cj_mo_2222's review against another edition
3.0
Holly Kendal left her husband when she discovered he was cheating, but Tom is furious that Holly took their son Milo with her. One rainy evening, Holly and Milo are involved in a car accident in which Holly blacks out. When she comes to, her relief that Milo is okay turns to confusion when she notices another young boy she has never seen before sitting in the back seat next to her son. This event is just the beginning of the danger Holly faces, but she will do whatever it takes to keep her son safe.
The premise of this book is so intriguing. Unfortunately, the mystery of the boy in Holly's car is answered early on. The book mainly focuses on Holly's secrets and her past and present dealings with organized crime. There are too many "bad guys" to keep track of and the story is full of violence and strong language and is not the domestic thriller I was hoping for. However, I read all types of mysteries and may have enjoyed it more if the story had been told differently. Except for the conversations between Holly and her best friend Cathryn, much of the dialogue is stilted and the narrative is often confusing. The book also includes letters written by an unknown boy to his father that further detract from the story.
The book starts strong, gets really slow in the middle, and has a tense, violent showdown between the main players in this drama towards the end. I was pleasantly surprised when things wrap up on a hopeful note at the very end. I wish I had known what this book was really like before I had begun so I wouldn't have been disappointed by the direction the story took. Holly is a memorable character, but this book wasn't really for me.
I received this book from NetGalley through the courtesy of HQ Digital. The book was provided to me in exchange for an honest review.
The premise of this book is so intriguing. Unfortunately, the mystery of the boy in Holly's car is answered early on. The book mainly focuses on Holly's secrets and her past and present dealings with organized crime. There are too many "bad guys" to keep track of and the story is full of violence and strong language and is not the domestic thriller I was hoping for. However, I read all types of mysteries and may have enjoyed it more if the story had been told differently. Except for the conversations between Holly and her best friend Cathryn, much of the dialogue is stilted and the narrative is often confusing. The book also includes letters written by an unknown boy to his father that further detract from the story.
The book starts strong, gets really slow in the middle, and has a tense, violent showdown between the main players in this drama towards the end. I was pleasantly surprised when things wrap up on a hopeful note at the very end. I wish I had known what this book was really like before I had begun so I wouldn't have been disappointed by the direction the story took. Holly is a memorable character, but this book wasn't really for me.
I received this book from NetGalley through the courtesy of HQ Digital. The book was provided to me in exchange for an honest review.
maz403's review
3.0
I very much enjoyed the beginning of the book where, after a car accident, a second child appears in the back of her car. The story was well written though I found the plot a little unbelievable and overcomplicated. I would read further books in the series and enjoy seeing how the characters, and their relationships, develop. .
natalier3's review
1.0
I'm sorry to say I gave up on this novel half way through. Started off brilliantly but it got too confusing with too many characters and little clarification who everyone was. I would have liked a cast list at the start, as I was lost keeping track of all the families. Thank you #netgalley for allowing me to read this.
ljwrites85's review
4.0
I’ve read a number of D.E White’s (she’s also published under the name Daisy White) novels over the years so when I hear she has a new book out, it’s always a must read for me.
Holly Kendal is a single mum, trying her hardest to put her ex husband and troubled past behind her. She’s driving home with her son Milo when she skids off the road, crashing her car.
When she wakes up, she finds not only her son but another boy. Who is this child and where did he come from? Unable to rest until Holly knows who the boy is, she must look into her past and confront the secrets that lie there.
The Forgotten Child is a tense and intriguing thriller with a cast of fascinating characters.
Holly is a great character that you really can’t help rooting for. She’s worked hard to escape from her gangland past and built a new life for her and her son, working in call centre for the ambulance services, yet she still has an edge of toughness about her. Ugh and her ex husband, how she deals with him is beyond me!
The book was billed as a psychological thriller but it felt like it was edging more into a gangland thriller territory. This type of novel is not usually my cup of tea but D.E White’s writing draws me in every time!
I did feel that the boy who Holly finds in her car, the whole incident that starts the story, got a little forgotten in the overall story but of course that’s just my opinion.
The Forgotten Child is a gritty and intense read that’s packed with tension from that very first page.
Holly Kendal is a single mum, trying her hardest to put her ex husband and troubled past behind her. She’s driving home with her son Milo when she skids off the road, crashing her car.
When she wakes up, she finds not only her son but another boy. Who is this child and where did he come from? Unable to rest until Holly knows who the boy is, she must look into her past and confront the secrets that lie there.
The Forgotten Child is a tense and intriguing thriller with a cast of fascinating characters.
Holly is a great character that you really can’t help rooting for. She’s worked hard to escape from her gangland past and built a new life for her and her son, working in call centre for the ambulance services, yet she still has an edge of toughness about her. Ugh and her ex husband, how she deals with him is beyond me!
The book was billed as a psychological thriller but it felt like it was edging more into a gangland thriller territory. This type of novel is not usually my cup of tea but D.E White’s writing draws me in every time!
I did feel that the boy who Holly finds in her car, the whole incident that starts the story, got a little forgotten in the overall story but of course that’s just my opinion.
The Forgotten Child is a gritty and intense read that’s packed with tension from that very first page.
ciska's review
2.0
This book popped up as a recommendation on Storytel. The summary looked good and a cover with an empty swing and child in a title always give me chills.
I will give you one advice. Read this book on paper (or e reader), the editing of the audiobook production I listened to was annoying with long silences on new chapters which ruined my experience with the story. Reason two for reading it on paper, the amount of characters. I started mixing up some people.
The story has an interesting setting. Hollie grew up in a criminal and violent environment but tried to escape. Now she is confronted with all that again as strange things start to happen. A boy popping up in her car after an accident. People who were assumed to be dead are seen. Kidnapping, burglary and smashed cars, it all happened. There are a lot of possible suspects that have it out for Hollie making it an interesting puzzle to play along with.
Character wise it was a bit tricky for me. Hollie is a fierce character, that I liked, but she made some decisions that made me question her. I noticed I was not always rooting for her.
There are a few chapters from a kid his point of view and those were heartbreaking. Letters to his mum, how much they miss her. It made me curious about everything that was happening to him and making me want to read the whole story from his point of view.
I will give you one advice. Read this book on paper (or e reader), the editing of the audiobook production I listened to was annoying with long silences on new chapters which ruined my experience with the story. Reason two for reading it on paper, the amount of characters. I started mixing up some people.
The story has an interesting setting. Hollie grew up in a criminal and violent environment but tried to escape. Now she is confronted with all that again as strange things start to happen. A boy popping up in her car after an accident. People who were assumed to be dead are seen. Kidnapping, burglary and smashed cars, it all happened. There are a lot of possible suspects that have it out for Hollie making it an interesting puzzle to play along with.
Character wise it was a bit tricky for me. Hollie is a fierce character, that I liked, but she made some decisions that made me question her. I noticed I was not always rooting for her.
There are a few chapters from a kid his point of view and those were heartbreaking. Letters to his mum, how much they miss her. It made me curious about everything that was happening to him and making me want to read the whole story from his point of view.
librarypatronus's review
2.0
Ugh. This unfortunately did nothing for me. From the goodreads synopsis, which I realize now is what I read, and which differs GREATLY from the one here in Netgalley, I was expecting more of a psychological thriller along the lines of - why does she not remember this child? Who is he to her? Is she going crazy? Is someone trying to make her think she is?
“Lights blinded her in an eerie white flash. She yanked the wheel as she felt the impact from the car behind her. There was a sharp pain, and then a bang in front of her, and after that nothing but darkness.
Holly Kendal is trying to put her painful past and broken marriage behind her and focus on her beloved son, Milo. But while driving him home on a dark February night, Holly loses control on the rain-slicked tarmac, and her car spirals off the road.
When Holly regains consciousness, everything is silent and in the dark, she can’t see Milo. Desperately, she claws her way out of the car and forces the back door open.
To her relief, Milo is where she left him, injured but breathing – but then she sees something that makes her heart stop.
Milo isn't the only child in the car. Next to him is another little boy, unharmed but unconscious.
And Holly has absolutely no idea who he is”
I just didn’t care, and honestly I felt kind of tricked by the synopsis I had read - even though there’s nothing untrue per ce in it, it paints the picture of a very different kind of narrative. I was tempted to one star, when I rarely do, not because the story itself was horrible, but I felt it was so far off the mark of what that synopsis painted for me. Even the title felt like a lie. It grabbed me, but the child isn’t “forgotten” imo - at the very least
The “accident”, the child’s appearance and even who the child was, was resolved quite early, and the rest was more crime/family drama and wasn’t really interesting to me. I kept loosing track of who was who, and how they all related within the crime families.
The actual story itself wasn’t the worst, but it wasn’t a good fit for me - the synopsis immediately pulled me in, and I wish the book had continued with that.
“Lights blinded her in an eerie white flash. She yanked the wheel as she felt the impact from the car behind her. There was a sharp pain, and then a bang in front of her, and after that nothing but darkness.
Holly Kendal is trying to put her painful past and broken marriage behind her and focus on her beloved son, Milo. But while driving him home on a dark February night, Holly loses control on the rain-slicked tarmac, and her car spirals off the road.
When Holly regains consciousness, everything is silent and in the dark, she can’t see Milo. Desperately, she claws her way out of the car and forces the back door open.
To her relief, Milo is where she left him, injured but breathing – but then she sees something that makes her heart stop.
Milo isn't the only child in the car. Next to him is another little boy, unharmed but unconscious.
And Holly has absolutely no idea who he is”
I just didn’t care, and honestly I felt kind of tricked by the synopsis I had read - even though there’s nothing untrue per ce in it, it paints the picture of a very different kind of narrative. I was tempted to one star, when I rarely do, not because the story itself was horrible, but I felt it was so far off the mark of what that synopsis painted for me. Even the title felt like a lie. It grabbed me, but the child isn’t “forgotten” imo - at the very least
Spoiler
the main character never met him or knew of him, so she never forgot himThe “accident”, the child’s appearance and even who the child was, was resolved quite early, and the rest was more crime/family drama and wasn’t really interesting to me. I kept loosing track of who was who, and how they all related within the crime families.
The actual story itself wasn’t the worst, but it wasn’t a good fit for me - the synopsis immediately pulled me in, and I wish the book had continued with that.
faysieh's review against another edition
3.0
I am sorry to say that at best I found this read mediocre and at worst a continuous circle of a much smaller story.
I loved the front cover but this is very deceptive. Instead of a family suffering the cruel act of a child disappearing or being snatched, whilst there is a mystery over a child who appears out of nowhere in a car that has crashed, this book is all about gang warfare on a sink estate.
I found the plot rather repetitive and tedious and it just seemed to take me ages to finish the book, which as an avid reader is unusual as I usually storm through whatever I am reading.
The beginning is much better than the rest of the book because it is very strange to be run off the road and acquire a second child. That premise kept me reading. I did like Holly who had tried so hard to escape the drug dealing and girl trafficking life she grew up in with her father, brother and other families on the estate, but all the various comings and goings of the different gang leaders was confusing and frankly not very interesting.
I didn't dislike the book so much that I wouldn't try another book by the same author again, but this particular one disappointed and just didn't wow me or make me care enough.
I loved the front cover but this is very deceptive. Instead of a family suffering the cruel act of a child disappearing or being snatched, whilst there is a mystery over a child who appears out of nowhere in a car that has crashed, this book is all about gang warfare on a sink estate.
I found the plot rather repetitive and tedious and it just seemed to take me ages to finish the book, which as an avid reader is unusual as I usually storm through whatever I am reading.
The beginning is much better than the rest of the book because it is very strange to be run off the road and acquire a second child. That premise kept me reading. I did like Holly who had tried so hard to escape the drug dealing and girl trafficking life she grew up in with her father, brother and other families on the estate, but all the various comings and goings of the different gang leaders was confusing and frankly not very interesting.
I didn't dislike the book so much that I wouldn't try another book by the same author again, but this particular one disappointed and just didn't wow me or make me care enough.
amandainpa's review against another edition
2.0
This story started out amazing and spiraled downward from there. What started as a chilling mystery/thriller turned into a confusing crime drama focusing on a large cast of characters belonging to an organized crime family. Somewhere along the way, the focus of the story shifted and my interest waned very quickly. Organized crime is just not a topic that interests me in books and it was a very heavy theme throughout. Not my favorite.
I received an e-arc of this book from the publisher and NetGalley. All thoughts and opinions are my own.
I received an e-arc of this book from the publisher and NetGalley. All thoughts and opinions are my own.
funsizedmrsw's review against another edition
3.0
I received a digital advanced copy of this book from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.
On a rainy evening Holly and her son Milo are involved in a car accident, regaining consciousness Holly finds another child in the car next to Milo but who is he and who put him there. We soon learn that Holly comes from a past of organised crime, she has tried her best to forget the past, turning her back on that world and making a better future for her and her son. The accident plunges her right back into that world, long-buried secrets are rising to the surface and she will have to fight for her life.
I did enjoy the story although I found the title quite misleading, I was expecting more mystery around the forgotten child but found this more of a mafia crime style novel. The book is well written with interesting characters and an insight into the world of crime.
On a rainy evening Holly and her son Milo are involved in a car accident, regaining consciousness Holly finds another child in the car next to Milo but who is he and who put him there. We soon learn that Holly comes from a past of organised crime, she has tried her best to forget the past, turning her back on that world and making a better future for her and her son. The accident plunges her right back into that world, long-buried secrets are rising to the surface and she will have to fight for her life.
I did enjoy the story although I found the title quite misleading, I was expecting more mystery around the forgotten child but found this more of a mafia crime style novel. The book is well written with interesting characters and an insight into the world of crime.
fazila's review against another edition
3.0
FBRC REVIEW :
DISCLAIMER :
I received an ARC( advance review copy) of this book for free from NetGalley, and I am leaving this review voluntarily. Thank you, NetGalley and HQ DIGITAl for providing me with an e-ARC of this book.
The synopsis is what sold me on this book. It had me intrigued so much that I had to pick this book up. The problem was that I soon realized that the story was going in a direction I did not expect at all. I wasn't really sure if that was a good thing or not. I kept reading it and kind of was not invested in the story after about 50 pages. After a couple of days, I picked it back up again and found myself pulled back into the story.
The story, the plot all of it was interesting and intriguing. The plot twists were not what I assumed would be at all. I did not expect the way the book ended. Those were the great things I found in the book.
The cons were difficult to ignore as it is vital to the story and to connect the readers to book and characters. The dialogues in the book were not natural. It felt forced and stilted a lot of the time. The interaction between the characters didn't feel like it was organic. There was no flow to it. This was frustrating as I wanted the dialogues to be natural and the conversations felt a lot like it was being forced and the responses didn't match the questions for some reason. This took away the enjoyment of the story.
The main character Holly is someone I didn't like as much. I didn't like the way she was behaving a lot of times, The whole cursing in front of the kids, not bothering to censor certain words were a few things I didn't particularly like about her character. She is also seemed to be having this weird character ARC that makes it hard to pin her down. Her life prior to her marriage and her life post-marriage are so vastly different. She keeps contradicting herself, her behavior and thoughts just were out of sync.
I don't know if the organized crime plotline was something I expected when I read the synopsis. But once I got over that, I was able to enjoy it. It wasn't a great book, but I liked it. I liked how the plot came about and how it concluded. I don't know if a certain character in the book would be able to do what he did in the end. It seemed improbable to me considering his age and the way he behaved also just seemed to be highly difficult to imagine.
There were a few characters that were part of the story, but we don't get to know much about their involvement or their contribution to a vital event in the book. So overall it was an OK book for me. The story and the plot were definitely intriguing and I did want to know how the story would end, but I didn't expect the twists or the climax. The dialogues need to be reworked in my opinion. Holly's character needs to be more clear in terms of her life and the various events that shape her. She is almost portrayed as this badass woman who is strong and courageous, but her inner thoughts and her actions do not match up to that character trait.
I gave it a 3 star rating. If you are interested in a book with good twists and unexpected climax definitely check it out and see if you like it.
DISCLAIMER :
I received an ARC( advance review copy) of this book for free from NetGalley, and I am leaving this review voluntarily. Thank you, NetGalley and HQ DIGITAl for providing me with an e-ARC of this book.
The synopsis is what sold me on this book. It had me intrigued so much that I had to pick this book up. The problem was that I soon realized that the story was going in a direction I did not expect at all. I wasn't really sure if that was a good thing or not. I kept reading it and kind of was not invested in the story after about 50 pages. After a couple of days, I picked it back up again and found myself pulled back into the story.
The story, the plot all of it was interesting and intriguing. The plot twists were not what I assumed would be at all. I did not expect the way the book ended. Those were the great things I found in the book.
The cons were difficult to ignore as it is vital to the story and to connect the readers to book and characters. The dialogues in the book were not natural. It felt forced and stilted a lot of the time. The interaction between the characters didn't feel like it was organic. There was no flow to it. This was frustrating as I wanted the dialogues to be natural and the conversations felt a lot like it was being forced and the responses didn't match the questions for some reason. This took away the enjoyment of the story.
The main character Holly is someone I didn't like as much. I didn't like the way she was behaving a lot of times, The whole cursing in front of the kids, not bothering to censor certain words were a few things I didn't particularly like about her character. She is also seemed to be having this weird character ARC that makes it hard to pin her down. Her life prior to her marriage and her life post-marriage are so vastly different. She keeps contradicting herself, her behavior and thoughts just were out of sync.
I don't know if the organized crime plotline was something I expected when I read the synopsis. But once I got over that, I was able to enjoy it. It wasn't a great book, but I liked it. I liked how the plot came about and how it concluded. I don't know if a certain character in the book would be able to do what he did in the end. It seemed improbable to me considering his age and the way he behaved also just seemed to be highly difficult to imagine.
There were a few characters that were part of the story, but we don't get to know much about their involvement or their contribution to a vital event in the book. So overall it was an OK book for me. The story and the plot were definitely intriguing and I did want to know how the story would end, but I didn't expect the twists or the climax. The dialogues need to be reworked in my opinion. Holly's character needs to be more clear in terms of her life and the various events that shape her. She is almost portrayed as this badass woman who is strong and courageous, but her inner thoughts and her actions do not match up to that character trait.
I gave it a 3 star rating. If you are interested in a book with good twists and unexpected climax definitely check it out and see if you like it.