And Then She Was Gone by Rosalind Noonan

Synopsis :

Eleven-year-old Lauren O'Neil vanished one sunny afternoon as she walked home from school. Six years later, her parents Rachel and Dan still tirelessly scour their Oregon hometown and beyond, always believing Lauren will be found. Then one day, the call comes.

Lauren has been rescued from a secluded farm mere miles away, and her abductor has confessed. Yet her return is nothing like Rachel imagined. Though the revelations about what Lauren endured are shocking, most heartbreaking of all is to see the bright-eyed, assertive daughter she knew transformed into a wary, polite stranger.

Lauren's first instinct is to flee. For years she's been told her parents forgot her; now she doubts the pieces of her life can ever fit together again. But Rachel refuses to lose her a second time. Little by little they must relearn what it means to be a family, trusting that their bond is strong enough to guide them back to each other.

Intensely moving and absorbing, this is an extraordinary story told with sensitivity and grace, and filled with the depth and breadth of a mother's love.


This is what I say : 

I thought this would be rather heart breaking and I was right, it was rather heart breaking but wasn't that much though.  In the hands of another author, perhaps it might be and in the hands of yet another author, it can also be a thriller...as such is the basis of  And Then Shew Was Gone which can be rather versatile to any of these genre.

I actually got bored halfway through before I motivate myself to complete it before I move on to other titles.  I didn't like Rachel, the mother and Lauren wasn't really that likable so it was a bit difficult to warm up to the family.  The story didn't really focus on Lauren as a hostage but more on how she cope with her family upon released from captivity.

There was a slight twist to the story line but I was kinda expecting it but it wasn't really that impactful as to bring a wow to the book.

I read this title as an e-book.   Reading will again have to take a back seat as yet again, I have assignments deadline to complete.