The Invisible Ones

by Stef Penney

In a hospital bed, small-time private investigator Ray Lovell veers between paralysis and delirium. Before the accident that landed him there, he’d been hired to find Rose Janko, the wife of a charismatic son of a travelling gypsy family, who went missing seven years earlier. Half Romany himself, Ray is well aware he’s been hired more for his blood than his investigative skills. Still, he’s surprised by the intense hostility he encounters from the Jankos, who have been touched by tragedy—they’re either cursed or hiding a terrible secret. Ray can’t help but suspect that this mystery in their past is connected to Rose’s disappearance.

Genres: Mystery, Fiction, Crime, Thriller, Audiobook, Book Club, Mystery Thriller

416 pages, Hardcover

First published January 1, 2011

About the author

Stef Penney grew up in the Scottish capital and turned to film-making after a degree in Philosophy and Theology from Bristol University. She made three short films before studying Film and TV at Bournemouth College of Art, and on graduation was selected for the Carlton Television New Writers Scheme. She has also written and directed two short films; a BBC 10 x 10 starring Anna Friel and a Film Council Digital Short in 2002 starring Lucy Russell.

She won the 2006 Costa Book Awards with her debut novel The Tenderness of Wolves which is set in Canada in the 1860s. As Stef Penney suffered from agoraphobia at the time of writing this novel, she did all the research in the libraries of London and never visited Canada.

-Wikipedia

Reviews

[Paromjit · Rating 5 out of 5]

I loved The Tenderness of Wolves, so I had high hopes for this novel. This is a different book from that, but no less impressive. It centres on the gypsy community, its folklore, customs and rituals. The focus is on the Janko family and the disappearance of Rose, the wife of Ivo, nearly seven years ago. She apparently left after the birth of Christo who had inherited the family disease. She could not cope and ran of with a gorgio (non gypsy).

Ray Lovell is a half gypsy, private investigator hired to find Rose, knowing there is a possibility that she is dead. His ancestry gives him access to the gypsy community. The story is narrated through Ray and JJ, a young Janko clan member. It begins with Ray in hospital after he has apparently been in a accident, with serious injuries and a loss of memory. It becomes clear that he has been poisoned and how he got where he is emerges through the book. The Janko family is an exceedingly unlucky clan, losing family member after family member. Family secrets are uncovered as is the gypsy way of life. Ray finds love again although the path to it is rocky.

It is a atmospherically written story, that is well structured and beautifully plotted. I loves the insights it offered of a hard to know community. A thoughtful and intelligent book well worth reading.

[Annet · Rating 4 out of 5]

Great mystery/thriller, dark atmosphere, sublime story, a plot that keeps you wondering (well... me), unusual characters. Now this is what a good thriller mystery should be like.

I see this book is not on a lot of lists of my goodreads friends. Kind of surprising. Maybe it hasn't broken through properly yet, because this is a good book published in 2011, and a good writer. I read her first novel The Tenderness of Wolves, enjoyed that one and noted this one down, found it by chance in a bookstore on the shelves. This is a totally different type of story. It's the story about Rose Janko, who has been missing for seven years. The father of Rose visits private investigator Ray to discover Rose's fate. What happened to her? It is not without chance that Ray is chosen, he is a half gypsy (and thus also half 'gorjio'- his father Roman, his mother gorjio) and Rose married into a gypsy family, the Janko's. Ray must win the trust of the secretive, deceptive and dangerous Janko family, whose charismatic son Ivo became Rose's husband. Did she leave her little son Christo behind, supposedly because he is suffering from a mysterious 'family disease' that killed a number of males in the Janko family? It is obvious the Janko family love little Christo, protect him and blame Rose for leaving. Ray gets drawn into a dark mystery he does not seem able to solve, drawn back into a gypsie atmosphere he left behind a long time ago, and all with great danger to himself. The story is told alternately by Ray and JJ, a young Janko boy, coming of age.

Really a strong story about a disturbed family. Not the run of the mil mystery I would say. there are so many around... this one stands out for me. I recommend this one to all who love a good psychological mystery thriller!

[Kathy · Rating 5 out of 5]

I've been waiting and waiting for a new Stef Penney since reading and loving her debut novel, The Tenderness of Wolves. Well, the wait was worth it. Stef Penney has written another great novel that delves into the secret lives of people who are set apart from the mainstream life of the world. In this latest novel, it is the Gypsy life of the Travelers that is the focus of the action and the mystery involving a missing woman of that life. While many Gypsies have left the road and settled in "brick," or permanent houses in the 1980's England, the small group of which this missing woman was a part is still living in their trailers and banding together for support. Ray Lovell, who is half Romany himself, is hired as the investigator by Rose Janko's father to find out what happened to his daughter seven years ago when she disappeared. As in her first novel, Penney has shown great skill at creating an isolated world full of secrets and survival. Her ability to give the reader characters that draw the reader in and keep said reader riveted to their unfolding lives is second to none. The story is told in alternating chapters by Lovell, starting with his near death hospitalization and working backwards for a while, and by J.J. Janko, a teenage member of the Janko group of Travelers from which Rose disappeared. I was fascinated with the insights into the Romany life. I finished this book quickly, as I just couldn't stop reading its captivating story. I do hope that Ms. Penney doesn't keep me waiting as long for her next brilliant book as she did this one. She is an extraordinary talent, and we readers are lucky to have her.

[BrokenTune · Rating 3 out of 5]

This was an unexpected read. I had picked up the book without reading the blurb.

As it turns out, it tells the story of a private investigator who is hired to find out about the disappearance of a woman within the traveller community.

One of the aspects that made the book quite entertaining is that the POV changes between different characters - the PI and a 14 year-old boy. Penney got the tone of voice just right for both of the narrators and this made it quite interesting to see the two different takes on the same plot. In a way it reminded me a lot of The Casual Vacancy (which I liked a lot) - just with less social criticism. The dialogues really managed to portray the characters, more than any long-winded description ever could.

What didn't work so well was that some of the story was dragged out longer than it needed to be. Maybe some of the background could have been left out. However, it does not distract too much from the story.

My one and only real gripe with the story is this one (without adding too much of a spoiler): Why Wales? I was a little knocked side-ways with this.

Anyway, now I can hardly wait to read Stef Penney's first book The Tenderness of Wolves.

[T. Greenwood · Rating 2 out of 5]

I picked this book up because I am fascinated by gypsies, and I was excited to have found a novel about this elusive community of people (so much so that I was willing to slog through 400 of the slowest, most repetitive pages for even the slightest insight into this culture). The novel is a standard mystery novel, told from the point of view of Ray, a P.I., and J.J., a teenage gypsy. There is the search for a gypsy woman and a love story of sorts between the P.I. and one of the gypsy family members. But ultimately, nothing is resolved until the last ten pages and the twist is so implausible and ridiculous I nearly hurled the book across the room.

[Martha · Rating 5 out of 5]

Any book that makes me look like a lunatic in a corner of a tea shop deserves five stars from me. I wanted to finish the book in the shop but I kept getting annoyed/curious/scared/worried stares from people when I got to the twist and started whispering "what? ... what?!! ... what the f--?!!". I wasn't embarrassed, instead I wanted to look back at them and say "can you believe this?!!" while pointing at a book looking incredulous with one eyebrow raised. But I didn't want to be banned in there. I like their tea. It was then I knew I had to finish the book within the confines of my bedroom. There I can be free.

Seriously, though. This one came as a surprise from the very second I found it on my office table (thanks, Bart!). Heh. I always say I like a good mystery so this falls under that category. Another thing I like is culture. I know people always say we should be free from culture that constricts the society (and this book is filled with it since it's about some Romany gypsies living and thriving to keep their traditions in the retro era) but I always believed the only way we can free ourselves of anything is to understand it. Not hating it and running away from it. But let's not get off topic. When I read this I realized I don't know much about gypsies except ... well, Esmeralda's of the Hunchback of Notre Dame and her people ...erm ... sorry yeah, ignorant, I know. It's an interesting setting with sympathetic characters. Too bad about Tene, though.

So anyhoo, the twist. It was kinda ridiculous, I know, but it worked for me. I've read stuff with more ridiculous plots they should be classified as fantasy. This one is realistic enough for me. Now please excuse me while I hunt her other book down.

[Laura · Rating 4 out of 5]

Another good, solid story with sympathetic characters in an interesting locale.
As with her fantastic debut novel, The Tenderness of Wolves, Penney’s second book, The Invisible Ones, can be categorized as a mystery, but it is really a story of human drama that just happens to have a dead body and a missing person in it.

When the story opens, Private Investigator Ray Lovell opens his eyes in a hospital bed to find that he’s temporarily paralyzed and has no memory of how he got there. He’s currently investigating a missing person; a young Romany, or English Gypsy, and has been in contact with many of her family members. Turns out Ray is half Romany himself, allowing him access to a culture that even in 1980’s England is still wary of outsiders and considered second-class by main-stream society. As the story unfolds we get to know the members of this complicated and troubled family as told through Ray’s investigating and through the eyes of the youngest family member, J.J.

Both Ray and J.J. are winning characters who are trying to fit into a seemingly ever-changing world that has hit them with some hard knocks. Even though Ray suspects foul play he can’t nail down the details and he occasionally gets in his own way. J.J. begins to realize that his protected little slice of life might be susceptible to caving in.

Beautifully paced and with several surprises at the end, Penney has created another stunning novel.

[Nigel · Rating 3 out of 5]

I did like the idea of this book and the ending worked well for me. As for the bit inbetween - I think it was rather slow/overlong for a detective thriller for my liking. I did genuinely enjoy the story of a missing gypsy bride being investigated by a gypsy private investigator and the characters in the story most worked well for me. Other than the issue with pace the other thing that struck me as less than convincing was the "voices" of the two people narrating the story. We have JJ, a 14 year old Gypsy boy and Ray as the 40 year old private investigator. The main problem I had with this was that JJ voice often seemed rather old (& yet naive at times) for a 14 year old and Ray's voice seemed rather young for a divorced 40 year old. I'd read more of Stef Penney's stories but if you want tense gypsy detective work then maybe look at Jay Stringer's work. This book probably deserves 3.5 to me.

[Diane S ☔ · Rating 4 out of 5]

This isn't a book that can be rushed through, but a book to slowly savor. Told in alternate chapters by two different narrators, one is a gypsy private detective hired to look for a missing person and the other is a thirteen year old boy who lives with the traveling gypsy family the girl had married in to.
As the book progresses layers are slowly peeled away and more is revealed about the girl, the gypsy culture and family and the narrators personalities and lives. The ending is a stunning reveal. Loved it!

[Leah · Rating 5 out of 5]

Living on the margins…

It’s seven years since Rose Janko went missing, and finally, following his wife’s death, her father Leon Wood wants to find her. Rose was married to Ivo Janko in an arranged match, a traditional part of her Romany Gypsy heritage. But rumour has it she ran away with a gorjio (non-Romany) not long after the birth of a son, a little boy called Christo who had inherited the mysterious disease that seems to be the curse of Janko men, leaving them weak and underdeveloped and often dying before they reach adulthood. Knowing that Gypsies would not welcome a gorjio investigating their affairs, Leon hires Ray Lovell, himself half-Gypsy on his father’s side although he was brought up gorjio style – living in a house rather than travelling. Ray soon finds that the mystery of Rose’s disappearance is stranger and darker than it first appears, and finds himself deeply involved in the Janko family’s lives.

The book is told by two different narrators – Ray, the detective, and JJ, a 14-year-old boy who is one of the Jankos. Ray is somewhat in the tradition of noir gumshoe narrators – world-weary and with his own sorrows to bear. However, oddly I found Ray too well-developed to stay in that box – he is given more of a background than noir detectives usually are, and one feels his world-weariness is probably a temporary state brought on by his recent marital break-up. His position as the son of a Gypsy gives him the entrée to the Jankos’ world, but his gorjio upbringing puts him firmly on the margins – not fully accepted.

JJ is also on the margins for different reasons. Brought up in the world of travellers, he is nevertheless constrained by law to go to school, where he learns how different his lifestyle is to kids living in houses, but also knows that they’re more alike than otherwise – sharing tastes in music, food, films, etc., and feeling all the same pains of adolescence. Penney doesn’t make the point overtly, but it’s clear how compulsory education impacts the Traveller communities, partly by forcing them to remain static during school terms, and partly by introducing their children at an early age to the majority culture. JJ is a bright kid, probably destined for college if he chooses, after which he will have career options that may take him far from the traditional Gypsy life. Penney handles his voice excellently, with only a very occasional blip when he uses language that makes him sound too adult or too well educated.

As Ray begins to dig into the past to find out what happened to Rose, we learn about the Jankos’ way of life and the things that are important to them. Their story is one of tragedy, with the males of the family being afflicted by a disease that has gradually killed off the younger generations. Their hesitancy towards civic authorities makes them reluctant to seek medical help, while their traditions and superstitions mean they tend to think in terms of a curse rather than an illness. Ray, straddling the divide, wants to help Christo – the last of the Janko line, and becoming more frail by the day. But we see how getting involved in “the system” presents a threat to a culture of which the state disapproves, sometimes openly, sometimes tacitly. Penney published the book in 2011 but set it in the 1980s – I was left wondering if we’re better now at offering help to marginal communities without demanding they give up their traditions and become part of the mainstream. I expect not, and to be truthful, as part of that mainstream, I’m quite ambivalent about how far we should go to accommodate different sub-cultures, especially if their traditions impinge on the health or educational opportunities of their children. (To be clear, that’s my thought – Penney is not in any way taking a polemical stance for or against Gypsy culture.)

The actual mystery is rather secondary to the more interesting examination of modern Gypsy life. This is just as well, since I felt it was fairly obvious from about halfway through what had happened. I still felt the slow way that Penney revealed it to her characters was very well done, as was her depiction of their reactions when they learned the truth, and I found it understandable that it took them longer to see that truth than the reader. There are elements in it that give it an air of unease, especially in the middle. I’m finding it hard to put my finger on exactly why that happens – I think it’s a combination of the mysterious illness and of some rather hallucinatory scenes involving Ray, which I won’t go into further for fear of spoilers.

Overall, I found this completely absorbing. It’s a long read, and I found it slow but not in the sense of dragging – more that there’s a lot packed in alongside the central mystery. I’ve seen other reviewers expressing irritation with the pace and with the final reveal which seems to have crossed many people’s credulity line. I must say I found it quite believable, because of the excellence of the characterisation and the quality of so much of the story taking place in marginal spaces, where lines of behaviour and cultural norms are blurred. There are a couple of loose ends I’d have liked to see tied off more neatly, but on the whole I found the conclusion satisfying. And I appreciated the insight Penney provided into this community, now so often lumped in with other traveller groups but still clinging to their own distinct traditions and culture, even as many of them give up the travelling life and become house-dwellers.

www.fictionfanblog.wordpress.com

[Nora|KnyguDama]

Knyga į mano rankas pateko atsitiktinai. Tiesiog vaikščiojau bibliotekoje tarp lentynų, užsisvajojusi glosčiau knygas, varčiau ir būtent "Nematomuosius" užgriebiau. Ne viršelis ir ne autorės pavardė mano akį patraukė. Susidomėjau būtent istorijos veikėjais, kuriuos būtent knygos pavadinimas ir apibūdina. "Nematomieji" - knyga apie čigonus. Apie žmones, kurių visuomenė sąmoningai vengia, galbūt net bijo. Nesu skaičiusi daug knygų apie juos, iš tikro net vienos dabar neįvardinčiau, tad natūralu, kad iš bibliotekos išėjau nešina šiuo romanu.

Knyga prasideda privataus detektyvo Rėjaus prabudimu ligoninėje. Jis nepamena kas jam nutiko, tačiau dešinė jo pusė paralyžiuota, o daktarai sako, jog ir nuodytas buvo. Nuo tada istorija eina atbuline eiga iki šio įvykio. Pas Rėjų atvyksta Leonas, prašydamas surasti prieš 7 metus dingusią jo dukrą Rozą. Tiek Leonas tiek Roza - romai. O Rėjų Leonas pasirinko dėl to, kad ir pat Rėjus to "juodo kraujo" turi. Roza susituokė su kitos šeimos romu, pagimdė jam neįgalų sūnelį ir, kaip kalbos sklinda, pabėgo su gorjio (taip jie vadina ne romų kilmės žmones). Nors daugelis įsitikinę, kad Roza jau seniai negyva, tėvas tiki jog Rėjus gali surasti jo dukrą gyvą ir sveiką. Rėjus imasi užduoties. Jis pradeda tirti visą Rozos gyvenimą: susipažįsta su jos buvusio vyru Ivo, keista "šeimos liga" sergančiu mažyliu Kristu, paaugliu Džei Džei ir dar keletu čigonų šeimos narių. Visi jie gyvena vagonėliuose, neturi daugybės įprastų patogumų ir nuolat keliauja iš vienos vietos į kitą.

Kita istorijos pusė pasakojama iš Džei Džei lūpų. Tai paprastas paauglys kamuojamas kiek kitokių paaugliškų rūpesčių. Gyvendamas vagonėlyje, jis negali čia atsivesti draugų, jam gėda prisipažinti iš kur jis kilęs ir kaip augęs. Dalis romų jį smerkia už tai, jog jis mokosi, o neina uždarbiauti kartu su kitais romais. Džei Džei labai myli Kristą ir savo mamą, prisimena ir Rozą, ir tais prisiminimais dalijasi su detektyvu Rėjumi.

Šitas pasakojimo padalijimas dviems lūpoms man labai patiko. Autorė puikiai atskyrė Rėjaus toną nuo paaugliškos Džei Džei kalbos. Skyreliai buvo trumpi, tad per puslapius tiesiog skridau ir gana greitai įveikiau romaną. Tai kartu ir detektyvas, šiek tiek meilės istorijos, šiek tiek trilerio. Kalbant apie detektyvinę liniją - ji šiek tiek lėtoka, tačiau verčiant puslapius pajauti pagreitį, o pabaiga be galo nustebino. Bent jau mane. "Nematomuosius" skaičiau besimėgaudama įvairiomis detalėmis apie romus, jų tradicijas, papročius bei gyvenimo būdą. Mano galva, tai pridedantis autentiškumo, didžiulis pliusas šiai knygai. Rekomenduočiau romaną keistokas knygas mėgstantiems skaitytojams, ne "šaudau gaudau" tipo detektyvų mėgėjai taip pat čia rastų malonumo.

[HippieWitch · Rating 5 out of 5]

This was a really great read and highly recommended

[Mallory · Rating 4 out of 5]

For a listen, I enjoyed this quite a lot. Would it have kept me as riveted if I were just reading? I don't know, but the pacing was very good and I think the dual narrators/perspectives helped, too, in keeping the plot moving forward. Dan Stevens does an incredible job in giving every character, even females, a distinct voice and feel. The basic plot is about a young gypsy woman who went missing some years ago and the private detective hired to find her. As he questions various family members and receives conflicting accounts and information, he begins to realize there is much more hidden in this secretive family.
I did not know very much about gypsies or the gypsy community, so this novel was both enlightening and heartbreaking.

[Andrea · Rating 4 out of 5]

Loved the story! It takes you into a world we know so little about, a world that still exists but has always been shrouded in mystery. At least for me ... I remember when I was a child, there used to be gypsies coming round to our town every year and make camp down by the river for a few days or weeks. It was also my and my friends' playground, but when the gypsies were in town, our mothers did not allow us to go there ... did not even allow us to leave the house by ourselves. Reading the book, I found that the "stigma" that has always been attached to the gypsies, is, I'm ashamed to say, very much anchored in my own mind as well.

[H.A. Leuschel · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is an epic novel about how secrets, deception and cultural intricacies can cause a lot of pain and long lasting anguish to people. A private investigator is hired to find a woman who disappeared six years ago from a Gypsy site. The story very much unfolds through his questioning and observations of the people who knew her best before she vanished, intertwined with the very moving sections told from the perspective of a fourteen-year old teenager, nephew of the missing woman's husband. The book is beautifully crafted, as suspenseful as any good thriller, the characters are intriguing and the glimpses into the life of travelling people very interesting.

[Maryam Jamal · Rating 1 out of 5]

'It was so bad I wanna give you a zero, since that's not possible, I'll give you a one'
~tyra banks

How tf did no one notice that christina ( a female pretending to be her dead brother Ivo) gave birth to a fucking child ? The author didn't even explain the stupid plot twist.

[Jeanette · Rating 4 out of 5]

Here's the thing, first of all. The story is told from two different sets of "eyes". Both are males of 1/2 Gypsy inheritance. One is 14 and the other close to 40. They are not related but both have life situations and cultural fall outs of a self-identity that is half in/ half out of the Gypsy worldview.
Maybe!

Characterization for these two- J.J. who is the teen, and Ray who is the investigator presently experiencing mental and health issues at this juncture (some tied to the case, some not) is sublime. The case concerns a search for J.J.'s cousin's wife who deserted their Gypsy caravan group of 7 trailers about 7 years previously. No one has seen this "missing" Rose nor heard a pip from her in all that time.

No more about the plot. Because this just isn't plot centered. Hardly at all.

The depth, like a bottomless canyon, is focused on these two characters' "eyes". Their thoughts, their self-identity changes, and their emotive and cognitive understandings of who they are and what culture they represent. Are they English? Are they Gypsy? Are they "me thinkers" or are they "we thinkers".

It's not a fun book to read. But cleverly and secrets to appearances incisive. Stef Penney is a truly gifted writer. These two characters come completely alive and vital. REAL! And several under characters do too through the "eyes" of the narrators/ thinkers.

It's complex in movements and in associations, because they bridge several worlds of social and cultural variance and also numerous physical locations in the search. Some of it is operated from a hospital bed because our detective Ray is paralyzed from a "something he ate".

But this is NOT a who-dun-it that is glib, moves, has tons of action. This is all about identity. What a person believes about their own core, and what they may or may not show to the world about what they "know". How they own too who they are.

It's extremely long and day to day to day, moves at a snail's pace- like hearing every hour's description for two months. It tires. There is care for an disabled child of 6 that threads throughout the entire book and all that entails in great detail, as well. As there is for a 60 something male Gypsy Uncle in a wheelchair. Normal health is not a condition you see in majority through any point of this book either.

Not one person in this entire 12 or 13 very known characters is anything approaching happy on top of it. Some believe they are cursed. And at least half have been punctured beyond repair. But you do not "see" that as much as "hear" it over and over and over in their repetitions of conversations.

The Invisible Ones is quite different that most anything I've read in this genre and in more dramatic or literary works with higher acclaim. Both. It's 5 star writing for an observation and also for a reactive condition. I know that sounds murky. But that's what it is.

It's nearly 400 pages long, just lacks a few less. And at exactly page 200 I had figured out what was the answer to Ray's inquiries to the role and placement NOW of Cristo's (the disabled child)biological mother. Not because I knew about Barth syndrome, but because I knew that most male only as victim outcome related genetic disease is normally passed on the X chromosome. Gene studies books aside, I think I might have surmised it regardless from another clue. But if you don't "get" it by 200, you will not understand most of the book until the last 10 pages. And that's a long time and many words to wait. This book takes patience.

But the personality reveals like onion layers- and the people themselves were worth it. Cultural loyalty and superstitions of blood and flesh, they die very slowly. Both of them do.

If I had more intensity to know and urge to finish, I would have given it a 5. She's that good of a writer. But I could put this down and come back to it easily, and at points it palled. That was me, and not the writer. I can only listen to 14 year old thoughts for so long as they repeat and churn around the same maypoles.

I will read anything she writes. She gets lost in her characters, they stand whole without a tinge of you knowing Stef Penney herself, IMHO. That's a gift Shakespeare had too.

[reading is my hustle · Rating 3 out of 5]

i enjoyed this mystery surrounding the disappearance of a young romany wife & the half romany detective who is hired to investigate. the details about the romany people were interesting & added unexpected depth to this tragic novel. my only quibble is that it was too long & read repetitive in parts. the writing & voice were very good. hats off to Stef Penney in her ability to write from the perspective of a teenage boy.

[Jennifer (JC-S) · Rating 4 out of 5]

‘As it turns out, the memory loss may be the least of my problems.’

This novel is set in the world of the Romany people, a world in which the Romanies themselves are trying hard to maintain traditional ways of life. A world that Ray Lovell, himself of Romany descent, thought he’d left behind him. Then Ray is asked to trace the missing wife of Ivo Janko, and soon discovers that the Janko clan has many secrets. Rumour has it that the missing wife ran away after it became clear that her child was afflicted with a genetic disease, leaving the baby behind with her husband and family. While the Jankos resist Lovell’s investigations, his ancestry enables him to make some headway. The search for Rose, the missing wife, takes Ray (and us) into a confusing maze of clan connections and half-truths.

The narrative is divided between Ray’s investigations and the thoughts of Jimmy Janko, who is known as JJ. Like Ray Lovell, JJ is of mixed blood and is trying to survive in two very different worlds: school, and the caravan. The caravans (there are five on the Janko site) allow little privacy, and contact with the outside world is regarded as unclean. But surely someone knows where Rose is, or what has happened to her?

I found this novel absorbing, with its glimpses into a totally unfamiliar way of life. Ms Penney made these characters come to life as recognisable individuals, with their own backgrounds, prejudices and values. And the ending? Well, I didn’t see it coming and I didn’t want to believe it. But it works. While this is a quite different novel from ‘The Tenderness of Wolves’ in many ways, they share an atmosphere of isolation. In ‘The Tenderness of Wolves’ it’s created by the physical environment, in this novel it’s a consequence of cultural difference.

Jennifer Cameron-Smith

[Joe Stamber · Rating 4 out of 5]

I read The Tenderness of Wolves when it came out (2007) and found it to be a good story that was marred by Penney's decision to change not only POV (which is fine), but from 1st to third person and also tense. Thankfully, she has abandoned this for The Invisible Ones, which instead switches between 2 POVs, both 1st person, which works fine. Oddly enough, this time I didn't care too much for the story. One main character is a baggage laden private detective (are there any other kind?), who is employed to investigate a mystery among a small gypsy community. The other voice belongs to a 14 boy who lives there. Penney handles the two characters with skill and ensures each has his own voice. The plot was okay, but it didn't really grab me or have me glued to the page. However, now that Penney has concentrated on writing without the POV gimmicks her style shines through and I found myself marking passages to refer back to after finishing because I liked them so much. This is very rare for me and shows how much I admired Penney's writing. For the story alone I would only give The Invisible Ones a 3 star rating, but the smart writing style gives it a richness that deserves an extra star.

[Tom Burke · Rating 3 out of 5]

When I first started The Invisible Ones I thought, "Oh no, this is going to be tedious." The story follows two arcs that predictably come together: an investigator looking for a missing woman and a gypsy family living on the "road". The gypsy life is so strange and different that I thought I would tire of it and give up.

But as is so often the case, I persisted and slowly got enveloped in a strange and interesting story. There is quite a big reveal at the end and I don't want to spoil it, but the yarn builds slowly and the characters begin to flesh out into people you can really relate to. Amazing feat since even the investigator is part Romany, or gypsy.

It is hard to imagine that gypsy's still exist today, but they do. Initially I figured they were the invisible ones in Penney's title and it make sense since they hide in plain sight. But living within the gypsy subculture we see a shameful secret even more invisible than these throngs of people moving through life at the edge of town. That secret is held by the invisible ones. Definitely worth the journey.

[Pamela · Rating 4 out of 5]

Ray Lovell, a private investigator, is hired to find Rose Janko by her father. Rose, a "Traveler" or Gypsy, disappeared seven years ago, and her husband's family isn't talking. A good mystery, well written and a fascinating look into the lives of these often unseen people.

[Vivienne · Rating 1 out of 5]

I didn't finish this book as I wasn't enjoying it, didn't like 'Tenderness of wolves' either so she is obviously not my kind of aurthor.

[Liza Perrat · Rating 4 out of 5]

A riveting mystery from a great storyteller!

[Threasa · Rating 3 out of 5]

A very interesting story about the Romanies who are better known as gypsies. The book is about a missing woman. Her father hires a private investigator to find out why she went missing six years before. The story is told from two perspectives: the PI and JJ, the nephew of the missing woman. It is a very exciting book, and the mystery isn't solved until the very end. I was definitely fooled by it, too.

[Cathy · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is the first book I've read by author Stef Penny. I had hoped to read her earlier book, The Tenderness of Wolves, but was unable to borrow it from the library. The Invisible Ones is about Ray's (a private investigator) search for Rose, a young Gypsy woman that disappeared not long after she was married. Ray is hired because he is 1/2 Gypsy by her father who hasn't seen his daughter since her wedding six years earlier. I found the information about Gypsy culture intriguing, assuming it is true. It is a pretty good mystery novel that includes a range of interesting characters.

[Nicole Cenkova · Rating 5 out of 5]

Wow, that ending was really.. well, unexpected. So dark, so desperate. A decision that changed and ruined so many lives.
This story kept me up all night, as I was unable to put the book down until I reached the conclusion of the mystery. I loved every part of it - the setting, the pace, the characters and how it all ended well even though everyone had changed by the end of it.

I really recommend this read!

[Gabi Georgieva · Rating 4 out of 5]

Много добра книга !Препоръчвам.

[Lucinda · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.5 stars

[Phyllida · Rating 1 out of 5]

This was really disappointing. I really enjoyed the Tenderness of Wolves but the Invisible Ones didn't live up to the earlier book for me.