Lisa Gardner | FIND HER

Plot (via Goodreads):

Seven years ago, carefree college student Flora Dane was kidnapped while on spring break. For 472 days, Flora learned just how much one person can endure.

Miraculously alive after her ordeal, Flora has spent the past five years reacquainting herself with the rhythms of normal life, working with her FBI victim advocate, Samuel Keynes. She has a mother who's never stopped loving her, a brother who is scared of the person she's become, and a bedroom wall covered with photos of other girls who've never made it home.

When Boston detective D. D. Warren is called to the scene of a crime--a dead man and the bound, naked woman who killed him--she learns that Flora has tangled with three other suspects since her return to society. Is Flora a victim or a vigilante? And with her firsthand knowledge of criminal behavior, could she hold the key to rescuing a missing college student whose abduction has rocked Boston? When Flora herself disappears, D.D. realizes a far more sinister predator is out there. One who's determined that this time, Flora Dane will never escape. And now it is all up to D. D. Warren to find her.

Review:

So, I kind of read Look for Me and Never Tell by Lisa Gardner before I read Find Her and I had an idea about Flora's backstory and her relationship with D.D., but I had no idea what I was into. Here's the thing; I love Gardner's writing and the way she can tell a story like no other. Her writing is seamless and well-detailed and yet leaves just enough to readers imagination to find them fighting their way through the pages in a feverish manner to get to the bottom of whatever story she is telling. Find Her is now one of my favorite novels of all-time and definitely my favorite of Lisa Gardner.

The way this story was told definitely is what did it for me. There was so much going on within every page and the action never stopped. We have all enjoyed the trend of multiple timelines or multiple perspectives within thrillers and suspense novels, but with this story, Gardner takes two perspectives combined with two timelines and left me with one whopper of two thrilling tales. I absolutely loved Flora Dane and getting a really invasive look into what happened to her when she was missing for over a year was harrowing and effective in building her character. I really liked that even though this was a D.D. Warren case and the series is built around her, that I felt as though Flora was the actual main character in this book if you read it as a standalone. This wasn't just a police procedural that featured her as a secondary character to wrap the story around, she was front and center in all aspects of this novel and it really helped shape her as a character. As for D.D., she was as lovable and brazen as always and even though I want to go back in this series to get a better feel for her as a person instead of just a detective, I absolutely love her character. She is so intelligent and determined and I loved putting together the pieces of this novel with her.

I don't want to say much else regarding this story because the synopsis alone should tell you that it is one hell of a tale, but this was one brilliant thriller with so much detail and great characters to carry this story that not only do I think people will love this one, but if you'r like me, you'll be making a list of all of the D.D. Warren books to start from the beginning.

Rating: 5/5