I was very kindly sent an early copy of The Reappearance of Rachel Price which is Holly Jackson’s new book to review and guys… it’s so good.
Like, I personally think it’s up there with A Good Girl’s Guide to Murder. Maybe not quite as good as A Good Girl’s Guide to Murder but it’s definitely close. I enjoyed Five Survive a lot but this book is on another level.
Summary:
18-year-old Bel has lived her whole life in the shadow of her mother’s mysterious disappearance. Sixteen years ago, Rachel Price vanished with no witnesses other than baby Bel who was left alone in the car. Bel is convinced that Rachel is dead and has been since she disappearde.
The case is dragged back up again when her family agree to take part in a true crime documentary about the case. But everyone is shocked when halfway through filming, Rachel reappears. She has a story about what happened to her… but Bel isn’t so sure she’s telling the truth.
Thoughts
This book is kinda long and a little bit of a slow burner but I think the characters and everything going on is enough to keep you hooked. Or, it was enough to keep me hooked anyway!
There were so many twists and turns. I loved the characters. The premise was interesting. It’s a book about family drama full of characters that you can’t trust. I thought I had it all figured out and I’d guessed some of the twists but there was so much I didn’t even consider.
I really loved Bel who is the main character. Bel Price has lived with the knowledge that her mother disappeared, leaving her behind in the car, her entire life. And, because of this, she’s a little rough around the edges. She’s definitely written to be a little unlikable, but those are always the best characters, in my opinion.
When Bel’s mother reappears and has some inconsistencies in her story, Bel immediately becomes super suspicious and begins investigating some stuff herself. The way she acted towards her mother didn’t really feel weird or unrealistic because I imagine it would be a massive adjustment from believing your mother is dead and has been for the past 16 years to finding out she’s alive and this woman you don’t know is now living in your house and trying to bond with you.
Bel tends to push people away but she explains why she does it and she definitely goes through some development.
The book is very light on romance, it probably has the least amount of romance out of any of Holly Jackson’s books but it’s not something you miss at all. Bel does have a love interest but he’s more just a friend that follows her around with a camera to document her investigation for the true crime documentary.
Like, Holly Jackson says that this is her favourite book so far and it’s so easy to see why.
This was a 5 star read for me and I’m so excited for everyone to read it. And, thank you so much to Electric Monkey for proving an early copy for me to review.
This book is released on 2nd April 2024 in the UK.
Preorder here: AMAZON | BOOKSHOP.ORG
