Loved It.

This is a great book I loved every page easy to get into and told through the eyes of 3 people. The 1st 2 are Robyn and then Willa with a mixture of interactions,. .. The guest at the dinner party at up an all intriguing set of possibilities and lives will be interesting after this.

Willa's sister went missing and as you can guess her life and her Mum and Dad's are never the same again. When she meets Robyn well she meets a friend that will change her life as well. I'm not going to ruin the story for you but the interaction between the 2 is great the story line is awesome and the characters are what you want Or I do to for a wonderful read. I absolutely love the ending and the hidden story that could would make an excellent secule but its not a cliff hanger but it is a read that will stick with you.

So as you may guess I want to highly recommend this fantastic read and hope you enjoy it as well.

I loved this. Very original twist on a classic missing girl story. The characters are very realistic and the story moves at a good pace. Despite the subject matter and one particularly nasty character the story is gentle and sympathetic to the flaws of the personalities in the story. I did not see the twist coming at the end. Many thanks to Netgalley and Kayla at Penguin for the ARC in return for an honest review.

Nobody ever found out what happened to Laika Martenwood, the girl who vanished on her way to school one morning. For her sister Willa, her life shattered into tiny pieces that she's never managed to put it back together. Willa sees and looks for Laika everywhere, even travelling across the world to find her. It's been twenty-five years, and the only thing keeping her going is the thought that she's still alive and somewhere out there. When a dinner party conversation about memories spirals out of control, a shocking revelation is revealed by one of the guests and slowly piece by piece the real story emerges.

This is a heart-wrenching tale about grief, trauma, guilt, first loves, and family. This is told in three perspectives by Willa, Robyn, and Claudette and how Laikas' disappearance affects each of them. This had me hooked from the first page, and each character was written with such feelings that you could feel the pain that each of them had to deal with in their life. I really enjoyed this and highly recommend.

Interesting and enthralling I think it reads more like a novel than a thriller. Nevertheless there's a mystery running throughout and it held my attention and kept me engrossed with a surprising outcome. I am looking forward to reading more from this author.

I found this an easy and enjoyable read. Th story unravels a historical missing person situation, cleverly returning to the same event three times as told by different characters, eventually revealing the identity of one of the guests.
This for me, is the main focus of the book. The rest of the story tells the reader what happened after the reveal. I found the first part of the book more interesting than the neat and tidying up later chapters.
The story also explores the effects of living with a bullying partner, looking at the behaviours that develop.
I found the final chapters a bit too tidy as they progress to the happy ending.
Recommended

Things Don’t Break On Their Own by Sarah Easter Collins

Twenty-five years ago, Willa’s sister Laika vanished on her way to school and was never found but ever since Laika went missing Willa thinks she sees her everywhere. Willa will even go up to complete strangers asking, no demanding, like a crazy person, to know if they are Laika but they never are…..until one innocent night while dining at her good friend, Robyn’s house, Willa finally learns the truth of what happened to Laika.

I loved this book and did not want to put it down. I think Sarah Easter Collins is my new favourite author and I cannot wait to read more of her books.

I would like to thank Net Galley and Penguin General UK for a copy of this eBook in exchange for an honest review

This book didn’t do anything for me. It was supposed to be a thriller but more a drama really.
I found it slow. Didn’t like the bad language and I’m not interested in reading about same sex relationships.

The story of a dysfunctional family with a bit of a mystery thrown in, this is a a character driven story about love, trauma and finding your way in life against the odds.

Told in the present in the form of a dinner party and in the past of the attendees, we get told the story from various viewpoints.

I really enjoyed this one. It was very character driven so they needed to be well written and believable and thankfully they are. Some really vivid characters and settings, the writing here is beautiful without being too wordy.

At under 300 pages it’s also the perfect length for the story it tells.
It’s does border on being over sentimental towards the end but by that time you are so caught up in the characters and their plight that you don’t mind it at all.

A very strong 4 stars from me. This is an author I will be looking out for in the future.

Thanks to the publisher for the ARC through Netgalley

Thank you Netgalley and Penguin General UK - Fig Tree, Viking for this arc copy

Reading the synopsis of this book, was totally not what transcribed whilst reading this story. It wasn’t a thriller that I was expecting it to be more of family bonds, drama and psychological process of grief.

Although I enjoyed reading this book and loved the author's choice of underlying topics and themes, there were just a few too many issues that meant I couldn't rate this higher.

However, I did particular liked reading about the relationship between Willa and Robyn, and the inclusion of queer characters, which is not very common in thriller type novels.

This book started off with alot of promise but as it was advertised as a thriller I expected more,it actually reads more as a family drama..At times it seemed as if some characters were thrown in just for the sake of it and their presence did nothing for the story.
Told between different characters points of view.
The twist at the end was no surprise and sadly a read ill easily forget.
Many thanks to Netgalley and Penguin General UK for the ARC.

I found this a compelling and beautifully-written book about two sisters - Willa and Laika - and Willa’s close friend Robyn from boarding school. I loved the writing style and couldn’t wait to get back to the story. The present day opens with a dinner party full of interesting characters, including Willa whose sister Laika went missing when she was 13. This novel is a page turner throughout. I did find a few scenes upsetting though. The author writes so well about many things including emotion, loss, family ties and never giving up hope. I will remember this book and the characters for a long time.

Things Don't Break On Their Own revolves around the lives of 3 girls, Robyn,her best friend and boarding school roommate, Willa and Willa's sister Laika. Robyn has an idyllic childhood with loving parents ,while Willa and Laika's is the complete opposite as they tread warily around their volatile bully of a father,who rebel Laika can't stop herself from provoking. One morning Laika disappears.
25 years later Robyn and her wife Cat hold a small dinner party where the conversation turns to the subject of childhood memories, triggering Willa ....there with her boorish husband....with thoughts of the past.

This is a very accomplished debut from Sarah Easter Collins,a dark tale of secrets,memories,relationships,grief and loss. It does require suspension of belief occasionally but overall it's a great story that is often moving, just as often horrifying. The ending is far from predictable with quite a few subtle but effective red herrings along the way.
A great book from a new author .

I read this book in almost one sitting and felt a huge book hangover after I finished. The characters are well described, believable and more importantly, you invest in them. The book is set between then and now. Now is a supper with friends/family and a new girlfriend is introduced to the group. The then is when Willa’s sister disappears and her life is never the same again. We get to understand the dynamics of Willa’s home life and the effect her sister’s disappearance had on her family. This book is about love - sisterly, same sex and friends and family, it’s about never giving up hope, it’s about controlling relationships and also ultimately about resolution. I cried but I also cheered!

A missing schoolgirl, a family torn apart, hidden secrets and the devastating impact of the unknown are all explored in this debut novel.

Liaka Martenwood disappeared on her way to school over 25 years ago and since then her sister Willa and her mother have been desperately searching for some trace of her,

A dinner party attended by four couples, one of which is Willa and her boyfriend unlocks hidden truths which may give answers to the mystery.

The author describes the events leading up to the disappearance and since in such detail that I felt I knew all the characters even though my theory was completely wrong. The characters all had their own backstory which intertwined adding to the storyline’s enjoyment.

The heartbreak of a missing family member is unimaginable and this was explored beautifully! I really didn’t guess the ending and this added to the enjoyment of the book for me!

A book which had me page turning, searching for answers and applauding the storytelling.

Thank you to Netgallery and the publisher for this ARC. The publication date is the 20th June. This was a slow burner but in a good way as the book progressed I really got into it! The book explored themes such a love, loss and everything in between! I thoroughly enjoyed it.

I’d highly recommend this book TW: it does discuss the theme of Domestic abuse overall ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ stars I really didn’t want it to end! 😊

This sounded right up my street so I was very pleased when I was accepted.
The plot is very slow going. A sister who disappeared, wonder why...and a sister who keeps looking for her. It's a well trodden path that can be a good plot but this was far too slow with very unlikeable stereotypical characters even down to the "send the boat people back". The book first lost me at the bird egg. One and half pages of unecessary detail. Horrid
Odd phrases used and curious way of putting things. I also didn't believe that a certain person would turn up. I mean why?
It gradually lost stars as it went on, sadly

Not a thriller per se, but a slow burn character study. I really enjoyed this psychological journey into the women’s head scape. Definitely more literary than airport or beach. But very deep and ultimately satisfying.

This is a slow reveal of a family drama rather than the thriller that I was expecting but it's still a good read with some interesting turns. A fascinating plot line with some psychological insight that really makes you think.

An absolutely beautiful story that I didn’t want to end. Loss, love, friendship, sadness and happiness make this an emotional read. If I could give this more than five stars I would. This is one of those books that will stay with me and I’ll be thinking about it for a long time. It will join my very favourites that I read again and again.

Thanks to NetGalley and the publishers for the ARC in return for my honest and unbiased opinion.

Another book that requires more stars. I loved it. And a debut novel too. Please write more Sarah Easter Collins.

The story begins with a dinner party held by Robyn and wife, Cat. There are hidden tensions that surface for a time but few explanations other than that Robyn's best friend from school, Willa, had a sister (Laika) who disappeared 20 years before. As more dinner party guests arrive we meet Nate (Cat's brother) and Claudette, his French girlfriend.

We leave the dinner party and travel around to other times in the lives of Robyn, Willa and Laika to explain the relationship between the two friends and what happened to Laika.

There are a few twists that I didn't see coming at all. It does stretch the imagination a little but only a little. The characters are well defined and either likeable or hateable (pretty sure that's not word but you know what I mean). The book delves into all sorts of family situations - grief, loss, physical abuse, coercive control etc bit Sarah Easter Collins does it all with a light touch. Plus if you like a story with a definitive ending then you will love this.

I think the word to use about the narrative is compelling. I was certainly compelled to stop reading anything else and focus on this. I certainly wouldn't call the book a thriller (as some reviewers seemed to think it was) but then I don't recall reading that in the blurb. It is quite fast paced, there's a lot of action (some of it had my fingernails digging into my palms at the injustice) and its an excellent plot.

Highly recommended. It would make an excellent holiday read that you'd fly through.

Thankyou so much to Netgalley and Penguin for the advance review copy. Most appreciated.