- The Girl Who Was Taken: A Gripping Psychological Thriller

OMG! I absolutely DEVOURED this book. This is a new author for me and I really enjoyed his style of writing. The characters are deep and vibrant. This book was riveting, compelling, gripping. This story will stick with me for years! There is one line that identifies “the bad person”; and literally my mouth was hanging open! What a roller coaster! HIGHLY HIGHLY RECOMMEND this to suspense fans.

Book was really good. Story line and character description let's you get to know them. One of the main characters is the sister of the missing girl the book focuses on and she works for the Coroner. Without getting detailed too much, you get a look into that world. Although it's death, it shows compassion and respect for those whose lives end up on that table. Towards the middle it starts to get twisty, you think you have figured out who takes these girls and then it starts to speed up and become a page turner. By chapter 36 you have a need to know the truth, and from here to the next few chapters you are literally saying outload, " what...no way" and then you know and it ends abruptly. Good read once you get into it. The reason for the 4 stars is the book spine fell apart. Not the authors fault, but you can see from the picture it was a paperback disaster.

This Book had so many twists and turns! Loved the book, but the ending just left me hanging. I would have liked the ending to give the answer I waited for through the whole book. I highly recommend this book if you love mystery and a puzzle.

I had a hard time putting it down. Soooo good! The cliff hanger is not my favorite but I will live. Will definitely be reading more books by this author.

The Girl Who Was Taken was a dark, twisty thriller that kept me engaged the entire way through. I really enjoyed the shifting timelines, the forensic pathology angle with Livia, and the way the story slowly connected Megan’s kidnapping, Nicole’s disappearance, and the other victims. There were plenty of suspects and enough red herrings to keep the mystery moving. The Capture Club...wow! I was able to guess the ending, but it still had a lot of dramatic impact when everything came together. There were a few slower moments, and parts of the dialogue felt a little over-explained, but the payoff was still worth it. Overall, this was a solid thriller with a unique setup, strong suspense, and an ending that landed even when I saw it coming.

This is the second book I've read recently that just left me irritated at the way the author's ended the book. Enough so I chose not to pick up the second book I bought by this author. I enjoyed reading it, there was good story telling and I learned a lot of interesting things related to being a medical examiner. I can even appreciate the "red herrings" that appeared to have been thrown in for no reason. I won't leave any spoilers but fair warning, if you read this book the ending will likely pi** you off too.

So many twists & turns. So many potential suspects. And a surprise outcome that I didn’t see coming before it was almost upon me. So good.

I really enjoyed this story. I love how we get the killers POV without knowing who it is and that is my favorite. The way I couldn’t read/listen fast enough so I could know. I had a sneaking suspicion who it was. But the ending, did we get closure?? Definitely recommend this one!

The plot was clever, lots of red herrings but the ending was quite a surprise, never suspected that character to be the one 'whodunit'.

Also von Anfang bis zum Ende hatte ich keine Ahnung! Für mich definitiv ein Highlight dieses Jahr ! Spannender, mit vielen Plottwist und sehr, sehr fesselnd. Einer der besten Thriller seit langem wirklich seit langem!

that kind of book that is impossible to stop reading

I wasn’t sure how this book would go but I was pleasantly surprised by the interesting story and characters. Liking Donlea’s stories! And look forward to reading more of them!

I love a Charlie Donlea thriller, and The Girl Who Was Taken is another twisty, dark and completely unpredictable read. On August 20th, 2016 in Emerson Bay, North Carolina two girls Megan McDonald and Nicole Cutty, were abducted from a beach party and held captive in a cellar in the forest. Two weeks later, Megan manages to escape and later becomes a celebrity with her best selling book “Missing” - a true-story account of her abduction and courageous escape. Livia, Nicole’s older sister and a fellow in forensic pathology, reaches out to Megan to learn more about the night they were abducted and as Megan begins to have memory flashbacks, they start to wonder if the truth is even more terrifying than they originally thought. I instantly loved this book thanks to the layered characters, short chapters and misdirection - multiple narrators and mixed timelines keep the pacing sharp and all the characters feel fully formed and interesting. As usual Mr Donlea’s writing is superb, well-researched and immersive. Another great crime fiction read from this outstanding author and recommended to lovers of twisty crime fiction with believable characters. 4.5 stars 🌟 rounded up.