Before She Disappeared

A Novel (A Frankie Elkin Novel, Book 1)

By: Lisa Gardner

Narrated by: Hillary Huber

2022 Audie Award Finalist for Best Female Narrator

THE INSTANT NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER

From #1 New York Times bestselling author Lisa Gardner, a propulsive thriller featuring an ordinary woman who will stop at nothing to find the missing people that the rest of the world has forgotten

Frankie Elkin is an average middle-aged woman, a recovering alcoholic with more regrets than belongings. But she spends her life doing what no one else will--searching for missing people the world has stopped looking for. When the police have given up, when the public no longer remembers, when the media has never paid attention, Frankie starts looking.

A new case brings her to Mattapan, a Boston neighborhood with a rough reputation. She is searching for Angelique Badeau, a Haitian teenager who vanished from her high school months earlier. Resistance from the Boston PD and the victim's wary family tells Frankie she's on her own--and she soon learns she's asking questions someone doesn't want answered. But Frankie will stop at nothing to discover the truth, even if it means the next person to go missing could be her.

©2021 Lisa Gardner. (P)2020 Brilliance Publishing, Inc., all rights reserved.

Critic reviews

"Prolific, award-winning narrator [Hillary] Huber delivers a gripping performance that draws listeners in quickly and holds on tightly in the first standalone from Gardner in nearly two decades.… Huber’s sardonic tones bring Frankie’s sarcastic and sharp character to life in an engaging way, setting this crime novel apart from similar titles in the genre." (Booklist)

“Narrator Hillary Huber's wry intonation perfectly matches the personality of loner amateur detective Frankie Elkin.… Huber's pace quickens as Frankie races to make Angelique the fifteenth girl she recovers, and, she hopes, the first one to be found alive.” (AudioFile Magazine)

“Fans of this incredible author, police procedurals, timely immigrant stories, strong determined women, and tales that are not tied up with a pretty bow at the end will not be able to get enough of this intense page-turner.” (Library Journal, starred review)

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OMG!!!!

This book is fantastic!!!
I loved every single minute of it!!
I've always been a huge fan of Lisa Gardner, so i wasn't surprised that it's so good but it's way beyond what i expected.

Narration:
I must be honest, I've never been a Hillary Huber fan. She wasn't a deal breaker. i could tolerate her but she wasn't a favorite. But SHE IS Frankie Elkin. She is absolutely wonderful!

DId i mention that I LOVED THIS BOOK!!?? Please let this turn into a series! i want more of Frankie and the Detective!!

Not what I expected

Like Lisa Gardner and detective DD Warn series so I thought I would give this book a chance. It was very good and not what I expected.

I find the characters interesting. The main character with a savor complex is actually not a strong character but that works as all of the casts surrounding this plane character come to life so much more. From Stoney the bar owner, Piper the vicious cat, and others seem so lively to her simple. In a book like this, I think that helps. She becomes the eyes of the reader who is thrusted into a world unknowingly and had to learn with the character the players and world.

The voice acting is great! Really brings the book to life. I think it also helps shape the world and characters especially the switch between worlds and ages. Brings home the story.

If I had a flaw it’s a bit on pacing. Resolution and a major tone switch of a character doing something completely unexpected feels a bit rushed. If there has been some back story or side events pointing to that level of change would have been more plausible. The story hinted at extremes but not that extreme.

Overall a good book and acting and would recommend to almost anyone looking for a thrilling mystery or crime novel. Also think some causal readers might enjoy it too.

Good story

Slow to get started, but once you get engaged in the story it keeps you going.

Good but not for me

In 1950s TV, the Lone Ranger and his Indian companion Tonto went around helping sheriffs, ranchers and farmers in the old west. They had no jobs and weren't paid for their efforts. In Before She Disappeared, Frankie Elkin goes from place to place to help find missing people. She has no money and, although she's an alcoholic, she works as a bartender to earn her room and board. Narrated in the first person, the story follows Franke's search for Angelica, a smart Haitian teenager, who is missing from the Boston home where she lived with her aunt and brother. Franke works with a handsome Boston cop, who she wants to sleep with. Because they have little in the way of evidence, much of the story consists of speculation about Angelica and why she disappeared. The book was well written but repetitive and somewhat depressing. The narration was fine but, in a story set in Boston in which most of the characters are black, it was strange that no one had a Massachusetts accent or sounded black. This is the first book in a series but I have no interest in reading more about Ms. Elkin.

I enjoyed this story

I liked the story and the performance. Looked forward to picking up where I left off.