Reviews

The Vanished Days by Susanna Kearsley

haley_s's review against another edition

emotional hopeful mysterious medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? No
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
• Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

4.5

Though this isn't billed as a mystery, I loved that aspect of the plot. The twist at the end caught me completely off guard, but it made perfect sense and it gave the story a neat ending.

bookwormmelissa's review against another edition

3.0

Thanks to Netgalley and Sourcebooks for the opportunity to read and review this book prior to publication.

I absolutely loved The Winter Sea, so I was delighted for the chance to read this one. I admit I did not enjoy it as much. I loved the writer storyline in The Winter Sea, which was missing in this new installment. The Vanished Days goes back in time to the 1680s and introduces the reader to the Moray and Graeme families from the first book. Lily is a widow trying to claim her husband's wages, and much of the story revolves around the investigation into her marriage papers to see if she is indeed telling the truth. The characters and historical research are excellent, but I felt the story to be slow moving and hard to follow at times. I still don't quite get the ending. I did enjoy the writing style, but it just did not have what I loved from the first book. Readers who love Scottish history should really enjoy this book - just not for me.

elvenavari's review against another edition

slow-paced

3.0

abarney's review against another edition

mysterious medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Plot
• Strong character development? No
• Loveable characters? No
• Diverse cast of characters? No

4.0

teacupsandfirereads's review

adventurous hopeful mysterious medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

3.5

When I first heard of this book, it sounded reminiscent of Outlander and I wasn't sold on that. However, it came highly recommended to me. What are similar between the two is the Scottish landscape and history, beyond that, they were different. I enjoyed the build up in the story and the timelines. The characters were intricate and engaging. At times, I felt a little bit lost in the timelines, but enjoyed Lily's earlier years more interesting. Overall and enjoyable read, but not sure I will pick up the rest of the books in theh series. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Sexual assault

Moderate: Colonisation, Domestic abuse, Child abuse, and Death

Minor: War, Slavery, Trafficking, and Pedophilia

thepagelady's review against another edition

4.0

The Vanished Days was full of mystery Scottish history & romance! I absolutely enjoyed soaking up all of the historical facts in this book! The rich & detailed setting was amazing to read about. It does have a slow pace but don't let that fool you! Its one of those books the more you read the more you're drawn in & once everything starts to come together you won't be able to turn the pages fast enough! & the ending, that was a great twist! I will definitely be reading this one again!

pam2375's review against another edition

3.0

This book is the prequel to The Winter Sea and boy is it a commitment. I enjoyed this book well enough.

There is a lot going on and I will say that I was lost in the story much of the time. There is a LOT of Scottish history and it felt like quicksand at times. BUT, if you are a fan of Susanna Kearsley, then this is the book for you.

Many thanks to Netgalley and Sourcebooks Landmark for this advanced readers copy. This book released October 5, 2021.

the_book_eater's review against another edition

adventurous challenging dark mysterious reflective sad slow-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes

4.0

lee25's review against another edition

3.0

I LOVE the Scottish series.

The men of the Moray and Graeme family are courageous and honourable (and in my imagination, gorgeous as well). And they are the best part of this book - along with a few cameos from some other characters from [b:The Winter Sea|3392089|The Winter Sea (Slains, #1)|Susanna Kearsley|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1410915489l/3392089._SY75_.jpg|3723657].

Lily was also courageous and honourable, but for the most part I found [b:The Vanished Days|57183703|The Vanished Days (The Scottish series)|Susanna Kearsley|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1616717872l/57183703._SX50_.jpg|85740153] hard work. While there wasn't really anything to dislike about the book, I just couldn't complete immerse myself in the story like [b:The Winter Sea|3392089|The Winter Sea (Slains, #1)|Susanna Kearsley|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1410915489l/3392089._SY75_.jpg|3723657], [b:The Firebird|15942636|The Firebird (The Scottish series, #2)|Susanna Kearsley|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1347896972l/15942636._SY75_.jpg|21409785] and even [b:The Shadowy Horses|961831|The Shadowy Horses|Susanna Kearsley|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1428617658l/961831._SY75_.jpg|960794] (all of which I have read multiple times). That said, I will definitely re-read [b:The Vanished Days|57183703|The Vanished Days (The Scottish series)|Susanna Kearsley|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1616717872l/57183703._SX50_.jpg|85740153]

Spoiler

if for no other reason than to work out how I missed the unexpected twist at the end

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wishesandpages's review against another edition

emotional mysterious slow-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character

3.0