The story I read was profoundly touching, dealing with a deeply tragic theme. It tells of a boy who vanishes at the age of 11 while playing in a field, leaving his older brother, who was distracted at the time with his buddies, in a state of devastation. The story leaps forward 21 years, delving into the emotional aftermath for those affected by Davy's disappearance. The narrative structure, which segments the story to focus on each person impacted by the event, from that fateful night to the present, was particularly engaging. The resurfacing of Davy's jacket and the ensuing new search bring the memories of that night back to the surface, causing immense pain, especially for Davy's mother. My sole criticism is the anticlimactic revelation of what transpired that night. The event is briefly addressed, and while it's mentioned that the initial search was mishandled by the police, this point isn't further explored, which I think would have added depth to the police's final search. Overall, it's a heart-wrenching tale of pain that no one should ever have to endure.

A gripping novel about the case of a missing boy and the ripple effect his disappearance had on his family twenty years later.

I simply could not put this one down! The multiple POV made every page turn more exciting than the last! I was blown away at the beauty of each characters story and the heart breaking but hopeful ending. BRAVA MARYBETH!!

Every Moment Since follows the fractured lives of the friends, family, and accused following the disappearance of 11-year old Davy Malchor. The narrative alternates between the final time he was seen in 1985 and when clues to his fate finally emerge in 2006. Davy's older brother, Thaddeus, has written a bestselling memoir about surviving Davy's loss, and must return home to his small town to await news from the sheriff as to whether they will finally have answers about Davy's case. Back home, Thaddeus must wrestle with the discomfort of his parents' broken marriage, his own lost love and friendships, and even the changes to the town and landscape he knew as a child.

This novel was competently written and I appreciate that the author wanted to portray the heartbreak of the families who wait for years for any progress on their cases. However, this novel has the unfortunate fate to have been released in the shadow of All the Colors of the Dark. If you find that book too daunting and would rather read something a bit shorter with an ending that is more pat, then this is a great alternative for you.

This review will be posted to Goodreads and Instagram on October 1, 2024.

Southern storyteller and favorite author Marybeth Mayhew Whalen returns with EVERY MOMENT SINCE —a heart-rendering, gripping, character-driven story of mystery, grief, and loss.

The author brilliantly explores the aftermath of a tragedy when a boy goes missing that profoundly affects the family members, friends, and the entire community.

About...

1985 Wynotte, North Carolina

More than twenty years earlier, on a Saturday evening in a small Southern NC town, a little boy named Davy Malcor goes missing.

He wore a jacket his mom made for his birthday. Davy was never found, leaving behind a grief-stricken family and a town with a mystery and no answers.

When the jacket is discovered, the cold case reopens, and Davy's family is back amid another media sensation.

Four lives are forever changed by this single night when Davy disappears.
~Thaddeus is Davy's older brother, who wrote a bestselling memoir about the experience, although he is not forthcoming with the entire story.
~Tabitha: The mother. She is divorced and lives alone, advocating for victims' rights and journaling her regrets (maybe not all of them).
~Anissa Weaver: She was a young girl when Davy went missing. She also does not reveal all. She serves as the Malcor family's Public Information Officer.
~Gordon Swift: He was the artist living in the woods near Davy's disappearance. When the boy came to his house, he sent him away. Then what. Regrets. Is he responsible?

Everyone is front and center, and the suspects are lining up. What happened the night Davy went missing, and where is he now? There are many suspects.

My thoughts...

EVERY MOMENT SINCE is a hauntingly beautiful story of the aftermath of a loss, a traumatic event, and those connected with inner turmoil, grief, and guilt to healing. There is an ongoing mystery, and everyone has hidden secrets about that night. What if they could change the events leading up to that night?

The author brilliantly explores this small rural Southern community and its dark secrets in this slow-burn mystery from past to present. Vivid in place, high in emotion, and strong in character, infused with tension and lovely prose, EVERY MOMENT SINCE is my favorite of Marybeth's. I am also a Charlotte, NC native, and I love and support NC authors!

It's an emotionally gripping family drama—heartbreaking, compelling, and suspenseful, with unexpected twists. The characters will remain with you long after the book ends. EVERY MOMENT SINCE is an ideal choice for book clubs and further discussions.

Audiobook...

I had the privilege of reading the e-book and listening to the audiobook, which was superior. The audio features a full cast of superstars (some of my favorite narrators): Cassandra Campbell, George Newbern, Kirby Heyborne, Jane Oppenheimer, Macleod Andrews, and Renata Friedman. The audio was exceptional, and the characters came alive. I highly recommend the audiobook!

Recs...

For fans of the author and those who enjoy stories by Jessica Strawser, Eileen Goudge, Susan Redfearn, Rochelle Weinstein, Jen Craven, and Emma Robinson.

Thanks to Harper Muse and Harper Audio for an ARC and ALC via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

Blog review posted @
JudithDCollins.com
@JudithDCollins | #JDCMustReadBooks
My Rating: 5 Stars
Pub Date: Oct 1, 2024
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Every Moment Since is a story about a boy named Davy Malcor who goes missing in small town North Carolina in 1985. Disappearing without a trace after a night out with other local kids, suddenly the case is reignited when someone finds the Marty McFly jacket his mother made him. The story follows what happens after, from several different viewpoints. Each character remembers that evening from their memories and how it has shaped them in the present.

This was well written and enjoyable to read. The characters were well developed and relatable, which made me care about them and their part in the story. I found myself wanting to keep reading because I wanted to find out what happened to Davy. The timeliness were easy to follow, and they flowed very well from one to the other. If I had to pick something, I would've liked to have a little stronger of an ending, but that's really nit-picking. This was a wonderful read.

I received a complimentary copy of this book. Opinions expressed in this review are completely my own. Thank you, NetGalley and Harper Muse, for the ARC.

A touching telling of the aftermath of an unfortunate incident where an 11 year old went missing. Davy has been missing since October 1985 when he accompanied his older brother Thaddeus Malcor to some nearby deserted fields to play night games. Now several decades later, Davy's jacket has been discovered at a nearby site undergoing redevelopment. This results in reopening of the cold case and bringing back a flood of memories to the persons directly or indirectly involved in the long-ago tragedy. Narrated from the points of view of several persons, family and others, this is a poignant tale of grief, regret, loss and remembrance. Do take note that this is not a fast-paced mystery novel but rather a slow burn dissection of the fallout of the disappearance. I've read Marybeth Mayhew Whelan's books in the past and I love the way she envisions and breathes life into the dynamics of community, family and the far-reaching consequences of one incorrect error of judgement.
Thank you Netgalley, Harper Muse and Marybeth Mayhew Whelan for the ARC.

What a book! This is my first exposure to this author, and I’ll definitely look for more of her writing.

This one is the story of what happens to a family and a neighborhood after a little boy goes missing. We learn the story of that night, more than 20 years ago, and how Davy Malcom went out to play “night games” with his older brother and some of the other boys. But the older ones were more occupied with drinking beers supplied by Phillip’s uncle than they were with playing games. And the older brother, TJ, lost track of where Davy was. The awful truth was, Davy never came home that night, and not the next, nor the next. He was never found.

Davy’s entire family has so many scars. His parents divorced, as so often happens after these tragedies. And TJ, now known as Thaddeus James, has written a bestselling memoir which includes many of the events (although not all of them) from Davy’s disappearance and its effects on him and his family. There’s a man who was suspected of abducting Danny, but the police never found any evidence.

And then—-Danny’s jacket from that night is found.

The family gathers as the investigation begins anew, and the subsequent findings and all that happens with this family are so moving that I dreaded putting this book down. Although this is a grim tale with heartbreaking details of a horrible incident, I really loved the writing.

I both read and listened to the audiobook. The narration was spectacularly done with a multi-person cast.

Five stars! Highly recommend!

I really enjoyed this book by Marybeth Maybew Whalen. I read three of her books a few years back and loved them, so I was excited for the opportunity to review this one. I love how she uses multiple points of view to show how a singular event affects so many different people. She does a great job giving each narrator a distinct voice (both literally with the audio and figuratively with the writing) and really brings the characters to life.

I’d say this is half women’s fiction, half mystery. It’s definitely worth a read!

This book is filled with emotions - guilt, grief, sadness, regret. Narrated with a full cast recording, we get the points of view from the people closest to the case - the missing boy’s older brother, mother, a friend he met the night he went missing, and the only suspect in the case. This is a slow burn mystery, not an edge of your seat thriller. It’s very much a character study of the people that survived that awful night and what’s become of them in the following twenty years. It was so interesting how differently they all react to this shared experience.

I think this is the kind of book that will appeal to a lot of different types of readers and I don’t think you can go wrong with either print or audio versions.

This story follows several characters and how they deal with griefing the aftermath of a missing boy in a small town. We meet the characters 20 years after the boy went missing but the story also includes flashbacks to the night of the incident along with short stories from the memoir of one of the characters.

The audiobook to this story included different narrators which helps the story for me. I will say that the ending was pretty anticlimactic and it didn’t give me the information that I needed to have closure.

Thank you NetGalley and HaperCollins for this ARC.

Many thanks to NetGalley, Harper Muse and Harper Collins Focus for gifting me both a digital and ARC of the new novel by Marybeth Mayhew Whalen, with the audio narrated by a wonderful cast. All opinions expressed in this review are my own – 5 stars!

Meet the Malcor family – dad Danny, mom Tabitha, TJ the older brother, and Davy the younger brother. This book begins on a summer night in 1985 – the parents anxious for a night away, TJ anxious to go out with his friends, and Davy wanting to tag along. But nothing will ever be the same after that night because Davy doesn’t come home.

This book slowly draws you in and makes you feel like part of this family going through decades of trauma. Told from multiple POV in different timelines, the reader gets to feel what a tragedy like this does to a family and community. It’s beautifully written, and my heart was in my throat so much of the time. The small-town setting was perfect, because families and lives were intertwined. It’s a wonderful family drama on dealing with grief, as well as a taut mystery to find out what happened with Davy. Highly recommended – the audiobook was done by a full cast and was perfection!

I loved this one. A great mystery of a boy named Davy who loves Marty McFly and Back to the Future and who goes missing one night in the 80s while his parents are at a party and is never found. Twenty years later, his jacket is found and the mystery of what happened to him is finally revealed. His brother Thaddeus has written a memoir about what happened and has made some money and had success with the book but has never really revealed the full truth of what happened that night .This book flashes from present day to portions of Thaddeus’ memoir to slowly reveal what happened the night Davy went missing. This book is about the mystery of the missing boy but more about what happened to his brother, his parents, the man suspected of taking him in the twenty years since he’s been gone. It’s about the grief and how what happened has affected their lives and the choices they’ve made going forward and how this tragic event shaped the people they are now. I loved Tabitha and Daniel, his parents and loved the ending. So many parts of this book had me in tears but it ends in such a hopeful place. Really enjoyed this one and will be checking out more from this author.

I wasn't prepared to love this book so much!

Well written, suspenseful, fast-paced, heartbreaking and very touching. "Every Moment Since" reminded me of "Lovely bones" by Alice Sebold with some of its themes and setting.
I especially loved how and where we left our characters. Somehow, I was very serene reading the finishing lines.
Amazing work!

Thank you NetGalley and Harper Muse for this ARC.

This is a story about grief and the roads not taken. The main characters each struggle with the guilt and “what if” scenario that would have resulted in a different outcome.

It’s early October and the Malcor family is getting ready for their weekend plans. The parents are going out and they have to make sure their three kids will be safe. A babysitter is coming to look after the youngest. TJ, the oldest is planning to go out and have a game night with his friends. Davy, the middle child is too old for a sitter, but too young to run around with his older brother.

They make a compromise and let Davy go to game night with TJ. Things don’t go down as anyone had planned and TJ soon realizes he can’t find TJ. The entire town ends up searching for Davy. Years pass. TJ writes a successful book about their experience and struggles to deal with his guilt over his missing brother.

What made me so sad about the story was that what happened to Davy hurt so many except the one responsible. TJ and his mother weren’t the only ones living for years with the guilt of that night. As the story builds, the family will learn the shocking truth and hopefully find a way to heal.

I would not recommend this to anyone who has lost a child or had a family member go missing.

Many thanks to NetGalley and Harper Muse for allowing me to read an advance copy. I’m happy to give my honest review and recommend this to other readers.

<b>A quiet, moving novel on loss and its aftermath.</b>

4.5 stars rounded up.

More than twenty years ago, 11-year old Davy disappeared one night without a trace. In the present-day storyline, his older brother has just published a memoir about the still-unsolved mystery when a chance finding finally breaks the entire case wide open.

While what happened to Davy that night gets resolved eventually, the how and why of his disappearance is not the main focus of the book; rather, it‘s the aftermath, the brutal impact of his loss, the unanswered questions, and the people left behind whose life trajectories are forever changed by it.

Quietly moving, and haunting in its what ifs, „Every Moment Since“ reverberates in the absence of what we take for granted, the regrets we carry with us, and the sparks of hope that keep us afloat.

My only issue with the book was Anissa‘s role in the present-day storyline, which I did not find believable at all.

Thank you to NetGalley and Harper Collins Focus | Harper Muse for the complimentary copy. Opinions expressed in this review are completely my own.

„Every Moment Since“ is slated to be released on October 1, 2024.

This is a poignant tale of what happens after an 11 year old boy disappears. Davy's family, friends, the suspect, and the police involved with the case all have a say as the novels moves back and forth in time after his jacket is discovered all these years later. The wounds are still raw, the secrets still deep, and the guilt immense. This doesn't go the way I expected- no spoilers. Thanks to Netgalley for the arc. Good storytelling makes for a good read.

Wow. Twisty after twist. A definite thought provoking story of a parents worst nightmare. A definite edge of your sear story and one I recommend.

Thank you Harper Muse and Netgalley. All my thoughts are my own opinion and noone elses

Excellent mystery. The plot is very intriguing with Davy Malcor, missing as a child in 1985. Now, decades later, it all comes up again. I just couldn’t put it down. I needed to know what happened. Tabitha Malcor, his mother, Thaddeus Malcor, and his brother's life changed drastically after that. Their inner struggles are very moving. Told with multiple points of view of both along with Anissa Weaver and Gordon Swift's, the tension ascends with fast-paced chapters. There are so many twisted twists to the story, and the full story is not revealed until the end. Recommended. Thanks to Netgalley and the publisher for the eARC.

Davy Malcor went missing twenty years ago and his family has not had closer. His older brother wrote a memoir on the experience. His parents have divorced. But then the jacket Davy was wearing that night is found, which re-starts the investigation into what happened to Davy. If you haven't guessed yet, this was not a light read and focuses on the feelings around the disappearance in 1985 and again as the investigation restarts in twenty years later. It's a lot, but the mystery finally unravels after all the time has passed. Thank you to Harper Muse and NetGalley for allowing me to read this one early in exchange for an honest review.

Always love this author’s books. Definitely a book for library purchase. Thanks to #netgalley and the publisher for the opportunity to read an ARC.