are well-developed and believable. The plot is twisty and unpredictable. Overall, Have You Seen Her is a great read for fans of thrillers.
Here are some specific things that I enjoyed about the book:
• The setting is vividly described. I felt like I was right there in Yosemite, hiking the trails and camping under the stars.
• The plot is full of twists and turns. I was kept guessing until the very end.
• I loved the way McKenzie explored the themes of redemption and second chances. Cassie is a flawed character, but she is ultimately a good person who is trying to do the right thing.
• I also appreciated the way McKenzie handled the topic of trauma. Cassie has been through a lot in her life, and she is still struggling to come to terms with it. McKenzie does not shy away from the difficult aspects of trauma, but she also shows how it is possible to heal and move on.
Overall, I highly recommend Have You Seen Her to anyone who enjoys a good thriller.

this one was good! it takes a lot for me to gasp when I read something and this delivered. I think I was less invested in the entire book until the end though because it seemed a bit underwhelming and unrelated but suddenly had the aha moment and was like omg wait do i love this?!

Returning home to the mountains and wilderness of Mammoth Lakes, California wasn't exactly something Cassie Peters envisioned herself doing. Neither was leaving behind everything she owned, getting a burner phone, changing her name, and avoiding her ex husband at all costs. As she resumes her role as a member of the Yosemite Search and Recuse team--a position she held over a decade ago before she found her friend dead in the park--Cassie is determined to lay low and keep her past in the past. As the summer continues, Cassie's path begins to intertwine with two other women, Petal (a woman living in a trailer with her partner who may or may not be into some illegal activities) and Jada (a woman traveling with her boyfriend and documenting her adventures on social media). The three female narrators combine to weave a suspenseful mystery when disappearances in the park begin to occur.

Have You Seen Her is unique in several ways. To begin, Cassie's job as a Search and Rescuer was a fun exploration that I've never read in a book before. I enjoyed hearing about the various rescues that took place in the park and all that it entailed. I also enjoyed the variance of narration we had in the three narrators: Cassie as a standard 3rd person, Petal through her diary entries, and Jada through her social media posts. The first part of the book was suspenseful and left me really excited to figure out how it was going to come full circle, but by the time we got there, I was wondering how we got here. The ending felt a bit separated from the rest of the story and its lead up--I wish we had gotten to the "twist" before the 90% mark so there had been more time to flesh things out. Overall the author has a great voice, but the ending didn't do it for me.

Thank you to NetGalley and Atria Books for this ARC. Have You Seen Her due to be released June 27, 2023.

On the run from a secret past, Cassie has left her life in New York and begun a job as a search and rescue worker at Yosemite, where she previously worked ten years ago. Cassie is reminded of a case from a decade ago when now, hikers start going missing. Cassie works with both old and new alliances to try to find the missing hikers, while keeping her own past hidden. But she may not be the only one with secrets.

This was a good read. Once I got to the twist at around the 75% mark my interest really picked up and I was super into what was going on. The multiple perspective was very well done. But I have to admit before that mark, it was a slow burn leading up to what I knew had to be coming. I would have enjoyed some more action on some fast paced rescues. The writing is good, the setting is great and well researched. While the characters were ok, I also really liked them a lot more after the reveal. Overall I would recommend if you like a slow burn with a worthy payoff.

3.25/5⭐

This was a great book with jaw-dropping surprises. The anxiety slowly crept up as we were nearing the end. The ending was also pretty satisfying but still left it open to a potential second book. I rated it 4 stars because of pacing I felt it wasn’t a page turner but still great plot overall!

For me this was a DNF. I just couldn’t get into it. I thought maybe it was my mind space at the th r, so I pit it down and tried multiple times to come back to it with the same result. Normally I’m a fan of Catherine’s books, but I just couldn’t connect with any of the characters. I’m not ruling it out completely and it’s definitely something I would try to pickup again from my local library in the future. I hat DNFing any book, which is why I won’t totally shut the door on it. Thank you to NetGalley and the publishers for this chance to give my honest feedback.

This book was ok. A bit of mystery but I prefer more twists and turns. There was a twist towards the end that I didn't see coming for sure. I didn't find it very suspenseful. It took me a bit to read because I wasn't very invested in the plot and its direction.

A few technical things that bugged me a little- you can't tell the number is blocked when they text you. If they've blocked you, they can't message you either. That didn't make sense to me. Also, you can totally see when someone has read your message on Instagram. On Twitter, people don't change their handles- they change profile pics, bios, and statuses.

So much misdirection and carefully placed clues that may or may not lead to the truth. This one was such a fast-paced thrill ride. Loved it.

My thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for the opportunity to read and review this book.

Cassie Peters has run away from her life in NYC, ditching her phone and using a different name to hide from someone or something she has left behind. She is working at Yosemite as a search and rescue worker for the summer when two hikers go missing and her image is shown in stories about the search. When she starts receiving odd texts on her burner phone, she is afraid that the person she is running from has found her.

The setting and storyline about the search and rescue team gave me all the summer camp vibes, as the team stayed in tents and cooked and drank together by the fire every night. I loved reading a bit about being a SAR worker and found their job to be fascinating, though I definitely couldn’t do it! Cassie is a part of several rescues that were fun to read about.

I liked Cassie’s character and her strength, but she definitely has done some unlikable things in her past that come out as we learn more about her, I did feel like I didn’t understand enough about what happened in New York and that I would have liked that to be a bit more detailed.

The mystery of what happened to the mixing hikers isn’t resolved until quite late in the story. This one is a slow burner, and then the answer to the mystery ends up feeling a bit abrupt. I didn’t see the ending coming at all and felt like it wasn’t pointed to at all throughout the rest of the story, leaving the reader with no real clues to follow. The tension was definitely present while trying to figure out what in the world happened out in those woods.

Thank you to NetGalley and Atria Books for the ARC in exchange for my honest opinion.

As an avid read of thriller & suspense novels, oftentimes books can adhere to a similar trajectory & storyline. “Have you seen her” by Catherine McKenzie follows a group of characters with an intertwined plot that I truly did not see coming. First we meet Cassie Peters, who has returned to Yosemite as a member of the Search and Rescue (SAR) team after a hiatus in New York City (and a struggling marriage.) Jada, along with her boyfriend are on an epic adventure traveling the country - a duo that seemed a little too close for comfort to some present day headlines, which ultimately made them seem more realistic. Lastly, we meet Petal and her much older girlfriend, who I would only describe as a pair of “shady characters.” The constant changing of perspectives throughout the book kept it exciting. I enjoyed the “up to date” usage of social media to track Jada’s adventures. I found the descriptions of each character to be extremely specific & vivid. I felt like I was right there with the characters emotionally; Not to mention the picturesque explanations of each area of Yosemite. This book kept me guessing throughout. Why did Cassie flee her husband & return to Yosemite? What, if any, connection exists between these key players? Safe to say I am now a Catherine McKenzie fan, and can’t wait to dive into her other novels.

Cassie, on the run from her old life in NYC, flees to Yosemite and takes a job as part of the search and rescue team for the park. It's a job she had years ago and being back there brings back memories she'd rather forget. The story toggles between the past and present where the timelines seem eerily parallel. We aren't sure at first exactly what Cassie is running from or what happened last time she worked at Yosemite. Past seems to collide with the present as Cassie finds herself in another difficult situation.

What an enjoyable read! I loved having Yosemite National Park as the back drop for the story. This one really had you thinking. The breadcrumbs sprinkled throughout out gave you just enough information to assume some things without actually telling you until the right moment. It was interesting to also include the journal entries, social media posts, articles, and transcripts of other people including two visitors of the park. I wasn't sure how that was ultimately going to tie into the plot. I knew things were going to be difficult for Cassie since the first chapter talked of recovering a body from the wilderness. We then back tracked to find out how she got there. It definitely set the tone and made you want to keep reading to find out what happened. The ending was pretty shocking. There was bombshell after bombshell. This is a must read if you love thrillers.

A big thank you to Netgalley and Atria Books for an advanced copy of this book in exchange for my honest review.

Ripped straight from the headlines, HAVE YOU SEEN HER? is the story of three women whose paths cross one summer in Yosemite National Park but the secrets they carry refuse to be outrun.

The rugged Yosemite setting made for perfect armchair travel and I enjoyed getting a behind the scenes glimpse of the training of the Yosemite Search and Rescue crew. With multiple slow burn mysteries, the story was layered and compelling and it came together in a clever and thoughtful way.

While there were thrills and chills abound, I also appreciated the commentary on what type of missing girls/women are deemed “worthy” of media coverage and search efforts and which ones fade out as if they never existed at all.

RATING: 4/5
PUB DATE: June 27, 2023

READ THIS IF:
-The mountains are calling and you must go
-Stories of missing women capture your attention
-You love a good adventure

Many thanks to NetGalley and Atria for an electronic ARC in exchange for an honest review.

I enjoyed this book, though not as much as McKenzie's previous book, which I LOVED. This one centers on Cassie, who escapes a bad marriage to rejoin a search and rescue team in Yosemite where she had worked many years before. When a couple goes missing, digging into this uncovers some previously buried secrets related to bodies that had recently been found after many decades. Cassie ends up pairing up with a police detective as they dig in. You also get chapters told from the POV of the earlier missing persons that alternate with the current chapters.

I am not a huge fan of books that take place in the woods as I am not super outdoorsy myself; that being said, the scene was crafted beautifully by the author and I really felt transported there. I saw some other reviewers didn't relate to Cassie but I liked her and was rooting for her throughout. I really enjoyed the chapters told from the previous point of view and felt that this storyline was hauntingly sad and would stick with me long after I finished the book. My only real gripe is that there were so many different characters connected in different ways that I felt that the solving of the earlier mystery was convoluted and I had to keep stopping to remind myself who this our that person was and how they were connected to other people. The author did a great job of connecting all of those dots and didn't miss a detail, but it took me out of the story to have to stop to re-anchor myself to how it all fit together.

Overall, another good book from McKenzie that I'd recommend to those who like psychological thrillers and suspense, as well as just good writing! I am excited to see what she comes up with next. Thanks to Netgalley for providing me with a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

4.5 stars bumped up to 5.

I had such a hard time putting this book down at night, I wanted to keep reading. I did not see the twists in this thriller coming! I really enjoyed the authors writing, she did a fantastic job of painting the images of Yosemite, which was a great backdrop for this story. I hope the way it ended that there’s a possibility for a sequel, would love to see how the “I’ll be watching you” plays out. In the meantime, I can’t wait to read the other 13 books by Catherine McKenzie that are now on by TBR.

Thank you, Netgalley and Atria Books, for the ARC. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

I am forever a Catherine McKenzie fan since I read “I’ll Never Tell” in 2020. So I was so excited to be able to get a chance to read “Have You Seen Her” and it did not disappoint!
The story timeline goes back and forth from the present to the past and back to the present & as someone who loves to know what happens and how it happened early on, I definitely appreciate this! And the story was written well to keep you reading and needing to know what happened. I really enjoyed how it all came together in the end especially because I didn’t see it coming and it wasn’t a wild, unbelievable story. It was something real. And those are the best kind of stories!

What I Didn’t Like:
-Slow start. This book is a mystery/thriller and it does pick up speed, but the beginning “before” chapters are dry and slow.
-I didn’t have anyone to root for. I didn’t particularly like or trust any of the characters.
-The ending felt a little too quick for the story we had been telling. The plot does a sort of slow build up to big reveals and then just pulls the rug out for the ending. I would’ve liked to see the writer take a little more time with the resolution.

What I Did Like:
+Unreliable narrator fans might appreciate the secrets that build, making you wonder if you can even trust this main character.
+The story does pick up speed and leans into the mystery/thriller aspects as it progresses. You learn more and more about the character and the situation she’s in, which helps to add to the intrigue.
+The mystery itself is unpredictable, which is good. You don’t see it all coming or have it all figured out.

Who Should Read This One:
-Fans of unreliable narrator stories where you spend the book digging for answers.

Dark secrets, hidden agendas & revenge are the backdrop for this slow burner. Cleverly crafted & entertaining. You will root for the main character (Cassie) & when the truth is revealed you will continue to root for her to the very end. A must read.

Thank you to Atria Books, NetGalley & Catherine for an ARC in exchange for an honest review.

Note to editor/publisher: I understand that ARC’s have not been edited for publishing, however I wanted to point out there are some mistakes (not necessarily spelling errors) towards the end that stood out to me.. I am happy to point you to them if you’d like.

I was intrigued by the premise of this book but ultimately I felt that the ending was unsatisfying. The story follows Cassie Peters, a woman who escapes a bad relationship by going back to her hometown to work with a Yosemite Search and Rescue team. She settles in to her new life and things are going well until she meets Petal and Jada, two women who might have more in common with her than she knows. The story goes between the present day chapters and flashbacks, which keep the reader guessing. However, I felt like the ending let some characters off the hook with no consequences for their actions, which was annoying. Ultimately it was decent but not my favorite of Catherine McKenzie's books. Thanks to NetGalley for the ARC.

Cassie is running from her life in New York. That life was built on lies that she now needed to escape. She can only think of one place to go, back to the beginning. In the town of Mammoth where she grew up with her mother. Before a different dark secret made her run away from that life too. She's done running, for now. She gets her old job back on the search and rescue team in Yosemite. But them things start to happen....

I loved this book!!! The characters were so realistic and vivid. I really loved the twists and turns. Great writing!!!

I had the chance to read the novel Have You Seen Her by Catherine McKenzie (thanks to Netgalley and Atria Books), which follows the story of Cassie Peters, who leaves her secretive life in New York City to return to her hometown in Mammoth Lakes, California, and work again with Yosemite Search and Rescue. The book provides a glimpse into the lives of three women, including Cassie, whose dark secrets intersect in Yosemite National Park.

The book started slow, providing a lot of information about Cassie's past, but it was intriguing to see how the two different timelines came together. One of the things that drew me to this book was its setting. This book transported me at Yosemite in the most thrilling way. It was fascinating to see the thriller unfold from the perspective of the Search and Rescue teams, who do so much behind the scenes. I enjoyed the dual timelines, as well as the incorporation of journal entries, Instagram posts, and true-crime podcast elements, which provided a different point of view from other characters.

The author did an excellent job of weaving the storyline together, and although some of the plot elements seemed a bit of a stretch to believe, with messy characters like this, anything is possible. I appreciated how the author followed up on some of the pieces and wrapped them up at the end.

Overall, I found Have You Seen Her to be an enjoyable read, but it took a bit of work to understand the timelines. The characters were well-written, and the setting was fascinating. If you are a fan of thrillers and enjoy twisty endings, this book is definitely for you. I look forward to reading more from the author soon.