Then She Was Gone

More about the book

More than a whiff of The Lovely Bones wafts through this haunting domestic noir from bestseller Jewell. Skillfully told by several narrators, some ghostly, this gripping novel explores loss, grief, and renewal. Jewell teases out her twisty plot at just the right pace, keeping readers on the edge of their seats. Her multilayered characters are sheer perfection, and even the most astute thriller reader won’t see where everything is going until the final threads are unknotted. Ellie Mack was the perfect daughter, beloved by her parents, friends, and teachers. Just days away from an idyllic summer vacation, her life was abruptly cut short when she disappeared. Now, her mother, Laurel Mack, is trying to rebuild her life ten years later, following her daughter’s vanishing, the end of her marriage, and the recent discovery of a clue in Ellie’s case. When Laurel meets a charming man named Floyd in a café, their flirtation quickly deepens. However, she is taken aback when she meets Floyd’s youngest daughter, Poppy, who strikingly resembles Ellie. This resemblance reignites Laurel’s haunting questions: Where did Ellie go? Did she truly run away, or is there a darker truth? Who is Floyd, and why does his daughter evoke such visceral memories of her missing girl?