THE NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLERIn her enthralling debut, Gilly Macmillan explores a mother’s search for her missing son, weaving a taut psychological thriller as gripping and skillful as The Girl on the Train and The Guilty One.In a heartbeat, everything changes… son, Ben, when he asks if he can run ahead. It’s an ordinary request on an ordinary Sunday afternoon, and Rachel has no reason to worry—until Ben vanishes.
Police are called, search parties go out, and Rachel, already insecure after her recent divorce, feels herself coming undone. As hours and then days pass without a sign of Ben, everyone who knew him is called into question, from Rachel’s newly married ex-husband to her mother-of-the-year sister. Inevitably, media attention focuses on Rachel too, and the public’s attitude toward her begins to shift from sympathy to suspicion.
As she desperately pieces together the threadbare clues, Rachel realizes that nothing is quite as she imagined it to be, not even her own judgment. And the greatest dangers may lie not in the anonymous strangers of every parent’s nightmares, but behind the familiar smiles of those she trusts the most.
Where is Ben? The clock is ticking…
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This seems like an honest view of what it would be like to have child that goes missing from the mom and from the dectective in charge of the case. I wasn’t sure where this novel was leading the whole time I was reading it. Very compelling and captivating. You really feel for all the characters by the end of the book.
Long read approx 7 hours. But worth it. Told via various character like The Girl On The Train. Great mystery lots of red herrings
After reading To Tell You The Truth by Gilly Macmillan, I became a fan! What She Knew was equally as gripping from beginning to end!
While on a walk, Ben Jenner gets permission to run ahead from mom Rachel. When she calls him and he doesn’t answer and she can’t find him, she’s realizes he has disappeared.
Detective Jim Clemo is on the case and he’s dealing with issues of his own which we learn more about during his sessions with therapist Dr. Francesca Manelli.
Rachel’s sister Nicky comes to help out as well as her close friend Laura but there are issues with both of them that adds stress to the situation.
The story goes back-and-forth from Rachel’s perspective to Clemo’s and there are also other things going on with the other terrific characters including Nicky, Laura, Rachel’s ex John, his wife Katrina and family liaison Officer Emma Zhang.
In addition, to move the story along there are therapist reports to help us understand Clemo and social media plays a big part.
After so many who-dun-it possibilities as well as not knowing if Ben is alive or dead, the reveal is terrific and I loved the ending which didn’t leave any unanswered questions.
Thank you, Ms. MacMillan for this gem of a book! And, thank you Book Club Girls and NetGalley for this copy of What She Knew. This is my opinion.
I won this book as a courtesy of the First Reads program on Goodreads. The following is an honest review of my opinion of the book.
What She Knew is an intense read and one that I would definitely recommend to others. Unlike other stories I have read that involve a missing child, this book goes well beyond the plot into the psyches of many of the contributing characters within the story. The story starts with a prologue that takes place at a time much later than the kidnapping itself. I went back several times and reread it because it is a personal statement by the mother directly addressing the reader. Strong way to start the book. Attention grabbing and sure to raise a reader’s curiosity in my opinion.
The narration in this book was also a strong point for me. The story is told from multiple character viewpoints, psychiatric transcripts, newspaper articles, and internet blogs. The various methods added depth and variety to the story.
I have to admit that I truly had no idea who the responsible party in the story would be. Each character had secrets buried within the past that had a significant impact on the story. Some of the secrets were monumental and therein was the only fault I could find with the overall novel. I felt that the secrets were too big and too close to the kidnapping to be realistic. It would have been easier to accept one or two characters having incidents from their past that would make them suspicious, but I felt there were a few secrets too many.
Another definite strong point of the story is that there doesn’t seem to be one reliable narrator. A missing child is one of the most hideous, unimaginable crimes to occur. It only makes sense that such a crime would have an impact on everyone involved on a personal level. Macmillan doesn’t shy away from casting blame on all the characters at some point or another within the story. I liked that and it seemed very plausible to me. I also thought she did a remarkable job portraying honest reactions to events within the story. Without giving away specifics, I thought the media scene where the mother is to plead to get her son back was very well-written. The mother does the unexpected but it seems to me that the unexpected is quite possibly what might occur at such a time. The tainted view of the mother builds and molds the story in a distinct way and actually makes the reader wonder if the mother could be responsible for such a horrific crime. It sometimes happens that way though, doesn’t it?
Macmillan keeps the reader on his/her toes while reading this story. She fills the head with doubt, distrust, confusion, and fear. As a result, she creates a story that gives a vivid image of what the experience of child abduction must seem to those involved. An intense read but well researched and written.
This was the first book I’ve read by Gill Macmillan. It centers around Rachel, her son Ben and Ben’s dad, John. John and Rachel are divorced. Ben lives with Rachel. One day, she and Ben are out for a walk with their dog and Ben disappears. Jim Clemo is assigned to investigate Ben’s disappearance. Rachel’s sister comes to live with her during this time and ends up revealing a family secret that Rachel never knew. This is the only thing that I can of that would apply to the “what she knew” that is the title of the book.
The subject matter – a child gone missing during an afternoon at the park – was hard to read as a mom. It’s my worst nightmare and maybe that’s why I wanted to read the book; to see how the mom coped with living a nightmare. The book kept my interest and I did not guess the ending.
Another 5 star book by Gilly Macmillan! This is the 3rd book I have read of this authors and I intend on reading everyone of them. It was a suspenseful page turner. I held my breath many times as I thought things were going to go one way and they surprised me by going in a totally different direction. This is the first book I have read that is about a single mother with her child gone missing. I felt so much empathy for the main character and was on pins and needles constantly. This story is so close to being a true story, it’s scary!
Slow to start and characters are rather dull
This was a great mystery read. It kept me guessing and wondering what could have happened up until close to the end. Very good story! If you like mysteries, this one is great!
Great read! Very good characters and presented well.
Loved the writing style. A page Turner.
I love a good mystery – this was one!
It reminded me of Gone Girl
It really keep me reading……
Seems the story has been told before.
Easy read with a good, creative twist.
Loved it, looked forward to reading it every day
Terrific – couldn’t put it down!
Could not put it down. So many secrets. So many lies. So many twists and turns.
Kept me reading until the end….very captivating!