The Night She Disappeared: A Novel

From the #1 New York Times bestselling author of None of This Is True comes "her best thriller yet" (Harlan Coben, New York Times bestselling author) about a young couple's disappearance on a gorgeous summer night, and the mother who will never give up trying to find them.

On a beautiful summer night in a charming English suburb, a young woman and her boyfriend disappear after partying at the massive country estate of a new college friend.

One year later, a writer moves into a cottage on the edge of the woods that border the same estate. Known locally as the Dark Place, the dense forest is the writer's favorite place for long walks and it's on one such walk that she stumbles upon a mysterious note that simply reads, "DIG HERE."

Could this be a clue towards what has happened to the missing young couple? And what exactly is buried in this haunted ground?

"Utterly gripping with richly drawn, hugely compelling characters, this is a first-class thriller with heart" (Lucy Foley, New York Times bestselling author) that will keep you on the edge of your seat.

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416 pages

Average rating: 7.63

469 RATINGS

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32 REVIEWS

Community Reviews

Natalie2392
Jan 19, 2025
8/10 stars
I liked it. I liked this whole thing. The English countryside, all the characters, I even liked the ending. I am only taking off the star because I got way too confused about the back and forth time jumps in the beginning and it threw me off for a bit. They weren’t far apart and sometimes there were 3 at a time lol maybe it’s just me! I’d still recommend I enjoy Lisa Jewel.
Anonymous
Jan 14, 2025
4/10 stars
Not my favorite Lisa Jewell. This is my fourth be this author and I am honestly surprised at how highly rated it is. The Family Upstairs and Then She was Gone remain my favorites. In this one I found there was too much jumping back and forth in time, too many plot holes, and at the same time a bit too much predictability.
DianeR
Jan 03, 2025
7/10 stars
Somewhat predictable but good character development with a great plot!
Lausie
Jan 02, 2025
8/10 stars
The Night She Disappeared by Lisa Jewell was my first crime of the year! (I do not read a lot of crime). This was a well-structured ‘easy read’ with a gripping tale which kept me on the edge of my seat (where ever I read it - kitchen bench, sofa, even my bed!).

It has quite a simple storyline so you think you can guess where it’s going, but then it pulls the rug from underneath you. I enjoyed the different narratives of the disappeared’s mother, Kim - shortly after the incident, a crime writer, Sophie, a year later and the disappeared girl, Tallulah, starting almost a year before the incident. These slowly meeting in the middle with fast-paced chapters made it unputdownable.

This book has slightly typical suspects like the manipulative boyfriend, but the toxic lesbian love affair and the people around one of them make you suspicious of nearly everyone there on that evening. The setting of a private school made it easier to insert a poor neglected rich girl character, who was so out of touch that she wanted a normal family - like the ones on Gogglebox. It was so well-written that I found that sentiment laughable.
Overall I enjoyed reading this book and recommend it if you want to try and solve a mystery.
The photo was taken in my garden
Recommend by @megsreads6 I got it from my dad’s neighbour’s pile of books to be given away.
bookshelf.at.tiffanys
Dec 19, 2024
8/10 stars
Tallulah is a 19 year old girl in her first year of college. She lives at home with her mom and brother… and her infant son, Noah as well as her partner, Zach. Zach is a devoted and loving father; this comes only after he left Tallulah while she was pregnant. Tallulah loves her son beyond all measure, but she’s growing tired of Zach and his controlling personality. Then she meets Scarlett… Scarlett is the girl that everyone wants to be friends with. Zach becomes suspicious of Tallulah’s friendship with Scarlett. After a night out at a bar, they go back to Scarlett’s house. Zach and Tallulah don’t return home the next morning and her mom, Kim, is distraught - because neither of them would do this to Tallulah. But someone knows what events took place that June night… A year passes with no developments and no sign of Zach or Tallulah until a writer moves into the neighborhood and finds something interesting in her garden…

This is my third Lisa Jewell book and the first one I’ve really enjoyed! The story drew me in almost immediately. As a mom of young kids, I really felt for Kim and Tallulah. The only reason I gave this 4 and not 5 stars was because I felt like The slow burn was a little too slow at times and some things were a little predictable. Overall though, I really enjoyed it and would recommend it!

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