Received advance reader copy from St. Martin’s Press via Netgalley

I can’t remember the last-time I pulled an “all-nighter” to finish a book that I just couldn’t bring myself to put down. Well, that’s exactly what I did last night – and the book was Jessica Strawser’s debut novel Almost Missed You. From the very first page, I was drawn into the story of Finn, Violet, their son Bear, their friend Caitlin, and the ill-fated vacation that went horribly wrong. With each turn of the page, I was on edge to find out what would happen next.

The premise of the book seemed simple enough : a loving husband and devoted father (Finn) all of a sudden decides to abandon his wife (Violet) on the beach during a family vacation and disappears without a trace, taking their 3 year old son (Bear) with him. The wife is clueless as to what happened until she returns to the hotel room and sees that only her own belongings remain – every single item belonging to her husband and son are gone. From there, we are thrown into a gripping tale of love, betrayal, friendship, forgiveness, and most importantly, the role of fate and its ability to change people’s lives forever.

This book is amazingly well-written, which is why I was quite surprised (ok, I guess “shocked” is more like it) to learn that this is the author’s first book. The story is tight and the events that unfold are told through the revolving perspectives of the 3 main characters -- Finn, Violet, and their best friend Caitlin – with a timeline that switches back and forth between the present (the incident with Finn abandoning Violet and taking their son) and the past (how Finn and Violet first met and the start of their relationship). Each chapter is written in such a way as to only reveal a few hints, clues, slight details on what possibly motivated Finn to do what he did, with everything eventually coming to a head once the truth is revealed and long-held secrets are finally out in the open. As I was reading, I actually felt like I was working a jigsaw puzzle, with each chapter revealing a new detail in the lives of the characters until ultimately, all the pieces fall into place in a non-traditional sort of way.

My only issue with the book (and the main reason I gave a 4 star rating instead of 5) was the ending, which was a bit too ambiguous in my opinion. While the ending did make sense, especially given the overall theme of fate, coincidence, and missed connections, I wasn’t really sure by that time whether I should be happy at the way things turned out or sad at all the sacrifices that were made to get there. And this could just be me, but I kind of sensed that the ending might have hints of a possible sequel, which I hope I’m wrong about because I’m not fond of sequels for one, and two, the story as written is powerful enough as is without need to further complicate things.

This is a great piece of contemporary fiction that is at once engaging, suspenseful, emotional, yet at the same time very much relatable, especially for those who may be going through similar issues in life. Highly recommended!!

I have to admit, I hated Finn from the beginning of the book, and my attitude never really changed. Caitlin and Violet are the heart and soul of the book. How Finn touches their lives, and honestly, screws them up, is at the heart of the book. Finn was just too much of an egotistical character for me to like. No matter what happens, he always takes the path best for him. For example, he never truly takes into account the needs of his young child, just HIS wants and emotions. Having seen how parental kidnapping can affect young children, it was hard to rationalize this part of the story away, and find an excuse for Finn. In real life, there wouldn't be one.

While the book is meant to be a different type of love story, I found myself hating the ending, even as I understood why Jessica ended it that way. It is an honest look at human nature, and the need to conceal to protect, and how that ultimately tears apart relationships. It's not a bad read, but just not for everyone.

I did not finish this book. The characters seemed shallow and I couldn't connect.

This was a story I could not put down where all the characters made very bad and harmful decisions. The plot moves right along building suspense, especially after the kidnapping, and the characters are well portrayed.

When we meet Violet, she is relaxing on vacation on the same beach where she first met her husband Finn, thinking about how lucky she is and how despite some obstacles she and Finn had ended up together. Everyone said it was fate that brought them together. So Violet is blindsided when she returns to their hotel room to discover that Finn has disappeared and taken their three year old son Bear with him.

What Violet didn't know is that she was the only person in their circle who didn't have a secret. Finn has secrets, Finn's best friend Caitlin has secrets that Finn uses to blackmail her into hiding he and Bear from Violet and the FBI.

Ultimately this story explores how and why we end up with the people that we do, the love a mother has for her child and the power of secrets to destroy relationships. Told in the alternating viewpoints of Violet, Finn, and Caitlin back and forth from the present day to back when Violet and Finn met, you understand the why about midway through but you want to keep reading to find out how these characters deal with these secrets and where their lives end up.

Thanks to St.Martin Press and NetGalley for a ARC of this book in exchange for an honest review. It will be released on March 28, 2017.

This book grabbed me from the first page and did not let up. It was a fascinating book with everyone having so many secrets. I enjoyed it and would definitely recommend it!

“Almost Missed You” is an upcoming thriller/suspense by Jessica Strawser. I was really looking forward to reading this ARC and had such high hopes for it, but in the end, it left me frustrated.

Written in different time periods, this is the story of Violet and Finn who meet at the beach, get separated before getting each other’s names, and then later meet again (also they went to the same obscure camp in Pennsylvania when they were young). While on vacation, Violet is lying on the beach with a book and a pina colada reflecting on how happy her life is with Finn and their young son, Bear. But when she goes back to the hotel room hoping to wake Bear from his nap, she discovers that Finn and Bear are gone. Everything is packed up, they’ve left in the rental car, and Finn has disconnected his cell phone. From there, the story is told from the points of view of Violet, Finn, and their best friend (Finn’s best friend first and for longer), Caitlyn. The FBI begins searching for Finn and Bear, along with any clues as to why he just up and left, and in the meantime, Violet discovers a secret about Finn that she never imagined. While Violet is at home falling to pieces over missing her son and realizing she hardly knew her husband, Finn shows up at Caitlyn’s demanding help, threatening her with a secret that could devastate her happily family.

To begin with, I think that Jessica Strawser is a very talented writer. Although the story got a little slow at times, sort of boggled down with too many feelings and memories, I thought this was an overall good story and plot. The writing flowed well, despite the time and point of view jumps, and was wonderfully suspenseful at times. My main issue, however, was with Finn. I disliked his character so much it made it difficult to truly love this book. His character is one of the most self-absorbed, ridiculous humans I have encountered in a novel. Obviously, there was some psychosis there, but people experience tragedies every day and that doesn’t mean that they up and disappear with a young child. I also struggled with Caitlyn. I get that Caitlyn and Finn had been very close friends for a long time, however, the fact that he blackmailed and threatened her, yet she still showed compassion towards him, as well as, didn’t immediately tell Violet where Bear was, just aggravated me to death. If your supposed best friend threatens to ruin your life unless you help harbor their fugitive butt, I’m not sure that’s what I would call a friend. But, that’s just me.

I liked Violet, but I loved Gram. Violet was lucky to have such a compassionate and wise woman in her life, and I felt that Gram was right on several times when confronting Violet about her and Finn’s lives. Regarding the ending of the novel…. I am hoping that I read too much into it and that what I think was happening didn’t really happen. Without giving spoilers I can’t really explain, but if it went the way I perceived that it did, then I truly feel like I wasted 3 hours of my life reading this book. It made absolutely no sense to me and as a wife and a mother, it’s truly unimaginable. But again, that’s just me.

There are several wonderful reviews of this novel on Goodreads, so if you were interested in reading this, don’t let my review scare you off because it appears that I’m in the small minority of reviewers so far. I have to admit that it has stayed with me since I finished reading and I find myself thinking about parts of the novel again and again. Which as I’ve said before, I always attribute that to great writing. Whether I like a book or not, if I keep mulling it over, then the author did a great job of reaching me as the reader. If you do read it, let me know what you thought! I’m anxious to hear other opinions!

*Thanks to NetGalley for providing an ARC of this novel in exchange for an honest review.

A great story about love, friendship, secrets, and loss.

I really enjoyed this book. This is an awesome debut by this author. I have never read a story quite like this one before. As a mother I could totally relate to how Violet felt to have her little boy Bear missing and at the hands of her husband. I actually found I could relate to her quite often as she uncovers some other details from Finn's past. This story was very cleverly thought out and executed. There were so many unexpected twists and turns in this story it kept me 100% engaged all the way through.
I would definitely recommend this book especially for anyone who wants to read something as little different. I look forward to more from this author in the future.

Two married couples with more issues/melodrama then a soap opera. Nothing rang true for me on this one.

Almost Missed You is a fascinating story of life, love, death, family, decisions, secrets and friendship all tied up with the lives of Finn, Violet and their friends George and Caitlin. What if's, what was, and what might will keep your interest to the end.

Great book, with elements of romance, mystery, suspense, and psychological study. Beautifully written with well-developed characters, who share complex, intertwined relationships, and an intriguing, original plot. Amazing debut novel, although I see Jessica Strawser is the Editorial Director at Writer's Digest, so clearly she knows what she's doing. I look forward to reading her future novels! I highly recommend this book. Many thanks to the publisher and NetGalley for an electronic advance copy of this wonderful book.

I have mixed feelings for this book. I think the author did a great job writing the book. I truly enjoyed it for the most part.

However, I come away with an extreme emotion for one of the characters. It's an emotion that I just can't get over. I have never, ever felt this way over a character in a book. I'm guessing it's the mother in me that is making me feel this way. I'm not going to spoil the reading of the book for anyone, so I will not give the particulars here. For anyone who has read the book, I'm sure you will know what I'm talking about.

Otherwise, I did enjoy the book and was glad that I got the opportunity to read it.

Thanks to St. Martin's Press for approving my request and to Net Galley for providing me with a free e-galley in exchange for an honest review.

Another great read that I have been lucky enough to have an early kindle copy of thanks to Netgalley.

Nothing is quite what it seems and a series of chance meetings, lies, secrets and coincidences leave Violet living a nightmare that came from nowhere. Everything she has loved and believed in has changed and as the story unravels Violet discovers more about the man she loves and the life he lived before they met and in the years between their first chance meeting and them ending up together.

Great characters, some unexpected twists and a very enjoyable read.
I will look out for other novels by this author who I have not come across before.

Although it seems that every popular book these days has a "Gone Girl" type twist, this one has an ambiguously happy-ish ending. The twist is part of the beginning of the book, so the subsequent additional twists are a (not abrupt) shock. Why people are driven to desperate acts and different kinds of love are explored here. For libraries with a strong demand for popular suspense/thriller genres.

Almost Missed You is an impressive debut novel that hit all the right places for me. I found it both deeply moving AND suspenseful. For a novel to hit me like this takes a lot, but the author has certainly gone above and beyond! I am now anxiously awaiting future releases by her!

This was a very fast and engaging read, although more domestic drama and secrets than the psychological suspense I'm sure it will be advertised as. Finn and Violet's life seems so unlikely and yet so realistic. The use of Caitlin and George's relationship as a contrast was at first good but then turned a bit melodramatic for me at the end. I found the drama a bit too over-the-top in the final chapters, but I was still fairly invested in uncovering Finn and Violet's story. I would recommend this to people who like explorations of complex human relationships.

I really enjoyed this book. The story begins with Finn taking his young son and leaving his wife, Violet, without any warning, and not telling her where he's going. The story is told from 3 points of view - Finn's, Violet's and Caitlin, who is Finn's closest friend. This is a lovely story about love, friendship and guilt. I thoroughly recommend it. Thanks to NetGalley for a preview copy.

3.5 stars.
a story of how secrets can destroy relationships. violet and finn had a chance encounter on a beach on florida- years later , they reconnect, get married, and have a child. finn has secrets/ demons that violet knows nothing about that impact their relationship- especially true when finn takes bear (their son) and runs away from violet while they are on vacation. a good read, but not a great one for me.

I was given an ARC from NetGalley in exchange for an honest and independent review.
One day whilst on holiday, Violet returns to the hotel to find her husband Finn gone with their young son. Left alone, without a clue as to why she is devastated.
The book is told over various time periods through the eyes of three main characters. It chronicles their lives, romances, friendship, secrets and loss,missed opportunities and fate.
I found this a very emotional yet powerful story and I am not sure what it was that connected with me. But I loved the way the vulnerabilities and weaknesses of the various characters were exposed and described by the author.
Highly recommended. I cannot wait for the author's next book.
5 stars