sus7's review against another edition
4.0
I read the digital review copy from Edelweiss. This story really had me guessing and I enjoyed it to the last page.
sarahs_readingparty's review against another edition
4.0
Awesome, dark mystery! I adore the Lizzie Snow series. Some parts of the story were a little confusing, but that's partially because of all the twists and turns in the plot. It would be helpful to have read the first book in the series before reading this one, just for the background details, but the stories themselves are independent of one another.
ncrabb's review against another edition
3.0
Lizzie Snow works as a deputy sheriff in a rural Maine town. She left the homicide unit in Boston to take the job in Maine in an effort to look for her missing niece. What she didn’t plan on is the extreme need for her services in a rural town. As the book opens, two teenage girls—cousins—are together and are both kidnapped. The snatcher takes the girls to a location wherein other women are being kept. But one of the two girls escapes. Years later, the kidnapper has escaped from prison and may be in Bearkill, Maine where Lizzie works. Worse still, a 14-year-old girl who was thought to have run away sends her mother a bone-chilling text that simply read “Help me.” Is Tara Wylie the latest kidnap victim?
The thing that stood out for me with this book is its fast pace. I almost felt like I’d been exercising as I read this. You move rapidly from scene to scene, and you’ll want to lean into this book in order to keep up with it.
The thing that stood out for me with this book is its fast pace. I almost felt like I’d been exercising as I read this. You move rapidly from scene to scene, and you’ll want to lean into this book in order to keep up with it.
taisie22's review against another edition
5.0
Lizzie Snow is still working as a deputy in Aroostook County. A young girl has disappeared and her mother is lying about something. Meanwhile, a man who kidnapped a number of young women has escaped and is somewhere in the area. On top of it all, forest fires are raging through the north woods. Lizzie is still looking for her niece and is still tempted by Dylan, the State Policeman who betrayed her once.
This was a great thriller with a lot of twists and turns. Lizzie is a strong female lead and fits in well with the people in the County and the small town of Bearkill. She needs to get over her hot/cold relationship and just get together with Dylan. Her dithering is becoming frustrating.
But I can't wait for the next book in the series. Ms. Graves does a nice job with the material here and I recommend this book.
This was a great thriller with a lot of twists and turns. Lizzie is a strong female lead and fits in well with the people in the County and the small town of Bearkill. She needs to get over her hot/cold relationship and just get together with Dylan. Her dithering is becoming frustrating.
But I can't wait for the next book in the series. Ms. Graves does a nice job with the material here and I recommend this book.
couchnest's review against another edition
5.0
Graves second book in the Lizzie Snow series did not disappoint. I had not read book 1, and only realized after reading a bit that it felt like it MIGHT be part of a series, but that did not detract from the book, at all. This was easily enjoyed as if it were a standalone.
The storyline is one that could be, as Law & Order puts it, "ripped from the headlines," but it was so much more than just that! Detective Lizzie Snow has relocated to Maine from Boston in search of her missing niece. This part of the story is a continuation from book 1, and is also a side story, in my opinion, to what the rest of the novel offers the reader.
Graves offers a lot of descriptive details for the area, which in part, are important since due to dry weather conditions, wild forest fires keep cropping up and threatening to overtake the small town of Bearkill where Sheriff Deputy Snow is working.
How to explain the flow of the story? It starts off with a scene about two girls who are sneaking off to party/dance and an abduction occurs. As the story progresses, we go back and forth in time 15 years... alternating between the story of the two girls and what happens with them, and the present-day with what is going on with Snow and a recent disappearance of a young teenage girl.
As the story progresses, things happen that bring the two things together, and Snow is left to figure out where the missing girl from Bearkill is, what and who the mysterious woman is that suddenly showed up at the same time, and if the kidnapper from 15 years ago is on the loose in her town. On top of that, if or how all these things are connected.
There is a lot going on and the switching back and forth between past and present was a little disorienting, but the story made up for it all. There is even a hint of romance, but very very little. This fast-paced read will appeal to mystery, thrillers and psychological suspense readers.
Many thanks to Edelweiss, Bantam and Ms. Graves for allowing me to read an ARC.
The storyline is one that could be, as Law & Order puts it, "ripped from the headlines," but it was so much more than just that! Detective Lizzie Snow has relocated to Maine from Boston in search of her missing niece. This part of the story is a continuation from book 1, and is also a side story, in my opinion, to what the rest of the novel offers the reader.
Graves offers a lot of descriptive details for the area, which in part, are important since due to dry weather conditions, wild forest fires keep cropping up and threatening to overtake the small town of Bearkill where Sheriff Deputy Snow is working.
How to explain the flow of the story? It starts off with a scene about two girls who are sneaking off to party/dance and an abduction occurs. As the story progresses, we go back and forth in time 15 years... alternating between the story of the two girls and what happens with them, and the present-day with what is going on with Snow and a recent disappearance of a young teenage girl.
As the story progresses, things happen that bring the two things together, and Snow is left to figure out where the missing girl from Bearkill is, what and who the mysterious woman is that suddenly showed up at the same time, and if the kidnapper from 15 years ago is on the loose in her town. On top of that, if or how all these things are connected.
There is a lot going on and the switching back and forth between past and present was a little disorienting, but the story made up for it all. There is even a hint of romance, but very very little. This fast-paced read will appeal to mystery, thrillers and psychological suspense readers.
Many thanks to Edelweiss, Bantam and Ms. Graves for allowing me to read an ARC.
jennybeastie's review against another edition
3.0
Ok, so in general, hooray for the return of Lizzie Snow. In specific, well, this was a bit of an unconvincing book -- very complicated plot, very ick kind of thriller, with the fabulous addition of everything burning at the end, and no end in sight for Lizzie and Dylan's on-again-off-again wants to be a relationship. It just didn't quite gel for me.
couchnest's review against another edition
5.0
Graves second book in the Lizzie Snow series did not disappoint. I had not read book 1, and only realized after reading a bit that it felt like it MIGHT be part of a series, but that did not detract from the book, at all. This was easily enjoyed as if it were a standalone.
The storyline is one that could be, as Law & Order puts it, "ripped from the headlines," but it was so much more than just that! Detective Lizzie Snow has relocated to Maine from Boston in search of her missing niece. This part of the story is a continuation from book 1, and is also a side story, in my opinion, to what the rest of the novel offers the reader.
Graves offers a lot of descriptive details for the area, which in part, are important since due to dry weather conditions, wild forest fires keep cropping up and threatening to overtake the small town of Bearkill where Sheriff Deputy Snow is working.
How to explain the flow of the story? It starts off with a scene about two girls who are sneaking off to party/dance and an abduction occurs. As the story progresses, we go back and forth in time 15 years... alternating between the story of the two girls and what happens with them, and the present-day with what is going on with Snow and a recent disappearance of a young teenage girl.
As the story progresses, things happen that bring the two things together, and Snow is left to figure out where the missing girl from Bearkill is, what and who the mysterious woman is that suddenly showed up at the same time, and if the kidnapper from 15 years ago is on the loose in her town. On top of that, if or how all these things are connected.
There is a lot going on and the switching back and forth between past and present was a little disorienting, but the story made up for it all. There is even a hint of romance, but very very little. This fast-paced read will appeal to mystery, thrillers and psychological suspense readers.
Many thanks to Edelweiss, Bantam and Ms. Graves for allowing me to read an ARC.
The storyline is one that could be, as Law & Order puts it, "ripped from the headlines," but it was so much more than just that! Detective Lizzie Snow has relocated to Maine from Boston in search of her missing niece. This part of the story is a continuation from book 1, and is also a side story, in my opinion, to what the rest of the novel offers the reader.
Graves offers a lot of descriptive details for the area, which in part, are important since due to dry weather conditions, wild forest fires keep cropping up and threatening to overtake the small town of Bearkill where Sheriff Deputy Snow is working.
How to explain the flow of the story? It starts off with a scene about two girls who are sneaking off to party/dance and an abduction occurs. As the story progresses, we go back and forth in time 15 years... alternating between the story of the two girls and what happens with them, and the present-day with what is going on with Snow and a recent disappearance of a young teenage girl.
As the story progresses, things happen that bring the two things together, and Snow is left to figure out where the missing girl from Bearkill is, what and who the mysterious woman is that suddenly showed up at the same time, and if the kidnapper from 15 years ago is on the loose in her town. On top of that, if or how all these things are connected.
There is a lot going on and the switching back and forth between past and present was a little disorienting, but the story made up for it all. There is even a hint of romance, but very very little. This fast-paced read will appeal to mystery, thrillers and psychological suspense readers.
Many thanks to Edelweiss, Bantam and Ms. Graves for allowing me to read an ARC.
jaclynder's review against another edition
4.0
In The Girls She Left Behind readers return to the stark and desolate Bearkill, Maine where former Boston homicide detective, Lizzie Snow, continues to search for her missing niece. Frustrated by the lack of in her niece’s case and by her complicated love life, Lizzie’s decided that it might be better if she heads back to Boston. But before she makes any decisions, Lizzie’s got a missing persons case to solve, and it’s becoming increasingly clear that it’s not a case of a teen running away, but something much more sinister.
Having really enjoyed the first book in the series, Winter at the Door, I was really looking forward to the second installment (in fact, it is one of my most highly anticipated winter reads). The character of Lizzie Snow and her incongruous fit with the rural community of Bearkill immediately had me hooked. The personal issues Lizzie’s going through kept me as interested as the mystery. The second book was no different; however, I did find it more disturbing and darker than the first book and a big part of that is due to the type of case that Lizzie is investigating. There’s a missing teenage girl and an escaped serial rapist and murderer on the loose (call me crazy, but this is pretty terrifying). This is a setup that immediately ratchets up the suspense and gives The Girls She Left Behind a very disturbing tone, especially when readers diverge from Lizzie's perspective.
What also makes The Girls She Left Behind an engaging read is the sense of atmosphere that the author creates. The weather in both the previous book and the latest is used to add another level of suspense. Here, it’s forest fires that are complicating the efforts of Lizzie, her boss and her ex, Dylan, from rescuing a missing girl. The environment, like the villain of the mystery, is unforgiving. While this imagery isn’t necessarily original, it does evoke a certain atmosphere that ultimately enhances the reading experience, especially if you’re a fan of mysteries that are set in less urban locales.
I was less entranced this time round with Lizzie’s love triangle with the reliable good guy, Trey, and her ex-boyfriend, Dylan. I like the personal struggles that Lizzie has going on in her life as it gives the series something to balance out the mystery, but the back and forth was a bit tiresome in The Girls She Left Behind, especially since it didn’t seem to make any progress whatsoever from book one. For the next book, I’m really looking for the author to build some momentum in Lizzie’s relationships.
If you’re a fan of rural mysteries and not keen on a procedural tone than the Lizzie Snow series is for you. Slowly readers come to know it’s main investigator and at this point, I’m not ready to let go of Lizzie. Are there some holes in the overarching mystery, heck yes, but as this is a series, I’m willing to cut the book some slack and practice some patience in waiting for the next book to reveal more. I can only hope that the mystery of Lizzie’s missing niece moves to the forefront and that Lizzie makes some progression in her personal life. There’s nothing worse than a series that stagnates. At it is, this is only book two, and I’m enjoying the character and setting enough to hang on to see what’s next for Lizzie.
Originally reviewed at The Book Adventures.
Having really enjoyed the first book in the series, Winter at the Door, I was really looking forward to the second installment (in fact, it is one of my most highly anticipated winter reads). The character of Lizzie Snow and her incongruous fit with the rural community of Bearkill immediately had me hooked. The personal issues Lizzie’s going through kept me as interested as the mystery. The second book was no different; however, I did find it more disturbing and darker than the first book and a big part of that is due to the type of case that Lizzie is investigating. There’s a missing teenage girl and an escaped serial rapist and murderer on the loose (call me crazy, but this is pretty terrifying). This is a setup that immediately ratchets up the suspense and gives The Girls She Left Behind a very disturbing tone, especially when readers diverge from Lizzie's perspective.
What also makes The Girls She Left Behind an engaging read is the sense of atmosphere that the author creates. The weather in both the previous book and the latest is used to add another level of suspense. Here, it’s forest fires that are complicating the efforts of Lizzie, her boss and her ex, Dylan, from rescuing a missing girl. The environment, like the villain of the mystery, is unforgiving. While this imagery isn’t necessarily original, it does evoke a certain atmosphere that ultimately enhances the reading experience, especially if you’re a fan of mysteries that are set in less urban locales.
I was less entranced this time round with Lizzie’s love triangle with the reliable good guy, Trey, and her ex-boyfriend, Dylan. I like the personal struggles that Lizzie has going on in her life as it gives the series something to balance out the mystery, but the back and forth was a bit tiresome in The Girls She Left Behind, especially since it didn’t seem to make any progress whatsoever from book one. For the next book, I’m really looking for the author to build some momentum in Lizzie’s relationships.
If you’re a fan of rural mysteries and not keen on a procedural tone than the Lizzie Snow series is for you. Slowly readers come to know it’s main investigator and at this point, I’m not ready to let go of Lizzie. Are there some holes in the overarching mystery, heck yes, but as this is a series, I’m willing to cut the book some slack and practice some patience in waiting for the next book to reveal more. I can only hope that the mystery of Lizzie’s missing niece moves to the forefront and that Lizzie makes some progression in her personal life. There’s nothing worse than a series that stagnates. At it is, this is only book two, and I’m enjoying the character and setting enough to hang on to see what’s next for Lizzie.
Originally reviewed at The Book Adventures.