3.5 Stars

This was an interesting story of 2 sisters who were abandoned by their mother while she followed a con-man. Years later a famous pod caster shows up on their door step because the younger sister agreed to share their story with her. The story takes us on a journey with the sisters, the pod caster and her good looking beefy assistant to find their mom. I liked this book i just can't say I loved it. I found the instant love part of the story a little hard to believe. But overall it was a good interesting story.
Thank you to NetGalley and Kensington Books for the opportunity to read and review this book.

Thank you so much to NetGalley, Kensington Books, and Kate Clayborn for allowing me to review this wonderful book. I love all of Kate Clayborn’s books and she is an auto buy author for me! This book is such a wonderful read full of emotional connections, sisterly bonds, romance, and mystery. I love how each character is on their own journey throughout the book and the reader is able to connect with all of them. I highly recommend this book! Thank you again for allowing me to review it.

Kate does it again. She kept me afloat with Georgie All Along last year. This year, she gives me The Other Side of Disappearing. Reading Kate’s novels puts me in the room with the characters. I’m hovering in the corner watching behind a curtain. I’m walking along side them rooting them on and yelling at them when they’re making a mistake.

Jess and Tegan are the sister story those of us without a sister dream about. It’s obviously not an ideal situation but you can truly feel their relationship. Tegan’s resentment and Jess’s hovering. The way they heal together by the end of the story is magic. The happily ever after.

Jess and Adam. Their love story is beautiful. The way their relationship forms is quick, but so genuine. I guess you don’t have a lot of space when you road trip with a stranger who’s writing a story about your mom. I love the way it isn’t perfect for them. I love the way he’s too much and she retreats.

The rage I feel towards their mother. Ugh it is real rage. The way I yelled at this book during the smidge of it that she was in. UGH!

I did give it 4 stars. I would’ve liked for Baltimore to be alive. I would’ve liked a little more follow up from the mom or Salem’s background with the original documentary. Salem having a family outside of it was kind of pointless. I would’ve liked to see more of a relationship between Jess and Adam’s mom, or Beth.

Kate Clayborn gives us another emotional and touching read with The Other Side of Disappearing. I absolutely loved the concept of this book and a cinnamon roll MMC will always be my favorite. Adam is multifaceted and a great representation of "manly" on the outside, but on the inside includes so many other traits. I think having male characters like this is a really wonderful way to represent men a dimensional and interesting. I had a harder time with Jess and her reticence to engage with the world. But seeing the two characters connect was really special.

I have not read her other works, but this book was on a higher level compared to Georgie, All Along. I could feel the love and dedication Clayborn put into this story, and it presents onto the page. As romance readers, we know there are different kinds of love: romantic, platonic, familial, etc. You get to see Jess experience these kinds of relationships as she allows more people to see her. She had to hide her sister to protect her, and she put her life on hold to help raise her. I admire Jess for her strength, her heart, and her courage to let down her walls. There is a mystery element to the story to figure out where their mother and Lynton went. Jess being vulnerable and learning to live again is my favorite element, and I hope you give this book a try.
I received an e-ARC of the book through NetGalley, so thank you to NetGalley and Kensington Publishing in exchange for an honest review.

This is the third book I've read by Kate Clayborn and I will continue to add all of her books to my TBR. She's a fantastic writer, developing the love story between Jess and Adam, while focusing the same amount of attention on Jess's relationship with her sister who she's raised since Tegan was 8 years old, and on uncovering the mystery of her mother's final abandonment. It's a beautiful, heartwarming story about the people who leave and the ones they have left behind -- whether by choice or not. It's also about self-discovery, healing old wounds, learning to be vulnerable and moving forward from past trauma, making it a poignant, emotional ride so be prepared to feel all the feels!

Jess and Tegan are different in so many ways but both have been struggling with the trauma of being abandoned by their mother. When Charlotte (their mother) left the final time, Tegan was only 8 years old and didn't have anyone else to go to so Jess became her primary caregiver at 21, essentially closing herself off to love and devoting herself fully to raising her sister. She has no interest in finding her mom and holds a lot of anger towards her, rightfully so. Tegan on the other hand wants to find her mom, even going so far as to reach out to a podcast that did a story on a conman who happens to be the man their mother left with. This causes strain between the sisters since Jess feels betrayed by Tegan for planning to leave her behind to go on a road trip looking for their mother while Tegan feels betrayed by the fact that Jess hid their mother's postcards from her. Enter Adam, our love interest and football player turned journalist, and Salem the woman who did the initial story on the conman their mother left with. The chemistry between Jess and Adam is clear from the start but their meet cute is not under the best circumstances. When Adam and Salem turn up and Jess learns what Tegan has planned behind her back, she is determined to join the road trip to protect her sister, which means establishing boundaries and conditions for anything the sisters say on record.

There's a lot of tension in this book -- between the sisters, between Adam and Jess, and between Salem, Jess and Adam -- all for different reasons. As the story progresses we get a look into the psyches of each of these characters and I found a fondness for each of them, even Salem who is definitely not the most likeable character. Each has their own motivation for going on this trip and pursuing this story: Tegan wants to find her mom, Jess wants to protect Tegan, Salem wants to find the conman who disappeared on her during her popular podcast series, and Adam wants to publish a story about football and mental health because of the loss of his best friend and helping Salem with this story means she'll help him get to tell his own story. The further to the truth they get, the more apparent it becomes to Adam that he's not just there for the story or for his opportunity to tell a story important to him and the more time he spends with Jess, the harder it is for her to keep up her walls and close people out.

This really is a story about healing, for all of the characters and gives the reader a sense of found family forged under uncommon circumstances. Each character will confront the past in some way in order to move forward with their future. People who enjoy stories about self-discovery, with mental health themes, healing, family dynamics and a bit of romance will enjoy and find this one to be inspirational.

The Other Side of Disappearing is out now so definitely check it out!

I voluntarily read and reviewed an advanced digital copy of this title from Kensington Books via NetGalley. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

After reading and adoring Georgie, All Along, I knew I wanted to read The Other Side of Disappearing. Kate Clayborn’s writing continues to be beautiful & lyrical. I will always read anything she writes! I know that so many people rated this one five stars, & I can see why! It just didn’t totally work for me. I think it is because while I liked the story, the romance part was not compelling. I think I needed it to have a bit more set up at the beginning (both the core story and the love story). If you took the romance out, the book would have still been solid. Which is good in a way, but I was kind of expecting the romance to be more central to the story. It was definitely a solid book, just not really what I was expecting. I still adore Kate Clayborn, but this just wasn’t a favorite for me.
3.75 stars rounded up to 4

Jess has been raising her younger half sister Teagan on her own ever since her reckless mom ran off with her new boyfriend 10 years ago. A man who just happens to be a con man, and the subject of a very popular true crime podcast. Jess has worked very hard to keep Teagan and herself out of any related publicity. But now Teagan wants answers.

This book destroyed me and put me back together again. It is incredibly well written, with depth that is both heart breaking and heart warming. The mystery surrounding their mom and this con man had me so intrigued from the very first chapter. There are bits of transcripts from the podcast in between chapters and I devoured them.

Then there was the romance. Adam, a colleague of the podcast host, is my new favourite book boyfriend. He’s a giant of a man, a football player turned journalist, who is both a soft place to land and someone you can’t hide from. Jess and Adam have sizzling chemistry, and the tension that is built on their journey is just perfect. There is a sexy trampoline scene, and a truck bed in a flower field scene- both will have you swooning.

This is my favourite book I have read in a long time. I highly recommend it. Five stars!

𝙱𝚘𝚘𝚔 𝚁𝚎𝚟𝚒𝚎𝚠📙🎧
🌟🌟🌟🌟🌟

I was so excited when my @libby.app hold came through for this one. @kateclayborn.author please stand up and take a bow 💐💐. This is the second book this year that I’ve read that is podcast mystery related. There are so many trigger warnings: abandonment, conman, anxiety, depression, just to name a few. This wasn’t just a romance novel it was one of self-discovery and trauma-processing. Jesse green is a hair stylist who has raised her almost 18 year old sister Teagan since their mom abandoned them over 10 years ago. Now their lives are changing because their mom’s boyfriend is the grifter who is famous nationally. True -crime podcasters Salem Durant and her assistant Adam Hawkins are there to solve a mystery but don’t expect to find themselves and love in the process. I loved Adam and Jesse chemistry I also knew they were two broken people headed for doom. Salem I really enjoyed the more I understood her character. She turned into a mama bear in the end and I loved her for it. The best part of this for me was the self healing for all characters. They all did the work in the end to be better for each other and themselves. The new formed family was a great read. If you love true crime podcasts I highly recommend this book.

@marnyeyoung and Wyeth watts did a great job on narration. They performed Jesse and Adam’s characters perfectly.

❓what was the last true crime book you read?

🏷️#truecrime #podcast #grifter #conman #romance #love #books #read #drbooksreads #kateclayborn #bookstagram

I dnf'd this book after the first chapter. The premise seemed interesting but I literally felt like an idiot trying to understand that first chapter and I read it twice to make sure I understood what was happening. Not for me.

4 1/2 Stars

Jess and her sister, Tegan are both scarred by the abandonment of their mother. She left years before but the damage is still very much alive and well in their lives. When a podcaster and her producer show up prepared to take Tegan (who they believe to be Jess) on a cross country trip to follow their mother's trail, everything changes. When she realizes how much Tegan needs to know what happened to their mother, Jess agrees to go along on the trip even though she thinks it's a bad idea. Along the way, they won't just discover things they never knew about their mother, they'll learn things about themselves.

This was another strong entry by Kate Clayborn. I really appreciated the way Jess gradually opened up over the course of the book. Salem's producer, Adam was key in helping Jess find herself. Yet Adam was fighting his own demons. The storylines that were woven together in this book were well written and thought out. It was a gentle and emotional read and it really made you think.

Thank you to NetGalley for this ARC.

The shocking secret is not super shocking and the beginning of the book starts rough plot wise. I just couldn’t get into it - I don’t know if the information withholding was too much or what but I couldn’t find myself caring about the “secret” or the double abandonment or all the hurt feelings and thus couldn’t get onboard with the mission.

I think I have realized now that is this author’s MO as I’ve read two others and have now realized I don’t really love the actual plot but I love how she writes her characters and how they deal with their predicaments and most of all how they interact and grow and resolve together.

For that reason it’s a solid 3, but honestly I skimmed the last quarter of the books.

This book follows Jess, whose mum disappeared with a con artist and left her to raise her half-sister, Tegan. But when Tegan grows up and is about to leave for college, she finds a clue about their mother. So she ropes in a true-crime podcaster and her assistant to help them follow a trail of clues.

But along the way of finding their mother, they also find themselves.

This is a little different from Kate's other books. While it still delivers complex characters, descriptive prose, and a unique storyline, Kate also effortlessly blends mystery with the most tender romance, which ensures you won't want to put the book down.

I loved it! Jess and Adam are goals!

Such an interesting story. It made me laugh and cry and then laugh again!

Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for allowing me to read this arc in exchange for an honest review!

Kate Clayborn’s books are the kind I always get lost in, in the best way. This one was probably my favorite so far, but I feel like I say that every time because they’re all so good!!!

My thanks to NetGalley for an ARC of this book. I was excited to read another novel from Clayborn after reading Georgie All Along last year. This novel has an interesting mystery type of concept, as it involves two sisters (one more reluctant than the other) teaming up with a podcasting team to update an unresolved case. I found Jess's character to be really interesting, given her obvious trust issues after she and her younger sister were abandoned by their mom a decade prior. Although I did not love how instantly she and Adam seemed to fall for one another, it did represent one of the clearest themes of the novel: learning to trust again and navigating those conditions as you get to know someone better. I really liked the cast of characters built into this story, although I do with that the podcast element was a little more highlighted and that the unsolved factor of the mystery running through the book was a bit more prominent. Overall, I thought the ending of this story was more realistic than most types of romances I read and I also really enjoyed the found family aspect as well.

Thanks to Netgalley and the publisher for an eARC in exchange for my honest review. I requested this title after enjoying Georgie, All Along but WOW this book exceeded expectation. A deep, interesting, well developed plot with deep, interesting, well developed characters. I will say that I thought the epilogue was going in a different direction (but I won't give spoilers!), but overall I was very pleased with the ending for the 4 main characters. I will definitely keep and eye out for Kate Clayborn's next book.

Kate Clayborn's books never disappoint. The Other Side of Disappearing is a romance wrapped in a mystery, within the framework of a podcast. True crime lovers will find much to love about this genre-bending novel about family and responsibility and what it means to let your guard down and allow people to know you.

After their mother disappeared with her con-artist boyfriend a decade ago, the responsibility of raising Tegan, her half-sister, fell to Jess Greene--a responsibility she has taken seriously over the past ten years. But now Tegan is eighteen, and secrets Jess has kept for years have come to light. After all this time, the sisters finally embark on a road-trip, trying to track down their missing mother, accompanied by a popular podcast host and her handsome producer, Adam.

It's a mostly-straightforward plot, hitting all the expected beats, but it's the beautiful quality of the writing that sets it apart. Clayborn has a true talent for creating fully-fleshed out characters with their own foibles and struggles, making them feel real and relatable. Within the broader strokes of the mystery, she crafts these beautiful, vulnerable moments of authentic connection, and that's what makes the story ultimately so memorable. Another five star read from a favorite author--highly recommend!

Thank you to the publisher, Kensington Books, and Netgalley for my advance review copy.

I was very much looking forward to reading this book as I absolutely loved Georgie, All Along. This book is different than the previous book, as it is isn't a rom-com but more of a crime-podcast story about the main character's (Jess) mother's disappearance with a con man, combined with Jess's developing romance with the podcast assistant, Adam. The book also depicts the hardships and traumas of both characters as Jess became a full-time parent to sister Teagan and Adam remains shattered after the death of his closest friend. The resulting road trip not only brings them closer to the truth about Jess and Teagan's mom, but also brings Tess closer to opening her heart to Adam. I loved the banter with Adam's boss Salem and the warm, loving depictions of Adam's family at the farm, contrasting with Jess's toxic relationship with her mother. The road trip following the last post card clues left behind from her mother was suspenseful and I eagerly waited to find out more of the mystery on each leg of the trip. However, I wish there had been more of a twist or surprising conclusion as I'm used to in most mysteries. It felt a bit anti-climatic after all of the build up from the clues. The book concludes with a hopeful future for all of the characters, which I appreciated.

After keeping her little sister close her entire life, Jess's world is turned upside down when Tegan decides to spread her wings to search for their flighty mother. I loved the bond between these two sisters and the secrets that were discovered along their journey.