My enormous thanks to Rachel Kennedy at Arrow Publishing for sending me a copy of Now You See Her by Heidi Perks in return for an honest review and for inviting me to be part of the launch celebrations for the book. Initially I didn’t think I’d have time to read for review but once I picked up Now You See Her I couldn’t put it down so I’m delighted to have my review to share today.

Published today in hardback, Now You See Her is available for purchase in hardback and e-book here.

Now You See Her

Charlotte is looking after her best friend’s daughter the day she disappears. She thought the little girl was playing with her own children. She swears she only took her eyes off them for a second.

Now, Charlotte must do the unthinkable: tell her best friend Harriet that her only child is missing. The child she was meant to be watching.

Devastated, Harriet can no longer bear to see Charlotte. No one could expect her to trust her friend again.

Only now she needs to. Because two weeks later Harriet and Charlotte are both being questioned separately by the police. And secrets are about to surface.

Someone is hiding the truth about what really happened to Alice.

My Review of Now You See Her

Four year old Alice disappears when Charlotte is supposed to be looking after her for friend Harriet.

Wow. Just wow. Now You See Her is utterly and completely brilliant. I genuinely could not put it down.

The structure of Now You See Her works fabulously well as there are first person points of view from both Charlotte and Harriet so that it’s tricky to decide which of the two women deserves more sympathy or reader trust, making for a gripping read. The Now and Before sections lend a pace that is breathtaking. My heart was thumping at times and at one point I literally exclaimed aloud, ‘What! Did I really just read that?’ because Heidi Perks creates a story line that shocks and surprises. I really thought it was fabulous.

In fact, it’s difficult to say too much about the plot without revealing aspects that would spoil the read for others but I will say that it is riveting, fast paced and thrilling. I’m always slightly cynical when books are marketed with strap-lines like ‘The complusive thriller you need to read’ but in this case it is and you do!  The themes of friendship, control, relationships and trust are interwoven with such skill that Heidi Perks brings the reader’s own morals into question and makes them wonder how they might react and behave in similar circumstances. I found the ways in which social media use and school gate politics were presented was so astute and realistic too. I thought Heidi Perks’ style was masterly, being both intelligent and so readable.

Charlotte, Harriet and Brian are such compelling inventions. Each character is so convincing that they created very strong responses in me as a reader. Again I can’t reveal why but I’d defy anyone reading Now You See Her not to feel some very conflicting emotions! After I’d finished the book I kept wondering what was happening to Charlotte and Harriet and had to convince myself they are not actually real people.

I thought Now You See Her was an outstanding thriller. I was so immersed in it that I put my life on hold until I had read every word in one sitting. I loved it.

About Heidi Perks

Heidi Perks was born in 1973. She lives by the sea in Bournemouth with her husband and two children.

Heidi graduated from Bournemouth University in 1997 with a BA (Hons) in Retail Management, and then enjoyed a career in Marketing before leaving in 2012 to focus on both bringing up her family and writing.

Heidi successfully applied for a place on the inaugural Curtis Brown Creative online Novel Writing Course and after that dedicated her time to completing her first novel, Beneath The Surface.

She has a huge interest in what makes people tick and loves to write about family relationships, especially where some of the characters are slightly dysfunctional.

You can follow Heidi on Twitter @HeidiPerksBooks and find her on Facebook.

There’s more with these other bloggers too: