Elisabeth Carpenter

11 Missed Calls by Elisabeth Carpenter, Anna's mother vanished thirty years ago. Anna believed her mother was dead, but suddenly, she starts receiving notes—could they be from her mother? Her father remarried her mother's best friend, raising questions about a possible affair. Anna is struggling; she knows little about her mother, and no one will disclose the events of that night. Frustrated by claims of her insanity and urged to forget her mother, Anna seeks her husband's support, only to discover a photo that suggests he might be unfaithful.
Previously, Anna had obsessively followed a woman resembling her mother, leading her family to worry she might repeat the past. The narrative alternates between the present and thirty years prior, revealing characters whose identities may not be as they seem. As Anna feels increasingly threatened and suspects she's being followed, she must unravel why someone is determined to conceal the truth from her.… (altro)

This is quite emotionally intense with quite a focus on mental illness. The present-tense narrative didn't work (but then, it never does, in my opinion). Nor, in this instance, did the first-person POV; the disappearance of a young mother on holiday in Tenerife has a profound effect on more than just the main narrator, and we never really quite get into the minds of the other characters also distressingly affected by it all. There are, in fact, two narrators: the mother who disappeared, telling her story, and the daughter, Anna, telling her story, thirty years later. The build-up to the ending is compelling, but the final 'reveal' was a little disappointing, flat and a tad unbelievable.

Although I did quite enjoy it, it turns out that the book blurb is slightly misleading. 'And then a body is found'. Well, yes, but not until the very end and you've pretty much guessed whose it is by 75%, in any case. Moreover, the title is also misleading. The '11 missed calls' only get a brief and passing mention. If you blinked while reading that bit, you could well have missed it.

It's quite well written and the author certainly portrayed both narrators well. The anguish and anxiety of them both came over well and sympathetically.

Editing-wise, I do wish authors and their editors would learn that standing is not the same as standing up and sitting is not the same as sitting down. Look it up.

Okay, but not great.… (altro)

Wow! I loved this book. It's a super fast-paced story that had me on the edge of my seat and looking back now I can see that all of the clues were there but I walked, no make that RAN, past every one of them. If reading was a race, I would have won a gold medal for reading 99 Red Balloons.

With two stories of missing children, both are absolutely heartbreaking. Firstly, the story in the present is of sisters, Emma and Steph. Emma's daughter, Grace, has gone missing and it's usually a time when the family would rally round but this family is ODD. Emma and Steph's mother virtually has to be dragged there to support her daughter and Emma's husband seems to be hiding something...something that Steph is privy to.

The past story is about Maggie whose granddaughter, Zoe, was abducted. Zoe's mother, Sarah, died of a broken heart and Maggie never gave up looking for Zoe. She knows exactly what Emma is going through and I've read enough psychological thrillers to know that the two stories would link somehow, but I didn't expect them to come together is such a spectacular fashion.

99 Red Balloons is a proper edge of your seat, race against time, rollercoaster ride that had my heart rate soaring to danger levels. A magnificent debut by Elisabeth Carpenter that will be difficult to beat. Highly recommended.

I chose to read an ARC and this is my honest and unbiased opinion.… (altro)