Little Girl Lost: A gripping thriller that will have you hooked (Detective Robyn Carter crime thriller series Book 1)

I truly enjoyed the way the story unfolded, each character was memorable without too much fluff. The story switches times & characters for which the author presents seamlessly, as a reader this made Little Girl Lost a pleasure to devour. I'll be eager to read more from Carol Wyer.

This is a great mystery- just when you think you have it figured out - you find that you don't! Carve out some time and become acquaintances fed detective Robyn Carter and her cast of suspects.

At times the language bugged me since I'm so used to reading 1000's of American books.This was seriously the best book I have ever read. I am a speed reader who has read A LOT of books and this is my favorite.

Little Alice is only about eight years old when her daddy dies in an accident. Her mother does not know how she will be able to take care of them. She meets and falls in love with a wealthy man who wants to marry her. They move into Paul's home. Alice does not take the move well and finds out she will have a brother and sister who are both teenagers and weird. Alice is afraid of the brother, Lucas! Her mother and Paul go out for the evening and leave Natasha to keep Alice but Natasha gets involved in a movie and doesn't realize her brother has returned until she hears him scream. She finds him on the floor of Alice's room with a pencil stuck in his eye and his pants on the floor. Alice tries to tell Christina and Paul what happened but neither one would believe her. Paul throw both mother and daughter out of the house. Christina has never worked in her life and the only jobs she can get are at bars, casinos, etc. She ends up prostituting herself and Alice has to watch this happen to her mother. They are always moving from one bad situation to the next one. Robyn Carter has been on leave from her job as a Detective Inspector for the local police for over a year for personal issues and has been helping her cousin, Ross, as a PI. The work is getting boring so she talks to her old boss about going back to work. She has just taken a case to find a missing man, Lucas Matthews. But that case looks more like a police case than a case for a private investigator. Robyn finds bodies that she is sure are all connected somehow, but how? I really enjoyed this book with all the twists and turns and I think you will too.

This book had an interesting storyline, but was confusing at times and very twisty. It was hard keeping up with each part of the story. Even though I took notes.Set in England, a young widow, Christina Forman, with an 8-year-old little girl, Alice, move in with her movie star boyfriend, Paul Matthews, and his 2 kids, Lucas 10, and Natasha 14. While the couple goes out one night, Lucas sneaks back into the house and attempts to rape little Alice, who stabs him in the eye with a pencil. Nobody believes her. Lucas denies it and comes up with some lame explanation. Natasha doesn't come clean til later because shed aeen him with her own eyes and her done it to her multiple times before. Their father Paul sends Alice and her mother away for their own safety, as he cannot control Lucas.Alice’s life is all downhill from then on. They move from house to house and her mother prostitute herself to pay for her expensive wardrobe and her cigarettes. Alice is neglected at home and is teased and taunted and bullied at school. She's also raped by one of mummy’s many boyfriends.Bad things start happening to Abigail. Weird voices, notes, texts, someone in her house, mystery illness, etc. Someone is trying to destroy her life. Bodies start dropping and then Izzy is taken.Robyn isn't a great detective. She gave out entirely too much information to the killer, while the killer still had the baby.I’ll read more in this series, but the Detective Natalie Ward series is much better.

The first part of book was boring I skipped a great deal of it. There did not seem to be a story it just jumped around. It really did not get a story until the last half. I love English detective stores usually, but this author seemed to ramble trying to find where she wanted to go. I am going to try another book to see if it was just this one book

Maybe it's just me, but I had a difficult time getting into the story. In the beginning, each chapter is dedicated to completely different characters... too many characters... and it took a while before their stories intersected enough to get a handle on who was who and how their stories were related. The plot, and all of its intersecting parts, is actually quite clever and good, but I must confess to having a difficult time keeping things and characters straight at times. To make things more complicated, the time frame also shifted between "then" and "now."That being said, some of the writing is terrific, and the author did an amazing job coming up with such a complex plot. Then again, maybe it isn't the plot that's complex; maybe it's the convoluted way in which the plot is revealed that makes it seem more complicated than it is. I dunno. Some readers might be tempted to give up on the book in the early going, but hang in there. Be patient, and all will be revealed. The author throws out enough red herrings to keep you guessing.The only part I didn't particularly like was the let's-get-this-over with conflict and resolution at the end, as though the writer simply wanted to finish writing the book. It struck me as very unlikely for there to be detailed background info-sharing between the characters and the detective when lives were at stake. I mean, if someone I care about were in dire jeopardy, I can't imagine the detective asking me to "tell me your background story again"... and me actually taking up valuable time to give it. Talk later... get the bad guy NOW!Still, all-in-all, this is an enjoyable enough read. I don't know that I'd call it a "gripping thriller," but it has its moments, and it's well worth reading.

I downloaded Little Girl Lost after watching a live chat with the author Carol Wyer, who was talking about her new release but also spoke about what lead her to write the first in the Detective Robyn Carter crime thriller series and straight away my interest was piqued so I wasted no time in downloading the first book and I started Little Girl Lost that Evening and finished it the following morning I was completely absorbed in the storyline.The book sets off at an incredibly quick pace and was sure action pact if somewhat disturbing and twisted and had me completely shocked and appalled by the events in the opening of the book that I wanted to stop reading but at the same time I wanted to see if justice was dealt. It sure was uncomfortable reading but boy did it make an impact.There were some parts of the books which I figured out early on in the storyline but there were others that I assumed I had worked out and were obvious only for the author to take me down a completely different path to show me I was wrong! The author has a wonderful way of introducing you to so many different well rounded characters that you are concentrating on them all as an individual and so are too wrapped up in a way to see the little bread crumbs of clues that lead to the truth. The tension builds as the book progresses and as each tit bit of information is given suspicions soon start rising.We know early on that Robyn has had a hard blow in her life with losing her fiancé and she is now trying to move forward with her life and devote her time to her career. She has such a comforting and supportive shoulder to lean on in Ross who was actually my favourite character in this book and I loved that he managed to bring a little light to a deep and disturbing read. I have read a few books over the last year with a female DI who has her own problems that is shaping her character but I am pleased although it is mentioned in the book it didn’t take over the storyline making it all about her.This book will definitely leave a mark on you and have you questioning your morals. I am thrilled I saw the live chat with the author otherwise I would probably have overlooked this book with it not being my typical genre but now I can not wait to read the next in the series.

After having read all of DI Natalie Ward books by Carol Wyer, I just knew I had to find time to go back and read her first crime series. It’s taken me a while to find the time, but I finally delved into DI Robyn Carter’s world this weekend.I found the book a little hard to get into, to begin with. There were a lot of different voices being presented to you, and it got a little confusing, trying to keep all the events that were happening straight in your head. You are also being introduced to a new DI; you have to get to know her past and what makes her tick. This is all alongside the alternate protagonists and the main story that is going on. I felt a little discombobulated; however, once you have all your thoughts organised the story really grips you.Robyn is a fantastic character and completely different to Natalie Ward. Robyn did remind me of Erica Foster, written by Robert Bryndza. She has a similar tragic past, way of living and brusqueness. She is unique in so many ways as well.The whole feel of the book was different from the other series by Carol Wyer. I had expected the same, but just with a different DI, I was wrong. The structure and the story-telling were varied and really engaging.I really want to go straight on to book two, but unfortunately, I have a few NetGalley commitments that I need to read first. However, the first opportunity I get I will be entering this world again and seeing what adventures Robyn Carter takes us on.

When I finished this book I just said to Carol “Finished Robyn 😱😱😱 dark and twisty Mrs Wyer” and I stand by that! I have the normal thoughts of why have I waited so long to read this but now I think good things come to those who wait! I waited and I got blown over!I listened to this book and then got impatient and read the last 10%, all the while I had been writing notes on who I thought was doing X, Y and Z. I eventually got there before Robyn, yet Carol threw an extra spanner in the works that I didn’t see coming!The prologue of this book, the start, the opening pages well blow me, they are the most disturbing and darkest I can ever remember reading! I was working from home and had the book playing and I think I just sat in shock for 5 minutes, did I just hear that?! I even questioned if it was the same book I was reading I had to check! I did not know Carol’s mind could be so…so….well is there one word that could sum up, dark, destroying, disturbing, sickening, graphical, no? Well if there is it will have a picture of Carol next to it! The prologue made such an impact it made you wonder how much darker could she go! She has made my brain go kaplooey.I thought it was refreshing to not have the book focus all on Robyn. We see the story through Abigail’s eyes as someone is completely messing with her head and trying to destroy her life. She begins to suspect so many things, someone poisoning her, that someone is in her house, that her husband is having an affair and that is just a taster of things. The way things are explained to us and described to us, I believed them too! I was blaspheming everyone when I thought Abigail was being hurt. I cared for her.When we weren’t with Abigail or Robyn, we were in the past with Alice. We learn about her in the chilling prologue and then we learn about how her life panned out after. She is one mixed up individual, no sure I can blame her with the role models she has.I never normally make notes when reading a book and it’s funny looking at them and my suspect pool. As I said I got there before Robyn, but not before I had suspected everybody else. However, that person is a frightening person indeed. That is all I am going to say on the matter!I have loved meeting Robyn, she is haunted by an event in her past, it’s still too raw for her and she pushes herself in her work and at the gym. She has a very small pool of people she can rely on, giving her a rather solitary and lonely life. However, you see her spreading her wings just a touch by the end. I loved Ross who is one of her closest people, he is a true friend, as well as family, to her plus he is the much needed comedic presence in the book, especially moaning about his diet that has been forced upon him. He brings normality to this dark tale of woe. It’s a story of things that should never have been written because it should never happen. It is definitely a book which causes ripples and taints lives before they have even begun.I loved this book, meeting Robyn is refreshing. She has baggage and guilt that she needs to address but there is a ray of hope by the end, and she’s a damn good DI! Yet, she doesn’t hog the limelight in this book and she’s happy about that. It lets her mind work while we follow Abigail and her life, obviously in a non-stalkerish way!I was so completely gripped by this book and I actually got excited to start work so I could listen to the story unfolding in front of me with all the red herrings!! It is a powerful and yet an unnerving book. It blew me away! The worrying thing is I can imagine Carol can go a lot darker and that this is just the beginning.

None of us knows what goes on behind closed doors - nor the lengths to which some people will go to protect their families and their reputation.This book opens with a shocking scene of a very young girl being abused by her older ‘brother’ - a young man with a sexual proclivity for young children.This scene is very disturbing and difficult to read - but it is central to the story, so needs to be endured.This young girl is very badly affected and disturbed by what happened to her and she grows up neither able to process it nor able to make or maintain meaningful relationships in her life.Instead, she is determined to track down and ruin the lives of all those she perceived to have let her down when she needed them most.This is the first outing for DI Robyn Carter - someone still coming to terms with her own loses - as she is tasked with investigating a series of murders and tracking down the person or persons responsible for the crimes.This is an excellent piece of writing. The characters are well formed and described and their dialogues and actions are believable. The action is fast-paced and it will leave the reader breathless and unable to stop turning the pages.I loved it!

I'm a bit mystified by all the 5 star reviews for this book. I had found Carol Wyer through her DI Natalie Ward series and thoroughly enjoyed those books. I was therefore confident that the Robyn Carter books would be equally good but I was sadly disappointed.I completely agree with previous reviewers who say that it is as if this book has been written by a different author. The writing isn't as good, the storyline is far fetched in the extreme, far too much explanatory text in italics giving the thoughts and actions of the perpetrator, (really far too much). The parts of the story written by a young Alice are not written as if spoken by a 10 year old, the narrative is all wrong and many of the references are wrong for the time, for example relating to technology which wasn't around during the time period it relates to.I don't know much about police procedure, other than being an avid reader of detective novels, but the whole storyline about Robyn returning to the police force after some time out and choosing to take a missing person case with her from private practice, in which she immediately involves other police team members and also her partner from the private detective agency (with the blessing of her superior officer), just seems highly unlikely to me. Are the police really so well staffed that they can commit a team of 4 people to searching for a middle aged man who has apparently just gone off without telling his wife? Completely unbelievable.I will give the next in the series a go, primarily because I downloaded them both together but I'm not hopeful.