This is a well written but slow moving book. Young readers will like it if they want a good look at grief, secrets and romance but those who are looking for a fast moving mystery will probably be frustrated.

WOW. I don't even know where to begin.

The characters, the world building, the topics of conversation - incredible.

After You Vanished follows Teddy searching for answers around her missing twin, Izzy. She goes through a mental and physical journey of digging up the past to find the truth.

There's grief and loss, and depression and anxiety, and learning how to work through that by talking and being surrounded by friends and family that care. Any aspect of mental health in a book always resonates with me and I can relate to the struggles these characters went through. Teddy's indecisiveness and anxiety had her overthinking most situations - so many different scenarios she'd imagined during her "research". The mentions of SA threw me; not something I was expecting HOWEVER, it was approached respectfully and with enough detail to make you aware of the situation, and for that I praise Neeves.

The chemistry between Teddy and Toby made me squeal! I was smiling so much when they had scenes together (which ends up being most of the book). The tension they share and the banter they have just makes me so happy. It's these kind of cutesy-romance interactions that I love. But OMG THEIR FIRST KISS - TOBY HOW COULD YOU?! (I'm putting it down to nerves, okay?). I was so disappointed in Toby for having Izzy's passport because I knew this would break their relationship and I love them together. I like that Teddy learned to forgive Toby and he apologised for his wrongdoing, and I like that they're rebuilding their relationship as there is DEFINITELY a spark still.

I loved the cute lil side-romance blossoming with Pat and Nadia too, that was adorable - could this maybe be the premise for a sequel...? Finding out who K was was a bombshell- I never suspected it until a paragraph before the reveal. I was SURE it was Derek after remembering his nickname was Ken. Derek, no. Don't like. The author did such a good job of writing his character that I genuinely don't like him. Also (!!!) the secondary mini-plot bomb that Neeves dropped towards the end of the book with Snappy; that was mean.

The characters are so well written that you go through an array of emotions towards them, much like Teddy. For example, Teddy believes that K is Coach Keith, and we start to believe it too feeling angry and building up a judgment before he's had his chance to talk. Then when his side of the story comes out, you feel sympathy and frustration, and realise that there's more than just Teddy and her parents suffering the loss.

Moving onto the world building - breathtaking. I'm very good at picturing scenes in a book but it makes such a difference when the writer describes things with balance. There wasn't too much description that I felt it took away from the story, and there wasn't too little that I felt I had to fill in so many blanks myself. I think what would be a great edition to this book (it may already be a thing) is a map, as the story is set predominantly in one location. I'd love to see the layout of the lake and the surrounding are with the trails and the dam.

The cover of the book is STUNNING! It was one of the first things I noticed about the book and drew me in to read the description. Now that I've read the book, I can see how perfectly it matches the story. I love the middle-ground between realism and cartoon. The title page too, the fading from top to bottom - LOVE.

I highly recommend this book to anyone looking for a YA Mystery with elements of romance. Please note that there are strong elements of SA and the above-mentioned mental health issues present throughout the book.

I'd like to thank NetGalley and the author, E A Neeves, for allowing me to read an advanced copy of this DEBUT novel in exchange for an honest review.

I wasn’t too taken by this book at the beginning, but once I was hooked, I became a real fan of the story. The slow start is the only reason I kept this to four stars. I like the characters, like the positive and negative involvements between them, and struggled unsuccessfully to predict the ending. Well written, and i was won over by it. I especially admire the handling of social issues that used to be kept from YA pages. After You Vanished has a thumbs up from me.

Thank you allowing me to read this book.

This book os told through the view of Teddy, a young girl that has tragically lost her sister just a year before. Her sister’s body was never recovered from the lake that she drown in, and Teddy is convinced she never actually went into the lake but instead ran away. This summer she has returned to the Lake for a summer job and to also try and discover any clues the police may have missed. Her only help during this process is a boy that she can’t stand, mainly because he was the last person to see her sister alive. Her search does uncover some truths and it is also a frowning and feeling experience for Teddy.

I thought the characters were great. Very relatable. I enjoyed this book and feel like many YA would so as well!

Name of Book: After You Vanished
Author: E.A. Neeves
Publisher: Disney Hyperion
Genre: YA/Teens - Mystery
Pub Date: August 29, 2023
My Rating: 3.4 Stars!
Pages: 336


Story is told from the prescriptive of Teddy and directed to his twin sister Izzy.

Story is about Izzy the night she went missing.
Izzy and Tobias ‘Toby’ Smith were both on the Wahoo swim team and competitors in the butterfly.
Izzy sends Toby a message and wants to meet at Bottomrock Lake at Midnight. When he sees her, she seems upset but immediately challenges him to a race. She will swim across the one-mile lake and he will run to the other side. Only when he gets to the other side, she is nowhere to be seen.
.
The following summer Teddy returns to Bottomrock Lake as does Toby they are both life guards. Both Teddy and Toby want to solve the mystery of how an Olympic-level swimmer could vanished; so where she is? Also where is her passport?

Story kept me curious- It got a bit slow and I wanted to hurry it up. I love mysteries and always try to figure them out ~ knowing full well that we usually aren’t given all the details until it all comes together.
I know I am not the target audience but I thought it was a good story. As a Guidance Counselor I certainly will recommend this to students.

Want to thank NetGalley and Disney Publishing Worldwide Disney Hyperion for this early eGalley.
Publishing Release Date scheduled for August 29, 2023.

After You Vanished was a fairly good story. I thought the characters were well developed and relatable. However, I thought the end fell flat and was a little rushed.

This is a beautifully intense read. I felt so much for Teddy, and holding out hope that her sister was still alive.
The setting at the lake sounds like a really beautiful place, but I can see how it's hard for Teddy to continue to be there when so much has happened there.
I liked how she was searching for clues and continuing to find answers.
I liked watching the relationship between Teddy and Toby develop.
There are great friendships and a lovely family dynamic. I liked how they were all dealing in different ways with their grief, but continued to support each other.

Thanks NetGalley for this ARC.

This book feels like a beautiful letter almost going threw the process of grief and everything in between. As a mum of identical twins I can imagine deeply what it it may feel like for one of my twins to be lost and almost obsessed with wanting answers, Izzy went missing after a late night swim presumed dead although she’s an Olympic swimmer. Toby the boy with her has no idea what happened and decides to take a job at the very lake it happened along with his sister. Little bits were slower than I’d like but overall it’s a great book and deserves a read .

It’s said that twins have a special connection and I believe that’s true. I know that although I’m not a twin, I do have special connections with my sisters. This book is about identical twins. One of them is missing and assume drowned. She was a great swimmer. In fact, an Olympic hopeful. Her sister can’t believe that she’s dead. How could she drown? She was a fantastic swimmer. And it’s a book about grief. And love. What a great book. It’s an easy read. If you’re at all like me, you will quickly be drawn into the story and fall in love with the well developed characters. Enjoy!

I received an advance reader copy of this book from Net Galley in exchange for my honest review.

This was such an interesting read! I found myself so engrossed in the story, the characters had such incredible arcs, and I can't wait to follow this author's journey!

A unique author voice that completely drew me in and kept me reading. Enjoyed the mystery, complete with a couple of red herrings. Satisfying finish even though it didn't quite end up like I thought it would.

There's a mystery here but really this is a book about loss and grief and it explores those things beautifully. Great character development.

I read this in one day because I really wanted to know what happened. This is written from the POV of Teddy to her missing sister as she tries to find out what happened to her. It has lots of twists that make you want to keep reading. I really enjoyed this book.

A touching young adult novel about love, loss, and grief. The writing is well-done, characters competently crafted, and the plot was compelling.

This has a lot in it to recomend to my students, a mystery , her twin sister disappears and she works with the boy who last saw her alive to try to figure out what happened to her. Personal growth is a big part of the story, and while it was a bit slow at times, overall , it was a good book esp for older students

#AfterYouVanished #NetGalley
Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for an E-Arc copy of this novel.

My students will love this title! I don’t know if they are all constantly streaming true crime shows and podcasts, but this is what they all want to read right now. I found myself so caught up in trying to solve the mystery that an hour had passed without even realizing it. Neeves did a really beautiful job of building out the life of a presumed dead character without making everything seem maudlin and overly dramatic. Teddy felt like someone who is a year into the grieving process. Although I sussed out part of what happened early in the novel, it didn’t matter. That wasn’t why this story was told. I’m so excited to buy this to share with my students!

Thank you NetGalley and Disney Hyperion for the advance read copy of this book.
After you Vanished is a YA mystery/suspense novel that has so many twists and turns it keeps the reader coming back for more. Teddy is working on trying to solve the mystery of what caused her twin sister, Izzy, to disappear. Toby, a boy on Izzy's swim team, was the last to see Izzy alive so wouldn't becoming his friend be the right thing to do? Together they begin to work on solving this mystery together. But, is Toby hiding valuable information? Teddy is bound and determined to figure out what really happened.

I read this in one night because I absolutely had to know what happened with Izzy. I would recommend this for anyone who likes mysteries that aren't too scary and over the top.

I feel like this story took forever to get to a resolution. However, I liked the character development. The point of view also made for a unique read.