Say Her Name

Eva was adopted as an 8 year old, now age 28 and after the death of her beloved adoptive mother she sets out to search for her birth family. She submits her DNA to a family history website database and is immediately matched with members of her birth family. Alongside her personal search Eva has been drawn to the mysterious disappearances of a group of black women who disappeared years ago. How is this related to her search for her birth family ?
I loved the concept of this novel and the focus on the disappearance of women who are valued less than their white counterparts. It's an important exploration of race and society's attitude to women. As someone who has experience of adoption I was also drawn to Eva's search for her birth family.
This started off well and I was initially gripped by Eva's search however I felt that the novel lacked tension and things seemed to happen far too quickly and unbelievably. This led to it falling a bit flat for me and I lost interest as the novel progressed.
Many thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for the opportunity to read and review this digital ARC.

This is a fabulous book for rep. There’s not enough about how crime affects non white women. This book tackles it in a realistic way while also talking about how family is complicated. I was really engaged by the book for the most part. There were just some parts towards the end I thought became too convoluted and it did make me lose some interest. However, it’s still a thriller worth reading because of the rep.

Thank you NetGalley and Amazon Books UK for the digital review copy.

In this chilling thriller from the bestselling authors of Spare Room, one woman just wants the truth about who she really is. But she’s not the only one looking…
It’s twenty years since Eva, a biracial woman, was adopted as an eight-year-old, and Cherry and Carlton ‘Sugar’ McNeil have always been the only parents she’s wanted or needed. But when she’s dealt the double blow of Cherry’s death and her own suspension from work, Eva decides it’s time to discover who she was before she was theirs.
Against Sugar’s advice, Eva joins a DNA database, desperate for a match that will unlock her identity. And when a positive hit comes, she’s excited to learn there are relations out there who might hold the key. But the closer Eva gets to uncovering her past, the more it appears someone is trying to stop her finally finding the truth…
As she continues to dig, Eva is drawn into a dark and merciless underside to society, where black women disappear without a word. Names erased from history, no search parties, no desperate pleas for their return. Once, someone tried to save Eva from all this. Someone wanted a better life for her. But now that she’s torn down the facade of her life, has she come too far to be spared again?

This is a powerful read.
Wonderful well written plot and story line that had me engaged from the start.
Love the well fleshed out characters and found them believable.
Great suspense and found myself second guessing every thought I had continuously.
Can't wait to read what the author brings out next.
Recommend reading.

I was provided an ARC from NetGalley and the publisher. This is my own hone\st voluntary review.

Until this book, I was not familiar with Dreda Say Mitchell and Ryan Carter, but the synopsis of Say Her Name was enough to have me wanting to read this book.

While dealing with the death of her adoptive mother Cherry, main character Eva engages in a search to track down her biological parents. This eventually ends up tying into the unsolved disappearance of several women thirty years earlier.

What you have here is an extremely well written and enthralling story. It's an intriguing thriller that also describes some uncomfortable truths about the world we live in. The characters, especially Eva, are wonderfully authentic - you can't help but feel what she feels.

One of the best books I've read in a long time and I'll be looking for more from these authors.

Eva a biracial woman was adopted when she was eight by cherry and carlton sugar McNeil but when her adopted mother died Eva decides to look for her birth mother so she joins a DNA database and Danny gets in touch saying he’s her dad and he wants to meet her they arrange to meet at a cafe but instead of her dad her half sister Miriam is there instead to meet her Eva starts looking into who her mother is and what happened to her where searching leads to black woman disappearing without a word
Totally enjoyed this book totally recommend

This was my first time checking out either of these coauthors work and I'll definitely be back for more. I was definitely pulled in by the character driven plotline. It really focused on people you don't often here about missing and did so in a refreshing yet dark and intriguing way.