I couldn't put this book down! Never Come Back by Joe Hart is a rollercoaster of suspense with twists and turns I never saw coming. It's the second book in the Nora McTavish series, but luckily you don't need to have read the first one to enjoy this one (bonus points for Joe Hart making it work as a standalone!).

As a big fan of mysteries, I was hooked from the start. Nora McTavish, a former CPS agent turned family advocate, seemed to be dealing with a standard custody battle. But of course, nothing is ever simple. Hart masterfully crafted a plot with complex characters and a breakneck pace that kept me guessing until the very end.

While this wasn't a perfect read (hence the 4 out of 5 stars), it definitely comes close. If you're looking for a thrilling mystery with a touch of drama, Never Come Back delivers in spades.

This is my first Joe Hart novel, but it certainly won't be my last! Thanks to Thomas & Mercer Publishing, Joe Hart, and NetGalley for the ARC – I can't wait to dive into more of Hart's work!

Thank you to NetGalley and Thomas and Mercer for the eARC.

Joe Hart has really hit a homerun with Nora McTavish. I loved the first novel featuring her and this one was no different. What I really enjoyed about this one was Nora's personal stake in the whole thing as her childhood friend is the one who called. So good and so hard to put down.

3.5 ⭐️’S
After severing her ties with CPS, Nora McTavish has gone out on her own as a Family Advocate. When she hears from a childhood friend, she rushes to her side, albeit with mixed feelings. She hasn’t seen Tess Grayson for years and their friendship brings back some traumatic childhood memories along with the good. Tess is going through a somewhat contentious divorce after her husband was arrested, but released, for murder. He would like joint custody of their nine year old daughter, Kendra, but Tess is totally against him having any contact with her, claiming he’s dangerous. As Nora spends time with Tess and Kendra, she’s not so sure. Was Neil framed? As Tess implodes, Nora starts her own investigation, one that just might be her last. Thank you to Thomas& Mercer and NetGalley for an ARC of this book.

I thoroughly enjoyed this book! It’s part 2 in a series, but can completely be read as a standalone. (I had not read the first book and had zero issues)
The main character Nora is SUCH a great character and I can’t wait to read more about her.
This one is about Nora being called her best friend from childhood, out of the blue, asking her for help because her husband has been accused of murder. I really don’t want to say more than that. Don’t miss it!

Nora McTavish is a private practice family advocate with a strong sense of service to society's most vulnerable. When Tess, a long lost childhood friend reaches out for help, Nora heads to the mountains to provide support. Tess's ex-husband was accused of killing a young college coed he was reportedly having an affair with, but after the charges against him are dropped he files for joint custody of their daughter, Kendra, and Tess wants Nora to help her fight against it. Nora's primary concern is Kendra's well-being, but keeping her safe may mean uncovering secrets that put Nora herself in danger. This is the second book in this series and I have not read the first one but did not feel like it mattered. I was quickly drawn to the characters, especially Nora. Oregon provides an excellent backdrop of stormy weather and dramatic landscapes that set a moody and sometimes ominous tone. Well paced with enough clues to make you think you might know what's going on but also enough red herrings to keep you from being sure. Book 1 is on my TBR and I look forward to the next Nora McTavish book!

Never Come Back by Joe Hart is Book #2 in Nora McTavish series. I have not read Book #1 or this author before and it did not disappoint. It was a fast pace, who done it and boy did I get it wrong.

Nora is a Child Advocate. She receives a phone call from Tess, her childhood friend she hasn't seen in 20 years. Tess's husband, Neil, has been arrested for murder and she has filed for divorce. She doesn't want their daughter, Kendra, around him so she asks Nora if she can come to help. Through many twist and turns, Nora learns who her old friend truly is and how Tess will manipulate any situation to get her way, even if it hurts the ones she loves.

You can read as a standalone; however, by not reading Book 1 I think I missed out on Nora's back story. It is touched on but doesn't really go into detail. I will be purchasing Book 1 and can't wait for Book 3.

Review based on an advanced reading copy courtesy of Thomas & Mercer and NetGalley.

This book was ok. I read the first book, and I enjoyed it, so I was excited to get my hands on this one. As I started reading, I remembered that Nora wasn't my favorite character. She's reckless in her actions, and it gets frustrating at times.
This book did have some good thrills. The author kept me guessing all the way to the end. I didn't see that ending coming, but it made perfect sense. I'll definitely keep reading more from this author!
Thank you to Netgalley and Thomas & Mercer for this ARC.

We are back with Nora who has taken on a new role as a family advocate. Have I mentioned how much I love Nora as a character? This book solidified it for me.

Nora is helping out an old childhood friend. Tess called her out of the blue needing help in relation to her ex-husband who is seeking custody of their daughter.

When Nora arrives, not is all as it seems and has Nora questioning everything she’s been told.

Another excellent instalment with a strong plot, well rounded characters and some twists that totally floored me. I can’t wait to read the next book in the series!

Huge thanks to @netgalley #thomasandmercer @amazonpubl for e-arc 💌 @joe_hart_author

A fast-paced thriller with a strong main character that keeps you engaged on every page. As Nova's investigation leads her into a world where secrets hidden in the past emerge. Her past leads her closer to the killer with every chapter. With a plot full of twists Hart keeps one on their toes and up late getting to the truth. A wonderful mystery that has me waiting for another of his books and series.

3.5 out of 5 Stars.

Never Come Back is more than a murder mystery. It’s a book about second chances, forgiveness, growth and change. More to that, it is about coming to terms with what once was, what could have been and what is the current reality of the here and now. This book gives examples of all of these themes and has many messages and quotes that are raw and pointed.

This was an effortless and likable read and I will definitely recommend it to others. I look forward to reading more books from this author.

One of my favorite quotes in the book:
"...that people are unknowable, even the ones we love. Maybe especially them."

Thank you Thomas & Mercer Publishing, Joe Hart and NetGalley for the advanced reader copy.

This was the second book in a series about Nora McTavish. It was a great book. Nora's character is great and this book took her back to the past and we learned a little more about her. The story was fast paced and kept me guessing. There was a lot of tension in the book that had me reading, one more chapter, one more chapter... It definitely could be read as a stand alone, but it is so good I recommend reading the first one as well. 5 stars from me!

The twists kept me guessing until the end.
Really enjoyed this book!
Thank you to Netgalley for allowing me to read this advanced copy of Never Come Back by Joe Hart.

emotional mysterious tense medium-paced
Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? It's complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.5

Nora McTavish is back! I couldn't wait to dive into this one. In the second book in this series, we see Nora working for herself as a family advocate. Nora gets a call from an old friend, Tess, that she hasn't seen in over 20 years. Tess needs Nora's expertise as a CPS agent/family advocate when her husband petitions her for full custody of their daughter Kendra.

I loved this one more than the first book in the series. It was fast paced and very entertaining. Hart does a great job at developing characters. I felt like I knew them. The plot was written in a way that kept me guessing right up until the end. I was definitely wrong about the big twist at the end. There was a mix of throwback scenes mixed in with the current scenes, which helped to provide background knowledge.

I really hope there are more books in this series!

Thank you NetGalley and Thomas & Mercer for this ARC in exchange for my honest review.

This is the second book about Nora and it’s just as good as the first! I love Nora’s strong personality. She is determined to always do right by children no matter the consequences. This series is like a detective series but without the main character actually being a detective, so she doesn’t need to keep things legal. The twists and turns made this a hard book to put down. There even seems to be a slight hint at a possible third Nora book so I’ll be anxiously waiting. Thank you to NetGalley for my copy!

Full disclosure: I did not read the first one in this series. Looking at the summary of the first book, this looks like a standalone novel and my understanding of the character and the events did not suffer. In this novel, a former child services advocate becomes involved in a custody dispute helping one side when people start dying, which makes her wonder if she is on the wrong side. This was a solid whodunit with twist and turns and it did keep me guessing. The protagonist was likeable and her background as a childrens' services advocate was an interesting angle (I selected the book because my husband works for childrens' services and because I read something else by this author that I enjoyed). I will, at some point, go back and read the first one and I will be looking forward to the next one).
Thanks to NetGalley and Thomas & Mercer for providing me with a copy of this advance reading copy in exchange for my honest opinion.

2.5 stars rounded up.

Nora McTravis works as a family advocate, but when Tess, an old but long-lost friend from Nora‘s childhood, calls and asks for help, Nora drops everything to be by Tess‘ side. Tess‘ husband, Neil, was accused of murdering a local college student, and now that the charges have been dropped, he has filed for shared custody of their daughter Kendra/Kenny. Initially there to provide expertise during the (actually very short) custody battle, Nora soon becomes suspicious and starts investigating the murder on her own.

I honestly struggled with how to rate this book because it just felt so „meh“ to me. I found it to be a completely unoriginal, average murder mystery/thriller full of unlikeable characters that used cheap and obvious plot twists to move the story along.

Full disclosure: I hadn’t read the previous book in the series, so maybe that‘s why, but Nora, the main character, felt very distant and not properly fleshed out. On top of that, I struggled to like her and follow her reasoning - she is supposedly a passionate children‘s advocate yet just closes up her practice (which doesn‘t even have a secretary) for days and days on end because some long-lost friend who Nora doesn’t even like anymore needs a buddy to drink with? Why couldn‘t she at least bring her dog? And though the local police was predictably useless, why on earth did she at least disclose her suspicions to her state police buddy? All of this it made it hard to root for her. Even worse than Nora is Tess, who just gets plastered all day long (seriously, what is it with grown women in this book acting like they cannot even open a letter without needing to be buzzed?) and completely fails her daughter, who is the only bright spot in this cast of characters (besides the Pearson family).

The murder mystery itself is neither surprising nor thrilling, using been-there-done-that red herrings. Thankfully, this was a quick read, mainly because the chapters were oddly short, seemingly to use even more cheap cliffhangers (the worst: „The judge turned her attention to our table. ‚Regarding the custody of Ivy Josephine Pearson, I hereby rule in favor of—‚“ [end of chapter]). I will not be returning to this series.

Thank you to NetGalley and Thomas & Mercer for the advance copy in exchange for my honest review.

This was a quick read for me, full of action and suspense. I love the two different storylines involved that create more depth to the main character Nora. I like how she was so quick to jump in and help her old friend but I liked even more how she was determined to uncover the truth for the sake of the child caught in the middle. There were several times that I thought I had it all figured out and then there was another plot twist. I didn't realize that this is the second book in the series when I picked it up, but it didn't seem to matter as I was drawn quickly into the story. I plan to grab the first book and continue the series.
Thanks to Thomas and Mercer through Netgalley for the advance copy of this book. The opinions in this review are my own and given voluntarily.

Book two in the Nora McTavish Series Never Come Back by Joe Hart was another intriguing story!
It was fast-paced, and well plotted, with some shocking twists. It was hard to put down and easy to devour.
The characters are well drawn, and the story is well structured.
The plot has such amazing details that come through at just the right moment.
I love Harts work and hope he continues this series!

Thank You NetGalley and Thomas & Mercer for your generosity and gifting me a copy of this amazing eARC!

There are 2 storylines going simultaneously in this book but it was easy keeping them separate. Mr. Hart is a great storyteller. I’ve been a fan since a friend told me to read Midnight Paths, a collection of horror stories.
I like Nora’s character. She was so conflicted in this story between helping her friend and doing what she felt was right. There were enough twists that I didn’t guess the protagonist until it’s revealed in the story. The other storyline was one I don’t believe I’ve seen in a book before, intellectually disabled parents fighting for custody of their daughter.
As usual, I love Mr Hart’s descriptions of backgrounds and people. I have no trouble picturing the scenes formed by his words.
This is book 2 in this series, and somehow I have book 1 but haven’t read it yet. That did not affect my reading this book. It does well as a standalone. But I’m hoping the ending means a book 3 is on the way. I’m also moving book 1 up my tbr list.
I did receive this as a free ARC and am leaving this review voluntarily.

I am a Joe Hart fan, so of course I picked this book up as soon as I saw it. This is the second in the Nora McTavish series and both books have been good ones.

Description:
Needing to help the most vulnerable is in Nora McTavish’s DNA. Living within the echoes of her own traumatic past, she spends her days as a family advocate providing comfort and justice for those without anyone else to turn to. So when a long lost childhood friend calls asking for help and promising clues to the location of Nora’s missing mother, she has no choice but to say yes.

Nora hasn’t seen Tess Grayson in over twenty years. Living the perfect suburban life in a college mountain town, Tess’s world is shattered when her husband Neil—a professor at the local university—is accused of killing a student he was allegedly having an affair with. When the charges against Neil are dropped and he petitions for custody of their daughter, Kendra, Nora steps in to help Tess any way she can.

But as details emerge surrounding the murder and unsettling occurrences plague the quiet neighborhood, Nora begins to suspect Tess isn’t being fully honest with her. With Kendra’s safety and well-being hanging in the balance, Nora works to unearth the family’s secrets, and in doing so puts herself in the crosshairs of someone willing to kill to keep them buried.

My Thoughts:
Nora goes above and beyond as a family advocate, but when helping her friend Tess she gets some mixed feelings. Their past history together overshadows the present. It also makes the story more interesting. I couldn't help but love Kendra who was caught in the middle of her parents domestic situation. There were definitely red herrings in the book which kept me wondering what was actually going on here. This book is a slow burn moving from the domestic situation to a boiling point climax. I would recommend this to anyone who likes domestic thrillers.

Thanks to Thomas & Mercer through Netgalley for an advance copy.