Item: The Disappearing Act
Rating: 3.50
Author: quirkycat

by Catherine Steadman

THE NEW GRIPPING PSYCHOLOGICAL THRILLER FROM THE NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLING AUTHOR OF MR NOBODY AND SOMETHING IN THE WATER

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A woman has gone missing
But did she ever really exist?

Mia Eliot has travelled from London to LA for pilot season. This is her big chance to make it as an actor in Hollywood, and she is ready to do whatever it takes. At an audition she meets Emily, and what starts as a simple favour takes a dark turn when Emily goes missing and Mia is the last person to see her.

Then a woman turns up, claiming to be Emily, but she is nothing like Mia remembers. Why would someone pretend to be Emily? Starting to question her own sanity, she goes on a desperate and dangerous search for answers, knowing something is very, very wrong.

In an industry where everything is about creating illusions, how do you know what is real? And how much would you risk to find out?

Praise for Catherine Steadman

‘A thriller for our times’ Louise Candlish
‘A proper page-turner’ New York Times
'Fans of The Silent Patient will love it' CJ Tudor
'Had me racing through the pages’ Sarah Vaughan
'An enjoyable, nail-biting ride' Observer
‘Original, ingenious and utterly gripping, with characters you’ll really care about as they race towards the brilliantly unexpected ending’ JP Delaney
'From the intriguing opening to the shocking ending, I loved it…' CJ Tudor
'Very clever, brilliantly compelling, another amazing read from Catherine Steadman' BA Paris
‘A highly imaginative tale tinged with Hitchcockian tension and kinetic pacing… Deliciously provocative… Delightfully compelling’ Washington Post
'Perfectly paced with an exciting race to the end, this is one clever novel' Woman’s Weekly

Are you ready for a thriller and psychological suspense novel full of twists and turns? The Disappearing Act, written by Catherine Steadman, combines Hollywood and missing persons in this new novel.

Mia Eliot is a star in her own right – successfully landing drama roles in her home country. But now? She has her eyes set on Hollywood, and she's ready to take the world by storm. Or so she thinks. Yet when she sees the darkness that Hollywood has to offer, she's suddenly rethinking her plans.

She's finally heading to Los Angeles, just in time for the busiest event of the year: pilot season. Now is when all casting calls are happening, and Mia is hoping to make it big. Only, she's about to witness something that will change her outlook on this industry forever.

“The next few months are going to hurt, but I’m going to be okay. I will not play the role he’s cast me in. I will write my own story.”

The Disappearing Act is a novel perfect for anybody that loves darker Hollywood tales. This one isn't afraid to show the more insidious side of the entertainment industry, complete with missing persons and deception.

This is a novel that has a blend of good and bad, in equal measures. It was a fun read, and overall I really loved Catherine Steadman's writing style. However, aspects of the plot felt over the top to me. Sort of like they asked too much for me to find them believable.

However, I did actually quite like the characters portrayed. Or at least I really liked Mia, and I mostly liked the secondary characters we got to know. It was an exciting story with a whole lot of potential.

Thanks to Ballantine Books and #NetGalley for making this book available for review. All opinions expressed are my own.

Read more reviews at Quirky Cat's Fat Stacks

The Disappearing Act

by Catherine Steadman

Reviewed by Quirky Cat on Jun 28, 2021

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