Birthday Girl

by Niko Wolf

He loved her. He lost her. But he should never have written her off.

' Birthday Girl is a real treat of a book , beautifully written and perfectly paced, slowly revealing secret after secret until you're not sure of anything anymore - only that you have to keep reading ' - Elly Griffiths, author of The Ruth Galloway Novels

Jonathan's wife disappeared more than twenty years ago. Now he's seeing her everywhere . . .

New York in the 1990s - impoverished writer Jonathan Dainty takes his wife Maddie out to the beach for her birthday. Hours later he finds himself at the local police precinct trying to explain how on earth he let his wife get into a stranger's car, and allowed it to drive her away.

More than twenty years later, Maddie is presumed dead and Jonathan has channelled his grief into a best-selling series of crime novels. As far as he can, he is living the perfect life.

Then one day he catches a glimpse of his dead wife, moving through a throng of people. Is Maddie alive? Has she come back? And why does no one believe him? As Jonathan attempts to uncover the truth, it soon becomes clear that the people closest to him are hiding something, something that could change everything . . .

The propulsive thriller from debut talent Niko Wolf, perfect for fans of Gone Girl and Blood Orange

Genres: Thriller, Fiction, Ebooks, Crime, Audiobook, Psychological Thriller

352 pages, Paperback

First published June 9, 2022

About the author

Niko Wolf was born in London and her first novel, The Favourite, was published in the UK in 2017 under SV Berlin. Long listed for The Authors’ Club Best First Novel Award 2018, it was also chosen as an ELLE Book of the month. Most recently, she was a Screenwriter and Story Editor for independent movie A Son of Man, selected as an official entry in the foreign-language category for the 2019 Oscars. Wolf works in artificial intelligence, and lives in Manhattan. Birthday Girl is her first thriller.

Reviews

[Tina | TBR, etc. · Rating 5 out of 5]

The Gone Girl comp we’ve all been looking for. This was such a page turner and the ending made me holler. Shout out to my Book Talk, etc cohost Renee for getting this on our radar!!

[Mandy White (mandylovestoread) · Rating 4 out of 5]

A great twisting thriller that keep you guessing. Really enjoyed it

[Debbie · Rating 4 out of 5]

Jonathan and his wife go for a trip to the beach for her birthday, only hours later, he finds himself at the police station, his wife missing. He tries to explain why it felt plausible to let her get into a stranger's car, thinking she would shortly return and the finger pointing begins. We see Jonathan over twenty years later, now a successful author and his wife Maddie presumed dead. Then one day, he thinks he sees her again in a crowd. Is she really still alive and why has she come back?

This was such a fun adventure! I honestly had no idea which characters to trust and the mystery surrounding Maddie's disappearance was just fabulous. No spoilers here but it is one I highly recommend. 4.5*

[Fiction Majorette · Rating 2 out of 5]

Full thoughts: https://fictionmajorette.blogspot.com...

I think the description of this book is way off and is not doing the book any favors. The description states this is a "propulsive thriller" for fans of Gone Girl. Based on that, I'm expecting to have some real moments of tension and building threats revolving around Maddie and her disappearance. This could not be further from the truth. This read 100% like a normal lit-fic book where the main character is going through a little bit of a mid-life crisis in regards to his upcoming wedding and career trajectory. I didn't find this to have nearly the tension, plotting, or pacing to be called a 'propulsive thriller'.

The characters were a little hit and miss for me, but I did like the way their characterization was handled in the dual timeline. The story flip-flops between the 1990s and 2019 and we see most of the characters in both timelines. I really enjoyed how Wolf tweaked their relationship dynamics between the two timelines and it was interesting to imagine how these characters got from point A to point B over the course of 20ish years. I'd say the slight majority of the story is the 2019 timeline and I found the characters in that part to be really insufferable to read about. It felt very much like the story revolved around 'rich people problems' that just weren't built up in a way that was interesting to me.

From a mystery/thriller perspective (which is what I thought this book was) it wasn't very good. It felt like the story had a lot of abrupt starts/stops/direction changes. As we get further along in the story, we increasingly have sections where it is just Jonathan thinking back over his life and career which really grind any sort of plot momentum to a halt. I think these moments are really what made it feel like a 'mid-life crisis' sort of book. All that being said, if I think about the pacing from a lit-fic sort of angle, then I feel like what we get on page much more closely aligns with what I would expect.

There was one reveal that, when we get it, I was immediately more intrigued with the story than ever before. However, that reveal comes literally on the last page so obviously we don't see any on-page implications. If that ending reveal was the midpoint reveal - I really think that could have made this story more along the lines of what I was expecting. I finished the book the day before writing this review and I can't stop thinking about the implications of that final reveal and I want to see the version of this book that follows those next events.

Overall, I think this was a case of an issue with the description not matching the content of the book. This read much more like a literary fiction with a slight mystery element than the thriller/mystery the description made me expect. I'm not a fan of lit-fic types of stories, but I do think if you are then I would suggest picking this up. It did have some good twists in the end, but nothing that was built up enough for me to really feel satisfied.

Thanks to NetGalley and Mobius Books for the ARC

Expected publication date is June 9, 2022

[Danielle B · Rating 3 out of 5]

Jonathan Dainty takes his wife Maddie out to the beach for her birthday in New York in 1990’s. Then an inexplicable event occurs. Maddie gets into the car of a total stranger and literally disappears. Jonathan is devastated by this turn of events and never gets any answers to what happened on that fateful day. Fast forward 20 years and Maddie is long presumed dead and Jonathan has used his grief to fuel a series of best selling crime novels. Until one day he spots Maddie in a crowd of people…could it really be her?

I really enjoyed the past and present alternating timelines of BIRTHDAY GIRL. Also the suspense and mystery surrounding the disappearance was very engaging and very original. And I always enjoy books with a great ending!

Many thanks to Mobius for my ARC in exchange for my honest review.

This review will be posted to my Instagram Blog (@coffee.break.book.reviews) in the near future.

[Basic B's Guide]

Dnf at 33%. Lost interest.

[Kori Potenzone · Rating 4 out of 5]

Have you ever heard of a book that can be both comical and a thriller? No, me either.

Let me introduce you to Birthday Girl.

I do not know how Niko Wolf, did it, but it has now been done.

This expertly crafted novel incorporates humor in an otherwise thrilling book.

These characters are multi-dimensional and "complicated" to say the least. This book is jam packed with twists and juicy secrets. I instantly fell in love.

One more chapter, turned into completely the entire book without even one bathroom break.

Wolf, knows how to tell a story. The pace was perfect. The chapters were fluid.

Buy the book, you can thank me later.

[Liz Barnsley · Rating 5 out of 5]

A beautifully written literary mystery that holds the attention and is really very clever - its not until you reach the end that you realise you are not reading quite what you thought you were reading.

Moving seamlessly through past and present we have a missing wife and a main protagonist with no closure moving inexorably onwards with his life. It is a true character drama and a tale of consequences- what life could have been changed by one major, inexplicable event.

I loved it I had no idea where it would end up and spent the entire read assessing and guessing whilst being completely drawn into this world.

An excellent read. Highly Recommended.

[Zoe · Rating 4 out of 5]

Intricate, crafty, and absorbing!

Birthday Girl is an intense, devious thriller set during the late 1990s, as well as present-day, that takes you into the life of Jonathan Dainty, a writer, husband and father of one whose life has never been quite the same since his wife got into a stranger’s car one day and disappeared without a trace.

The writing is fluid and tight. The characters are driven, devious, and insecure. And the plot, using a past/present, back-and-forth style, unfolds slowly into a simmering tale full of emotion, manipulation, deception, desperation, jealousy, obsession, marital strife, and familial drama.

Overall, Birthday Girl is a taut, cunning, sinister read by Wolf that kept me engaged, entertained and guessing from start to finish.

Thank you to Mobius Books US for gifting me a copy in exchange for an honest review.

[Kenzie | kenzienoelle.reads · Rating 1 out of 5]

I should’ve DNFed

[Ashley Ferrell · Rating 5 out of 5]

Great first book of 2023! If you loved Gone Girl this might fill that void we have all been missing! 😂

[Leslie · Rating 4 out of 5]

If not for Renee on the Book Talk, Etc. podcast this literary thriller never would have made it to my TBR. How this one flew so far under the radar is beyond me. A well-written, plotted thriller that actually should be compared to Gone Girl (unlike the gazillion other titles that have been and were not one bit like Gone Girl). The characters will keep you turning the pages, not the pace. The story begins with Maddie's disappearance on her birthday when she vanishes after receiving a surprise birthday gift from her husband, Jonathan who just wants his wife to be happy again. The timeline jumps between 1996 & 2019 with a few stops in between. How do you move on when your spouse simply disappears?

[Jen Boner · Rating 2 out of 5]

Slooow… and boring. You downs a lot of time in the narrator’s head. It’s a weird place where so many contradictory things happen that it gets confusing. Other characters are underdeveloped. Best friend Jay is an ass and only makes occasional, uninteresting appearances. New fiancé Laura… no explanation of how he started dating his read wife’s friend. Or why. They don’t seem to like each other. Not my cup of tea.

[Danielle Baker · Rating 3 out of 5]

Pretty despicable cast of characters. I dunno - I wanted more from this story. We spend a lot of time in Jonathan’s headspace, and his mind is just not that interesting or compelling. I started to get bored early on. The epilogue’s attempt at shock value left me rolling my eyes.

[Deb · Rating 4 out of 5]

4.5

[Jash Day · Rating 3 out of 5]

Would I have liked this more if it wasn’t compared to Gone Girl?

I didn’t love any of the characters and the middle dragged a bit.

2.75

[Lorelei · Rating 1 out of 5]

Slow slow read. I just didn’t like the characters or really the whole book. It just dragged on so I really can’t recommend it.

[Alice Olea Hatch · Rating 5 out of 5]

I’m going to rate this 4.5 or 5 ⭐️ I’ll have to sit on it a little longer but either way, This book should be much more popular and people should read it! I’ve been trying to find more books that are more under the radar and this book is exactly the type I was looking for!

I don’t want to overhype it at all. Ever since Gone Girl dominated the thriller genre, people try to compare way too many books to Flynn’s book and they’re usually wrong.

I’m not a big fan of comparing books, and this book is definitely different, is uniquely its own, has a very different voice etc, but if any book could be compared with Gone Girl, it’s Birthday Girl.

[Annarella · Rating 3 out of 5]

I think it's well written, some parts are fascinating but it never involved me or cause anything more admiration for the style of writing.
Not my cup of tea
Many thanks to the publisher and Netgalley for this ARC, all opinions are mine

[Tara · Rating 5 out of 5]

It was a 4.5 until the very end. I still have some questions, which I think makes me give it the full 5 stars.

[McBreakneck · Rating 3 out of 5]

Birthday Girl - Niko Wolf

Twenty three years ago Jonathan Dainty was a struggling aspiring author when his girlfriend Maddie disappeared, never to be seen again. He's now a bestselling serial Crime author, though he's moved on in life and love he still think he catches glimpses of Maddie.

I've read lots of long lost wife / girlfriend / partner thrillers, and sorry to say this one really didn't stand out or impress me. Jonathan is the only character I felt I got to know much about, and from being a rich and successful author not much else progressed.

I would have liked more plot and events, as I found Jonathan's head a fairly dull place to spend time with not much happening.

Not one for me, but I'm sure others will enjoy it more.


Thanks to Netgalley and Hodder & Stoughton

[Emma’s Book Nook · Rating 4 out of 5]

Nineteen ninety-six – New York – In the ‘almost Hampton’s – Jonathan, a struggling writer, his wife Maggie and friends, Laura and Jay pool their money and rent a small cottage for a budget get-away. On the morning of Maddie’s birthday, Jonathan and Maddie go to the local beach. Hours later, he finds himself at the local police precinct trying to explain how on earth he let his wife get into a stranger’s car and allowed it to drive away. “It’s her thing – that’s she’s always done, over their four and a half years together. Maddie loves vintage cars, and can be a bit impulsive.” To others, Maddie’s behaviour wasn’t cute or endearing, but downright dangerous. She never came back!

More than twenty years later, Maddie is still missing and presumed dead, and Jonathan has channelled his grief into a best-selling series of crime novels. Jonathan is now successful, wealthy and as far as he can, is living the perfect life. Then one day, he catches a glimpse of his ‘dead wife’, moving through a throng of people. Is Maddie alive? Has she come back? And why does no one believe him? As Jonathan attempts to uncover the truth, he feels like he’s beginning to lose his mind. Have the people closest to him been hiding something all of these years? Something that could change everything?

“Afterwards, he would wonder how anyone got through life without dying”

Jonathan Dainty
I liked this book, it was beautifully written and perfectly paced – slowly revealing secret after secret until you’re not sure of anything anymore – only that you have to keep reading! The author does a great job of moving from past to present – throughout, you really can not tell where this book is going – it keeps you guessing right up to the end! I would however pin this story as more of a literary thriller/mystery, but more mystery than a thriller.

My thanks to the author and Hodder & Stoughton for my advance copy to review via Netgalley. Due out today!!

[Theresa · Rating 2 out of 5]

One of the descriptors for this book is a “propulsive thriller,” which I strongly disagree with. I would describe this as a slow burn psychological suspense novel. Jonathan’s wife Maddie disappeared on her birthday 20+ years ago &, despite achieving enormous success as a writer after Maddie’s death, Johnathan has never really recovered. There is very little action in this book, with most of the story taking place in Jonathan’s head. Most of the characters range from unlikeable to despicable. I almost DNF’d it when, 50% of my way through the book, nothing had really happened, but kept going because I thought surely it had to pick up at some point because of that “propulsive thriller” thing. In the end I’m glad I stuck with it, but it ended up being just a so-so read for me.

Thanks to Netgalley for allowing me to read the ARC in exchange for an honest review.

[Darlisha · Rating 2 out of 5]

This book was kind of a waste of my time. I did finish it because I wanted to know where the story was headed, but as soon as it ended, I wished that I had not taken the time to finish it. I give it points for a good (albeit unbelievable) set up. But as many have pointed out, the characters are all terrible. There are so many plot holes and things that don't hold up. The ending is nonsensical and just included for shock value. I would like to say more about the problems with this book, but it would include spoilers. Suffice it to say, this was not worth my precious reading time. I find it strange that so many people felt this book was successful.

[Debbie Akers · Rating 5 out of 5]

I picked this book up at a used bookstore not too long ago, never having heard of it. Why have I never heard of this? What a great novel! Flipping back and forth between the 1990s to present day-ish (2019), main character Jonathan grapples with the struggles of his wife’s disappearance in 1996. I suspect some readers may find the middle part of the book a bit meandering, but I enjoyed the ride. It’s to be taken in as a slow burn. Over time, more details emerge, and eventually we land at one of the most clever twists I’ve seen.

[Holly Burke · Rating 1 out of 5]

This book was awful. The writing was cluttered and confusing. This story is billed as "masterfully written" and a book that "will keep you up all night." I found it incredibly boring. I kept reading beyond 50% and then 60% because I was waiting for the anticipated twist....and the twist was dumb. The characters are boring and I didn't even really care about the missing wife. I can't believe that some of my fave podcasters had this as a best book of the year.

[Gail (Neuroknitter) · Rating 4 out of 5]

🎧 3.5⭐️ rounded up for a debut novel. I've not read Gone Girl, so I can't speak to how this book relates to that comparison. I've heard it compared to another book, which I won't mention here, as it was a very good comp, and actually spoilery to me. That being said, this is the book I wish the other book had been. And, THAT being said, this book lost its shine and became derivative because of how close in plot it was to the other one I shall not mention. It just seems that when a really clever narrative is published, some authors seem to use it as a template for their own writing...IDK, the first author to use a particular plotting device, even if not written as well, will be the winner as that book was the first with that plot device, at least until that it becomes so common as to become a trope, e.g. isolated setting murder mysteries, and then one can judge how well that trope was executed. IDK. I think this book executed that plot device fairly well. What this book is: a slow burn mystery revolving around Maddie, a woman that goes missing after a walk on the beach with her husband on the day of her birthday. When I say slow burn, I mean SLooooooow. It's a page turner, but we are in the head of the husband, a successful writer during the 20+ years following his wife's disappearance. There is a cast of characters including a fiance, best friend, sister and BIL, and a cop friend from the original event. There are secrets, and a few twists, and then the final twist that leaves you going "hmmmm". What this book isn't - a thrilling, suspenseful, and fast paced mystery. It's slow, not boring, just slow and methodical as we jump back and forth between the current timeline (~2019), and the 1990s at the time of the original disappearance of Maddie. The disappearance occurs immediately, there is a plot beat at 30%, again at 60%, and then near the end it picks up quite rapidly for a time, and then the brakes are slammed as we go deep into the main character's head, and then the final spark. All the rest is, IDK, interpersonal drama filler while you wait…and wait…for the next plot beat to drop. The writing was ok, I kept turning the page because I really wanted to figure it out, the characters were meh, I didn't particularly care about any of them, perhaps if there were fewer and we got to know them better? The narration was very good and probably was what kept me going. I enjoyed the experience of reading this book well enough, but didn't come away thrilled about the story like I do with other books. I kept thinking, when will it pick up? When will another clue be dropped? When will I have enough info to figure it out? i.e. How much longer until the end and I'll know what I want to know!! LOL!! I think I am getting curmudgeonly with my mystery novels and am rating them more harshly, especially if I feel they are derivative. I would read from this author again, as I think there is potential. YMMV.

[Kath · Rating 4 out of 5]

Back in the 90s Jonathan took his wife to the beach for a birthday treat. He was intending to surprise her with a wonderful gift that he knew she would love. To say that things did not go according to plan would be an understatement as his day ended with him at the police station reporting her missing after seeing her get into a stranger's classic car.
Back in the present and Jonathan has tried to get on with his life, his wife still missing presumed dead. He has taken his tragedy and grief and spun it into a series of best selling crime fiction books. He is successful and doing well for himself all round. Just not as perfect as he comes across, the shadow of Maddie's disappearance still looming.
And then, one day, he sees her. A fleeting glance, but it's her. Definitely. Is she back? Where has she been? Why the absence? All questions spinning around his head. Jonathan is determined to find her. discover the truth, and put the whole sorry story to bed. But at what cost...?
This book was quite the journey. Almost literary fiction wrapped up in a psychological thriller. Or vice versa! Mixing the present with the past to give us the journey, and it is a journey, that Jonathan goes on through the book to find the truth. A jaw dropping truth that caught me on the hop. I quite early on gave up trying to second guess where we were going. Although I did have several theories, all fizzled out along the way!
We do spend a lot of the book in Jonathan's head and it's not the best place to find yourself to be honest. Although a lot of what is gleaned therein is important and integral to the overall narrative, I think that maybe there was a little too much introspective and some info could have been found from another source, maybe.
All in all, a good solid read that was a little different to my usual fare. And different is often good, as in this case, offering a fresh look on the genre. My thanks go to the Publisher and Netgalley for the chance to read this book.

[emperorcupcake · Rating 1 out of 5]

1.5

Oooof. I'm sorry, but this was just bad. Every character was unlikeable in an insufferable way, not a fun way. I hated being in the head of this man. The only remotely likeable character was the cop, which is a crime in itself. (And what was the whole deal with his female partner at the beginning of the book? She was made such a big deal of and then never seen again!)

This book was not long, but it felt SO long. So many words, so many inner thoughts of this man I wanted no thoughts from. This could have been so much shorter and tighter but instead it went for a more lit fic, character study route which didn't work because of how uninterestingly bad the characters were. Just a bunch of unpleasant people who didn't like each other. Being prickly, my least favourite thing. Why were John and Laura even together, they seemed like disinterested acquaintances more than fiances. And Maddie was annoying af in the flashback chapters, a kind of manic pixie nightmare.

So why did I not just DNF this when I'm in my brutal DNF era? The one thing this book did right is I DID want to know the answer to the mystery. So I skimmed a lot of the filler text to get to the end and hopefully have my socks knocked off. And then it did that, the same thing another book I hated did! (This book came first.) It made a little more sense here, at least, but not much. "Unreliable narrator" has to be done carefully, it's not an excuse for the author to straight up lie to the reader. I really didn't like anything about this, but giving it that extra .5 star because I bloody finished it, which is more than I can say for a lot of the boring "thrillers" I've tried to read lately.

[Melanie · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is a quick suspense book. Some reviewers are giving it five stars, which is a bit much, although I think I understand their reasoning. But I also don't think it's worth the paltry one-star reviews either. If you're in the mood for a suspense, a slow-burn mystery with some surprising reveals — this is definitely not a thriller — then you might pick this up.

I got into the plot right away: In 1996, Jonathan and his wife, Maddie, have gone to a beach house with a couple of friends for her birthday. The two of them are on the beach alone together when impulsive Maddie does something stupid but not out of character for her: She gets into a classic car she's impressed with, but with a driver she doesn't know, and rides away from her husband. When she doesn't return soon after, Jonathan contacts the local police. Maddie is gone, later presumed dead, leaving Jonathan grief-stricken and alone to raise their young son in New York City.

The book is set in dual timelines. More than 20 years later, in 2019, Jonathan is now a successful famous author (think James Patterson) with an adult son and a fiance. But one day he catches a glimpse of a woman he believes is Maddie. Is it? Is she alive? Is he seeing things? And what really happened back in 1996?

As I said, this is not a thriller. The book gets a bit bogged down in the middle and becomes more about a middle-aged man having a midlife crisis, as he struggles with his career, his relationship and his son's behavior. But the suspense picks up and I found the reveals and ending quite satisfying.