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The Vanished
He has to become a child killer to save his daughter's life.
On May 6, five-year-old Annie Miller goes missing in a park. On May 7, her father, David Miller, fails a lie detector test. On May 9, during a hypnosis session, David confesses to murdering his daughter and gives the police the location of the knife he used to kill her. The knife has traces of Annie's blood and David's fingerprints all over it.
Two weeks later, a man named Ben calls David and tells him Annie's alive. Ben is willing to let the girl go, but first David has to do something for him--something that would land David in prison for the rest of his life.
Can David trust him?
Is Ben even real?
(The Vanished, a suspense thriller)
**********
Mania (a suspense thriller)
Richard Brower has killed a dozen people. Now someone is trying to frame him for the murders committed by another serial killer.
Serial killer Richard Brower buried his cheating wife, Mary, in the woods on Saturday.
On Monday, Mary calls her brother's girlfriend.
A few days later, she calls her mom.
Then Mary bumps into her friend at a mall.
Are all these people lying or has Mary actually come back from the dead?
Richard has no idea, but he will get to the bottom of this. Or at least he'll try.
On May 6, five-year-old Annie Miller goes missing in a park. On May 7, her father, David Miller, fails a lie detector test. On May 9, during a hypnosis session, David confesses to murdering his daughter and gives the police the location of the knife he used to kill her. The knife has traces of Annie's blood and David's fingerprints all over it.
Two weeks later, a man named Ben calls David and tells him Annie's alive. Ben is willing to let the girl go, but first David has to do something for him--something that would land David in prison for the rest of his life.
Can David trust him?
Is Ben even real?
(The Vanished, a suspense thriller)
**********
Mania (a suspense thriller)
Richard Brower has killed a dozen people. Now someone is trying to frame him for the murders committed by another serial killer.
Serial killer Richard Brower buried his cheating wife, Mary, in the woods on Saturday.
On Monday, Mary calls her brother's girlfriend.
A few days later, she calls her mom.
Then Mary bumps into her friend at a mall.
Are all these people lying or has Mary actually come back from the dead?
Richard has no idea, but he will get to the bottom of this. Or at least he'll try.
315 pages, Kindle Edition
Published January 1, 2015
318 people are currently reading
840 people want to read
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 81 reviews
January 25, 2015
Just plain bad.
I am stunned that this book was ever published. The storyline is absurd and the writing is worse than bad.
I am stunned that this book was ever published. The storyline is absurd and the writing is worse than bad.
January 18, 2015
terrible
First off, it is written on a fifth grade reading level. Storyline somewhat okay but not too believable. Finished it because I kept hoping something interesting would happen. Never did.
First off, it is written on a fifth grade reading level. Storyline somewhat okay but not too believable. Finished it because I kept hoping something interesting would happen. Never did.
January 23, 2015
Obvious.
I have never read a book with so many typos, words missing, duplicate pages so it was obvious to me that no proofreading was done for this book. The plot was also a bit unbelievable. Save your money.
I have never read a book with so many typos, words missing, duplicate pages so it was obvious to me that no proofreading was done for this book. The plot was also a bit unbelievable. Save your money.
January 24, 2016
One of the worst books I've ever read. Hands down. Bad writing. Bad plot. Disjointed story. Undevoloped characters that become central to the story in the last act. ARGHHHHHH. AVOID THIS BOOK. I'm so mad at Pinterest for recommending it as a good winter read. RRRRRR
February 19, 2015
Incomprehensible bad
I don't usually rate books, but feel I must in this case. Ridiculous dialogue. Worst ending ever. Incredibly stupid story. Find a different book.
I don't usually rate books, but feel I must in this case. Ridiculous dialogue. Worst ending ever. Incredibly stupid story. Find a different book.
March 6, 2016
David Miller parks his car, his 5 year old daughter Annie gets out and David plays with his mobile telephone. He looks up and Annie has vanished. The mystery begins as Annie has simply vanished and David does not know where to look.
I enjoyed reading this book and the plot is very different from other missing child novels. I liked the way many very promising lines of enquiry resulted in dead ends. All the pointers were there that suspect X was the right person with the right background and motive. This is a plot driven novel because character development is poor.
Tim’s writing style is different, it is like a television script with lots of short paragraphs. His writing is not deep and would win no literary awards. This book is all about the plot, there is no special use of language, no deep character development, no heavy discussion of leading issues or long descriptive sections. But what comes across strongly is the frantic search for Annie and the belief that the next clue will surely lead to finding her.
The Vanished is a good mystery that is told in a bare bones style. The focus is on finding Annie and nothing else. It ties in well with real life news stories of missing children, when the public guess on social media what has happened. It is not in the top league of mysteries but is still a GOOD read that entertains the reader, so it gets 4 stars from me.
I enjoyed reading this book and the plot is very different from other missing child novels. I liked the way many very promising lines of enquiry resulted in dead ends. All the pointers were there that suspect X was the right person with the right background and motive. This is a plot driven novel because character development is poor.
Tim’s writing style is different, it is like a television script with lots of short paragraphs. His writing is not deep and would win no literary awards. This book is all about the plot, there is no special use of language, no deep character development, no heavy discussion of leading issues or long descriptive sections. But what comes across strongly is the frantic search for Annie and the belief that the next clue will surely lead to finding her.
The Vanished is a good mystery that is told in a bare bones style. The focus is on finding Annie and nothing else. It ties in well with real life news stories of missing children, when the public guess on social media what has happened. It is not in the top league of mysteries but is still a GOOD read that entertains the reader, so it gets 4 stars from me.
February 25, 2015
This was the most disjointed novel I've read in a very long time! A fourth-grade student could do as well. Little or no continuety. I don't know why I didn't quit reading it at the very beginning. Very poorly done.
July 24, 2018
Boring
This book was full of weird little details that took away from the story line. I skipped through pages to find something that would grab my attention and finally gave up.
This book was full of weird little details that took away from the story line. I skipped through pages to find something that would grab my attention and finally gave up.
April 20, 2015
Would like this to vanish
Mundane, stupid and boring. How many times can one person be so positive about something and be so positively wrong? How many times can an author interject a characters inane inner thoughts into the story line? (Are they really inane or are they just words to fill a story. Line?).
Do not waste you time or money on a story that just does not make sense.
Probably the worst book I have attempted to read.
Mundane, stupid and boring. How many times can one person be so positive about something and be so positively wrong? How many times can an author interject a characters inane inner thoughts into the story line? (Are they really inane or are they just words to fill a story. Line?).
Do not waste you time or money on a story that just does not make sense.
Probably the worst book I have attempted to read.
February 28, 2015
The dialogue in this novel left much to be desired. There was no emotion whenever anything happened. The plot was very random and the villain has no reason to do what he does, which means you have no prior clues to who it is. Also the way he goes about doing it is very unconvincing to the reader. I do not recommend this book unless you want to read something fast just to say you finished a book.
January 1, 2016
Another great ebook that I sped through in just a couple days. Really well thought out plot with lots of twists and turns that keep you hooked all the way to the end. Didn't peg the ending either. Was a nice twist.
February 10, 2015
Don't waste your time
Nothing to like about this book.the story of how and why Annie was kidnapped was ridiculous and unbelievable! Immature writing!
Nothing to like about this book.the story of how and why Annie was kidnapped was ridiculous and unbelievable! Immature writing!
March 17, 2015
Worst ending ever!!
The story was great. Very captivating....until you get near the end. Seems like the author was tired of writing, and took the easy way out. Major let down.
The story was great. Very captivating....until you get near the end. Seems like the author was tired of writing, and took the easy way out. Major let down.
June 7, 2015
Disappointing
I'd probably give this 2.5 stars, but wouldn't be willing to round it up to 3 because the ending was such a let down. It wasn't a horrible book, but it just lacked a lot of plausibility and feeling. I feel like too many details were missing, things that didn't need stretched out (Camp) went on for too long, much of what needed resolved wasn't, the ending was too rushed, and (don't want to spoil it with a name)'s true identity was clear early in. Most mystery/thrillers require you to to stretch your imagination, but this one, while having a well-planned motive, was carried out very illogically.
The good: The writing itself was done well, despite the fact I didn't love the storyline. Editing was good. I'd probably read this author again if I didn't have anything better to read, but I wouldn't seek out his books. He shows promise, but I think this book needed some tightening up and reworking, at least the addition of a little science and background information on the methods employed by the perp.
I'd probably give this 2.5 stars, but wouldn't be willing to round it up to 3 because the ending was such a let down. It wasn't a horrible book, but it just lacked a lot of plausibility and feeling. I feel like too many details were missing, things that didn't need stretched out (Camp) went on for too long, much of what needed resolved wasn't, the ending was too rushed, and (don't want to spoil it with a name)'s true identity was clear early in. Most mystery/thrillers require you to to stretch your imagination, but this one, while having a well-planned motive, was carried out very illogically.
The good: The writing itself was done well, despite the fact I didn't love the storyline. Editing was good. I'd probably read this author again if I didn't have anything better to read, but I wouldn't seek out his books. He shows promise, but I think this book needed some tightening up and reworking, at least the addition of a little science and background information on the methods employed by the perp.
April 16, 2015
The story is about a man who took his little girl to the park and she disappeared. He went to the police and told them what happened and that he thought she had been kidnapped. To help him with his memory he agreed to be hypnotized, during which he then confesses to the murder of his adopted daughter. But he really doesn't think he killed her. He is a prosecutor and enlists the help of his private detective friends and others to find out what really happened. The rest of the story is a bunch of random (to me) guesses that end up being true and they find out who has his daughter and on and on.
I didn't think is was well-written and the plot was kind of dumb. It felt like it was written by someone who tried to combine aspects of CSI, Criminal Minds and other "who done it" shows from TV into one story. Oh, well...what do I know?
I didn't think is was well-written and the plot was kind of dumb. It felt like it was written by someone who tried to combine aspects of CSI, Criminal Minds and other "who done it" shows from TV into one story. Oh, well...what do I know?
January 13, 2015
not too bad, not too great either - that's my review about this novel called The Vanished by Tim Kizer!
This author changes the tenses in his sentences as & when he feels like, too much of details in brackets!
His characters talk to themselves for no reason and they are most of the times not dialogues, instead they are sentences formed for no good reason for the reader's sake!
This author changes the tenses in his sentences as & when he feels like, too much of details in brackets!
His characters talk to themselves for no reason and they are most of the times not dialogues, instead they are sentences formed for no good reason for the reader's sake!
February 11, 2015
Vanished
What a story! I read this book in one day as I could not put it down. I was beginning to wonder how many more turns and twists it was going to take but stayed glued to my kindle! This is a suspense novel that I for one did not see THAT ending coming! A must read for anyone who likes suspenseful thrillers!
What a story! I read this book in one day as I could not put it down. I was beginning to wonder how many more turns and twists it was going to take but stayed glued to my kindle! This is a suspense novel that I for one did not see THAT ending coming! A must read for anyone who likes suspenseful thrillers!
March 14, 2015
Very disappointing!
There's nothing positive I can say about this book. The characters are completely flat. Kizer made no attempt to develop them. Though the description of the story enticing, it's presented with lots of emphasis on minutiae, convoluted tangents, and very little excitement. I kept reading in the hope that it would get better. It didn't.
There's nothing positive I can say about this book. The characters are completely flat. Kizer made no attempt to develop them. Though the description of the story enticing, it's presented with lots of emphasis on minutiae, convoluted tangents, and very little excitement. I kept reading in the hope that it would get better. It didn't.
December 11, 2015
Although I found The Vanished to be an engaging read, there were many events that unfolded that I was hard pressed to believe were plausible. I give the writer credit for having a fertile imagination. Again, it was a page turner, but there was a lot missing in terms of character development as well as an emotional life for the characters. I rate the book 3.5.
February 18, 2017
I am honestly astounded that this book was published. The writing is plain and boring and the storyline is absolutely absurd. I'm so disappointed that I spent my time and money on this book. It doesn't even deserve one star.
December 30, 2018
Ach, moze niekto pokazit taky dobry namet knihy? Ale moze...
David si na parkovisku skontroluje v mobile spravu a kym zdvihne hlavu a otvori dvere auta, jeho 5-rocna dcera je prec. Zmizla, akoby sa vyparila. /Fiha, tu som si vravela, ze to vyzera dobre a bola som zvedava, ako to autor rozvedie./
Ked ho policia poziada, aby siel na detektor lzi, suhlasi, ved nema co schovavat. Ale pri otazkach ci ju zabil su jeho odpovede nejednoznacne. A ked sa najde noz s jeho otlackami prstov a dcerinou krvou, zacne sa to zamotavat.
/Wow, vravela som si, to je teda skvely pribeh./
A teraz zacnu spoilery, ale kedze sa k tejto knihe asi nedostanete, kludne citajte dalej, ak ste zvedave.
David si najme detektiva, kedze on vie, ze dceru nezabil. A potom dostane hovor na mobil, ktory mu pride postou, ze sa ma priznat, ze dceru zabil, inak naozaj umrie. Ak sa prizna, dceru unosca po 6. rokoch prepusti. /Uz tu som si vravela, ze toto je dost nepravdepodobne a neuveritelne. V ziadnom pripade by som tomu clovekovi neverila./
Nakoniec vyjde najavo, ze unoscom je brat Davidovej manzelky, ktoreho nepravom ako zalobca poslal do vazenia na 6 rokov. Ta sestra sa vydala za Davida, aby mu urobila zo zivota peklo /Chapete??? To co ma byt???/, ale nakoniec sa donho naozaj zalubila.
Ten brat natrafil na jedneho hypnotizera, ktory mu pomohol cele to spachat.
A zaver? Neverila som vlastnym ociam.
David vo vazeni, ten detektiv nasiel toho brata a hypnotizera, ale nakoniec ho tiez zhypnotizoval, s jeho pomocou tam zavolali tu sestru, ktoru zabili po tom, ako s nou natocili video, ze to ONA zabila tu dceru. Hypnotizer zabil aj toho brata a strelil aj tomu detektivovi do hlavy, ale on sa IBA dostal do komy, a ked sa prebudil, na nic sa nepamatal.
David sa dostal z vazenia kvoli tomu videu a dcera bola nakoniec tiez prepustena.
Proste haluz...
David si na parkovisku skontroluje v mobile spravu a kym zdvihne hlavu a otvori dvere auta, jeho 5-rocna dcera je prec. Zmizla, akoby sa vyparila. /Fiha, tu som si vravela, ze to vyzera dobre a bola som zvedava, ako to autor rozvedie./
Ked ho policia poziada, aby siel na detektor lzi, suhlasi, ved nema co schovavat. Ale pri otazkach ci ju zabil su jeho odpovede nejednoznacne. A ked sa najde noz s jeho otlackami prstov a dcerinou krvou, zacne sa to zamotavat.
/Wow, vravela som si, to je teda skvely pribeh./
A teraz zacnu spoilery, ale kedze sa k tejto knihe asi nedostanete, kludne citajte dalej, ak ste zvedave.
David si najme detektiva, kedze on vie, ze dceru nezabil. A potom dostane hovor na mobil, ktory mu pride postou, ze sa ma priznat, ze dceru zabil, inak naozaj umrie. Ak sa prizna, dceru unosca po 6. rokoch prepusti. /Uz tu som si vravela, ze toto je dost nepravdepodobne a neuveritelne. V ziadnom pripade by som tomu clovekovi neverila./
Nakoniec vyjde najavo, ze unoscom je brat Davidovej manzelky, ktoreho nepravom ako zalobca poslal do vazenia na 6 rokov. Ta sestra sa vydala za Davida, aby mu urobila zo zivota peklo /Chapete??? To co ma byt???/, ale nakoniec sa donho naozaj zalubila.
Ten brat natrafil na jedneho hypnotizera, ktory mu pomohol cele to spachat.
A zaver? Neverila som vlastnym ociam.
David vo vazeni, ten detektiv nasiel toho brata a hypnotizera, ale nakoniec ho tiez zhypnotizoval, s jeho pomocou tam zavolali tu sestru, ktoru zabili po tom, ako s nou natocili video, ze to ONA zabila tu dceru. Hypnotizer zabil aj toho brata a strelil aj tomu detektivovi do hlavy, ale on sa IBA dostal do komy, a ked sa prebudil, na nic sa nepamatal.
David sa dostal z vazenia kvoli tomu videu a dcera bola nakoniec tiez prepustena.
Proste haluz...
January 29, 2018
I'm not usually one for 1 star reviews - however, I would struggle to rate this book any higher. I am not sure how this ended up on my to-read list, but I do wish I had read the reviews of it beforehand.
The premise of the book is great - a man's 5 year old daughter goes missing, with him having no idea what happened to her. A weapon is found with her blood and his fingerprints, and a kidnapper contacts him demanding that he confess to killing her, or his daughter will never be returned to him.
GREAT plot. HORRIBLE execution. The style of writing felt entirely like someones stream-of-consciousness, making notes in creating an outline for the story. Except that instead of continuing to write the story, they just published the first draft. Really elementary storytelling and dialogue, completely implausible plot twists, and very the ending just sort of.....stopped. Overall I found the entire thing almost bizarre. I am disappointed, because this story had potential - but this is not one that I would recommend for others.
The premise of the book is great - a man's 5 year old daughter goes missing, with him having no idea what happened to her. A weapon is found with her blood and his fingerprints, and a kidnapper contacts him demanding that he confess to killing her, or his daughter will never be returned to him.
GREAT plot. HORRIBLE execution. The style of writing felt entirely like someones stream-of-consciousness, making notes in creating an outline for the story. Except that instead of continuing to write the story, they just published the first draft. Really elementary storytelling and dialogue, completely implausible plot twists, and very the ending just sort of.....stopped. Overall I found the entire thing almost bizarre. I am disappointed, because this story had potential - but this is not one that I would recommend for others.
June 3, 2018
Barely made it through
I started reading this book because the premise sounded good from the description. That said, I could barely finish it with how terrible the writing was. It was so juvenile and lackluster that the plotline wasn't even enough to keep me interested. The only reason I even finished it was out of obligation (I try to finish every book I start). I now wish I had just let this one go because the ending followed suit with the rest of the book and was just a major disappointment. Definitely will not be reading any more by Tim Kizer, and will start reading actual reviews of a book before selecting it. Had I done that with this book I wouldn't have even purchased it to begin with.
I started reading this book because the premise sounded good from the description. That said, I could barely finish it with how terrible the writing was. It was so juvenile and lackluster that the plotline wasn't even enough to keep me interested. The only reason I even finished it was out of obligation (I try to finish every book I start). I now wish I had just let this one go because the ending followed suit with the rest of the book and was just a major disappointment. Definitely will not be reading any more by Tim Kizer, and will start reading actual reviews of a book before selecting it. Had I done that with this book I wouldn't have even purchased it to begin with.
June 2, 2018
A book that was believable until it kept going on. Although these are real life crimes, I couldn't believe how clashing it was. It was like every main character was purposely bringing suspiscion on themselves; even though they were supposed to be intelligent individuals. Definitely, not going to read this Author ever again. The book was too lengthy for undesirable outcomes.
October 27, 2018
Too simplistic... The plot was just a series of simple and star straightforward statements with no attempt at mystery or suspense. It was a quick read but not all that enjoyable.
I read the book in 6 hours over two days. Everything was very predictable. The ending of the book was ridiculous.
I read the book in 6 hours over two days. Everything was very predictable. The ending of the book was ridiculous.
July 26, 2020
The Vanished. A very amateurish work about 12 year old stranded. Will be a good story with a rewrite and some experience and imagination. I would not recommend this book unless you are desperate to read something.
A very amateurish work that need lots work and editing. It feels like the work of a 12 year old
A very amateurish work that need lots work and editing. It feels like the work of a 12 year old
June 19, 2017
Not sure why I read the whole story, I think I was hoping it would get better. It didn't.
May 8, 2018
Lots of twists and turns.
August 16, 2018
Okay book not great.
Many times I didn't know what was going on. What happened to Pryor? It 's not the type of book i like.
Many times I didn't know what was going on. What happened to Pryor? It 's not the type of book i like.
January 31, 2020
Not a fan of the ending...too many unanswered questions and loose ends.
Displaying 1 - 30 of 81 reviews