Ten Years Gone

by Wendy Walker

From the USA Today bestselling author of Blade comes a propulsive, emotional thriller about a man whose homecoming from prison threatens long-buried secrets about a murder in a suburban enclave.

After a ten-year sentence for murder, Griffin Ford is finally free and ready to make peace. But within hours of his release, he escapes a harrowing abduction. Someone doesn’t want Griffin to come home. Forced into hiding, Griffin is now determined to uncover the truth that was buried a decade.

Back then, he had risked everything to cross the tracks between working-class Milltown and affluent Newfield to pursue his teen love, Clare Keaton. But after a wealthy suburbanite was murdered and the evidence began to point in his direction, Griffin did the He confessed to the brutal crime.

He told Clare to forget him. But she never did—not even with her wedding just days away. And now, on the day of his release, cryptic text messages cast doubt on everything she thought she knew about Griffin Ford.

Propelled by restless secrets and enduring love, Griffin and Clare race to make sense of their past. But whoever’s pulling the strings is determined to finish what they started.

Genres: Thriller, Mystery Thriller

287 pages, Hardcover

Expected publication January 12, 2027

About the author

Wendy Walker is the author of psychological suspense. Her novels have been translated into 23 foreign languages, have topped bestseller lists both nationally and abroad, and have been optioned for television and film. Prior to writing, Wendy worked in banking and several areas of the law. She spent most of her childhood as a competitive figure skater. Wendy has three grown sons and resides in Connecticut.

Reviews

[Marta · Rating 3 out of 5]

Jump around, jump around. Jump up jump up and get down. That song kept playing in my head throughout this book.

I can’t decide how I feel about this book. I know people out there are going to love the lies and deception and drama. I am not one of those people, but even if I was, something fell a little flat for me. At the same time, other than when I went to vote and pick up some potatoes, I listened to this book (thank you read aloud option) straight through today. Anxious to find out who did what. My 3 guesses….in a way they were all correct. Guess number 2 was the big winner.

Griffin Ford has just been released from prison after serving a ten year, plea bargained sentence, for a murder committed when he was 17. Immediately he is abducted, manages to escape (not a spoiler, it happens at the very beginning) and calls an old friend for help. Someone wants him out of the picture, but why? He plead guilty, and never pointed a finger at anyone else.

Clare Keaton is 3 days away from her wedding when her old love, Griffin from the wrong side of wealthy, is released from prison. He told her to forget him, but she never has.

Now, for the jump around song. This book is told from the perspectives of Griffin, Clare, and Clare’s mom Marny in a now and then format. Thank goodness each chapter tells us what timeline we are in and who is narrating the chapter because it jumps around, a lot. I don’t usually mind this, as long as I can follow along. I was able to follow along just fine, but something didn’t flow right for me. Sometimes I was left hanging at the end of a very short chapter , but it wasn’t in suspense, it was annoyance that I wasn’t given just a little bit more before jumping to the next person and a different timeline. Perhaps it’s just picky me.

I hadn’t heard anything about this book before I came across it on NetGalley yesterday and I didn’t read the handful of reviews on it before starting in this morning, so I am not sure why I expected a little more. I definitely felt some anxiousness at the start and I wanted to know how it all concluded, but it just didn’t hit the spot I was hoping it would. I really really want people to read this book because I am curious what others think of this book. I know I have listened to one other book by this author for sure (though I see I was before I really started rating books) and maybe my expectations were based on remembering how much I liked that one. This felt a little predictable in many ways.

So people, please read this so I can see what you think! And I hope you enjoy!

2.5-2.75⭐️’s rounded up to a generous 3, the more I think about it.

Ps. If you leave your phone at home, how can you be upset that someone isn’t answering your phone calls?? I need to go back and see if I heard that correctly when we jumped back to a scene that started a few chapters earlier before it jumped to something else and went back.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for the arc of this book and the read aloud option, much appreciated!
All thoughts are my own.

Rating and review posted: 8/11/26
Publishing date: January 12, 2027
Small addition: 8/14/26

[Sneha R · Rating 4 out of 5]

Wendy Walker once again proves why she's one of my goto authors for psychological suspense.
Ten Years Gone hooked me almost immediately and kept me invested until the very end.

The premise is compelling, a man released from prison after serving ten years for murder returns home only to find that someone is determined to keep the past buried. What I loved most was that this wasn't just a thriller. At its core, it's also a story about love, loyalty, secrets, and the lasting impact of choices made when people were young.

Griffin and Clare felt like fully developed characters whose history added emotional weight to the mystery. The dual focus on uncovering what really happened years ago while navigating the current day consequences created a constant sense of tension. I found myself questioning everyone's motives and changing my theories multiple times throughout the book.

Wendy does an excellent job balancing suspense with character development. The twists felt earned rather than shocking for the sake of shock, and the pacing kept me turning pages without feeling rushed. I especially appreciated how the story explored class differences, relationships, and the way small-town secrets can linger for years.

While some parts required a little suspension of disbelief, it never took away from my overall enjoyment. The emotional elements gave the story depth beyond the central mystery, making it more memorable than a standard thriller.

If you enjoy atmospheric suspense, coldcase style mysteries, and stories where the truth slowly unfolds piece by piece, Ten Years Gone is definitely worth picking up.

Thank you to Thomas & Mercer and NetGalley for providing an advance copy in exchange for an honest review.

[Suesyn Zellmer · Rating 3 out of 5]

Griffin and Clare are doomed lovers who get a second chance ten years after they first meet, but everything is still working against them. Clare is from the rich town of Newfield, and Griffin is from Milltown on the other side of the tracks. He used to live in Newfield, but after his father’s death, he and his mother could no longer afford it. So, Clare and Griffin start dating, and everyone says it will never last, and it doesn’t, but that’s because he confesses to killing one of the rich Newfield citizens for whom he did odd jobs. He’s sent away, Clare moves on, and so go the next ten years.

Now he’s out, but before he can do anything, he’s threatened and has to go into hiding. Clare finds out and tries to help even though she’s getting married in a few days. It sounds fast-paced, but it takes a very long time for everything to pan out. And then towards the end, all these big reveals keep coming, exposing everyone but these two as terrible and having conspired against them from the start. No big spoiler alert or shocker; it’s obvious early on that everyone is horrible and has secrets.

And based on the opinions of almost every character, a wealthy person could never be with someone from a different income level, ever. Unless they are a gold-digger and marry their way in, because apparently that’s fine. And no one ever points out this hypocrisy!

The ending is pretty satisfying and true to Griffin and Clare’s characters. Does that mean they’re doomed? You’ll have to check it out and see.

My thanks to NetGalley and Thomas & Mercer for the free advance reading copy of this book.

[Katee · Rating 5 out of 5]

Griffin and Clare are tied to circumstances that individually turned their lives upside down, on the same night. Griffins Dad is murdered and Clare is in a car accident so bad that the doctors are unsure she will ever walk on her own.

Griffin’s circumstances end up being that he and his Mom move from the expensive life they are accustomed to, following the murder of his father, and they move “across the tracks”. Barely making ends meet, Griffin attends public school and picks up odd jobs where he can to pay for the care of his mother who has a fast-progressing dementia.

Clare, who has been afforded every medical care she could want or need, is unable to participate in high school sports but is a high -functioning teenager otherwise (though inwardly feels a lot of betrayal from her body).

One evening she runs into Griffin as he’s working at her best friend Lia’s birthday party. Soon the two have a whirlwind of a romance where Clare finds feeling within her body again (emotionally and physically) until Griffin is charged with ten years in prison for murdering Lia’s Mom, Rosemary.

Ten years later - Griffin has served his sentence and he’s back to try to unravel what actually happened ten years ago. Combined with the fact that Clare is getting married in a handful of days.

Will their magnetic attraction prevail or will Clare have moved on to her new future with Thomas Dearborn?

[Sylvia · Rating 5 out of 5]

Wendy Walker has done it again. Ten Years Gone is a gripping, emotional psychological thriller that I devoured in just a couple of days. From the moment Griffin Ford walks out of prison after serving ten years for a murder he confessed to, the questions begin—and they don’t stop. What really happened ten years ago? Why did Griffin confess? And who is so determined to keep the truth from finally coming out?

What I love about Wendy Walker’s novels is that the twists and suspense never come at the expense of the characters, and Ten Years Gone may be one of her most emotionally compelling stories yet. At its heart are Griffin and Clare, first love, sacrifice, secrets, and the choices we make to protect the people we love. Just when I thought I understood where the story was going, Wendy changed the direction again. Fast-paced, smart, surprising, and filled with heart, Ten Years Gone is everything I want in a psychological thriller. I couldn’t put it down—and I absolutely loved it.

[Jen Langan · Rating 3 out of 5]

📚📚ARC review! Thank you NetGalley for the early copy of this book. All opinions are my own

3 ⭐️⭐️⭐️

⏳past and present POV
🧩 pieces coming together
❤️‍🩹 Emotional history
😶Secrets uncovered

This book was good, not my favorite thriller read. It started off with a bang and thought it was going to be amazing and then it just slowed from there. For me, I never really connected with the character’s and never felt completely pulled into the story and found myself waiting for it to pick up. There were parts I enjoyed, but overall it just didn’t quite hit the mark for me.

The last 20% of the book did pick up so I am glad that I stuck with it. There were a few twists that I didn’t see coming; which I loved. The writing style was good and I would definitely read other books from this author.

That being said, the ending was definitely the strongest part and helped redeem the story.

[Angelie · Rating 4 out of 5]

My first book by this author. I enjoyed how compulsive the read was. The pace, the mystery, the backdrop romance, and the broadly written characters were big plusses. Sadly, there was way too much use of Jesus's name used as a swear word. I won’t deduct a star, but may hesitate before reading more by this author due to that personal preference.

I did find this book to be a great binge read. I read it in two days. It’s a mystery, a thriller, a romance, and has a fair amount of rich people behaving badly. There are a lot of twists, a lot of secrets, and it keeps you engaged from start to finish. Overall, I recommend. Look for this one in January 12, 2027.

Thanks to NetGalley and Thomas & Mercer for the ARC in exchange for an honest review! All opinions and statements are my own.

[Kerry Wolf · Rating 5 out of 5]

Ten Years Gone is another knockout psychological thriller from the talented Wendy Walker. I was so excited to receive an advanced copy of her latest book from NetGalley because I knew it would be a winner. Ten years ago Griffin Ford confessed to murdering a woman he worked for but there were many questions left unanswered and events that were covered up by people who were close to him. The novel is set in present time after his ten year sentence with chapters also set in the past leading up to the murder. With lots a thrills and twists along the way this book kept me engaged with a satisfying ending. Special thanks to NetGalley and the author for a free, electronic ARC of this novel received in exchange for an honest review.

[Abbey Wiley · Rating 3 out of 5]

3 stars ⭐️⭐️⭐️

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for the opportunity to read this ARC in exchange for an honest review.

Ten Years Gone was an easy-to-follow, bingeable thriller that kept me turning the pages. The pacing was quick, the mystery was engaging, and I found myself wanting to know how everything would come together.

While I enjoyed the overall story, I didn’t completely connect with the characters or feel as invested in the twists as I hoped I would. Some parts felt a little predictable, which kept this from being a standout thriller for me.

Overall, this was a solid, fast-paced read that would be a good choice if you’re looking for something easy to get lost in for a few hours. 3 stars for me!

[KDRBCK]

Ten Years Gone by new to me author Wendy Walker is a stand alone published by Thomas & Mercer.
A pulsepounding mystery/thriller, suspenseful from start till the last page full of twists and unexpected turns around the corner.
Griffin and Clare are characters that are already through a lot, but still have a way to go till their well deserved and hard earned hea.
I loved the story and the writing, 5 stars.

[Sue · Rating 3 out of 5]

I have heard of Wendy Walker, but never read one of her books.

I struggled to get into this book, as it is very slow, and there is a little too much description that wasn't really needed.

Romance and true love is the basis of this book, and the thriller part, in my opinion comes second.

It is twisty, and has a satisfying conclusion.

3/5 stars.

[Tori · Rating 5 out of 5]

The deliciously slow burn tension of Wendy Walker’s latest domestic psychological thriller had me compulsively reading straight through to the end. With my eyes glued to the digital pages every moment of the day, it’s a miracle I didn’t burn my hand on the stove or walk off a curb! If you enjoy richly imagined characters, relationships, and suspense, TEN YEARS GONE is for you.

[Anjana Baidya · Rating 4 out of 5]

Thank you Netgalley for the advanced copy

This book was a surprise for me. I tried liking many characters here in this book but I just cannot. I liked the protagonists though. This book shows how you can bend the rule if you're wealthy enough. Every character was in the wrong here in some way or other. The ending though was very satisfying.

[Liv Constantine · Rating 5 out of 5]

Wendy Walker never disappoints. A compelling, addictive story that grabs you and never lets you go!

[Heather Putnam · Rating 4 out of 5]

Wow! Such a great book. The storylines were just twisty enough to keep me locked in but not confused. Thanks Netgalley for the ARC