The Return of Ellie Black: A Novel (Chelsey Calhoun)

An addictively dark thriller, that I absolutely loved!

Seventeen year-old Ellie Black leaves a party in search of a restroom and without a trace, she never returns. Two years later she’s discovered wandering in the woods. A shell of her former self.

Her parents and boyfriend are thankful she’s alive and try and help her in any way they can. But when it comes time for Ellie to tell the police where she has been, she stays silent and refuses to help with the investigation. Chelsey Calhoun, the lead detective assigned to Ellies case needs to find out what really happened to Ellie, because Ellie may not be the only victim.

I enjoyed the multi POV’s of the victim and the detective assigned to her case. I thought the author did a great job of writing about a sensitive subject with respect and understanding. It was twisty, shocking and heartbreaking, this story captured me from the start and kept me riveted right to the end with some surprises I didn't see coming. I had the honor of reading this ARC thanks to NetGalley, Simon and Schuster, and the author, Emiko Jean.

I am truly torn about this review. The plot is fast paced and completely held my attention right until the end. The author really drew me into the setting especially what Ellie experienced in captivity- the bus, the compound, meeting the other girls. And then we get to the end. Several of the twists just didn’t add up including who did it. And the author felt the need to give us “the moral of the story” rather than letting us draw our own conclusions. So if I could I would give this 3.5 stars because the first part was really good and I would be willing to try another book by this author.

This debut thriller started off strong (good storyline, good writing, suspenseful) but then with the last 100 pages, I found myself skimming. I liked the 2 POV's (Chelsey and Ellie) but the twists were just too unbelievable for me.

Detective Chelsey Calhoun's sister, Lydia vanished 20 years ago. When she got the call that Ellie Black had been found after missing for 2 years, she immediately went to see her at the hospital. But something wasn't right with Ellie. Was she protecting someone? She doesn't want to help with the investigation. It's up to Chelsey to find out what happened to Ellie and other missing girls. Could this be related to her own sister. Is the answer right in front of her?

Yes, there are twists but without giving anything away, I zoned out a bit when Ellie disappears again. This other storyline was distracting for me and too unbelievable. Still a fast, suspenseful read.

This book is intense. Before picking it up, I recommend checking trigger warnings because it deals with abuse, torture, psychological manipulation, and more. It is not an easy read, but it is gripping. I ended up giving it four stars. There is a piece of the ending (no spoilers) that felt out of place, almost like it was thrown in for no reason, and I also felt the villains’ motivations weren’t explained enough, which stood out because the book spends so much time exploring the psychology of the girls. That aside, I listened to it on audio and really enjoyed the narration. The tone fit perfectly, the different voices made each character distinct, and even with multiple POV it was easy to follow. I did find myself bumping the speed up to 1.5x, but that is pretty normal for me. Overall, what stood out most was how deeply the book explores the psychological toll the main character goes through. I did not find her especially relatable, but I was invested in finding out the truth and uncovering what happened. It kept me hooked from start to finish. This is a dark, chilling story that stuck with me. I will definitely be picking up more from Ms. Jean.

Bad people do bad things, but sometimes smart people outsmart them.