By: Wendy Walker
ISBN: 1250198704
Publisher: St Martin's Press Publication Date: 09/15/20
Format: Hardcover
My Rating: 5 Stars ++ Top Books of 2020 Author Q&A The greatest risk isn’t running away. It’s running out of time. The car abandoned miles from home. The note found at a nearby hotel. The shattered family that couldn’t be put back together. They called it a “walk away.”
It happens all the time. Women disappear, desperate to leave their lives behind and start over. But is that what really happened to Molly Clarke?
My Review
"Psychologically rich, a brilliant, emotionally-charged, edgy thriller by the master of suspense. . . Full-throttle, dark, creepy, and relentless!"
A huge fan of Wendy Walker thrillers, DON'T LOOK FOR ME is her best yet! My heart was pounding with the suspense. Once you start reading, you are immediately pulled in and hooked.
Meet a family of four: wife and mother, Molly Clarke, husband John, daughter Nichole, and son Evan. They once a family of five. This is the day their world changed.
Molly feels alone. Her family is torn apart. Now spends her time driving Route 7. The long dark roads, four hours each way. To visit her son at boarding school. On the way, there is a Gas n' Go near Connecticut in a small rural town.
It is late October. Her son is a junior and is a starting lineman. She makes this trip every other Thursday to watch his home games. He really does not even care if she is there. Like her daughter and husband, they do not care about her. She drives four hours to that she could feel loved. Her daughter hates her. It was all her fault.
A storm is coming. It is raining. She cannot die. She must take care of her children, even though they are almost grown. She feels like a horrible mother. Her child Annie is gone. A hurricane was approaching. A small creepy town of Hastings. She thinks maybe she should just walk away and leave it all behind.
She whispers to herself, Don't look for me.
She is walking, a storm approaching, raining. She is out of gas. A truck stops, and she sees a small girl inside. Maybe it is a family man out to get last-minute supplies before the storm.
He offers to give her a lift. Once the door closes, she realizes she is not safe. The doors lock. She is kidnapped. Who is this man, and who is this strange little girl?
What does this man want with her? Why is he holding her hostage? When will she die? Will, her family concerned enough to look for her, or will they think she left of her own accord?
Nichole has her own guilt and is determined to find her mother.
No one knows where Molly Clarke is being held. More dangerous is the person who has her. What about the woman who disappeared years earlier? How will she escape? What if she puts her family in danger?
From this dark and creepy farmhouse, Molly is smart and clever. She must get out of this situation and get back to her family. She realizes she wants to live. However, how will she leave with this strange little girl (she will make your head spin), and the creepy dolly who has eyes and cameras watching her every move?
As secrets are unraveled, the danger heats up. Walker keeps you in suspense with vivid descriptions and settings. Not only is this a mysterious killer psychological thriller—an emotional story of grief, healing, family, and heart—a broken family with the courage and survival of those who want to mend those relationships.
Spine-chilling and unsettling, get this one on your list. Hope you enjoy the Hitchcockian twist! Top Books of 2020.
Fans of Taylor Adams No Exit, BA Paris, and Ruth Ware will devour this one. Cannot wait to learn the inspiration and the story behind the story. Check out my upcoming Elevator Ride with Author Sept 15!
A special thank you to #StMartinsPress and #NetGalley for an early reading copy.
Be sure and check out Wendy's previous books. Highly recommend all of them.
All Is Not Forgotten Emma in the Night The Night Before
Praise
Library Reads Selection
Amazon: Fall’s Must-Read Mystery/Thrillers
Newsweek: 25 Must-Read Fall Fiction and Nonfiction Books to Escape the Chaos of 2020
Popsugar: Best New Thriller and Mystery Books in September 2020
Good Morning America: 22 New Books Debuting in September 2020 to Add to Your Reading List
NetGalley: September’s Most-Anticipated Books
“DISTINCTIVE, WELL-DEVELOPED CHARACTERS COMPLEMENT THE SKILLFULLY PACED PLOT. This moving look at the bond between a mother and her children reinforces Walker’s place at the top of the genre.” —Publishers Weekly (starred review)
“WENDY WALKER’S NOVELS ARE ADDICTIVE. Like, controlled-substance addictive. And Don’t Look for Me, a thriller as intense and relentless as the metallic rain slashing across its jacket, ranks as Walker’s reigning champ.” —A. J. Finn, New York Times bestselling author of The Woman in the Window
“GRIPPING...WITH UNEXPECTED TWISTS...You’ve got a cracking mystery on your hands.”
―Adrian McKinty, author of The Chain
“A NAILBITER . . . SO MUCH MORE THAN A TWISTY THRILLER. It’s a heartbreaking portrait of a family coping with grief and an insightful study of guilt and blame, gaslighting and agency. If you love fast-paced page-turners with relatable, flawed characters, look no further!”
―Angie Kim, author of Miracle Creek
“SHARP, NUANCED, UTTERLY REAL, and ABSOLUTELY TERRIFYING,
this beautifully written and emotionally powerful novel is Walker at her best!”
―Karen Dionne, author of The Marsh King’s Daughter
“UNSETTLING IN THE VERY BEST WAY and TRULY RIVETING.”
―Samantha Downing, author of My Lovely Wife
“A PULSE-POUNDING, THRILL RIDE OF A NOVEL WITH HEART.”
―Kathleen Barber, author of Truth Be Told
“A MASTER CLASS IN PSYCHOLOGICAL SUSPENSE.”
―Cristina Alger, author of Girls Like Us
Get all the "behind the scenes"!
About the Author
Photo Credit: Bill Miles
Wendy Walker is a former family law attorney in Fairfield County, Connecticut who began writing while at home raising her three sons. She published two novels with St. Martin’s Press and edited multiple compilations for the Chicken Soup for the Soul series before writing her debut psychological thriller, All is Not Forgotten in 2016. Her second thriller, Emma In The Night, was released the following year. Her latest novel, The Night Before, was published in May 2019.
Wendy earned her J. D., magna cum laude, at the Georgetown University Law Center where she was awarded the American Jurisprudence award for her performance in Contracts and Advanced Criminal Procedure. She received her undergraduate degree, magna cum laude, from Brown University and attended The London School of Economics and Political Science as part of her undergraduate studies.
Prior to her legal career, Wendy was a financial analyst at Goldman, Sachs & Co., in the mergers and acquisitions group. She has also volunteered at the ACLU, Connecticut Legal Services and Figure Skating in Harlem where she served on the Board of Directors for over twelve years.
Wendy is currently writing her fourth thriller while managing a busy household. Read More
