She's Not There: A Novel

I was really looking forward to Joy Fielding's She's Not There. I love suspense novels, but this novel had no suspense nor a real mystery. Caroline Shipley and her husband, Hunter went on a vacation to Rosarito, Mexico fifteen years previously for their anniversary. Caroline would not leave the kids with her mother or brother, so they brought five-year-old, Michelle, and two-year-old, Samantha with them. On the last night the babysitter failed to show up. The hotel said that someone had canceled the sitter. Since they were going to be eating just outside (they could see the window from the table), they went to dinner (Hunter insisted because he had a surprise for Caroline). They took turns checking on the sleeping girls. When they go back after dinner, Samantha is gone. Who took her and why? Fifteen years later Caroline gets a call from a young girl stating she might be Samantha. Could this be her long lost daughter? We get to see how this kidnapping affected the family and if this young woman is really Samantha. Will Caroline finally get the truth? I found She's Not There to be a slow novel with no suspense. It was so easy to figure out who took Samantha and why. We are subjected to a lot of Caroline thinking (and over thinking) and disagreements between Michelle and Caroline. Michelle was a difficult child before the kidnapping and she has not improved over the last fifteen years (I got very tired of their arguments). I did not like any of the characters in the book. Caroline plays the blame game and has issues controlling her temper. The writing is okay (satisfactory). I kept hoping that there would be a twist at the end. I give She's Not There 3 out of 5 stars (which mean it was okay). I received a complimentary copy of She's Not There from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review of the novel.

Children are precious. A parent’s love for their children is unparalleled, so when a child goes missing it destroys the lives of those parents who loved and cherished their offspring so dearly, and often captures the undivided attention of a whole country, or even the world. Today is the 15th anniversary of Caroline Shipley's descent into hell. Her then 2-year-old daughter was abducted while her parents were in the dining hall of a resort. That night, she lost more than her daughter .... she lost her marriage, her career, was accused by the police of murdering her daughter. Samantha has never been found .. leaving Caroline in a perpetual limbo. And then a telephone call ... a young female voice says ... I think I might be your missing daughter. This well-written psychological mystery puts me in mind of Madeline McCann, a 3-year-old who went missing from a resort in 2007. She has never been found ... no ransom note was every received. And as is written in this book ... the parents were suspected of harming or murdering their own child. This book is told mainly by Caroline... in the present day ...and from 15 years ago. When she receives the phone call, her first thought is ... it's a scam, someone looking for money, or just being mean. But is it? Or is it really her daughter? The characters are stand-up, credible. I loved how the family interacted... mom, daughter, grandmother, brother, sister in law, ex-husband and his new family. Not every family grieves the same .. and in this instance, there's plenty of blame to spread around. Many thanks to the author / Bonnier Zaffre / Netgalley for the digital copy. Opinions expressed here are unbiased and entirely my own.

I got so tired of the main character (Caroline) and her whining spineless interactions with her mother, daughter, employers, fellow townspeople, I haven't finished the book and don't know if I ever will.