One hot summers day the Bright family, pregnant mum Eileen, son Jack, and daughters Merry and Joy are travelling in the family car when it breaks down. Eileen pulls the car onto the hard shoulder and tells the kids not to get out and to wait for her as she sets off to go and find an emergency phone box and call for help.

After sitting in the car for hours Jack makes the decision to go and look for his mum, taking his younger sisters with him. Unfortunately, when they reach the box their mother is nowhere to be seen. Luckily they are picked up and taken home by a police officer.

Over the coming weeks, the police are out searching for Eileen. The family all hope to have her home safely, but when her body is discovered this is the start of the downfall for all of them.

Snap is an amazing read. The words just flowed and the story seemed to develop at differing speeds, sometimes everything moved quickly, at others the plot seemed to slow down. After the initial disappearance and then the discovery of Eileen’s body, the book jumps three years and now fourteen-year-old Jack is looking after his little sisters, we also meet a new character, heavily pregnant Catherine While.

Jack is a very likeable character even with his flaws. You can understand why he does the things he does. It is all for his family. I actually felt sorry for him, well for all of them really, little children having to grow up without a mum, knowing that she was taken from them in such a hideous way.

The book has plenty of twists and turns to keep you on your toes. Ms. Bauer does like to suddenly introduce new people into the story though, such as the detectives Marvel and Reynolds. However, once you get to know them you suddenly see why they are they. The more you read the more you will come to see that all the separate plots are not just joined but intermingled.

I got through the book in no-time and I found it thrilling and oh-so-enjoyable. I do have some tiny little issues with the book, hence I awarded it 4.5 stars rather than 5. We are never told the reason behind the killing of Eileen. Yes, we find out who killed her, but we are never told why. Also, the way the book ends for the culprit had me wanting more.

The above is just my personal take on the book. Some people might not need to know why, but I felt like I did.

About the Author

Belinda Bauer grew up in England and South Africa and now lives in Wales. She worked as a journalist and a screenwriter before finally writing a book to appease her nagging mother. With her debut, Blacklands, Bauer was awarded the CWA Gold Dagger for Crime Novel of the Year. She went on to win the CWA Dagger in the Library for her body of work in 2013.

Her fourth novel Rubbernecker was voted 2014 Theakston Old Peculier Crime Novel of the Year. Her books have been translated into 21 languages. She also wrote the thriller HIGH ROLLERS under the pen name JACK BOWMAN.