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travel_in_pages's review
dark
emotional
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
2.75
ndbeyer's review against another edition
4.0
Enjoyed this book- the ending recap by Ethan shocked me a bit- I can see this being a good bullying resource for teachers- it would be easy to say Ethan & Sammy just have a personality conflict and wave it off- should maybe pay a bit more attention if a child is on their own a lot.
jmj697mn's review against another edition
3.0
Predictable. I had the culprit pegged when they were introduced.
marvelouspyt's review against another edition
4.0
"It’s every parent’s worst nightmare: the call that comes in the middle of the night.
When Kat Jenkins awakens to the police on her doorstep, her greatest fear is realized. Her nine-year-old son, Ethan, is missing—vanished from the cabin where he’d been on an overnight field trip with his class. Shocked and distraught, Kat rushes to the campground where he was last seen. But she’s too late; the authorities have returned from their search empty-handed after losing Ethan’s trail in the mountain forest.
Another mother from the school, Stef Huntington, seems like she has it all: money, prominence in the community, a popular son and a loving husband. She hardly knows Kat, except for the vicious gossip that swirls around Kat’s traumatic past. But as the police investigation unfolds, Ethan’s disappearance will have earth-shattering consequences in Stef’s own life—and the paths of these two mothers are about to cross in ways no one could have anticipated.
Racing against the clock, their desperate search for answers begins—one where the greatest danger could lie behind the everyday smiles of those they trust the most."
I could barely put this book down! If it weren't for work and school, I would have been finished by the end of the day. In the beginning, Stef & Sam were the quintessential upper class snob. OF course Sam was the mayor; of course Stef was the pretty Barbie doll wife. Any scene with either character just irked my nerves. My opinion of politicians and their step-ford wives is low, so I just assumed I would hate the characters. For a while I did. I assumed he was a dirty politician who is probably having an affair and that she was a gossiping idiot. It was nice to see in the end that my view of them weren't correct. His actually had integrity and she wasn't some self centered twit. Kat was an easily understandable character. She is struggling with her finances and with herself after leaving an abusive marriage. Reading her pain felt so real and it was a bit devastating. Especially since we know many children who go missing aren't always found and when they are. they aren't usually alive. That's what made the story so suspenseful; it felt so real. I would definitely recommend to fans of suspenseful mysteries and/or psychological thrillers.
When Kat Jenkins awakens to the police on her doorstep, her greatest fear is realized. Her nine-year-old son, Ethan, is missing—vanished from the cabin where he’d been on an overnight field trip with his class. Shocked and distraught, Kat rushes to the campground where he was last seen. But she’s too late; the authorities have returned from their search empty-handed after losing Ethan’s trail in the mountain forest.
Another mother from the school, Stef Huntington, seems like she has it all: money, prominence in the community, a popular son and a loving husband. She hardly knows Kat, except for the vicious gossip that swirls around Kat’s traumatic past. But as the police investigation unfolds, Ethan’s disappearance will have earth-shattering consequences in Stef’s own life—and the paths of these two mothers are about to cross in ways no one could have anticipated.
Racing against the clock, their desperate search for answers begins—one where the greatest danger could lie behind the everyday smiles of those they trust the most."
I could barely put this book down! If it weren't for work and school, I would have been finished by the end of the day. In the beginning, Stef & Sam were the quintessential upper class snob. OF course Sam was the mayor; of course Stef was the pretty Barbie doll wife. Any scene with either character just irked my nerves. My opinion of politicians and their step-ford wives is low, so I just assumed I would hate the characters. For a while I did. I assumed he was a dirty politician who is probably having an affair and that she was a gossiping idiot. It was nice to see in the end that my view of them weren't correct. His actually had integrity and she wasn't some self centered twit. Kat was an easily understandable character. She is struggling with her finances and with herself after leaving an abusive marriage. Reading her pain felt so real and it was a bit devastating. Especially since we know many children who go missing aren't always found and when they are. they aren't usually alive. That's what made the story so suspenseful; it felt so real. I would definitely recommend to fans of suspenseful mysteries and/or psychological thrillers.
rmarcin's review
4.0
This book had a lot of suspense in the way it kept counting the hours of the time the young boy went missing, and told the story through the eyes of two mothers. It is every parent's nightmare to think about their child going missing, and it is terrifying to consider how you would survive knowing your child is gone.
In this novel, Ethan and his classmates are going on a camping trip. Kat, Ethan's mom, is hesitant for him to go, since she knows that Ethan is bullied at school by Sammy. Ethan is a precocious child, with an extremely high IQ. Sammy happens to be the child of Sam, the mayor of Atlanta, and his wife, Stef.
After Ethan is taken, Stef receives a call from the kidnapper, and things start to get strange. The police question Stef and Sam, and also Kat and her soon to be ex-husband, Andrew. It seems that there is more than meets the eye with the mayor and his staff, and a building project that is underway.
Meanwhile, Sammy, a spoiled bully, is hiding some secrets. Stef's mother insists that Sammy knows more than he is telling, but Stef is so preoccupied with other things, she fails to listen carefully to her mother. When she finally does listen, things start to loosen on the case.
The ending is an interesting examination of apologies, how they are given, how they are / are not accepted, and what they are really saying. The last chapter is a real eye opener!
I really enjoyed this book, but I did think a little of the story could have been edited out to make it a tighter thriller. Still, I did stay up to finish it, because I was so invested in the mom and Ethan.
#ThreeDaysMissing #KimberlyBelle
In this novel, Ethan and his classmates are going on a camping trip. Kat, Ethan's mom, is hesitant for him to go, since she knows that Ethan is bullied at school by Sammy. Ethan is a precocious child, with an extremely high IQ. Sammy happens to be the child of Sam, the mayor of Atlanta, and his wife, Stef.
After Ethan is taken, Stef receives a call from the kidnapper, and things start to get strange. The police question Stef and Sam, and also Kat and her soon to be ex-husband, Andrew. It seems that there is more than meets the eye with the mayor and his staff, and a building project that is underway.
Meanwhile, Sammy, a spoiled bully, is hiding some secrets. Stef's mother insists that Sammy knows more than he is telling, but Stef is so preoccupied with other things, she fails to listen carefully to her mother. When she finally does listen, things start to loosen on the case.
The ending is an interesting examination of apologies, how they are given, how they are / are not accepted, and what they are really saying. The last chapter is a real eye opener!
I really enjoyed this book, but I did think a little of the story could have been edited out to make it a tighter thriller. Still, I did stay up to finish it, because I was so invested in the mom and Ethan.
#ThreeDaysMissing #KimberlyBelle
judithdcollins's review
5.0
Taut. Twisty. Riveting!
Talented author (and a favorite of mine), Kimberly Belle returns following The Marriage Lie, with yet another gripping, heart-pounding domestic thriller —THREE DAYS MISSING a child abduction case and a race against time in search of the truth.
Not everything is as it seems.
Kat Jenkins is getting a divorce from her emotionally and physically abusive husband, Andrew.
She is trying to raise her son and desperately trying to put her traumatic past behind her. East Atlanta neighborhood, of course, is not the best part of town, but all she can afford since she left her former life behind. The innocent child, Ethan, is stuck in the middle.
Kat's worst nightmare comes when the police knock on her door, and she discovers her eight-year-old son is missing. Every mother's secret terror.
Ethan went on an overnight camping trip to Dahlonega, GA (north of Atlanta) for an overnight class trip. Ethan is very smart with a high IQ (little Einstein) which also comes with a particular set of challenges - socially awkward. An analytical thinker who needs constant stimulation and has no friends. Kat worries about him.
He is unhappy about this trip but likes his great-grandpa's compass that his mom has let him borrow. NOW ETHAN IS MISSING. When the police arrive, he has been missing for three hours. Did someone kidnap him, or did he get lost? Or could it be her soon-to-be ex-husband?
We meet another mother from the school, Stef, who seems to have it all. Stef and Kat come from different walks of life, but they may have more in common than they know.
The two women and their sons interconnect for a desperate race against time, and what goes on behind closed doors comes to the surface. Could Stef's son be the key to the disappearance, and does he know more than he is saying?
Ethan's disappearance has earth-shattering consequences for Stef, as her path crosses with Kat.
Vividly told from two different voices, Kat and Stef —two mothers who may have more in common than they realize. We get to hear from Ethan in the final wrap-up with a twist you do not see coming.
Superb characterization!
As always, Belle knows how to build riveting suspense and keep you guessing. This one has it all from past to present: bullying, Xbox gaming, politics, revenge, and a cautionary tale. You can never go wrong with Kimberly Belle. I have read every book, and she continually lands on my top books each year.
Compass: "This thing can help you find your way, but first, you have to know where you are. Don't ever forget where you are, sweetness. Don't ever lose sight of your true north."
PS I love any books set in Atlanta since I spent most of my adult career there, plus I love the Dahlonega area. My ex-boyfriend resided there on the lake and spent much time in this quaint town, hiking and more.
I read this when it came out but realized today, did not follow up to post a review. Thanks to the author and the publisher for an advanced reading copy. Film Rights Sold (YAY!) MOVIE NEWS!
#JDCMustReadBooks Blog
Talented author (and a favorite of mine), Kimberly Belle returns following The Marriage Lie, with yet another gripping, heart-pounding domestic thriller —THREE DAYS MISSING a child abduction case and a race against time in search of the truth.
Not everything is as it seems.
Kat Jenkins is getting a divorce from her emotionally and physically abusive husband, Andrew.
She is trying to raise her son and desperately trying to put her traumatic past behind her. East Atlanta neighborhood, of course, is not the best part of town, but all she can afford since she left her former life behind. The innocent child, Ethan, is stuck in the middle.
Kat's worst nightmare comes when the police knock on her door, and she discovers her eight-year-old son is missing. Every mother's secret terror.
Ethan went on an overnight camping trip to Dahlonega, GA (north of Atlanta) for an overnight class trip. Ethan is very smart with a high IQ (little Einstein) which also comes with a particular set of challenges - socially awkward. An analytical thinker who needs constant stimulation and has no friends. Kat worries about him.
He is unhappy about this trip but likes his great-grandpa's compass that his mom has let him borrow. NOW ETHAN IS MISSING. When the police arrive, he has been missing for three hours. Did someone kidnap him, or did he get lost? Or could it be her soon-to-be ex-husband?
We meet another mother from the school, Stef, who seems to have it all. Stef and Kat come from different walks of life, but they may have more in common than they know.
The two women and their sons interconnect for a desperate race against time, and what goes on behind closed doors comes to the surface. Could Stef's son be the key to the disappearance, and does he know more than he is saying?
Ethan's disappearance has earth-shattering consequences for Stef, as her path crosses with Kat.
Vividly told from two different voices, Kat and Stef —two mothers who may have more in common than they realize. We get to hear from Ethan in the final wrap-up with a twist you do not see coming.
Superb characterization!
As always, Belle knows how to build riveting suspense and keep you guessing. This one has it all from past to present: bullying, Xbox gaming, politics, revenge, and a cautionary tale. You can never go wrong with Kimberly Belle. I have read every book, and she continually lands on my top books each year.
Compass: "This thing can help you find your way, but first, you have to know where you are. Don't ever forget where you are, sweetness. Don't ever lose sight of your true north."
PS I love any books set in Atlanta since I spent most of my adult career there, plus I love the Dahlonega area. My ex-boyfriend resided there on the lake and spent much time in this quaint town, hiking and more.
I read this when it came out but realized today, did not follow up to post a review. Thanks to the author and the publisher for an advanced reading copy. Film Rights Sold (YAY!) MOVIE NEWS!
#JDCMustReadBooks Blog
hywar's review against another edition
3.0
This book was okay, and if you're looking for a quick little mystery to read it could be an excellent pick.
Kat has custody of her son, Ethan, after getting a separation from her abusive husband, Andrew. The separation is not going well, with Andrew spoiling Ethan constantly in an attempt to get his love and prove that Kat is an unfit parent, and with Kat struggling to co-parent when she has a restraining order against the father of her child.
Ethan broke my heart - he's an eight-year-old little boy with absolutely no friends at all. He doesn't bring friends home, he doesn't go to friends' houses, and he is bullied throughout his time at the rich-kids school his father insists he attends. This all makes for him to be rather nervous (but still excited!) to go on the annual camping trip with his classmates.
This is where the story kicks off. After sending her son onto the bus to go camping, Kat wakes to police pounding on her door and dozens of missed calls. Her son has somehow gone missing on the trip, vanishing in the middle of the night, and no one saw him disappear. Kat knows the longer her son is missing, the less likely he is to arrive home safe, and must contend with the knowledge that either his chances for safety are consistently dwindling, or her ex has done the unthinkable and kidnapped their child.
The story is told through alternating points of view, with some chapters dedicated to Kat and some dedicated to Stef. Stef is the wife of the mayor, Sam, who is currently up for reelection and really does not want an unsolved child abduction case hurting his chances. Stef and Sam are also parents to Sammy, a classmate of Ethan's who has been known to bully him. I didn't really care about Stef's chapters and normally found myself skimming through them as quickly as possible to get back to Kat.
I felt like I connected well with Kat and really did feel bad for her throughout the story. I had a vague idea of what was happening, but didn't guess the actual ending of the book - mostly because I don't think the author gave enough detail to get me to make those leaps and connections. I didn't really like the characters of Stef or Sammy. Stef especially seemed to change depending on the chapter, and she never really had a personality of her own other than what the author needed her to be at that moment. Sammy also just wasn't well developed.
None of that is why this book got three stars though. Those stars were lost because of how absolutely ridiculous the author made the character of Ethan to be. I felt so bad for him! Poor boy, no friends, forced to go to a school that I'm not sure he would have wanted to go to! So I'm not sure why the author felt the need to say he also had an IQ of 158 and is just an absolute genius. This wouldn't have been the worst thing, but apparently Ethan is also a prick about his intelligence, too.. I feel like there was stuff going on behind the scenes between Ethan and Sammy that we didn't know about, because Ethan was definitely not a sweet, innocent kid in this story.
The ending was also rather bonkers. Like, it almost made sense...and then the author felt the need to again flaunt that Ethan is crazy intelligent and had him do something crazy like.
It's a good book for a quick read, if you can suspend your disbelief and don't mind kind of hating on a child.
Kat has custody of her son, Ethan, after getting a separation from her abusive husband, Andrew. The separation is not going well, with Andrew spoiling Ethan constantly in an attempt to get his love and prove that Kat is an unfit parent, and with Kat struggling to co-parent when she has a restraining order against the father of her child.
Ethan broke my heart - he's an eight-year-old little boy with absolutely no friends at all. He doesn't bring friends home, he doesn't go to friends' houses, and he is bullied throughout his time at the rich-kids school his father insists he attends. This all makes for him to be rather nervous (but still excited!) to go on the annual camping trip with his classmates.
This is where the story kicks off. After sending her son onto the bus to go camping, Kat wakes to police pounding on her door and dozens of missed calls. Her son has somehow gone missing on the trip, vanishing in the middle of the night, and no one saw him disappear. Kat knows the longer her son is missing, the less likely he is to arrive home safe, and must contend with the knowledge that either his chances for safety are consistently dwindling, or her ex has done the unthinkable and kidnapped their child.
The story is told through alternating points of view, with some chapters dedicated to Kat and some dedicated to Stef. Stef is the wife of the mayor, Sam, who is currently up for reelection and really does not want an unsolved child abduction case hurting his chances. Stef and Sam are also parents to Sammy, a classmate of Ethan's who has been known to bully him. I didn't really care about Stef's chapters and normally found myself skimming through them as quickly as possible to get back to Kat.
I felt like I connected well with Kat and really did feel bad for her throughout the story. I had a vague idea of what was happening, but didn't guess the actual ending of the book - mostly because I don't think the author gave enough detail to get me to make those leaps and connections. I didn't really like the characters of Stef or Sammy. Stef especially seemed to change depending on the chapter, and she never really had a personality of her own other than what the author needed her to be at that moment. Sammy also just wasn't well developed.
None of that is why this book got three stars though. Those stars were lost because of how absolutely ridiculous the author made the character of Ethan to be. I felt so bad for him! Poor boy, no friends, forced to go to a school that I'm not sure he would have wanted to go to! So I'm not sure why the author felt the need to say he also had an IQ of 158 and is just an absolute genius. This wouldn't have been the worst thing, but apparently Ethan is also a prick about his intelligence, too.
Spoiler
At least, I can't imagine another reason why a kid would use their IQ as a gamertag.The ending was also rather bonkers. Like, it almost made sense...and then the author felt the need to again flaunt that Ethan is crazy intelligent and had him do something crazy like
Spoiler
somehow manage to macgyver internet access to a house in the middle of nowhere using the random resources he had on hand, and without getting caught by the kidnapper or their dog, and then...used that internet access to play on the Xbox and send some messages to people. What??It's a good book for a quick read, if you can suspend your disbelief and don't mind kind of hating on a child.
howattcarla's review against another edition
4.0
Thoroughly enjoyed this book. Nothing earth shatteringly novel in the plot but just good story telling and character development. A nice easy read.
abbyfoxbryan's review against another edition
4.0
A good read- nothing amazing or too surprising. The emotions were pretty great, though!