When All the Girls Have Gone

by Jayne Ann Krentz

Jayne Ann Krentz, the New York Times bestselling author of Secret Sisters, delivers a thrilling novel of the deceptions we hide behind, the passions we surrender to, and the lengths we'll go to for the truth . . .

When Charlotte Sawyer is unable to contact her step-sister, Jocelyn, to tell her that one her closest friends was found dead, she discovers that Jocelyn has vanished.

Beautiful, brilliant - and reckless - Jocelyn has gone off the grid before, but never like this. In a desperate effort to find her, Charlotte joins forces with Max Cutler, a struggling PI who recently moved to Seattle after his previous career as a criminal profiler went down in flames - literally. Burned out, divorced and almost broke, Max needs the job.

After surviving a near-fatal attack, Charlotte and Max turn to Jocelyn's closest friends, women in a Seattle-based online investment club, for answers. But what they find is chilling . . .

When her uneasy alliance with Max turns into a full-blown affair, Charlotte has no choice but to trust him with her life. For the shadows of Jocelyn's past are threatening to consume her - and anyone else who gets in their way . . .

'Jayne Ann Krentz is one of my favourite romantic suspense writers. I love her feisty heroines, her sharp wit and humour, family loyalty, and all the unexpected twists and turns. When All the Girls Have Gone has all of this and more and will keep you guessing right until the end' Meg Tilly

• ISBN10: 0349409390
• ISBN13: 9780349409399
• Publish Date: 29 November 2016
• Publish Status: Withdrawn
• Out of Print: 29 March 2021
• Publish Country: GB
• Publisher: Little, Brown Book Group
• Imprint: Piatkus Books
• Format: Paperback (UK Trade)
• Pages: 352
• Language: English

Reviews

[thebookdisciple]

I wasn't sure what to expect from my first Jayne Ann Krentz read. I found an enjoyable read with really well developed characters.

Charlotte is so sunny and optimistic! I loved that about her and I enjoyed that she didn't lose that over the course of the book. Both she and Max are fresh from breakups so they are a bit insecure and wary of new relationships. However, their relationship was a bit of a side plot. Not necessarily a bad thing, but this is more a mystery story with a side of romance than a romantic suspense (in my opinion anyway!)

So, Jocelyn is Charlottes step sister. She was raped in college and the case went cold. Now, she is finding some links between rapes like hers and this investment club. So, she investigates. Yeah....we all know how THAT ends up!

There are SO MANY plots that this could have filled 5 books. No joke-there is so much going on you have to pay attention every moment. While I didn't mind that, it was difficult to keep up with everything. And with a book this long, you can't read it in one sitting, so trying to remember what happened every time I picked it back up was tricky. There are also so many POVs-main characters, side characters, etc. I love multiple pov, but this was a little overwhelming at times.

Bottom Line: great characters (even secondary characters are well developed), well crafted suspense, but a whole lot going on that might be overwhelming to some people.

[wyvernfriend]

Charlotte Sawyer needs to contact her step-sister, Jocelyn to tell her that her friend is dead, under mysterious circumstances. Max Cutler has been employed by the friend's brother to investigate and the two of them join forces.

It's complicated and messy and the story drew me in and kept me reading. Not quite 4 stars but close.

[kimbacaffeinate]

The story begins when we meet Charlotte Sawyer, a young woman who has recently been jilted. She loves her job at a retirement home but has been down in the dumps. Her sister is out of town, and she stops by to water her plants and check the mail. She finds an important message from one of her sister Jocelyn's best friends that containing a set of keys. She decides to reach out to that friend and discovers she is dead.

Max Cutler, a struggling PI who recently moved to Seattle has been asked by the deceased's brother to investigate. Police have deemed her death an overdose, but Max soon feels differently. When Charlotte arrives keys in hand, the two end up working the case together. Things escalate, and they soon find themselves in grave danger with a growing suspect list.

Krentz uses a tried and true formula with her books adding twists and characters that allow me to settle in and become engaged. In When All the Girls Have Gone, I never became completely caught up. I wasn't bored per se, but I wasn't completely pulled into the tale. The story was too predictable, with a lot of info dumps and what felt like a rushed ending to me. Having said that Charlotte and Max worked the case well together. I enjoyed the moments of suspense and seeing the pieces click into place.

I liked both characters, particularly Max with his dark childhood history. I loved the details and in fact, would like that story, but Krentz also left me unsatisfied. I want more information on his two brothers. Why isn't this a trilogy? Charlotte has been disillusioned with love, but it was nice to see that she emerged from that experience stronger and unjaded.

The romance was enjoyable, and I appreciated the mutual respect, sharing of secrets and butterfly moments.

Copy provided by publisher. This review was originally posted at Caffeinated Book Reviewer

[lizarodz]

Quite the Novel Idea http://quitethenovelidea.com http://quitethenovelidea.com/liza-reviews-girls-gone-jane-ann-krentz/

I'm a big fan of Jayne Anne Krentz's contemporary novels as well as Amanda Quick's (one of her pseudonyms) historical novels.  She always strikes just the right combination of romance and mystery and When All the Girls Have Gone is no exception. 

Charlotte moved to Seattle to live near Jocelyn, her stepsister and only living relative.  They are best friends and sisters so when Jocelyn leaves for a month-long internet-free in-the-middle of nowhere retreat, Charlotte agrees to take care of her apartment and mail.  When Jocelyn's best friends suddenly dies, and murder is suspected, Charlotte starts worrying about her sister.  Charlotte is smart, lively, and a little too trusting.  Her previous boyfriend left her five days before their wedding, leaving a financial and emotional mess behind.

Max is a private investigator hired to look into the suspected murder and that's how he meets Charlotte. They team up since it seems like they are looking for the same answers. Max is handsome, divorced and with a painful childhood. He recently moved to Seattle to restart his life and open a private investigator office.

Charlotte and Max's relationship developed quickly, but it felt very real.  That's usually the case fast moving, action packed thriller type of books.  I liked that they were protective of each other, that they said what they thought and believed and didn't kept big secrets from each other.  I like that they trusted each other and of course, that their love was genuine.

The plot is action packed and I have to confess that I suspected about one of It looks like this is the first book in a series instead of a stand-alone book.  I feel like there is so much room for more, for us to learn about Max's brothers stories too.

Overall, I really enjoyed When All the Girls are Gone.  Krentz has a magical formula that always seems to work and get my hearts strings going; it's the perfect combination of romance, hotness, mystery and murder ;)This review was originally posted on Quite the Novel Idea