Thank you NetGalley for approving me for this book. A good read that I definitely enjoyed and am glad to have been able to read.

Loved, loved, loved!! Such a perfect follow up to the 1st book I was totally hooked. I was completely absorbed in the twisted plot with a gripping conclusion that you won’t see coming. I loved the writing style and the characters are so well developed even allowing you connect with the the unlikeable. If you like a small town mystery with a perfectly plotted thriller element I definitely recommend this one and book 3 is at the top of my TBR.

This another series book that I will say is better as part of the series than alone, but it can be a stand alone. There is so much about Millie, Guy and Millie's family that are set up in book one and play a part in this one.

The mystery in this one is 20 years in the making. Millie and Nicola were the best of friends until they weren't. The tragic event that caused their separation is coming back to haunt them. Millie uses her reporter brain to follow the bread crumbs to piece together what happened and why the clues are surfacing now. And concurrently Millie continues to fight with her ex-husband over her young son and what is best for him.

While Millie grew on me in book one, I do wish she'd grow a back bone and instead of letting things happen to her, she'd be a little more proactive.

The mystery was interesting and I continue to be drawn to Guy and his relationship with Millie.

I do feel you need to have read the previous book in the series to appreciate this one. If you have, I'm sure you'll find it as gripping as I did. Great plot and characters, It's faster paced than the previous one and draws you in from the start.

Second in the Whitecliff Bay mysteries,best read in order. A complex tale starting in an event that happened in the past. A good read.

The second in this series
Another great read
Will keep you reading
Wanting to get to the end
Thanks NetGalley

Having take a while to get into the new series I really enjoyed this book and found it to be as engaging as ever! The characters and locations were so descriptive that you could feel the swish of the dog’s tail and the musty smell of the old newspapers.

The plot takes you into the forest to where Nicola was taken. It’s not hard to imagine the night as teenagers but the ending was a little lacklustre if not entirely believable (you can imagine what teenage girls do for attention). It was a bit disappointing how things ended with the plot of the story but the cliffhanger was all it took to keep me wanting more!

4/5 stars

Thank you to Netgalley, the publishers, and Kerry Wilkinson for allowing me to read and review this book.

This is the second book in the Whitecliff Bay Mystery series. You will need to read the first book in order to fully understand this one. There are many characters and situations that are explained in the first book that are expanded on in this book.

This book is about a big event that happened in the main character's childhood. Her old best friend has contacted her about an old pair of tennis shoes showing up in her back yard. The pair of tennis shoes she was wearing when she was taken during their last summer in high school.

This is a gripping mystery that leaves you guessing about who done it until the end. The twists just keeping showing up, and you never know what is going to happen next. Or how the main character is going to handle what is thrown at her.

I would highly recommend this book, and this series. I can't wait to pick up more from this author and see where this series goes. It has strong female characters, interesting mysteries, and some drama that keeps you interested throughout.

Even better than the first in the series this book was so good. It had me on the edge of my seat, I really enjoyed it

An enjoyable holiday read and I had a three box set, so one after the other as the sun shone.
With Kerry’s books you know what to expect and are rarely disappointed.

Another great mystery in the series. This one is about friendships. The pace was faster in this one than the first book. I believe you can easily read this as a standalone.

The Whitecliff Mystery series by Kerry Wilkinson was a must read for me as he is one of my go-to authors. If he releases a book, I need to read it. I was looking forward to this series as soon as I discovered they were being released.
The One Who Fell introduces us to Millie Westlake. A woman whose life has fallen apart in the last few years. She is a volunteer at an old people's home and when a resident tells her she saw a girl on a roof during the night, Millie takes it upon herself to attempt to get to the bottom of what she has been told. Will she discover if there was truly a girl who fell from the roof of if it was a figment of the residents imagination.
The story starts slowly as we get to know the characters and their back stories, particularly Millie’s. It's as always so well written and the characters so believable. Millie herself is an intriguing woman who I was fascinated with. I can't wait to see how she develops over this series.
The interwoven mystery was one that made me keep picking this book up. The twists made it quite a thrilling read that did have me wondering throughout. The fact that I couldn't guess what happened resulted in a surprise ending for me.
The One Who Was Taken picks up after the events of the first book and I was really happy to be able to read it straight after the first.
By the time I had read two chapters I was feeling like I was back with a friend. Although it's a friend I'm still getting to know. Millie is such a complex woman but as the story unfolded, more little bits about her are revealed. The characters are all so well described and the settings too. I could picture Guy's home so clearly. He is now a friend of Millie and I revelled in the way their relationship is growing by the chapter.
The plot is again another gripping one. That again hooked me from the start. I just wanted to know how it would end, and how these events would affect Millie herself. I am quite fond of this woman now. That's the skill of Kerry Wilkinson. He can create fictional people who the reader feels invested in so fast.
I am still reading the third book, The Ones Who Are Buried. It's another quality read. One that I'm thoroughly enjoying. Again the characters are so vivid and the mystery is keeping me on my toes.
The Whitecliff Mystery series is a departure from Kerry Wilkinson's previous books. It's also a series that slowly grips you from the first book and does become an addictive read. I'm hoping book four comes along quite soon as I will be bereft when I finish the book I'm currently reading! Great stories with multi layered characters and twisty plots.
Thanks to Bookouture and NetGalley for the gifted ARC.

Kerry Wilkinson The One Who Was Taken (A Whitecliff Bay Mystery Book 2) Bookouture 2023.

The One Who Was Taken continues this series in which more information about the appealing main character, Millie, is divulged. At the same time a mystery is solved, and the relationships with her journalist friend, and her former husband and their son, move forward. Ingrid, from The One Who Fell, reappears, maintaining Wilkinson’s commitment to strengthening the image of older people. While long term personal relationships are developed, Millie’s school days are revisited with a mystery and a community concern about housing to be resolved. Nothing happens at a fast pace. However, for me, this is part of the charm of this series.

The value of friendships and forgiveness are explored, together with the role of parenting. Both involve Millie as a central character, or in her role as a friend of Jack and Rishi who are keen (to varying degrees) to adopt. Millie also becomes more immersed in Guy’s journalism world with her burgeoning interest in investigating events to which she is draw by her renewed links with her school friendship group. Although this role is not as pronounced in The One Who Was Taken, and Millie’s dog grooming business is also focussed upon, it is clear that Millie is adjusting to becoming a professional investigator and writer as a possible career. Some of the writing around Millie’s past is exquisite in its understanding of the value of friendships based on everyday talk and understandings. These links also are instrumental in illuminating the sometimes lack of insight that can surround school relationships.

This book ends with what might be seen as a contrived mystery aimed at luring the reader into the third book in the series. However, there is enough without this to encourage any reader to follow Millie’s story. Her son is becoming more independent of his father’s control, Millie is expanding her friendships and career prospects, and social issues are dealt with deftly. The third book in the series is a must read for me.

I was really looking for ward to trying this new series from Kerry Wilkinson, and I was not disappointed.
I can honestly say that there isn't a single book by Kerry that I haven't enjoyed. I love the way he writes, and he manages to add just the right amount of mystery to a story.
I loved the new character of Millie Westlake in this book, and am looking forward to reading more (in fact I just started reading the sequel to this one). I love the fact that Millie has a new found 'friend' in reporter Guy, who little more than a year ago, ruined her life, when tragic events in her life meant that she because the talk of the town.
The way Keyy describes the seaside town of Whitecliff Bay, I can really picture it, and the plot kept me reading into the early hours.
This promises to be another great series.

Nicola's missing Converse turn up in her garden fifteen years later, she turns to her estranged friend Millie for help. This gripping thriller has plenty of twists, good characterization and plotting. Could not put it down. I received this book from Bookoutre and Netgalley for a review.

This is the second in the Whitecliff Bay mysteries with an interesting storyline and a nice flow and then the cliff-hanger ending. Can't wait to read the next one. Thanks to Netgalley & the publisher for letting me read & review this book

Millie is contacted by an old friend and has a new investigation to carry out. She asks Guy, the reported for help in how to approach this case. She enjoys having her friend back in her life, but are hidden secrets supposed to stay secret? I loved how the characters and her friendships develop over this book and we hear more about the events that have happened to her.
This is such an engaging series and I couldn't put it down. I started the next one in the series straight away.

Book 2 of The Whitecliff Bay series, takes place several months after Book 1 (The One Who Fell). I definitely recommend reading Book 1 first.
Best friends when they were 17, Millie (our main character) and Nicola were enjoying summer with all their friends when one night something tragic happens to Nicola. The only people that know about it are Millie and Nicola and they haven't spoken of it since.
Fast forward 15 years, Nicola reaches out to Millie after not having spoken in over a decade. A clue related to that summer night reappears at Nicola's home. Who has left it? Why? What really happened that night?

I love the idea of a mystery involving a group of friends from childhood. It brings a lot of interesting personalities, relationships and suspects. We go back in time to that summer and learn about the background of each character. There are various side storylines including several that carryover from Book 1.
While I didn't guess the ending (which is always a plus), it wasn't particularly satisfying to me. Can't say more but many loved it.
It definitely is a fast-paced book and for you speed readers, you might finish it in one sitting. We are left with a cliffhanger for Book 3, so it will be interesting to see what happens next.

I give 3 1/2 stars - rounding up for net galley.

Thanks so much to @netgalley and @bookouture for the ARC.

Readers learn more about Millie's past in this mystery as she helps her estranged best friend discover why her past has surfaced. It's atmospheric and suspenseful and reveals more facets of Millie's life. The characters drive the story and add a few pieces to the mystery of what happened to Millie's parents. I like the gradual reveals, Millie's backstory that is revealed as the mystery is solved.
I received a copy of this book from the publisher.

I think I came to the second book in the series too soon. There seemed to be a sameness
which did not ignite my interest. <br>

Millie is herself rather colorless. She has been too much in the critical eye of the
public - notorious to the point that she expects the calculated criticsm of the entire town
and she has retreated from her peers to just a couple of people and the inmates of the
home she volunteers at.

A contact from her teen years unravels a mystery, a blackmailing attempt and ultimately
flaws amongst those whom she considered teen buddies. This was a story about human
frailities rather than mysteries - from the need to be popular, to be attractive to the
lure of money above all lofty beliefs.

I liked the read from the point of the various characters and how they evolved from the
time they were teenagers, and to the way some people's characters never really change.
Especially self centred beings.