Sloan Hastings is working toward being a forensic pathologist and has landed a highly sought fellowship in the field. Her dissertation topic is forensics in genealogy.

She submits her DNA to a site. She was hesitant because she was adopted and never sought out her history. But it could be good for her career to do this and her adoptive parents are supportive.

This definitely opens a can of worms. Secrets come out. Regarding her birth parents AND her adoptive parents.

The final reveal is shocking and well done! The audio was fantastic and this book had my attention from start to finish.

Many thanks to NetGalley, Kensington Books for an eARC and RB Media for an ALC in exchange for my honest review.

I absolutely devoured this one. I’ve been sleeping on Charlie Donlea because I’ve now read two books from him and LOVED both book. Last year I read Those Empty Eyes and it was a five star read for me, and Long Time Gone was another riveting page turner.

We meet Sloan Hastings who is working towards becoming a forensic pathologist and is assigned to focus on forensic genealogy. In order to fully understand the science behind this field and how it used, Sloan submits her own DNA to a genealogy site. Sloan is adopted and has known this from a young age so she understands what she finds out will be a surprise to her and to her adoptive parents. However, no one expected for their entire world to be turned upside down. They learn that Sloan is actually baby Charlotte Margolis who was abducted along with her birth parents almost thirty years ago and this case has been cold until this discovery. Now Sloan wants answers, so she goes back to the place where it all started Cedar Creek, Nevada to meet her family and find out what happened to her parents the day they went missing and how she ended up in North Carolina with her adoptive parents.

I sat down with this book and I was absolutely hooked. I read this one in 24 hours and it is one that absolutely pulls you in and doesn’t let go. I loved the timeline jump between the past and present and enjoyed every minute of this one- even the wild ending.

I highly recommend grabbing this book and I can’t wait to go back and read his backlist.

Long Time Gone is another sprawling, multiple-POV thriller from Charlie Donlea that explores complicated secrets between its characters.

Sloan Hastings is just doing her job as a forensic genealogist when she discovers she is a genetic match for the famous baby Charlotte Margolis who went missing decades ago. Suddenly, her happy childhood memories all come into question. As she tries to stay ahead of the media picking up on her story, she heads to Nevada where her supposed family the Margolises live. They seem warm and welcoming, but they also feel like they don't want to answer all of the questions she is asking. What Sloan ends up discovering is more and more Margolis secrets.

This was a fun read and I enjoyed the premise of forensic genealogy since it has become even more relevant in true crime arenas. I guessed some of the reveals, but that didn't detract from the enjoyment of figuring it all out with Sloan.

The story had an interesting premise, starting off with some shocking DNA test results. I like the writing style of alternating timelines to unravel the mystery in present day by walking through the actual events in the past. It is well written, with a somewhat surprising ending.

Many thanks to NetGalley and Kensington Books for the opportunity to read and review this book prior to publication.

This is a book you will not be able to put down! Love a good thriller and an addicting one! I will be reading more from this author!

Long Time Gone is a gripping, addictive, amazing, edge of your seat thriller that will have you flipping those pages until you get to the end. Once I started this one I was completely hooked, I couldn't stop, I needed to know. I was so immersed in this story. The amount of knowledge, research and detail that Donlea has put in this book is AMAZING.

I loved that we got to revisit characters from previous books, that was really fun, as you already have their background stories. Sloane was an amazing FMC so strong and resilient. I loved that I truly had no idea who the culprit was. The pacing and suspense in this book is constant, everything is revealed expertly and at the perfect time. Which makes for a great thrilling ride.

@charliedonlea is truly a master storyteller. I am completely OBSESSED ! There were multiple things happening, but never did I get confused, it was all perfectly done, the jumps from past to present were also very well indicated. The way he made all the storylines connect was just PERFECTION, I am absolutely in love with his writing style and his stories.

✨️ Thank you to @netgalley, @rbmedia, @kensingtonbooks & @charliedonlea for my gifted ALC & ARC in exchange for an honest review.

Overall this was a very enjoyable thriller! I love Charlie Donleas books and this one was great, a fast read! Overall kept me on my toes throughout the whole book.

Sloan Hastings’ life is turned upside down when she submits her DNA to a genealogy website and discovers she is the long lost daughter of Preston and Annabelle Margolis who vanished along with their infant daughter. She tries to put the pieces together of what happened and discovers there’s much more to the story than she initially thought.

I liked this story. It got my attention immediately and made me want to keep reading all the way through. A few aspects were a little far fetched and hard to believe for me though.

An expertly crafted tale layered with corruption, greed, and perseverance. The story centers around Sloan Hastings, a student completing a two-year fellowship to become a forensic pathologist. When her supervisor Dr. Cutty assigns her a research assignment in forensic genealogy, her world is shaken at the discovery that Sloan is Baby Charlotte, a kidnapped infant missing for almost thirty years. In an effort to under the mystery of what happened to her birth parents, she's drawn into the world of the corrupt Margolis family—her family. The way the puzzle unravels is masterful, and I'm praying for a sequel.

I loved this book! An entirely new author for me and I an excited to read moree by Charlie

Donlea! This one started off fast and the suspense never stopped. I was drawn in by the

author's easy to read style of writing. The story was interesting and didn't seem cheesy or

forced to set up some inevitable twist, The story unfolded well and the timing heightened the

drama and suspense. I absolutely adored the main character, Sloan. She was cool without

being pretentious or cliche. The character and story development were primo and I felt the

Story flowed well and kept me turning the pages. I was listening in the shower, reading in

Bed, anytime I had a chance, it was a great book to pull me out of a reading slump!!

Say "investigative genetic genealogy" to me and I'm in, and this twisty story uses that as its jumping off point, and then manages to get even wilder from there. With a past story and a connected present story, the tale of what happened to Baby Charlotte, her parents, and the powerful Margolis family was filled with twists and dedicated investigative work. A fast paced read that kept me invested.

A twisty, well paced thriller with good characters and excellent storytelling, When she threw her DNA into the universe, Sloan sure didn't expect to discover that she is actually a famous missing baby-Charlotte but now that she knows, she's determined to discover the truth about her heritage and history. Of course, there are those who don't want her to uncover their secrets, Can she trust Eric, the sheriff who is helping? No spoilers from me. Thanks to Netgalley for the ARC. A page turner.

On her path to becoming a forensic pathologist, Dr. Sloan Hastings has been assigned a research project in the field of genealogy. While knowing she is adopted, she signs up on one of the ancestry websites to understand how it all works. The results are shocking as Sloan learns that her birth name is Charlotte Margolis who, along with her parents, disappeared almost thirty years ago from their Cedar Creek, Nevada home. This was a mystery that dominated the national headlines in 1995 and has remained a cold case. Until now. Eric Stamos, Cedar Creek's local sheriff, visits Sloan as he has long suspected that his father Sandy's suspicious death was tied to the rich and powerful Margolis family. Sloan's reappearance might enable Eric to gain valuable information. And while they appear to be overjoyed when they meet Sloan, it becomes clear that the Margolis family is a secretive, controlling bunch. The disappearance of Charlotte and her parents are only part of the puzzle.

Author Charlie Donlea shows his skill at creating riveting, skillful mystery thrillers in Long Time Gone. It's a fast-paced, suspense-filled story that I breezed through with great enjoyment. The main characters are all well done. The book volleys back and forth from past to present where clues as to what happened in the past are revealed to the reader but remain a mystery to those in the present, adding to the tension. This is a solid thriller I'm happy to recommend.

Many thanks to NetGalley, Kensington Books, Recorded Books Media for gifting me both a digital and audio ARC of the latest thriller by a favorite, Charlie Donlea, and perfectly narrated by Vivienne Leheny. All opinions expressed in this review are my own - 5 stars!

Sloan Hastings is studying to become a medical examiner. Her assigned research project is to study forensic genealogy. She starts by submitting her DNA to a genealogy site. Sloan has always known she was adopted and never desired to find her birth parents. But when the results come back, they show that she was actually Baby Charlotte, a 2-month-old who disappeared along with her parents 30 years ago in Nevada. She meets the sheriff of the small town from where she went missing, and he has a mystery of his own to solve that may be related.

Wow - this was such a suspenseful, intriguing book! I started reading the digital but found I had to keep going, so I switched to the audio which was perfectly narrated. I was pulled in from the very beginning, as the subject of forensic genealogy is so fascinating, Sloan was a very likable character and I felt like I was going along on her journey to discover the secrets of her past. The story is told in both the past and present timelines, and the tension kept building throughout the book. Clear some time and read this one!

Stayed up past my bedtime for this one.
This was a really fun read. I liked the FMC and that’s saying something because I almost always hate the way male authors write female characters. The premise of the book revolves around a wealthy family that has great influential control over the small town in which they reside. It was very much giving Murdoch family scandal if you’ve watched current events and documentaries on that family.
My only negative is things felt repetitive at times. The whodunnit was mostly predictable but it didn’t matter because I enjoyed the ride. 4 stars.

I have truly enjoyed every Charlie Donlea novel and this was no different. While I have a few nits (why even mention the podcast host? She was under utilized, IMO. Also the way the photos came to be? Come on, man. LOL) they did not stop me from eating up this 9 hour audiobook in fewer than 24 hours. I love a storyline that snaps-- nothing bothers me more than dragging out a storyline in a thriller. This was masterful (but not without issues) storytelling.

Rating: 5/5 Stars ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
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I have been a huge fan of Donlea after reading Twenty Years Later and have had a plan in place to read all fo his backlist. Then I came across this one NetGalley and I knew I needed it. I mean come on, if you dont know by now, any type of cold case story is my absolute favorite. This was no exception.
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Long Time Gone is told in a dual timeline. The present and in 1995 when multiple crimes are committed. Right from the start this one was captivating and addictive. It starts off fast paced and maintains that momentum throughout the entire story, making this one of those books that you just cant put down. There were the perfect amount of twists and I loved the suspenseful ending.
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Majority of the characters are great besides a select few. Sloane, her adoptive parents, her boss and Eric, the sheriff she assists in the cold case were my favorite. I would absolutely love to see another story with these characters, especially another cold case perhaps!?
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I listened to this one via audiobook while reading on my kindle. Vivienne Leheny was phenomenal. I love what she did with the audiobook. There was no issue with following along with the dual timelines.
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Long Time Gone was a pleasure to read. I loved it. Highly recommending this one to all of my murder mystery / thriller friends! This will be releasing on 5/21. Be sure to check it out! Huge thank you to NetGalley, Charlie Donlea, Recorded Books Media and Kensington Books for the ALC and eARC in exchange for my honest review.

A solid thriller with an interesting concept.

3.5 stars rounded up.

Fresh off her four-year residency, 29-year-old physician Sloan Hastings is starting the first year of her fellowship in forensic pathology under the renowned Dr. Livia Cutty (familiar to the author‘s loyal readers from "Don't Believe It"). When her area of interest for her research during her first year is revealed to be forensic and investigative technology, Sloan - who knows she was adopted as a baby - submits her own DNA to a genealogical website as a first step. What she finds - that she, along with both her birth parents, went missing and was presumed dead in 1995, at two months old - threatens to unravel everything she knows.

Switching between the present and the summer of 1995, „Long Time Gone“ subsequently follows Sloan as she slowly uncovers the truth behind her own mysterious disappearance, and what happened to her family that same summer.

As someone very interested in family history and genealogy, I was thrilled by the concept, and the book’s short, fast-paced chapters made it hard to put down. Overall, this was a solid thriller. In fact, if you *don’t* expect any unpredictable twists, this book is decidedly above average. Bonus points for the nicely done arch between the prologue and the ending of the book. Overall, however, I found the execution a bit lacking - in fact, for such an interesting idea, the story became run-of-the-mill rather quickly, particularly the „rich family who controls the town“ angle.

Given its thoroughly novel start with the genealogy angle, I guess I just expected more original plot twists than the book offered - in fact, the whodunnit was so obvious, I could have told you from the start. But speaking of original ideas, Sloan figuring out what exactly happened to her parents involved one plot device (featuring two-month-old baby Sloan) that was so ridiculous, I can‘t believe it made it into the final book (IYKYK).

Given the author’s talent for creating interesting protagonists, I was also a bit disappointed that by the end of the book, it still felt like none of the characters were very developed or fleshed out. Even Sloan, the main protagonist, comes across rather flat, and besides an addiction to Diet Dr. Pepper and Crossfit, nothing about her stuck in my mind - some some characters, like the Stamos detectives and even Sloan‘s father, had way more personality. It doesn’t help that Sloan, supposedly this incredibly intelligent woman at the top of her class, is repeatedly used throughout the book as a plot device to explain some background info to the reader (I am actually quite certain a 29-year-old doctor would know and remember the basics of forensic and investigative technology, as you don‘t even need to be a forensic pathologist to be aware of it. The same with analog photography - are we to believe she knows absolutely nothing about it?). In both cases, while this is probably necessary info to provide to the average reader (arguably less so in the case of analog photography), rather than having the concept explained to Sloan, it would have been preferable to have her explain it to someone else. Overall, it cheapened the ostensibly very smart character for me to have her seem so clueless.

The author‘s books have been a bit hit and miss for me in the past. Some, like "The Girl Who Was Taken" (2018) and "Twenty Years Later" (2021), were disappointments, but none more so than "Those Empty Eyes" (2023). On the other hand, "Summit Lake" (2017), "Some Choose Darkness" (2019), and :"The Suicide House" (2020) were all excellent, and "Don't Believe It" (2018) quickly became a favorite.

„Long Time Gone“ falls somewhere in the middle. While the characters could have used more work and the case‘s conclusion was more predictable than I had hoped, I would definitely read another book featuring these protagonists, and will continue to pick up books by this author.

Thank you to NetGalley and Kensington for the ARC in exchange for my honest review.

„Long Time Gone“ is slated to be published on May 21, 2024.

Big sigh. For most of this book I was hooked and thought it was going to be a 4 or 5 star read. But then the ending ruined it for me. Spoilers ahead.

I went into this book without knowing anything of the plot - just that it was the new book by Charlie Donlea who is an auto read author for me ever since Don’t Believe It.

I thought the whole setup of Sloane’s program and why she decided to submit her dna to a genealogy site was great. I was so pulled in as we learned who she was and what happened 30 years ago. I felt like the pace dragged a little in the middle but I was still along for the ride.

But then that ending. A key part to how the whole case was solved involved a baby in a bassinette happening to kick the button on a camera and get photos that managed to clearly show how multiple murders occurred. WHAT?!?! This is the most over the top unbelievable thing ever. They stayed exactly in the frame for all of those shots?? Or the fussing baby kept kicking the camera into just the right angle and every shot came out clear? NO WAY. And then the present timeline final showdown was also over the top and unbelievable and that ending just entirely lost me.

Thank you to the publisher and Netgalley for the free ebook to review.

Twenty nine year old Sloan Hastings is embarking in her last 2 years of medical training so she can be a medical examiner, something she has pursued diligently for years. During the first year of training she is assigned to do a research project involving forensics use of DNA and public DNA databases. She quickly determines that the best way to understand the science is to submit her own DNA sample, although it makes her a little nervous as she is adopted and has no knowledge of her biological family. With her adoptive parents blessings however, she submits her sample and soon finds her life turned upside down. She soon discovers that 29 years ago she, at the age of 2 months, and her parents , members of a rich and powerful family, disappeared, and were the subjects of news articles and tabloid and true crime speculation ever since.

This novel switches between two different timelines, 1995 when the original crimes happened, and 2024 when Sloan performs her DNA test. The chapters are short and the plot moves quickly, and its one of those books that is hard to put down.... just one more chapter. I figured out the mystery fairly early on, but it did not keep me from turning pages and really enjoying the ride. Although every scenario isn't exactly realistic, I think any mystery lover who isn't a terrible stickler for details will really enjoy this one.

Thank you to Net galley and the publisher for the e galley in exchange for an unbiased review.