Before She Was Found

By: Heather Gudenkauf

Narrated by: Brittany Pressley

Length: 10 hrs and 18 mins

Publisher's summary

A gripping thriller about three young girlfriends, a dark obsession, and a chilling crime that shakes up a quiet Iowa town, from the New York Times best-selling author of The Weight of Silence.

For 12-year-old Cora Landry and her friends Violet and Jordyn, it was supposed to be an ordinary sleepover - movies and Ouija and talking about boys. But when they decide to sneak out to go to the abandoned rail yard on the outskirts of town, little do they know that their innocent games will have dangerous consequences.

Later that night, Cora Landry is discovered on the tracks, bloody and clinging to life, her friends nowhere to be found. Soon, their small rural town is thrust into a maelstrom. Who would want to hurt a young girl like Cora - and why? In an investigation that leaves no stone unturned, everyone is a suspect and no one can be trusted - not even those closest to Cora.

Before She Was Found is a timely and gripping thriller about friendship and betrayal, about the power of social pressure and the price of needing to fit in. It is about the great lengths a parent will go to protect their child and keep them safe - even if that means burying the truth, no matter the cost.

©2019 Heather Gudenkauf (P)2019 Harlequin Enterprises, Limited

Bad Bad Ending

This book was really good until the end. Ending was such a let down. The ending could have gone in so many different directions that would have caused a 'WOW" finish. Instead it ended with 'WTF". Just didn't make any sense. The ending just ruined this book.

Totally worth a credit!!

I found this book to be a surprisingly delicious thriller with an engrossing plot, an unexpected ending, and characters that I actually cared about. It is told from multiple perspectives, and what really made it so enjoyable was the excellent narration. The narrators did a superb job in the way they made each character come to life; the 12 year old girls sounded exactly like you would expect a 12 year old to sound in each given situation. The adult characters' voices were all distinct and perfectly suited for each. I was riveted to the story from the very beginning and was a very happy listener to the very end. This book would probably make a great movie! Highly recommend!

Ending was terrible

I can't believe I spent 10 hours on this story for such a ridiculous impossible ending. The ending is impossible and frankly insulting to the reader. The first half of the book is also awkwardly similar to the real life slender man stabbing which I found to be in poor taste.

Well done!

I have listened to all of the Heather Gudenkauf titles on Audible and was delighted that a new one was just released. The story bears more than a little resemblance to the Slenderman case but was so much more. The plot was interesting and kept me guessing, the characters were well fleshed out and Brittany Pressley did a fantastic job with the narration. Now that I know "who done it" I want to listen again and see what clues I missed.

A new favorite duo

I never write a full review but I just finished this new release by Heather Gudenkauf and her suspenseful writing is fantastic. Her writing teamed with Brittany Pressley is a perfect duo. Worth the wait for it to be released and definitely worth the credit.

L Marks, Lenexa, Ks

Waste of time and money

Listened to entire book. Now I still don’t know what happened. Total waste of my time. I thought it was a thriller

Thought it Would Never End!

I felt like slapping some sense into one of the mother's. If I had pulled anything CLOSE when I was a kid, I'd better tell the truth, immediately. I was more mature at half these kids ages. This book wore me out.

So slow, with no character development.

This book nearly put me to sleep! Not awful, just not good. The character never were fully developed. It was hard to care about any of them. Don’t waste the credit.

Thrilling page turner

The author hooks you from the very beginning. It is an easy story to read and a thrilling page turner. I read it in three days. I could NOT put it down. There were a lot of twists and turns. It is a riveting story that will draw you in from the first chapter and will keep you on the edge of your seat until the very end. Another great story from this incredible author. This book is addictive. 😊

Not too crazy about this book

I really didn't appreciate the way the story line went. The ending was hard to swallow & ended like someone who fell down an empty elevator shaft. I think the Dr. got a bad deal which was even harder to swallow.