When a twelve-year-old girl goes missing, a suburban family’s perfect life reveals its dark secrets in this tense psychological thriller. Life can change in an instant. For Ryan and Karen Lane, it happens on the morning they discover their twelve-year-old daughter’s window open, their beloved Maddie missing from her bed. Police investigate. Suspicions swirl. The Lane family is thrown into turmoil. Then detectives turn their sights on them. No one is ruled out. Not Karen, with her tragic past, who argued with her daughter. Not Ryan, with his violent streak. Not Maddie’s thirteen-year-old brother, Tyler, who heard voices in her room the night she vanished. As time goes by and no answers emerge, the Lanes fear that Maddie is gone forever. But when a stunning revelation shocks everyone, the family plunges deep into a world of buried secrets whose revelations threaten the very foundation of their lives.
From the global bestselling author of THE GIRL IN THE LETTER comes a gripping and heartbreaking novel of family secrets. 'Utterly gripping, taut and powerful. An emotionally charged, compulsive, moving novel' Adele Parks 'Captivating and suspenseful' Jessica Fellowes 'I so enjoyed it. Twists and turns... Hours of gripping entertainment and a great many tears' Lesley Pearse _______________ Some secrets are locked away for years . . . Rebecca Waterhouse is just thirteen when she witnesses her mother's death at the hand of her father in Seaview Cottage. But what else did she see? Years later, Rebecca's daughters Iris and Jessie know their mother will never speak of that terrible night. But when Jessie goes missing, with her gravely ill newborn, Iris realises the past may hold the key to her sister's disappearance. With Jessie in trouble, Iris must unravel a twisting story of love and betrayal in her mother's family history. Only then will Seaview Cottage give up its dark and tragic secret... *Previously published as The Lost Child* Emily Gunnis's new novel The Midwife's Secret is available NOW _______________ READERS ADORE EMILY GUNNIS'S MESMERISING NOVELS: 'A truly brilliant and moving read. I loved it' Karen Hamilton 'Loss, betrayal and a decades-old secret... BRILLIANT' Heat magazine 'A wonderfully woven novel, full of family secrets that will sweep you away into another time. I loved it more than I could possibly convey in words' ⭐ ⭐ ⭐ ⭐ ⭐ Reader Review 'One of my reading highlights of the year and it has only made me more eager to read many more books from Emily Gunnis' ⭐ ⭐ ⭐ ⭐ ⭐ Reader Review 'I'd give this book 10* if I could' ⭐ ⭐ ⭐ ⭐ ⭐ Reader Review 'Wow! I can't remember reading a book so quickly for a very long time. Couldn't put it down but didn't want it to finish. A must read' ⭐ ⭐ ⭐ ⭐ ⭐ Reader Review 'Written so beautifully, such attention to detail, her words and mesmerising characters take hold of every emotion within you' ⭐ ⭐ ⭐ ⭐ ⭐ Reader Review 'This story grabbed hold of me and sucked me in. Heartbreaking, emotional, gripping, suspenseful and will keep you on the edge of your seat right to the very last chapter' ⭐ ⭐ ⭐ ⭐ ⭐ Reader Review
Leda is a middle-aged, divorced mother devoted to her work as an English professor. After the departure of her grown-up daughters, she takes a holiday on the Italian coast. But after a few days things become unsettling; on the beach she encounters a family whose brash behaviour proves menacing. Leda is overwhelmed by memories of the difficult and unconventional choices she made as a mother and their consequences for herself and her family. The tale of a woman's rediscovery of herself soon becomes the story of a ferocious confrontation with the past. The Lost Daughter is a profound exploration of the conflicting emotions that tie women to their children. Elena Ferrante was born in Naples. She is the author of seven novels: The Days of Abandonment, Troubling Love, The Lost Daughter, and the quartet of Neapolitan Novels: My Brilliant Friend, The Story of a New Name, Those Who Leave and Those Who Stay, and The Story of the Lost Child. Fragments, a selection of interviews, letters and occasional writings by Ferrante, will be published in early 2016. She is one of Italy's most acclaimed authors. Ann Goldstein has translated all of Elena Ferrante's work. She is an editor at the New Yorker and a recipient of the PEN Renato Poggioli Translation Award. 'Ferrante's gift for psychological horror renders it immediate and visceral.' New Yorker 'This superb and scary Italian writer...has blown the lid off tempestuous parent-child relations.' Seattle Times 'So refined, almost translucent, that it seems about to float away, in the end this piercing novel is not so easily dislodged from the memory.' Boston Globe 'It's Leda's voice that's hypnotic, and it's the writing that makes it that way. Ferrante can do a woman's interior dialogue like no one else, with a ferocity that is shockingly honest, unnervingly blunt.' Booklist 'Ferrante's prose is stunningly candid, direct and unforgettable. From simple elements, she builds a powerful tale of hope and regret.' Publishers Weekly ‘Ferrante’s uncompromising directness and her unflinching gaze cannot be faulted.’ Age/Sydney Morning Herald ‘With cold determination, Ferrante conveys both the selfishness and the courage that comes with admitting your own maternal shortcomings.’ New Zealand Listener
When I wake up with the sun in my eyes the morning after my daughter's birthday party, I know something is very wrong. I go straight to her room but feel a surge of panic when I see an empty bed. Downstairs everything is totally quiet, and the front door is locked. Why didn't I hear her scream? Who took our little girl? My husband says I've been struggling since Skylar was born and that sometimes I forget things. But I remember every moment of my daughter's party-including him locking the door after our family and friends left. Yes, we both had a drink and I slept heavily but I know I would have heard my child cry. A good mother always does. My therapist says I need to stand up for myself. She wants me to confront my husband about the woman I heard him talking to the other night when he thought I was asleep. And about the child's toy that I found that does not belong to Skylar. Is he hiding something? But as the hours race by I soon realize I was totally wrong about everything that happened that night. I thought I'd put my past behind me long ago but I was wrong. All I know is this: I'll do whatever it takes to save my child. Will you believe me? A heart-pounding, unbelievably twisty psychological thriller that will have you sleeping with the light on! Fans of Gone Girl, Behind Closed Doors and The Stepdaughter will be utterly gripped. What readers are saying about Kiersten Modglin: ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ "Wow! Wow! Wow!... I'm completely blown away... OMG! I never saw that ending coming! Left me with my jaw on the floor." Goodreads reviewer ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ "WOW, WOW, WOW... Completely blew my mind... I devoured this in one sitting... Keep them coming Kiersten! You just keep getting better and better!!!!" NetGalley reviewer ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ "This book is literally like jumping in the car and pedal to the metal all the way to the end!... It is full throttle from page one. I read it in one sitting and I'm sure you will too... It left my jaw hanging open several times. I actually screamed out loud." Goodreads reviewer ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ "Wow!... This book I literally read in 2 hours because I could not put it down... I thought I had it figured out like oh yeah this is the usual thriller but bam 2 twists I never could have imagined." Goodreads reviewer ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ "Whoa I did not see that coming... When you think you have it all figured out-SURPRISE!" Goodreads reviewer ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ "I couldn't put this book down until I finished reading the very last page! Oh well, who needs sleep!!!" Goodreads reviewer ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ "Heart pounding... Will make you feel like you have run a mile in under a minute." Goodreads reviewer ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ "This was the best book ever!!" Goodreads reviewer
In 1997 journalist Karin Evans walked into an orphanage in southern China and met her new daughter, a beautiful one-year-old baby girl. In this fateful moment Evans became part of a profound, increasingly common human drama that links abandoned Chinese girls with foreigners who have traveled many miles to complete their families. At once a compelling personal narrative and an evocative portrait of contemporary China, The Lost Daughters of China has also served as an invaluable guide for thousands of readers as they navigated the process of adopting from China. However, much has changed in terms of the Chinese government?s policies on adoption since this book was originally published and in this revised and updated edition Evans addresses these developments. Also new to this edition is a riveting chapter in which she describes her return to China in 2000 to adopt her second daughter who was nearly three at the time. Many of the first girls to be adopted from China are now in the teens (China only opened its doors to adoption in the 1990s), and this edition includes accounts of their experiences growing up in the US and, in some cases, of returning to China in search of their roots. Illuminating the real-life stories behind the statistics, The Lost Daughters of China is an unforgettable account of the red thread that winds form China?s orphanages to loving families around the globe.
“I always hoped [Mary Williams] would tell her incredible story. She's a writer of uncommon clarity and humor, and the arrival of her memoir is cause for celebration." —Dave Eggers, author of What is the What As she grew up in 1970s Oakland, California, role models for Mary Williams were few and far between: her father was often in prison, her older sister was a teenage prostitute, and her hot-tempered mother struggled to raise six children alone. For all Mary knew, she was heading down a similar path. But her life changed when she met Jane Fonda at summer camp in 1978. Fonda grew attached to the bright girl and eventually invited her to become part of her family, becoming the mother Mary never had. Mary’s life since has been one of adventure and opportunity—from hiking the Appalachian Trail solo, working with the Lost Boys of Sudan, and living in the frozen reaches of Antarctica. Her most courageous trip, though, involved returning to Oakland and reconnecting with her biological mother and family, many of whom she hadn’t seen since the day she left home. The Lost Daughter is a chronicle of her journey back in time, an exploration of fractured family bonds, and a moving epic of self-discovery.
The Story of the Lost Child is the long-awaited fourth volume in the Neapolitan novels (My Brilliant Friend, The Story of a New Name, Those Who Leave and Those Who Stay). The quartet traces the friendship between Elena and Lila, from their childhood in a poor neighbourhood in Naples, to their thirties, when both women are mothers but each has chosen a different path. Their lives are still inextricably linked, for better or worse, especially when it comes to the drama of a lost child. Elena Ferrante was born in Naples. She is the author of seven novels: The Days of Abandonment, Troubling Love, The Lost Daughter, and the quartet of Neapolitan novels: My Brilliant Friend, The Story of a New Name, Those Who Leave and Those Who Stay, and The Story of the Lost Child. Frantugmalia, a selection of interviews, letters and occasional writings by Ferrante, will be published in 2016. She is one of Italy’s most acclaimed authors. Ann Goldstein has translated all of Elena Ferrante’s work. She is an editor at the New Yorker and a recipient of the PEN Renato Poggioli Translation Prize. Praise for Ferrante and the Neapolitan novels ‘[Ferrante’s] charting of the rivalries and sheer inscrutability of female friendship is raw. This is high stakes, subversive literature.’ Sunday Telegraph ‘Ferrante is an expert above all at the rhythm of plotting...Whether it’s work, family, friends or sex–and Ferrante, perhaps thanks to her anonymity as an author, is blisteringly good on bad sex–our greatest mistakes in life aren’t isolated acts; we rehearse them over and over until we get them as badly wrong as we can.’ Independent ‘Great novels are intelligent far beyond the powers of any character or writer or individual reader, as are great friendships, in their way. These wonderful books sit at the heart of that mystery, with the warmth and power of both.’ Harper’s ‘Elena Ferrante is one of the great novelists of our time. Her voice is passionate, her view sweeping and her gaze basilisk...In these bold, gorgeous, relentless novels, Ferrante traces the deep connections between the political and the domestic. This is a new version of the way we live now—one we need, one told brilliantly, by a woman.’ New York Times Sunday Book Review ‘When I read [the Neapolitan novels] I find that I never want to stop. I feel vexed by the obstacles—my job, or acquaintances on the subway—that threaten to keep me apart from the books. I mourn separations (a year until the next one—how?). I am propelled by a ravenous will to keep going.’ New Yorker ‘The best thing I’ve read this year, far and away...She puts most other writing at the moment in the shade. She’s marvellous.’ Richard Flanagan ‘The Neapolitan series stands as a testament to the ability of great literature to challenge, flummox, enrage and excite as it entertains.’ Sydney Morning Herald ‘The depth of perception Ms. Ferrante shows about her character’s conflicts and psychological states is astonishing...Her novels ring so true and are written with such empathy that they sound confessional.’ Wall Street Journal ‘The older you get, the harder it is to recapture the intoxicating sense of discovery that comes when you first read George Eliot, Nabokov, Tolstoy or Colette. But this year it came again when I read Elena Ferrante’s remarkable Neapolitan novels.’ Jane Shilling, New Statesman ‘There is nothing remotely tiring or trying about the experience of reading the Neapolitan novels, which I, and a great many others, now rank among our greatest book-related pleasures...it is writing that holds honesty dear.’ Weekend Australian ‘Dickens gave working people a voice. Ferrante, whoever she might be, presents a new paradigm for being female in the world...Ferrante’s great literary creations, Lenu and Lila, have the same emotional weight as Anne in Persuasion, Jo in Little Women, Maggie in The Mill on the Floss, Jane in Jane Eyre.’ Helen Elliott in the Monthly ‘This stunning conclusion further solidifies the Neapolitan novels as Ferrante’s masterpiece and guarantees that this reclusive author will remain far from obscure for years to come.’ Publishers Weekly ‘The Neapolitan novels are smart, thoughtful, serious literature. At the same time, they are violent, suspenseful soap operas populated with a vivid cast of scheming characters...Ferrante’s novels are deeply personal and intimate, getting to the very heart of what it means to be a woman, a friend, a daughter, a mother.’ Debrief Daily ‘Shattering and enthralling, intimate and vicious...The Neapolitan Novels are the kind of books that swallow me whole. As soon as I pick one up, I don’t want to breathe or move lest I break the spell...The Neapolitan Novels are among the most important in my reading life. I can’t recommend them highly enough.’ Readings ‘Ferrante captures the complexities of women, friendship and motherhood in ways that make your heart soar and ache in equal measures. If you haven’t already, treat yourself to this series.’ ELLE Australia ‘[Ferrante’s] Neapolitan novels contain real life – recognisable anxiety, joy, love and heartbreak. This is an incredibly difficult feat to achieve in the first place, let alone sustain, over four books. We will be talking about Elena and Lila for years to come.’ Sydney Morning Herald ‘There's a bright, sinewy humanness to Ferrante’s writing that is so alive it's alarming...The Story of the Lost Child is a full emotional experience, and a fitting end to a huge, arresting series.’ New Zealand Listener ‘I was one of the many who wept and wondered over Elena Ferrante’s The Story of the Lost Child. I plan to re-read the entire series soon.’ Favourite Feminist Reads from 2016, Feminist Writers Festival
He could be any man, any respectable, ordinary man. But he's not. This man watches the five Herbert girls—Beauty, Mim, Stevie, Fancy, and Autumn—with disturbing fascination. Unaware of his scrutiny and his increasingly agitated and forbidden thoughts about them, the sisters go on with their ordinary everyday lives—planning, arguing, laughing, and crying—as if nothing bad could ever breach the safety of their family. In alternating points of view, Norma Fox Mazer manages to interweave the lives of predator and prey in this unforgettable psychological thriller.
'A gripping debut from a serious new talent . . .' Erin Kelly on Jenny Quintana’s The Missing Girl When Anna Flores' adored older sister goes missing as a teenager, Anna copes by disappearing too, just as soon as she can: running as far away from her family as possible, and eventually building a life for herself abroad. Thirty years later, the death of her mother finally forces Anna to return home. Tasked with sorting through her mother's possessions, she begins to confront not just her mother's death, but also the huge hole Gabriella's disappearance left in her life – and finds herself asking a question she's not allowed herself to ask for years: what really happened to her sister? With that question comes the revelation that her biggest fear isn't discovering the worst; it's never knowing the answer. But is it too late for Anna to uncover the truth about Gabriella's disappearance?
A mother murdered.A daughter missing.A family with secrets.On the 26th of August, Nicole Carlson, was murdered. Abbie can't understand what her friend was doing alone in a secluded country lane. And when she learns Nicole's daughter, Sienna, disappeared at the same time, Abbie fears the worst. Just when the investigators are confident they have all the facts, everything changes. Nicole's teenage daughter, Sienna, returns.Sienna is the one person who could unlock the mystery but she refuses to talk. As Abbie begins to unravel the secrets and lies surrounding her friend's death, it becomes clear Sienna knows far more about the events leading up to her mother's murder than she is letting on.
