The Return of Ellie Black
A Novel
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4.3 • 63 Ratings
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- $14.99
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- $14.99
Publisher Description
A USA TODAY Bestseller
“The Return of Ellie Black is a page-turning suspense novel, a shrewd character study, and a captivating mystery, all at the same time. The last fifty pages are magnetic. I couldn’t put it down until I’d experienced every last twist and turn.” —STEPHEN KING
Detective Chelsey Calhoun’s life is turned upside down when she gets the call Ellie Black, a girl who disappeared years earlier, has resurfaced in the woods of Washington state—but Ellie’s reappearance leaves Chelsey with more questions than answers.
It’s been twenty years since Detective Chelsey Calhoun’s sister vanished when they were teenagers, and ever since she’s been searching: for signs, for closure, for other missing girls. But happy endings are rare in Chelsey’s line of work.
Then a glimmer: local teenager Ellie Black, who disappeared without a trace two years earlier, has been found alive in the woods of Washington State.
But something is not right with Ellie. She won’t say where she’s been, or who she’s protecting, and it’s up to Chelsey to find the answers. She needs to get to the bottom of what happened to Ellie: for herself, and for the memory of her sister, but mostly for the next girl who could be taken—and who, unlike Ellie, might never return.
The debut thriller from New York Times bestselling author Emiko Jean, The Return of Ellie Black is both a feminist tour de force about the embers of hope that burn in the aftermath of tragedy and a twisty page-turner that will shock and surprise you right up until the final page.
PUBLISHERS WEEKLY
YA bestseller Jean (Tokyo Ever After) makes a smooth transition to adult fiction with this atmospheric and surprise-packed thriller. Missing and presumed dead for two years, Washington State teenager Ellie Black is discovered alive one night, wandering out of the forest near the small town of Coldwell Beach. Det. Chelsey Calhoun is assigned to the case, and has the dazed, underweight Ellie admitted to the hospital while she convenes with the traumatized girl's family. At first, the news thrills Ellie's parents. Soon, however, Ellie starts behaving strangely; without warning, she stops cooperating with the investigation, refusing to answer Chelsey's questions about where she's been. When Chelsey has the bloody sweatshirt Ellie was wearing when was found analyzed, the DNA turns out to match a different missing person. All the while, Chelsey muses on how Ellie's case might be linked to her own sister's decades-old disappearance. Is there something sinister lurking in the woods outside of Coldwell Beach? Jean deftly alternates Chelsey and Ellie's perspectives from one cliffhanger to the next, keeping the pages flying. With shocking twists and style to spare, this confirms Jean as a writer worth seeking out.
Customer Reviews
Loved it
This is an interesting, well written book. Quick to read. Hard to put down. Satisfying.
TV Show / Movie When?
What an incredible book. I haven’t read a book in years but after reading the sample I had to finish it! The return of Ellie black is a wonderfully paced book that will easily capture your attention. The characters were easy to sympathize with and a beautiful story of survival was told. I enjoyed the pacing and multiple twists that unfolded. There was one twist at the end that had me actually shocked and felt fresh! I will be awaiting the announcement of the movie / TV show as this is a must for TV. 5/5
Wow.
Incredibly written. Draws you in and has a smooth ending. Not rushed, lots of twists and meaningful.