Book Review – When You Disappeared by John Marrs

Goodreads Synopsis:

When Catherine wakes up alone one morning, she thinks her husband has gone for a run before work. But Simon never makes it to the office. His running shoes are by the front door. Nothing is missing—except him.

Catherine knows Simon must be in trouble. He wouldn’t just leave her. He wouldn’t leave the children.

But Simon knows the truth—about why he left and what he’s done. He knows things about his marriage that it would kill Catherine to find out. The memories she holds onto are lies.

While Catherine faces a dark new reality at home, Simon’s halfway around the world, alive and thriving. He’s doing whatever it takes to stay one step ahead of the truth.

But he can’t hide forever, and when he reappears twenty-five years later, Catherine will finally learn who he is.

And wish she’d stayed in the dark.

My Opinion:

Catherine wakes up one morning to find her husband, Simon, gone. She isn’t too concerned and assumes he has just gone out for a jog. It isn’t until he does not show up for work and does not return home that she realizes something must have happened to him. This is the premise of this story…where did Simon go? And why did he leave without a word?

The story alternates time periods and the perspective of Catherine and Simon. This format works really well for this book and John Marrs does a fantastic job of building the storyline and slowly revealing all of the hidden secrets, big and small, that this story has to offer.

It was a bit of a slow burn for me. I enjoyed Catherine’s storyline more than Simon’s. I found myself really despising Simon for leaving his wife and children without a word. She is suddenly thrust into being a single parent and needing to provide for her children both emotionally and financially. I can’t imagine the courage it would take to do that! How does one not completely fall apart while missing the love of your life under circumstances that you don’t understand.

As if I didn’t feel bad enough for Catherine and the children, there is a part about halfway through the book involving the family dog that nearly broke my heart (no, he didn’t die). I had to step away for a moment to compose myself…grrr that Simon!

This book won’t go down as an all-time favorite, but I did enjoy it and look forward to reading more by John Marrs.

Do you have a favorite John Marrs book?

*Thank you NetGalley, Thomas & Mercer, and John Marrs for the opportunity to read and review this book for my honest opinion.

Book Details:

My Rating: 3.5/5
Genre: Mystery
Series: None
Publisher: Thomas & Mercer
Publication Date: 9/7/2017
Pages: 350 (eBook)

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