NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER • The disappearance of a beautiful, charismatic mother leaves her family to piece together her secrets in this propulsive novel for fans of Big Little Lies—from the bestselling author of All We Ever Wanted Was Everything and the upcoming Pretty Things.“Watch Me Disappear is just as riveting as Gone Girl.”—San Francisco Chronicle Who you want people to be makes you blind … Girl.”—San Francisco Chronicle
Who you want people to be makes you blind to who they really are.
It’s been a year since Billie Flanagan—a Berkeley mom with an enviable life—went on a solo hike in Desolation Wilderness and vanished from the trail. Her body was never found, just a shattered cellphone and a solitary hiking boot. Her husband and teenage daughter have been coping with Billie’s death the best they can: Jonathan drinks as he works on a loving memoir about his marriage; Olive grows remote, from both her father and her friends at the all-girls school she attends.
But then Olive starts having strange visions of her mother, still alive. Jonathan worries about Olive’s emotional stability, until he starts unearthing secrets from Billie’s past that bring into question everything he thought he understood about his wife. Who was the woman he knew as Billie Flanagan?
Together, Olive and Jonathan embark on a quest for the truth—about Billie, but also about themselves, learning, in the process, about all the ways that love can distort what we choose to see. Janelle Brown’s insights into the dynamics of intimate relationships will make you question the stories you tell yourself about the people you love, while her nervy storytelling will keep you guessing until the very last page.
Praise for Watch Me Disappear
“Watch Me Disappear is a surprising and compelling read. Like the best novels, it takes the reader somewhere she wouldn’t otherwise allow herself to go. . . . It’s strongest in the places that matter most: in the believability of its characters and the irresistibility of its plot.”—Chicago Tribune
“Janelle Brown’s third family drama delivers an incisive and emotional view of how grief and recovery from loss can seep into each aspect of a person’s life. . . . Brown imbues realism in each character, whose complicated emotions fuel the suspenseful story.”—Associated Press
“When a Berkeley mother vanishes and is declared dead, her daughter is convinced she’s alive in Janelle Brown’s thriller, calling to mind Big Little Lies and Gone Girl.”—Variety
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Very interesting perspective on parenting.
Interesting plot and likable characters
Excellent read. Well-written literary suspense/psychological thriller that zips along. Strong plot with well-developed characters.
Update: A year+ later, this one has stayed with me, and is on my short list of favorites.
Insightful and thought provoking. Makes you think about others propectives on life.
Billie, Jonathan and Olive appear to be a perfect family. The beautiful and quirky mom, Billie, dotes on her family and is the perfect mom. Except for her tendency to disappear for the weekend, to spend time alone hiking in the wilderness. Husband Jonathan is blind to her faults, seeing her need to be alone as a minor quirk in an otherwise perfect personality.
Then, Billie disappears while on a solo hiking trip. Her body is never found, but her hiking boot is found in a river. She is presumed dead, but with the absence of a body, her family must go to court to declare her dead. As the one year anniversary of her death approaches, Olive begins having “visions” of her mother, that cause her to believe Billie is alive. Jonathan begins to learn disturbing facts about Billie’s life before him. And the court date to declare her dead is coming up fast.
The book muses on how well we know people. Do we ever really know anyone? You can only know as much about a person as they are willing to open up to you. And apparently Billie did not open up to her family.
I enjoyed reading the book, and trying to decipher all the clues. Is Olive really having visions, or are they just her subconscious wishes? They seem to lead her towards Billie, but how real are they? I felt for Olive as a character, a lost child trying to find her mother. Jonathan is a less likable character. He falls too easily into the arms of Harmony, Billie’s BFF. And Harmony is the shadiest character of all. I spent the whole book wondering what Harmony was up too.
The progress in the book was steady, but slow. Things do not happen quickly here, but unfold slowly. This is more a character study than a mystery. I was interested enough to keep reading, but I can’t say it was exciting. I would have liked more of a suspense/mystery atmosphere. I give this book 3.5 stars.
I received an ARC from NetGalley in exchange for my honest review.
This book started out slow, then really hooked me, then disappointed me at the end. Serious disappointment. I was completely hooked on the characters, and then the end left me feeling… blah. It was okay, not bad, but just blah.
Thank you to Netgalley for this arc in exchange for an honest review.