Reviews

The Vanished Days by Susanna Kearsley

debeskina's review against another edition

reflective medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

3.0

myjourneywithbooks's review against another edition

adventurous mysterious reflective tense medium-paced

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

4.0

I wasn't sure what exactly I was getting into when I started reading The Vanished Days but that quote from Diana Gabaldon on the cover had me apprehensive that I might find it to be something like Outlander, half the pages filled with smut and a terrible bore (I couldn't even bring myself to finish that one).

I was therefore pleasantly surprised in the extreme to find that The Vanished Days read nothing like Outlander. Instead, it was a beautiful and thoughtfully put-together story about a young woman named Lily who is trying to prove the authenticity of her marriage in order to claim an inheritance,  and Sergeant Adam Williamson, who is charged with investigating her claims. 

There are two timelines here, both in the past as the whole story is being told retrospectively by Adam, some time in his old age. The first timeline is in 1707, told in the first person by Adam when he is recruited to investigate if Lily really was married to the now deceased sailor James Graeme. The second timeline starts in the 1680s and works its way forward as Adam's digging around slowly begins to build a picture of Lily's life from the time she was a little girl.

The story takes its time getting a move on and sometimes seems to meander but never once lagged or had me feeling bored. Of the two timelines, I found myself looking forward more to the one about Lily's history but the other timeline had its own intrigue, with the mystery surrounding the investigation. 

Set during the Jacobite revolution in Scotland, the book provided a bit of an introduction to the Scottish history of the time, and the clashes between those aligned differently when it came to religion and politics. 

There was something charming about the main characters, the setting and the author's writing, that just pulled me right in. There is a nice twist towards the end, though it wasn't as convincing as I would have liked, given how some of the previous parts of the book played out. 

Definitely a book I'd recommend if you like historical fiction with a dash of clean romance, mystery and political intrigue. 

duanur's review against another edition

emotional hopeful inspiring slow-paced

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

2.5

snance's review

2.0

This one didn’t do it for me. Too many characters and switching timelines, which usually I enjoy. This was really tough to get through

bamamelereads's review against another edition

adventurous emotional mysterious tense medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix

4.0

Another great fantastic Scottish story from Kearsley. We have dual timelines again, but both in the past. Lily’s story is not an easy one. Some parts were sad, and some quite traumatic that were difficult to read. 
As always, the narrative is expertly crafted, with incredible historical detail. I always learn something new when I read Kearsley. The way the stories are woven together was just masterful, and the ending had me with my mouth hanging open.  I’m so happy with the conclusion of the story, but it did make me want to start the book all over again. It also makes me want to reread The Winter Sea!

By the way, the narrator for the audiobook, Robert Ian MacKenzie was fantastic! 

melodyharmon's review against another edition

2.0

I am a huge Susanna Kearsley fan, but this book was a bit of a disappointment for me. It didn't flow as easily as some of her other novels. I found the bits of history facts that were thrown into the story didn't seem to fit as fully as they should. I still enjoyed it, but not as much as I was hoping to.

lisawreading's review

3.0

This historical novel is overly complicated, full of historical details which seem to overwhelm the more personal, character-driven aspects of the plot. I love the author, but this particular book was a letdown for me.

Review copy courtesy of the publisher via NetGalley. Full review at Bookshelf Fantasies.

andreagraves5's review

2.0

I have loved all books by this author, except this one. I usually read a book in 3-7 days. This book took over 6 weeks for me (which never happens). It rambles on and is messy with the timeline, various characters and how they are linked. I almost gave up on this book. I loved seeing characters from her other books as background characters. There was a great curve ball in the end of the book that I really liked. I think this book needed to trim the first half down to half or less and it would’ve helped - the slowness and rattling on was killer.

natalia_85's review

5.0

Susanna Kearsley has captivated me again! I always lose track of time when I’m reading her books and was not disappointed in the slightest with this one! Her books are always rich with history and done so incredibly well. 

I will say it was slow in some parts, but wow did it pick up towards the end when all the pieces started coming together and I did not see the twist coming! All in all a solid 4.5 ⭐️ for me (rounded up to 5 for the rating).

aromo720's review

adventurous challenging emotional mysterious sad slow-paced

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

2.75

Unreliable narrator