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When Alex arrives in Provincetown to patch things up with his new wife, he finds an empty wine glass in the sink, her wedding ring on the desk, and a string of questions in her wake. The police believe that Alex’s wife simply left, his marriage crumbling before it truly began. But what Alex finds in their empty cottage points him toward a different reality:
His wife has always carried a secret. And now she’s disappeared.
In his hunt for the truth, Alex comes across Layla, a young woman with information to share, who may hold the key to everything his wife has kept hidden. A girl without a clear recollection of her own past. A strange, quiet girl whose memories may break them all.
To find his wife, Alex must face what Layla has forgotten. And the consequences are anything but quiet.
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Review 1:
Cleverly-structured psychological suspense with plenty of twists for domestic thriller fans, while also providing a character-driven study of trauma and its after effects. Throw in revenge and you have a story that is disquieting and chilling.
Dual narratives blur the lines between reality and invention: one of a husband searching for his missing wife, the other of a troubled young woman. This is both its crowing glory, but also one of its missteps. It takes a while to understand how these narratives fit together which made for a bit of a disconnected experience, but once they do, the rest is a propulsive, dark-hearted read.
Kosa is a clinical psychologist and this is evident in her storytelling. None of it feels forced or researched, she writes fluidly and with compassion about the secrets that threaten to destroy our carefully constructed psyches. And the damage that is done for the sake of appearances.
Even with a frustrating beginning, once the story finds its footing it was a page-turning mystery that did not let go long after its conclusion.
Review 2:
Chalk this one up as another book that could have been great, but ended up just mediocre.
The story starts off kind of rough. All through the first chapter, all I could think was “someone must have got a thesaurus for their birthday.” Fortunately, the author stopped the vocabulary quiz fairly quick. That still didn’t stop everything from being a confusing mess. After about 30 pages, I had to go back and start from the beginning because I felt like I missed something.
The story alternates between the view point of Alex, husband to a missing wife, and Layla, a girl who doesn’t remember her past. The Alex chapters are pretty straight forward, but the Layla ones are kind of off. It’s clear early on that Layla is supposed to be the missing wife, but at the same time it’s clear that she can’t be. It takes waaaaaaaay too long for the explanation, and when it comes, it feels like a cheat from the author. There’s no reason for it not to have been revealed a lot sooner. Factor in that the book greatly improves after the reveal, and the decision to postpone so long doesn’t make sense.
After that, the book is full speed ahead and you can’t help but mourn the novel that could have been if only the author got to the point sooner. Inevitably, it nose dives into an unsatisfying ending that makes you want to throw the book across the room.
A good editor could have done wonders for this book. Cutting about 50 pages of dragging things out and the unnecessary subplot of Alex’s work drama and you’d be off to a good start. Then fix the ending and you’d probably have a 5 star read.
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Review 3:
Excellent, fast-paced psychological thriller. The storyline jumps between two different scenarios–author Mina is missing, and her husband Alex is frantic to find her and knows that something bad must have happened, despite some signs that point otherwise. It is clear that she is hiding some secrets. In the other chapters, Layla is confused and ends up working in a seaside town, but is scared and doesn’t know why. It all comes to a head when someone comes into the restaurant where she’s working and recognizes her and calls her by a different name. How are these two women related to each other and what happened to them?
I connected with the characters and the author is skilled to keep the reader invested by revealing different parts of the story deliberately. The reader basically finds things out as Alex does, so that keeps the plot moving briskly. The only thing I didn’t really care for were the parts about Alex’s business and business meetings, they were pretty boring to me and didn’t do anything to further the narrative.
Overall, this is a great choice for a summer suspenseful read, especially if you like books about disappearances.
I voluntarily reviewed a complimentary copy of this book, all opinions are my own.
Review 4:
The Quiet Girl by S.F. Kosa is a gripping and enthralling psychological thriller that grabbed me from the very first page to the very end. I loved this book!
The Quiet Girl follows newlyweds Alex – a business venturist living in Boston, hoping to find the cure for cancer, and Mina – a well-known romance writer who lives in Cape Cod, Provincetown. A little row brings Alex to visit his wife only to find Mina missing with her wedding bands left in the house and an empty glass of wine.
Told in alternating point of views between Alex’s search for his wife of only 6 months in a whirlwind romance and whom he is only getting know, and Layla – a local woman whose memory is unclear and has suffered some trauma.
The writing was so suspenseful, with Kosa revealing only the slightest bit at the right time while unraveling shocking secrets and plot twists. I found that the way Kosa wrote Alex’s character was brilliant. You could really feel the desperation of a husband in search of a loved one while also dealing with a very stressful situation managing his business. I found it to be completely immersive and so satisfying to read as you discover more.
This was really an amazing and entertaining book I thoroughly enjoyed. I recommend it!
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Review 5:
This book was a hidden gem! I had never heard of this author before, nor had I seen any reviews of this book, but I ended up loving it! Told by two separate storylines, The Quiet Girl is a tale of desperation, trauma, and revenge that is twisty, suspenseful and addictive. Clues are revealed slowly as the two plots come together in an explosive ending. Highly recommended for fans of psychological suspense!
