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A review by mxcopmy
Then She Was Gone by Lisa Jewell
mysterious
sad
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
2.0
This review contains spoilers!
I have no idea how to feel about this book. I have incredibly mixed feelings about it. Therefore a solid 2.5, just half or a little over half. This thriller is recommended for those people who want to start reading thrillers or take away a not too deep story.
"Then she was gone" is a super average thriller. At least I found it to be the most predictable thriller I have ever read in my life. In fact, I find it very unfortunate that you can already pick out a major plot via the synopsis. This took away a lot of the experience for me. Often I could tell dozens of chapters in advance what was going to happen, and that right on the upside. It was so predictable that I even realised it from chapter 3. You then always hope deep down that it probably won't be as easy as you think, but yes it was. For me, a good thriller is a story that blows you away, leaving you amazed and not expecting it at all. This book did not have that at all.
Some things were also very unlikely or too simplistic for me. The fact that Ellie went along with Noelle without any problems despite her gut-feeling that she was a strange woman and wanted to stay away. I also found the fact that Floyd left Laurel alone in his house when he went to get a Christmas tree strange to say the least. If you wanted to keep such a big secret hidden in your own house, you wouldn't want that person to find it, would you? More towards the end of the story where they had discovered everything, Floyd would have made a video for Laurel with all the explanations. In it, he said it was up to her to decide if she would tell Poppy the truth, but in the end he had already confessed it all himself the day before, hadn't he? So there are a lot of things as I said that for me were too simplistic, too accommodating. As a result, the story also lacked the necessary details that I love.
You would think, why at least still give 2.5 stars? Well, I have to say that Lisa Jewell clearly has a phenomenal writing style to so engross someone with her story. Jewell could easily make the atmosphere of the setting and the story so unsettling that it sent shivers down my spine at times! This then made the story a lot better for me. Also, the short chapters read so smoothly what made the book a real page-turner and I could easily read on for hours at a stretch without realising how long I was reading. How the book was laid out was also enriching for me. All the chapters were super variable which gave you different perspectives on the story. It was the right variability for me to still keep me hooked!
In conclusion, I think I would like to read another book by Lisa Jewell anyway. Her writing style alone has me intrigued to read further from her. With this one, I think maybe other books are more promising or more up my alley!
I have no idea how to feel about this book. I have incredibly mixed feelings about it. Therefore a solid 2.5, just half or a little over half. This thriller is recommended for those people who want to start reading thrillers or take away a not too deep story.
"Then she was gone" is a super average thriller. At least I found it to be the most predictable thriller I have ever read in my life. In fact, I find it very unfortunate that you can already pick out a major plot via the synopsis. This took away a lot of the experience for me. Often I could tell dozens of chapters in advance what was going to happen, and that right on the upside. It was so predictable that I even realised it from chapter 3. You then always hope deep down that it probably won't be as easy as you think, but yes it was. For me, a good thriller is a story that blows you away, leaving you amazed and not expecting it at all. This book did not have that at all.
Some things were also very unlikely or too simplistic for me. The fact that Ellie went along with Noelle without any problems despite her gut-feeling that she was a strange woman and wanted to stay away. I also found the fact that Floyd left Laurel alone in his house when he went to get a Christmas tree strange to say the least. If you wanted to keep such a big secret hidden in your own house, you wouldn't want that person to find it, would you? More towards the end of the story where they had discovered everything, Floyd would have made a video for Laurel with all the explanations. In it, he said it was up to her to decide if she would tell Poppy the truth, but in the end he had already confessed it all himself the day before, hadn't he? So there are a lot of things as I said that for me were too simplistic, too accommodating. As a result, the story also lacked the necessary details that I love.
You would think, why at least still give 2.5 stars? Well, I have to say that Lisa Jewell clearly has a phenomenal writing style to so engross someone with her story. Jewell could easily make the atmosphere of the setting and the story so unsettling that it sent shivers down my spine at times! This then made the story a lot better for me. Also, the short chapters read so smoothly what made the book a real page-turner and I could easily read on for hours at a stretch without realising how long I was reading. How the book was laid out was also enriching for me. All the chapters were super variable which gave you different perspectives on the story. It was the right variability for me to still keep me hooked!
In conclusion, I think I would like to read another book by Lisa Jewell anyway. Her writing style alone has me intrigued to read further from her. With this one, I think maybe other books are more promising or more up my alley!
Content Warnings
Graphic: Murder, Suicide, Sexual assault, and Child abuse