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DI Mike Nash #2
Vanish without Trace
Detective Mike Nash thought that moving back to Yorkshire from London would give him a quieter life. Little did he know . . .
PLEASE NOTE THIS IS A REVISED EDITION OF A BOOK FIRST PUBLISHED AS “CHOSEN”
HOW DO YOU SOLVE A CRIME WHEN THERE'S NO EVIDENCE ONE HAS BEEN COMMITTED?
Sarah Kelly goes for a night out at a club. She leaves around 2 a.m. No one sees her again.
Detective Mike Nash has nothing to go on, until a chance remark causes him to look deeper into other cases. Young women who have vanished without trace.
Nash spots chilling similarities:
NO BODIES, NO WITNESSES, ALL DISAPPEARANCES EXPLAINED AWAY.
He needs to find a solution and fast as two more women vanish, making it personal and potentially fatal. Both for Nash and for the women who have disappeared.
CAN NASH STOP A VERY PECULIAR SERIAL KILLER? DISCOVER A FRANTIC, BREATHTAKING PAGE-TURNER OF A MYSTERY.
A CRIME THRILLER PERFECT FOR FANS OF IAN RANKIN, JD KIRK, DS BUTLER or PETER ROBINSON.
PLEASE NOTE THIS IS A REVISED EDITION OF A BOOK FIRST PUBLISHED AS “CHOSEN”
HOW DO YOU SOLVE A CRIME WHEN THERE'S NO EVIDENCE ONE HAS BEEN COMMITTED?
Sarah Kelly goes for a night out at a club. She leaves around 2 a.m. No one sees her again.
Detective Mike Nash has nothing to go on, until a chance remark causes him to look deeper into other cases. Young women who have vanished without trace.
Nash spots chilling similarities:
NO BODIES, NO WITNESSES, ALL DISAPPEARANCES EXPLAINED AWAY.
He needs to find a solution and fast as two more women vanish, making it personal and potentially fatal. Both for Nash and for the women who have disappeared.
CAN NASH STOP A VERY PECULIAR SERIAL KILLER? DISCOVER A FRANTIC, BREATHTAKING PAGE-TURNER OF A MYSTERY.
A CRIME THRILLER PERFECT FOR FANS OF IAN RANKIN, JD KIRK, DS BUTLER or PETER ROBINSON.
248 pages, Kindle Edition
First published April 1, 2010
981 people are currently reading
204 people want to read
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 58 reviews
April 23, 2021
The second book in the series. Starts off a little slower than the first one, but soon picks up as DI Nash uses his perception to find a trail, where previously there was none! A good police procedural, that is chilling, with a good cast of characters, that is being fine tuned book by book. We are offered various possible candidates for the killer, but which one is correct…? You will have to wait to the mind-blowing conclusion to find out for yourself.
December 4, 2019
I picked this up at random on Amazon and was pleasantly surprised. I didn't go straight for book 1 (apparently the author's debut) as I was in a reading slump and thought I'd avoid the often unpolished, first, less than stellar effort (a view I have since changed).
So this, book 2 in the DI Nash series, is a really good police procedural that started a bit slow but then built up a furious head of steam as it thundered towards the conclusion. How do you solve a crime when there is no evidence a crime has been committed? Read this and find out - chilling and compelling with a great cast of characters.
So this, book 2 in the DI Nash series, is a really good police procedural that started a bit slow but then built up a furious head of steam as it thundered towards the conclusion. How do you solve a crime when there is no evidence a crime has been committed? Read this and find out - chilling and compelling with a great cast of characters.
October 16, 2019
Vanish Without a Trace
I thoroughly enjoyed reading your book. I am looking forward to reading the next book in the series. Great read 👍
I thoroughly enjoyed reading your book. I am looking forward to reading the next book in the series. Great read 👍
November 19, 2025
Better than book 1 of the series as the main characters are better fleshed out and behave more consistent with being police officers. There were still a few incidents of the characters acting like dicks and not following the letter of the law, but for some odd reason I still found it compelling reading. Like the first book the crime in this one was somewhat gruesome and not for the feint of heart. Will probably continue with the series.
May 4, 2020
Vanished Without Trace
Well constructed plot.
Not complicated and easy to follow.
Character names are straightforward.
Looking forward reading more novels in the series.
Well constructed plot.
Not complicated and easy to follow.
Character names are straightforward.
Looking forward reading more novels in the series.
October 25, 2019
Great read
Thoroughly enjoyed this book. Didn't see the end coming. Up and down, round and round, well written. Worth the read.
Thoroughly enjoyed this book. Didn't see the end coming. Up and down, round and round, well written. Worth the read.
May 16, 2020
Wow!
Terrific mystery! Excellent police procedural with Mike and his team-- exciting describes this search for missing young women. It is one of the most unusual murder mysteries I have ever read! The conclusion is mind blowing!!
Terrific mystery! Excellent police procedural with Mike and his team-- exciting describes this search for missing young women. It is one of the most unusual murder mysteries I have ever read! The conclusion is mind blowing!!
August 21, 2022
This book has a good pace, it keeps you motivated to find out more, although it seemed too obvious who the killer was too soon into the story and I felt the end was a bit rushed.
December 3, 2019
Vanish Without Trace by Bill Kitso 11/10/2019 Kindle
This mystery was referred to me by a friend so I read it with an open mind, not knowing anything about the author. I didn’t realize it was the second in a series. References were made to an earlier case so there would be a benefit in reading the series in order.
When a young woman turns up missing after an evening of clubbing some of the police are willing to write the matter off as one of many unsolved disappearances. Not Detective Mike Nash who has recently moved into this English Countryside department. More women vanish and the detective delves deeper into the case. Research points to years of similar cases as the numbers add up.
While I found the story caught my imagination, I felt some logical questions might have been asked far earlier. The characters interesting but I didn’t feel I’d got to know Mike Nash very well. Perhaps that’s my fault, for beginning the series with the second installment. An easy read but I found the ending predictable.
This mystery was referred to me by a friend so I read it with an open mind, not knowing anything about the author. I didn’t realize it was the second in a series. References were made to an earlier case so there would be a benefit in reading the series in order.
When a young woman turns up missing after an evening of clubbing some of the police are willing to write the matter off as one of many unsolved disappearances. Not Detective Mike Nash who has recently moved into this English Countryside department. More women vanish and the detective delves deeper into the case. Research points to years of similar cases as the numbers add up.
While I found the story caught my imagination, I felt some logical questions might have been asked far earlier. The characters interesting but I didn’t feel I’d got to know Mike Nash very well. Perhaps that’s my fault, for beginning the series with the second installment. An easy read but I found the ending predictable.
February 10, 2020
Read these books out of order. So I finally find out the reason for his move.
DI Mike Nash has moved from London to a country posting. He falls into a case of a missing girl while still clearing up other murders. Busy guy.
He speaks to the girls parent. She never would stay out without telling her Mum. Mike has an almost psychic ability to put himself into the scene of crime. He walks the area she would take on leaving the nightclub and notices a broken light and cctv. His mind goes into its workings and he comes up with a completely different scenario.
It involves a wide area search and numerous different constabularies.
It is a good introduction to our DI who has gone through a difficult time in his personal life. He goes off the rails and gets the label of 'ladies man'.
He is a completely different type of DI. Some may love him some may hate him but he gets the job done in very different ways.
I don't like spoilers so will just say it is worthwhile staying with the series. He does grow on you.
DI Mike Nash has moved from London to a country posting. He falls into a case of a missing girl while still clearing up other murders. Busy guy.
He speaks to the girls parent. She never would stay out without telling her Mum. Mike has an almost psychic ability to put himself into the scene of crime. He walks the area she would take on leaving the nightclub and notices a broken light and cctv. His mind goes into its workings and he comes up with a completely different scenario.
It involves a wide area search and numerous different constabularies.
It is a good introduction to our DI who has gone through a difficult time in his personal life. He goes off the rails and gets the label of 'ladies man'.
He is a completely different type of DI. Some may love him some may hate him but he gets the job done in very different ways.
I don't like spoilers so will just say it is worthwhile staying with the series. He does grow on you.
Read
April 2, 2020Fascinating
DI Nash is an interesting detective . He has abilities not usually seen . A young woman disappears on her way home from a club. He senses that this isn't a runaway situation , however there are no clues . It takes careful and what appears to be exhaustive work by him and his team to Crack the case.
Some typos in the form of missing words such as of and for . Easily missed.
DI Nash is an interesting detective . He has abilities not usually seen . A young woman disappears on her way home from a club. He senses that this isn't a runaway situation , however there are no clues . It takes careful and what appears to be exhaustive work by him and his team to Crack the case.
Some typos in the form of missing words such as of and for . Easily missed.
October 30, 2019
Intriguing
Kitson has done a great job on developing his characters to the extent you want to read the next books in the series. Although the subject matter is rather dark the author has added laugh out loud humor in the very realistic dialogue. Police procedures seem realistic and the storyline moves along and will keep you intrigued.
Kitson has done a great job on developing his characters to the extent you want to read the next books in the series. Although the subject matter is rather dark the author has added laugh out loud humor in the very realistic dialogue. Police procedures seem realistic and the storyline moves along and will keep you intrigued.
November 8, 2019
Brilliant read
Absolutely found this book hard to put down. Thank you, Bill Kitson for keeping me entertained.
I will definitely buy more books from this author.
Well deserved 5 stars.
Absolutely found this book hard to put down. Thank you, Bill Kitson for keeping me entertained.
I will definitely buy more books from this author.
Well deserved 5 stars.
January 25, 2020
Review
I thoroughly enjoyed reading this book. It has a lot of twists and turns that it can make you dizzy. Highly entertaining. Highly recommended for anyone who enjoys reading a thoroughly engrossing story.
I thoroughly enjoyed reading this book. It has a lot of twists and turns that it can make you dizzy. Highly entertaining. Highly recommended for anyone who enjoys reading a thoroughly engrossing story.
July 18, 2014
This is an absolutely gripping crime book by another of my Favorite Author's, and like all his books a brilliant read, :)
December 14, 2019
Amazing book!
You will not want to put this down as the clues continue to pile up and the search for a killer takes a surprising turn. Very very well written!
You will not want to put this down as the clues continue to pile up and the search for a killer takes a surprising turn. Very very well written!
February 20, 2020
Book 2 in the enjoyable Mike Nash series. Bit fed up with him shagging though.
March 24, 2020
Thrilling
This was a thrilling page turner.
Great characters, especially Mike Nash.
Full of suspense and twists.
I love the way the story ended.
This was a thrilling page turner.
Great characters, especially Mike Nash.
Full of suspense and twists.
I love the way the story ended.
June 20, 2021
This is one of the best crime novels I’ve read for some time and definitely my top read of 2021 so far.
A teenage girl doesn’t return home in the sleepy rural retreat of Helmdale in Yorkshire. Little does DI Mike Nash realise his investigation will put him on the trail of a serial killer who leaves no trace. There are no bodies and no evidence of abduction – simply women still listed as missing.
The similarity in their appearance is the only common link.
Mike, still plagued by bad dreams and nightmares, knows there must be another link that will help him identify the killer. But while Mike and his team struggle to find this link, the killer’s lining up his next victims.
The skill of the serial killer in remaining anonymous for so long makes this investigation about as difficult as you can get. The tension never lets up as Mike sacrifices his health and well-being to identify and track down the killer.
The scale of the story is epic. The personal cost to both the families of the women killed and the investigators is graphically demonstrated. You can feel the emotion as an exhausted team struggle with the magnitude of the investigation.
And after the dramatic climax, the relief and joy of capturing the killer is tempered by the realisation of the devastation he caused, revealing both the emotional high and lows of a criminal investigation.
I felt drained after finishing the moving final chapter. My emotions were shredded, but in a good way. This story will live long in the memory – a sign of quality writing and storytelling.
Simply brilliant.
A teenage girl doesn’t return home in the sleepy rural retreat of Helmdale in Yorkshire. Little does DI Mike Nash realise his investigation will put him on the trail of a serial killer who leaves no trace. There are no bodies and no evidence of abduction – simply women still listed as missing.
The similarity in their appearance is the only common link.
Mike, still plagued by bad dreams and nightmares, knows there must be another link that will help him identify the killer. But while Mike and his team struggle to find this link, the killer’s lining up his next victims.
The skill of the serial killer in remaining anonymous for so long makes this investigation about as difficult as you can get. The tension never lets up as Mike sacrifices his health and well-being to identify and track down the killer.
The scale of the story is epic. The personal cost to both the families of the women killed and the investigators is graphically demonstrated. You can feel the emotion as an exhausted team struggle with the magnitude of the investigation.
And after the dramatic climax, the relief and joy of capturing the killer is tempered by the realisation of the devastation he caused, revealing both the emotional high and lows of a criminal investigation.
I felt drained after finishing the moving final chapter. My emotions were shredded, but in a good way. This story will live long in the memory – a sign of quality writing and storytelling.
Simply brilliant.
May 27, 2020
Superb.
Second in the Nash series and just as good as the first one.
Bill Kitson has the gift of writing about the most obnoxious criminal behaviour and keeping it real.
He opens the box with the bogey man in, but you have this thread of faith that Nash and his team will finish the bogey man before he can continue his heinous crimes.
Missing young women, no trace of them, for eighteen years or more.
Sarah Kelly disappears after a night out, there is no trace for the search parties to find. Weeks pass only her purse is found behind the local club she had visited, no other clue, no lucky break. The team slog through file after file, a local man is a possible suspect, but Nash isn't convinced.
A search for similar crimes in the North of England brings forth seven other disappearances, the girls could be sisters, all blue eyed blondes from stable homes, no problems in their life, no hint of what was to come - no obvious connection. The smell of formaldehyde eventually sets Nash on the right path to a surprising culprit, but more than one of the team nearly loses their life in the final confrontation. The book ends with a secret Mike Nash may never know about.
Totally enthralling, have read in one sitting as I did the first in this series, cannot recommend highly enough.
Second in the Nash series and just as good as the first one.
Bill Kitson has the gift of writing about the most obnoxious criminal behaviour and keeping it real.
He opens the box with the bogey man in, but you have this thread of faith that Nash and his team will finish the bogey man before he can continue his heinous crimes.
Missing young women, no trace of them, for eighteen years or more.
Sarah Kelly disappears after a night out, there is no trace for the search parties to find. Weeks pass only her purse is found behind the local club she had visited, no other clue, no lucky break. The team slog through file after file, a local man is a possible suspect, but Nash isn't convinced.
A search for similar crimes in the North of England brings forth seven other disappearances, the girls could be sisters, all blue eyed blondes from stable homes, no problems in their life, no hint of what was to come - no obvious connection. The smell of formaldehyde eventually sets Nash on the right path to a surprising culprit, but more than one of the team nearly loses their life in the final confrontation. The book ends with a secret Mike Nash may never know about.
Totally enthralling, have read in one sitting as I did the first in this series, cannot recommend highly enough.
February 18, 2023
Vanish Without Trace is book two in the DI Mike Nash series by Bill Kitson. Detective Mike Nash caught a case of a young girl Sarah Kelly who went missing after a night out. Detective Mike Nash initially had not learned why Sarah disappeared until he decided to look deeper into an older case with the same ammo; what DI Mike Nash found shocked him and his team. The readers of Vanish Without Trace will continue to follow Detective Mike Nash and his team to discover what happens.
Vanish Without Trace is a fantastic addition to this excellent series. The more books I read, the more I fall in love with Bill Kitson's stories and characters. The way Bill Kitson's portrayed his characters and their interaction with each other throughout this book. Vanish Without Trace is well-written and researched by Bill Kitson. I like Bill Kitson's description of the settings of Vanish Without Trace, which allowed me to imagine being part of the book's plot.
The readers of Vanish Without Trace will learn about a sexual problem called necrophilia, which is part of the paraphilic disorders family. Also, the readers of Vanish Without Trace will learn about the dangers of using gamma-hydroxybutyrate.
I recommend this book.
Vanish Without Trace is a fantastic addition to this excellent series. The more books I read, the more I fall in love with Bill Kitson's stories and characters. The way Bill Kitson's portrayed his characters and their interaction with each other throughout this book. Vanish Without Trace is well-written and researched by Bill Kitson. I like Bill Kitson's description of the settings of Vanish Without Trace, which allowed me to imagine being part of the book's plot.
The readers of Vanish Without Trace will learn about a sexual problem called necrophilia, which is part of the paraphilic disorders family. Also, the readers of Vanish Without Trace will learn about the dangers of using gamma-hydroxybutyrate.
I recommend this book.
December 24, 2021
This is the second installment of the mystery series featuring Detective Inspector Mike Nash in Helmsdale, England. It is a great police procedural murder case that starts with a missing young lady. Then a murder occurs when a woman is stabbed to death behind a pub. Soon after a man is found beaten nearly to death. Mike must work all three cases simultaneously. This is an unusually crowded crime wave in small town Helmsdale, which Mike “escaped” to from London seeking relief from the hectic pace of a DI in London. The initial missing young lady takes precedence because she may still be alive. The feature characters are very believable and realistically portrayed. The dialogue is also realistic and the tracing of clues and interviews with witnesses and suspects seems real. There is just enough personal life that mixes with the police work to make the story all the more realistic.
October 20, 2025
This book had me reading through the night to finish it. Very gripping. Three investigations on the go and it's taking its toll on DI Mike Nash. Understandably he is a bit snappy with his colleagues...namely Viv. It's fast paced and intense. Love the character development of all the characters and his friendship with DS Clara Mironova. The banter is light hearted and amusing.
The more serious of the investigations about a missing young woman opens up a multitude of mysterious disappearances and the plot thickens dramatically.
A well written and intriguing storyline. The ending...wow! I wanted to immediately start book three but my heavy eyelids decided otherwise!
The more serious of the investigations about a missing young woman opens up a multitude of mysterious disappearances and the plot thickens dramatically.
A well written and intriguing storyline. The ending...wow! I wanted to immediately start book three but my heavy eyelids decided otherwise!
July 16, 2020
Another Thriller for DI Nash
A terrific follow-up to What Lies Beneath. I'm looking forward to the next in the series. Gruesome subject matter but author handles it skilfully without going into painful or excruciating detail. But the reader can certainly visualize! Fascinating journey of trial and error and brilliant deductions by Nash. All the main characters are in jeopardy in this one. Not one comes out unscathed in one form or other. Also a surprise at the very end for Nash, a personal one. Enjoy!
A terrific follow-up to What Lies Beneath. I'm looking forward to the next in the series. Gruesome subject matter but author handles it skilfully without going into painful or excruciating detail. But the reader can certainly visualize! Fascinating journey of trial and error and brilliant deductions by Nash. All the main characters are in jeopardy in this one. Not one comes out unscathed in one form or other. Also a surprise at the very end for Nash, a personal one. Enjoy!
February 24, 2023
Why do I keep doing this to myself??? These are just NOT good books! But I am addicted! I will probably read the next one though…
This “detective work” includes a LOT of assumptions about people based on their appearances and/or ethnicities. Obviously if someone gives you a weird look, and is soft spoken, he MUST be a sexual predator. I was rolling my eyes more often than not. And the flip flopping between characters first and last names was thoroughly confusing.
I will say that the actual murder mystery part of it was fascinating! Just don’t know if I can handle this author again.
This “detective work” includes a LOT of assumptions about people based on their appearances and/or ethnicities. Obviously if someone gives you a weird look, and is soft spoken, he MUST be a sexual predator. I was rolling my eyes more often than not. And the flip flopping between characters first and last names was thoroughly confusing.
I will say that the actual murder mystery part of it was fascinating! Just don’t know if I can handle this author again.
June 30, 2020
Another 5 Star Performance
Having read the first book and being gripped, I decided to get this second one “Vanish Without Trace”. Absolutely brilliant! What a good call that was. When you start reading these books, you just can’t put them down. DI Nash and his team are superb, they are completely different in character but work together to solve crime so well. I seriously recommend this series to any crime reader out there.
Having read the first book and being gripped, I decided to get this second one “Vanish Without Trace”. Absolutely brilliant! What a good call that was. When you start reading these books, you just can’t put them down. DI Nash and his team are superb, they are completely different in character but work together to solve crime so well. I seriously recommend this series to any crime reader out there.
January 11, 2021
I was given this book. Have not read Kitson. Interesting placement of background information and relative information on the mystery. Personal background on characters i found to be distracting. No, it was not part of authors design. That can be discerned. There will be a statement made, if you are paying attention, about midway that will lead you to answer. I am not sure if i will seek out other books in this series.
December 30, 2021
This book doesn't have audio yet, so I had to find time to read. Very good mystery. Serial abductions. But then what? No other clues make it very difficult to solve missing person cases. DI Nash and the team are working hard. A few other cases are active during the main case. This story had me waffling on who the baddie would turn out to be. Lots of clues and red herrings. Satisfying ending, I'm looking forward to the next book!! "Playing with Fire"
May 30, 2025
This book didn't grab me as hard as the previous book in the series, but it's still pretty good. The action picked up from the first page and while I could have done without some of the descriptions, it helped build up the suspense. The plot twists kept me guessing and the final reveal was a shock, but I would have preferred more of a resolution than what we did get. I'll have to read the next in the series soon.
July 14, 2022
Vanish Without Trace Is the second of the superb Mike Nash detective set by Bill Kitson. An absolutely brilliant read with many moments that had the hairs at the back of my neck standing up. Beautifully crafted and a fabulous follow-on from the first Mike Nash epic. Twists and turns aplenty but they magically knitted together.
Displaying 1 - 30 of 58 reviews