Emma, Disappeared: A gripping, twist-filled thriller where nothing is as it seems

by Andrew Hughes

Everyone is talking about the disappearance of Emma Harte. A high-achieving university graduate and young entrepreneur, she was last seen in the early hours of the morning on grainy CCTV footage in Dublin's city centre before vanishing into thin air. While a national debate about women's safety rages, eyes turn to Emma's boyfriend, Tom - who is nowhere to be found. Meanwhile, archivist James Lyster is following the story with undue interest. When a comment he makes about Emma goes viral on social media, he finds himself drawn into the world of a group of idealistic university students involved in the search - and attracting the attention of the police detective in charge of Emma's case. Then a body is discovered in shrubland near James' flat ... As the police get closer to finding out what happened to Emma Harte, James' life begins to unravel. Is he a victim or murderer? Feminist ally or callous liar? For it turns out that James isn't the only one with secrets ...

327 pages, Paperback

Published July 15, 2025

About the author

Born in Co. Wexford, ANDREW HUGHES was educated at Trinity College, Dublin. A qualified archivist, he worked for RTE before going freelance. It was while researching his acclaimed social history of Fitzwilliam Square – 'Lives Less Ordinary: Dublin’s Fitzwilliam Square, 1798-1922' – that he first came across the true story of John Delahunt that inspired his debut novel, THE CONVICTIONS OF JOHN DELAHUNT.

Andrew Hughes lives in Dublin.

Reviews

[Josephine Jarman · Rating 4 out of 5]

This begins days after emma dissappears and focuses on James and his unhealthy interest in the case on social media and its interactions with university students. It then takes you back to emma dissappearing and you discover James kniws so much more about it all than we know.
This was a dark enjoyable read with many twists and turns. I found James's girlfriend an underdeveloped character . I loved but was utter confused and disappointed by the final twist regarding James's exgirlfriend. It was cleverly written but seemed like a sude plot thrown in at the end.
I did throughly enjoy this and would recommended to anyone who like a giod mystery told in a different timeline. However i felt the ending didnt tie up the loose ends so it was either written with a sequel in mind or to proke frustration.
Thank you netgallery and publisher and author for this 4 star read.

[Kevin · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was my first novel by this author and it was one which I thoroughly enjoyed. I read many crime/police procedural novels and I do enjoy novels which focus on missing persons. The downside of this is that they can often blur into one another and many have difficulty in standing out from what is undoubtedly a crowded market.

In this novel, Emma Harte has disappeared (although I presume you picked that up from the title). What makes this novel very interesting is that the book begins a number of days after the disappearance as we meet James, a library archivist who has a clear fascination with the case and begins to engage on social media about it - becoming something of a local star in promoting feminism and the safety of women in the city.

However, what becomes clear is that James is aware of more about this than we think and when the plot moves to the days leading up to Emma's disappearance, we learn exactly what he knows.

I think what made this stand out for me was the timeline. It seemed strange, initially, for the book to begin after the disappearance and move forward in time before moving back to pre-disappearance and then forward again.

However, this really worked for me and allowed the reader the chance to try to work out what happened to Emma (and her now missing boyfriend!) before revealing what happened and letting the consequences of this play out. I am not sure I have explained this well however it definitely worked!

Thanks to Netgalley and Hachette Books Ireland for an ARC in exchange for an honest review.

[Mairead Hearne (swirlandthread.com) · Rating 4 out of 5]

Emma Disappeared by Andrew Hughes published with Hachette Ireland April 4th and is somewhat of a departure for Hughes whose previous two books were historical fiction. Hughes was obviously concerned about this shift in genre, and the possible challenges that he would face in his research but, with a story in mind, he decided to take a chance.

The inspiration for Emma Disappeared developed after Hughes saw a poster for a missing person online. He began to consider a few questions. Is there one individual who could potentially know exactly what happened to that person? How does someone continue to go about their daily chores, knowing that a secret they carry could have enormous consequences if revealed? What if the person in the poster was also carrying a secret?

‘We all have a ‘missing person’ photograph of ourselves – we just don’t know it. Somewhere on our phones, or stored in the cloud, is that innocent sunlit moment that our friends and family will show the world should the worst ever happen.’

Chapter One opens with this spine-tingling sentence as we hear about Emma Harte’s disappearance. Emma was someone who appeared to have it all. As a high-achiever through her educational years, Emma was an entrepreneur with a bright future ahead of her. The city of Dublin, and the country, are shocked. Where is Emma Harte? And the follow up question on everyone’s lips is – where is Emma Harte’s boyfriend, Tom? The rumour mill is rife, with social media turning into a hotbed of accusations and false statements. One fact remains clear though, and that is that Emma Harte was last captured on CCTV in the city centre late one evening and then all trace of her was gone. The police are doing their best to track her whereabouts but, as the days pass, the concern grows. Is Emma Harte dead? Is she a possible victim of a murder?

The search for Emma Harte leads to police-supervised volunteer groups joining in and it is on one of these searches that archivist James Lyster unexpectedly finds himself. James, like everyone else, is very much aware of who Emma Harte is and, via a new relationship, he is asked to join one of the search parties. The whole situation explodes a little for James when a tweet he requotes goes viral and he soon finds himself the centre of attention as a sort of feminist ally. James isn’t particularly comfortable in the spotlight so he takes on the role with some reluctance.

The plot takes a swerve when a body is discovered near James’ flat and the police start to question the local community. James is definitely one to keep his cards close to his chest so what secrets is he hiding? As the plot slowly unravels snippets of information are revealed opening up many different possibilities but what is the truth?

Emma Disappeared is quite an unusual read. James Lyster is not a character one could warm to but does that make him a killer? Is he a suspect or are we making assumptions based on the fact that we don’t really understand him? James works in The National Library of Ireland and is in charge of a team. His job carries many responsibilities and he seems to be well respected. He is a little odd but that does not assume guilt.

Hughes builds the story, wrapping layer upon layer, complicating the mindset of the reader. I felt very spooked as I went deeper into the story, especially with the online angle. There was something quite sinister about it, which is a credit to Hughes’ writing style.

Told from the POV of James Lyster, Emma Disappeared is a tale of many secrets. Truth, lies, murder and mystery are all tangled up in this complex and disconcerting thriller. I wonder will Andrew Hughes stay with this genre for his next novel or will he return to his old stomping ground of historical fiction? Either which way I don’t doubt that it will be an intriguing read.

[Keith Currie · Rating 5 out of 5]

Sleight of hand

The author has written three novels, all set in Dublin, the first two set in the past, this one resolutely in the present. All feature leading characters from whom the reader might justifiably recoil, demonstrating traits of jealousy, deceit, anger and sheer nastiness. Be warned, therefore, that no-one in this story is quite what they seem, or what they might like to appear to be.

There are three characters to think about in Hughes’ tale: Emma, who has disappeared and is the subject of a police manhunt, her absence inspiring demonstrations about the safety of women on Dublin’s streets; then there is her ex-boyfriend, Tom, a bit of a rascal, who has also gone missing, his absence inspiring accusations of his obvious guilt in Emma’s disappearance; then there is James Lyster, a rather creepy archivist, who becomes increasingly involved in the whole missing Emma business, who has secrets of his own, and who also knows where there is a dead body in a shallow grave.

Nothing is what it seems. No-one is privately who they would like to appear to be. The author plays on all our prejudices, on our own self belief that we are not as nasty, not as easily influenced as the person sitting next to us on the bus to work.

The author dares to deal with serious issues: the power of the internet and social media to apportion guilt and innocence. After all there are two missing people. Why should one be presumed the victim of the other? Why not the other way round? Or could the matter be more complicated still?

A remarkable novel. You will be shocked by the twists and turns, by how the author subverts expectation. His best novel yet.

[Zoe Reads · Rating 3 out of 5]

I went into this with good expectations, I really wanted to like to love this book as the blurb made me think it was definitely up my street. BUT I just kept waiting for it to get going , 50% in I was still bored and didn’t really care much for what was happening. That being said I don’t like to DNF so I ploughed through.
Am I glad I did? Yes I am. As things did pick up for the second half.

The story is told from the pov of our main character James who is a library archivist. The information about his job and some of the things he gets involved in, activism, peaceful protests etc, it took away a lot from the story for me.

Told in parts, once I got to part two and actually learned of Emma as a character (the Emma who has disappeared as the book title suggest) thats when things got a bit better for me.

Not close to being one of my favourite reads but nowhere near being the worst. Thank you to NetGalley, the publisher and author for my arc in exchange for an honest review.

[James Durkan · Rating 3 out of 5]

Emma, Disappeared / Andrew Hughes

⭐️⭐️⭐️

~ You can't imagine the toll, the stress we have been under. Do you think we're here to provide updates to any stranger who calls to the door… ~

I’ve started a new crime book club in the library I work in, and this is the first book that was chosen. And my word, there are no words.

I found the first section and the third section really good, but the middle section was just wtfery personified. I actually had to read through it twice to be sure I was reading what I was reading. It kinda took away a bit while still developing the story.

Now, the characters. James is a conundrum, yes he comes out as obsessive across the bat, putting his head into good causes, but with the final act undoes his character. Though thinking back it had some amount of clues that all wasn’t what it seemed. I found all secondary characters to be criminally underdeveloped, especially Libby who could have been so much more. But unreliable narration be unreliable.

The main crux is Emma, the struggle to relate throughout. But this book deals with so much, trial by social media, social activism, misogyny, it almost seems like it wanted to do so much but fell short on nearly all.

The third act made up for a lot, which is why it’s 3 stars, middle of the road. I wanted to read this for ages, so I’m glad I got to and happy I can discuss later this month with my new bookclubbers.

📚 Borrowed from #CentralLibrary as part of @dublincitylibraries and @librariesireland 📚

* Read: 27/02/25 - 01/03/25
* Release Date: 04/04/24
* ISBN: 9781399730938

[Farah G · Rating 3 out of 5]

As a budding entrepreneur and a bright graduate student, Emma Harte was definitely going places. What nobody expected was for her to suddenly fall off the face of the earth...

But that appears to be precisely what has happened. Emma has vanished from Dublin City Centre, where she was last spotted on surveillance cameras - but not from the public discussion forums, where she is one of the hottest topics at the moment.

Meanwhile, the two male characters in the story have their own role to play in the events underway. The problem is, Emma's boyfriend Tom has also disappeared from public view.

And James, an archivist who draws attention on social media for his take on the situation, has his own motives for being involved in the case, which are not altogether clear. After all, in our internet-obsessed age, cases like Emma's can bring all kinds of people out of the woodwork.

This is an engrossing read, that has much to say about the kangaroo court of public morality and mores. As the story unfolds, so the suspense builds. An entertaining tale with some interesting characters, where nobody is quite what they seem.

I received a free copy of this book from Netgalley in exchange for an honest review

[Maggie · Rating 3 out of 5]

Emma Harte was an outstanding graduate & budding entrepreneur. She was seen on CCTV walking through the streets of Dublin & then just disappeared. Her boyfriend Tom is also proving hard to find. James is a library archivist & the story of the missing woman has stirred up traffic on Social Media. He finds himself getting involved in the drama.

I thought I was going to give up on this early on. Usually with a missing person story, you feel you know & care about them. However Emma seemed to be just a catalyst for the story rather than a person in their own right. James also didn't really grab me. Fortunately the book is in two parts because just as I was about to give up the pace increased & I kept reading.

Thanks to Netgalley & the publisher for letting me read & review this book. I gave it 2.5* rounded up to 3.

[James Fluker · Rating 2 out of 5]

I enjoyed the premise - the book feels layered with mysteries and secrets, as a whodunit begins to unravel as you read.

Unfortunately, in Act 2 and Act 3 the author isn't able to deliver on the promise of the mystery as the story gets away on him - one of its plot threads becoming entirely nonsensical, although the other (later) twist certainly remains grounded in reality - although not entirely unsurprising.

[Eithne Murray · Rating 3 out of 5]

Well plotted but it failed to keep my interest. I skipped bits to get to the end. I think it was the staccato style of Parts 1 and 3 put me off. I think it's significant that Part 2 is told in the past tense and flows much better.
Not Th Coroner's Daughter.

[Meaghan Carmody · Rating 4 out of 5]

I’m sure literary critics would find things wrong with this book but I thought the characters were brilliant and the story really intricate, well created and surprisingly funny

[Bex · Rating 4 out of 5]

4.5 stars

[Aisling · Rating 4 out of 5]

I really liked that the book was set in Dublin. There's lots of holes in the story but I liked the ending.

[Barondestructo · Rating 3 out of 5]

Pretty engaging until the final twist that hinges on a disconnected murder. What a letdown.

[Olivia Boyce · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is my third book to read written by the same author . I brought it with me to Turkey as a holiday read . I loved every minute of it !

[Sue Cross · Rating 5 out of 5]

More twists and turns than a snake on a helter skelter. Characters were drawn well and were credible. The plot line is excellent. Had me guessing and changing theories nearly the whole way through.