Stolen by Rebecca Muddiman
| Stolen by Rebecca Muddiman | |
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| Category: Crime | |
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Reviewer: Jo Heffer
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| Summary: When Abbie Henshaw set out with her baby daughter Beth, to visit a friend living in the countryside, she had no idea that her life was about to change forever. Abbie’s car was run off the road in what appeared to be a random incident; she was brutally attacked and forced to leave her baby in the car; and Beth disappeared off the face of the earth. Beth was never found but years later, Abbie still cannot give up hope that her baby is still alive and that one day they will be reunited. | |
| Buy? Yes | Borrow? Yes |
| Pages: 360 | Date: April 2013 |
| Publisher: Moth Publishing | |
| ISBN: 9781901888867 | |
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Stolen is a gripping tale about a child who is abducted. Her mother, Abbie, was forced from her car, taken off in a van and brutally attacked. Eventually, abandoned by her attackers, she found help from passing travellers but by the time that she returned to her car, Beth, her baby, had disappeared. A police search ensued but neither Abbie’s attackers nor the baby could be found. Things are further complicated when Paul, Abbie’s husband, discovers that he is not Beth’s natural father. He leaves Abbie alone but she refuses to accept that her daughter might be dead.
Five years later, Abbie is still looking for her daughter, scanning parks and beaches and anywhere else that she is drawn to where families play happily together. She is sure that Beth must be out there somewhere especially as, since the disappearance, she has received two anonymous notes telling her that Beth is alive and well. A third mysterious message on the back of a flier for an outdoor play leads Abbie into a more desperate search. Although everyone else believes that Beth is dead, luckily D I Michael Gardner who led the original investigation is on her side. Will he be able to find Beth, if she is still alive, and if so, will he be able to bring her home to Abbie?
I was thoroughly hooked by this gripping novel from the very first pages. It moves very quickly into the action and the tension builds on every single page. The reader experiences Abbie’s sheer desperation at the loss of her baby daughter and the sense of despair as the days go on and she is not found. It feels that one is living all the dreadful moments alongside Abbie. The reader feels for her terribly and the depiction of her as a desperate mother is extremely moving.
Stolen is a well crafted novel that keeps the reader guessing all the way to the very last pages. The suspense is particularly heightened due to the short, intense chapters that entice the reader to just keep reading a few pages more each time. I could not begin to guess how things were going to turn out but as events unfolded the story was extremely plausible. As a parent though, you don’t really want to believe that such things could really happen to one’s child.
This is the first novel from Rebecca Muddiman and it promises great things for the future.
If this appeals to you, why not also take a look at Stolen Child by Laura Elliot
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You can read more book reviews or buy Stolen by Rebecca Muddiman at Amazon.co.uk Amazon currently charges £2.99 for standard delivery for orders under £20, over which delivery is free.
You can read more book reviews or buy Stolen by Rebecca Muddiman at Amazon.com.
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