When I wake up with the sun in my eyes the morning after my daughter’s birthday party, I know something is very wrong. I go straight to her room but feel a surge of panic when I see an empty bed. Downstairs everything is totally quiet, and the front door is locked. Why didn’t I hear her scream? Who took our little girl?
My husband says I’ve been struggling since Skylar was born and that sometimes I forget things. But I remember every moment of my daughter’s party—including him locking the door after our family and friends left. Yes, we both had a drink and I slept heavily but I know I would have heard my child cry. A good mother always does.
My therapist says I need to stand up for myself. She wants me to confront my husband about the woman I heard him talking to the other night when he thought I was asleep. And about the child’s toy that I found that does not belong to Skylar. Is he hiding something?
But as the hours race by I soon realize I was totally wrong about everything that happened that night. I thought I’d put my past behind me long ago but I was wrong. All I know is this: I’ll do whatever it takes to save my child.
Will you believe me?
A heart-pounding, unbelievably twisty psychological thriller that will have you sleeping with the light on! Fans of Gone Girl, Behind Closed Doors and The Stepdaughter will be utterly gripped.
KIERSTEN MODGLIN is a #1 bestselling author of psychological thrillers. Her books have sold over 1.5 million copies and been translated into multiple languages. Kiersten is a member of International Thriller Writers, Novelists, Inc., and the Alliance of Independent Authors. She is a KDP Select All-Star and a recipient of ThrillerFix's Best Psychological Thriller Award, Suspense Magazine's Best Book of 2021 Award, a 2022 Silver Falchion for Best Suspense, and a 2022 Silver Falchion for Best Overall Book of 2021. Kiersten grew up in rural western Kentucky and later relocated to Nashville, Tennessee, where she now lives with her family. Kiersten's readers across the world lovingly refer to her as "KMod." A binge-watching expert, psychology fanatic, and indoor enthusiast, Kiersten enjoys rainy days spent with her favorite people and evenings with her nose in a book.
I JUST read my first book by Kiersten Modglin and I can finally see what all the hype is about her! I've heard SO much about her and wasn't sure how this one was going to go but holy fluff flying animal crackers! I get it! This book was unbelievable. I was sucked in from the beginning. The turns and twists were countless and just when I thought I had it figured out (three times I might add!) the ending was unreal! I felt so many emotions reading this. I couldn't turn pages fast enough. Absolutely brilliance! One of the best psychological thrillers I've read. Has everything and more you look for! Taking mental illness and a missing daughter to new heights! Question everything. Ahhh! Loved it!! Thank you to netgalley & bookouture.
Yet another page turner from the queen of twisty thrillers, I swear I can always count on KMod when I’m in the mood for an unputdownable thriller and this was no exception. Missing children stories are nothing new but the author puts her own twisted spin on things here and I am into it! When a child disappears the police always look at the parents, much like when a married person vanishes the spouse is always the first suspect and the added tension this added to Ginny and Cameron’s already contentious relationship was so great. I had the who figured out fairly easily but I wasn’t too bothered because the why was so well done, it was emotionally charged and complicated and ultimately satisfying. She’s a go to author for me like I said earlier and this didn’t disappoint!
I read The Arrangement earlier this year and quickly fell in love with Modglin’s style - the last 25% of so of the book was full of so many twists and surprises that I did not see coming at all, and I thought I may have found a new favorite thriller author! So I was obviously excited to read more from her.
Unfortunately, although this one was a solid read, it definitely didn’t pack as many twists and the ‘big reveal’ was much easier to predict. I feel like maybe this author thrives better with her shorter works - The Arrangement and the majority of her other books are ~200 pages while this one was a more standard thriller length, and I felt like this one definitely suffered from repetition, it felt like she was trying to meet a word count (or it could also be because she’s been churning out a book every 2-3 months). Like I said this one wasn’t bad by any means but a huge disappointment after The Arrangement. Hopefully this one was just a fluke miss for me and I still plan to read more of her books!
I maybe one of the very few who found this book to be quite an exhausting read; one which I struggled to get through.
Ginny and Cameron Hale's three-year old daughter, Skylar, goes missing the night after her third birthday party. With Ginny's history of depression and her doubts that Cameron might be having an affair, both are quick to point fingers at the other. But with each passing hour, they grow more frantic to find Skylar as they realize that they were being manipulated all along.
The author has done a remarkable job of delving deep into the struggles of someone suffering from depression and the toll that it takes on the immediate family. Infact the first half of the book deals extensively with Ginny and Cameron's counselling sessions with their psychologist, Alex. While these conversations may be an eye-opener for those not so well-versed with depression and a possible trigger for those familiar with it, at the risk of sounding insensitive, I must admit that it was emotionally and mentally draining.
I wasn't able to connect with any of the characters in the story. By about 50% of the book, the identity of the kidnapper was evident. The latter half of the plot where the mystery-solving actually takes place was fast-paced and the climax was also good.
Overall, a well-written book, but just not my cup of tea.
Missing Daughter by Kiersten Modglin I give this book 4 stars
When I wake up the morning after my daughter’s birthday party, I know something is very wrong. I go straight to her room, I see an empty bed. My husband says I’ve been struggling since Skylar was born and that sometimes I forget things. My therapist says I need to stand up for myself. She wants me to confront my husband.Is he hiding something? But as the hours race by I soon realize I was totally wrong about everything that happened that night.All I know is this: I’ll do whatever it takes to save my child. Will you believe me?
This is a twisted domestic thriller, involving family,marriage,secrets and mistakes.The books past and present storyline alternates between Ginny,Cameron and Alex points of view…….but who is telling the truth and what’s being hidden! This was a great read with short chapters that make you want to keep turning the pages With thanks to Netgalley, Kiersten Modglin and Bookouture for my chance to read and review this book
There was so much potential with this story and it falls flat on its face. It starts with a prologue from the kidnappers POV then moves on to the little girls 3rd birthday party and then we’re taken to the next morning and the parents waking up to their daughter being gone. From there we jump back in time six months and the idiocy begins.
The husband says he loves his wife and only wants her to get better but he constantly has one foot out the door. The wife has severe postpartum depression that morphs into regular severe depression. I don’t know why it takes 2.5 years for her to seriously commit to getting help with therapy and not just letting her hubby have her medicated to the gills. Hubby dearest is a piece of work that almost comes across as inappropriate in his affection for his toddler. Him thinking his wife will absolutely always come in second place to the daughter is creepy. All because he’s so focused on the daughters wellbeing that he conveniently doesn’t put her in childcare while Mom is so severely depressed. I mean come on! He’s a lawyer ffs! It’s not like they can’t afford a nanny or other childcare. Then we find out that he cheated before his wife ever got pregnant and just a month before the daughter goes missing he falls dick first into the therapist. I mean it’s obvious he’s a pillar of husbandly and fatherly love right? *shudder*
The kidnapper is completely predictable and while there is a tiny twist it doesn’t matter all that much. All in all this story doesn’t do justice to any of the characters. I wouldn’t waste my time reading this. I don’t understand all the high ratings, but to each their own I suppose.
This book starts with Skylar's birthday party. Her mother, Ginny, struggles with the stress of people in her house, dealing with family and suppressing the need to cleanup while others play. The feel of constant judgement, scrutiny - only her friend Alex seems to a source of support. The next morning, Ginny realizes Skylar didn't wake during the night. Going into her bedroom, Ginny finds an emtpy bed. Skylar is missing. The plot moves back to six months before - narrators Cameron, her husband and Ginny taking turns to build up to the disappearance, introducing the suspects- including each other. Great, fast paced read. I truly loved the brutal portrait of mothers and their struggles - the struggle to grieve their pregnancy and birth, the loss of self, the never ending soul crushing guilt of motherhood, self judgment, the struggle to connect with their children. Amazing.
Another great twisty story from Kiersten Modglin! I give this one 4.5 rounded up. And the half star deduction was only because it was hard to get into the story since I couldn’t connect to any of the characters. I did think Kiersten did an excellent job depicting someone struggling with mental health concerns and how this would impact her roles as a mother and a wife. I did guess what had happened and how it would end but I did enjoy the twist of why. Ginny has struggled with postpartum depression following the birth of her daughter. This has left her daughter and husband much more closely bonded and her struggling to figure out how to play with or connect with her now three year old daughter. On a chance day at the park she meets Alex who is watching her niece and they connect and become friends. When Ginny finds out Alex is a therapist she begs her to take her on a patient and she does (which is highly unbelievable but it happened). Fast forward a few months to Skylar’s third birthday party. The party goes well but the morning after Skylar isn’t in her bed or her room or the house.
Another great thriller by Kiersten Modglin! This is the second book of hers I’ve read, and I’m sure there will be more in the future that I’ll be checking out. I really like her style of writing, and the way she makes everyone a potential suspect in a mystery.
This is the story of Ginny, Cameron, and their toddler, Skylar. The day after Skylar’s third birthday party, her parents wake up to find her gone. She’s not hiding, not playing, she’s just vanished without a trace.
As they usually are, the police are suspicious of the parents, and how the house had no broken doors or windows. If someone kidnapped her, how did they get inside? How did her parents not hear anything? They had been drinking the night before, but surely they weren’t that far gone? Ginny had severe post-partum depression with Skylar, and has recently stopped her meds - not something that looks good in the big picture. The parents feel helpless as all eyes are on them.
The book really does make you wonder who did the crime, and why. I had some suspicions, and I was right, but it was a bigger twist than I was anticipating so I didn’t mind that I’d figured out part of it. The story was original, hard to put down, and had a great ending. I’d definitely recommend it and I’m giving it a solid four stars.
(Thank you to Bookouture, Kiersten Modglin and NetGalley for the ARC in exchange for my review.)
Missing Daughter by Kiersten Modglin is an entertaining if not pretty predictable domestic thriller that follows three characters after the disappearance of the main character’s three year old daughter.
This is my third Kiersten Modglin book and I turn to them as reliable, entertaining reads that I usually finish in the same day. She has a very easy reading style that tends to lean toward the “tell” vs. “show” which can sometimes slow down the pacing and suspense because things are just described, rather than how the characters feel or interpret them.
The book explores, what I felt as someone who had postpartum depression, a character struggling with the onslaught of emotions that come from a challenging birth and the new role of motherhood. As someone who also experienced a very difficult pregnancy and subsequent PPD, I felt the portrayal was accurate.
All three character POV’s are pretty unreliable and are all hiding secrets from each other, though it becomes pretty evident what has happened with the missing daughter about half-way through the book, though Modglin does throw in some distractions to have you questioning your guesses.
I found this book not as fast-paced as some of her other books, but was still engrossed and killed this book in a single sitting. All in all, I found it an enjoyable escape and a solid addition to Modglin’s growing cannon of thrillers. Thank you to the publishers at Bookouture and Netgalley for this e-ARC of Missing Daughter.
I want to start out by saying thank you to NetGalley for approving my request to read and review this book. I once referenced, in a previous review, Kiersten Modglin as the Red Herring Queen. She is gifted with the ability to tie in a plot twist that you never see coming. I felt this book stood out from any of hers I have read before. She hit on Postpartum Depression and the struggles that come with it as a new mother. The uncertainty, the struggle to be a good mother, while dealing with the distance that unstable hormones create. The characters were well developed and the comarderie between the mother, the father, daughter and the therapist was accomplished well. She splits the narrative in an engrossing way, both present, and past, in short, forthright chapters that kept me engrossed and turning pages. I loved this book on so many levels. It was more than just a suspense/thriller. It was fiction with a nonfiction, vibe. She did a spectacular job layering this story. My favorite Red Herring author strikes again.
A mother’s worst nightmare is when her child goes up missing! Ginny and her husband Cameron throw their daughter Skylar a birthday party. The next morning, she is missing. Is she kidnapped? The doors are still locked and nothing seems amiss.
The police are now suspicious of the parents and Ginny has suffered from post-partum depression and seemed to be on the other side as she is off her medication. As Ginny sees her therapist Alex, she wants her to stand up to her husband.
Another roller-coaster with a twist that I never saw coming to the craziest climax. Those are the best kind. Modglin always delivers the unexpected and is an auto-buy author for me. Reading my way through her extensive collection of books.
Kiersten Modglin has written another great book am I surprised?? no. This had me thinking I knew what was going on and even though I kind of did..there were so many twists that kept it great enough to shock you. She never fails to make the story line go off to somewhere to wouldn't think of. Another fantastic book.
Thanks to the author, the publisher, and NetGalley for an early release of this book.
About 1/2 way through we find out the so-called loving husband cheated on his wife while she'd been pregnant and I had the feeling he was about to do it again, so I looked at the end of the book and sure enough he does sleep with Alex. And the wife forgives him... again.
I'm out.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
I never know what to expect with a Kiersten Modglin book. Her plots are always so varied as are the settings, but I know one thing will always be there and that’s a twist that shakes me to my core and makes me question my ability as not only an amateur sleuth but as a reader.
This time it’s a family setting and the protagonist is Ginny, whose daughter Skylar has gone missing the morning after her birthday party. From the start her reliability is brought into question as she appears to be suffering from post natal depression that has never left. She wants the connection or motherly bond that she expected and feels like an outsider in her own family. Her daughter choosing to bond with her husband Cameron instead.
On a day out to the park Ginny meets Alex who is there with her niece. Finding out she is a therapist she persuades her to take her on as a client. Crossing professional boundaries is never a good idea and this automatically had me shouting at my kindle “RED FLAG!!!”
Narrated by Ginny and Cameron we see both perspectives of their family life but I never quite trust what I’m reading with this author so my spidey senses are always on full alert for red herrings and unreliability. Never trust a con artist and Kiersten is Queen of the cons.
Ginny, especially her mindset was brilliantly written and I think a lot of mothers will resonate with her feelings towards her daughter. Cameron I wasn’t sure about from the offset but that may be because my emotions were already tied up with Ginny and making sure she had at least my support.
Although I did get the who, I think the author had planned it that way, it still left the why and this was, yet again, another clever book from an author who has now become an addiction.
Ginny and Cameron experience a parent's worst nightmare. They wake up to find their daughter missing. Who has taken her?
Missing Daughter starts with background information on struggling mom Ginny, very involved dad Cameron, and friend/therapist Alex. These characters are interesting but not always likable, and they all have secrets. This book also touches on mental health issues (and its impact on the entire family) as well as societal expectations of mothers. In contrast to the slower pace of the first half of the book, the second half is fast-paced and action-packed as it centers on finding the missing child. My favorite thing about Kiersten Modglin's books is that the final twist is always unexpected and mind-blowing! And, Missing Daughter doesn't disappoint.
I enjoyed this twisty, drama filled thriller!
Thank you to NetGalley and Bookouture for the digital copy of this book.
This psychological suspense will not give you any rest. From beginning to end, the author weaves a web of secrets that we end up discovering bit by bit, which adds to the mystery and keeps us on our toes, trying to guess what is really going on. I say try because Kiersten Modglin once again manages to surprise us at every turn. The ending gave me chills and I would definitely see a sequel. I'm crossing my fingers, that would be awesome.
In addition, she tackles an important subject, mental illness, and its impact on the sufferer and the ripple effect it has on those around them.
Looking for some easy cardio? Read a Kiersten Modglin thriller. I guarantee your heart will be going a million miles an hour with her edge-of-your-seat writing style! 🤭😳😨
If you’ve been around my page for a while, you know I’m a KMod superfan. Her books are unique and fast paced and pack a punch with wild twists. If you haven’t read any of her books yet, I’m going to need you to. Like NOW. 😍
Missing Daughter was another insane, emotional and twisted tale and while my mama bear heart was in my throat the whole time, I couldn’t put this book down. And that WTF ending?! Immediate cold chills. 😱 Out November 8, pre-order your copy today! ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
Thank you @kierstenmodglinauthor as always, for my early copy! You’re killing it!
Thank you to the publishers at Bookouture and Netgalley for this e-ARC of Missing Daughter.
Missing Daughter is another spectacular novel from Kiersten Modglin.
In the state of Tennessee, a small family lives on the edge of the tree line, surrounded by acres and acres of forest. Ginny, her husband Cameron, and their daughter, Skylar, are celebrating Skylar’s third birthday with their friends and family. But later that night, after an excellent day, Skylar is kidnapped straight from her bed. But the doors and windows were locked. Only Ginny and Cameron had access to the house. Who took Skylar, and why?
As Ginny and Cameron struggle to find their missing daughter, we are transported back in time, prior to the kidnapping, and it is here that we will begin to understand what led up to this point.
Told from alternating POVs, I wasn’t sure who to trust, if anyone at all. But while I wasn’t completely surprised by the ending, there were definitely a few unexpected twists, and as always, the ending leaves you hanging at all the what-ifs!
I really loved the therapist aspect of this storyline, as well as the attention it brings to how severe and debilitating postpartum depression can be. If you or a mother you know is suffering, please reach out for help. Thank you for another excellent and well told story, Kiersten!
Missing Daughter has all the necessary components for an entrancing read. Ginny has struggled in her relationships with her daughter and husband. Her friend and therapist Alex has been right there for her. Except now her world is crashing, her daughter is gone and the two closest people around her have lied to her. I was suspicious of one character from the first but had not expected the full scope of,the story. I also predicted the end because well, I knew it couldn’t end in one way. It’s a good story about trust, betrayal, believing in yourself, and relatives. Some people you must cannot get away from. Thanks to Bookouture and NetGalley for the early copy.
3.5 ⭐️ I love this authors writing style, and the short chapters kept me invested as well. This one is a bit longer than her typical novels, and I liked that her characters felt more fleshed out because of it. Having said that, for a book called, “Missing Daughter”, it takes about 150 pages until we even get to that plot point. The story itself was very over-dramatic, (read like a Lifetime movie), and I predicted the ending. I guess I’m conflicted on how I feel, but think I have to settle on at least 3.5 stars since I can’t deny I enjoyed my time reading it.
This one was a bit of a flop for me. I loved it for the first half , but the second half lacked depth and didn’t seem at all like a real scenario.
When Ginny & Cam wake up the day after their daughter skylars 3rd birthday they realise she is missing. They begin to point the finger at everyone who had been at the house for the party the day before. The story is based around ginnys therapy that she has been having since the trauma of her pregnancy and birth.
3.5ish ✨ for this one. Another entertaining and engaging book from Kiersten. I would round up normally for this kind of book but one thing in the book is always an ick for me. Otherwise I enjoyed the plot and the twists. I did find this one a little predictable but I still was surprised by a few things. Not my favorite by the author but still a good read!
Just like all of Kiersten Modglin’s books I really enjoyed this one. It did feel a little long and drawn out but I understand why. It definitely helped build the suspense. This book read like a lifetime movie and I enjoyed that so much. I’ll continue reading everything Kiersten Modglin publishes.
Another great story by this author. Again we are carried along with a simple story of a child who gets kidnapped. But somehow this one is different. Cameron and Ginny love their daughter, so when she is gone their world falls apart. But little do we know there are secrets behind every door and of course, as usual with Modglin's books.......a twist.
Another amazing thriller by the queen!! This was fast paced and so well written. I loved the jump in timeline and changes in perspective. While I hade my suspicions on who did it, I never suspected why and was definitely surprised by how it played out!
Huge thanks to Net Galley & Bookouture for a copy in exchange for an honest review!
I enjoyed reading this book despite being pretty predictable. There was one big twist at the end I didn't see coming, but I was able to guess the rest early on. It slows way down near the end, but a good read otherwise!