The Missing Years

By: Lexie Elliott

Narrated by: Elizabeth Knowelden

Length: 11 hrs and 38 mins

Publisher's Summary

When Ailsa returns to her childhood home, an eerie sense of danger overwhelms her. Her unease only grows when she notices small things out of place and the odd fact that no animals will step foot on the grounds of the house....

Ailsa Calder has inherited half of a house. The other half belongs to a man who disappeared without a trace 27 years ago - her father.   

Leaving London behind to settle the inheritance, Ailsa returns to the manor, nestled amongst the craggy peaks of the Scottish Highlands, joined by the half-sister who's practically a stranger to her. Ailsa can't escape the claustrophobic feeling that the house itself watches her - as if her dramatic past hungers to consume her. When the first nighttime intruder shows up and the locals in the isolated community pry into her plans for the manor, Ailsa grows terrified that escaping the beautiful old home will cost her everything.

©2019 Lexie Elliott (P)2019 Penguin Audio

Critic Reviews

“Elliott follows up her well-reviewed debut, The French Girl (2018), with an equally atmospheric novel that keeps the reader intrigued and off-balance all the way through.” (Booklist)

“Begins with a Gothic hint that rapidly segues into a suspenseful thriller with a breathless twist of denouement.” (New York Journal of Books)

"Uncannily creepy.” (The Guardian)

Spooky, moody but also expertly crafted

Such a rare gem of character and atmosphere. Such a great book. I’m not into ghost stuff but this is so much more than even the suggestion of ghosts - I tried to explain the character dynamics, time confusion and haunting elements and failed - just read the book!

Much ado about NOTHING!

Where, oh where is this story going? It took me forever to get through the chapters, going back and forth, back and forth trying to put it together. Where is the suspense? What the hell is the book about? The mystery is how many positive Audible reviews there are, which is why I used a treasured credit to purchase it. I’m struggling to finish it. Narrator Elizabeth Knowelden does a horrendous job in this book. A recognized narrator of other books I have, this time, she whispers throughout most of it, which is most annoying. I wanna scream, “Speak up!” and “Where are we heading?” Too many minor characters and just plain “blah-blah-blah.”

Loved it!!

I listen to mostly mysteries and thrillers and am always searching for one with more depth - this fit the bill. It was such a refreshingly different story. Creepy but not cheesy, relatable characters, keeps you guessing type of plot. I’m not a critic but I can appreciate good writing and this was a good one. Loved every bit!! That said, the end left me with a few questions but did not take away from the overall awesomeness. Definitely worth a credit!!! 🙂👏

Good story

I loved this story some pieces I had to replay a few times. You have to pay attention but it is a good story. I liked the characters in the book. Good mystery and the story makes you believe in this town and the people living in it.

Loved

WOW! What a great book! It had just the right amount of suspense and supernatural. It was one of those books that I thought wow what a great use of my audible credit! I would highly recommend this to anyone who likes suspense genre. The narration was incredible.

Unexpected

I liked The French Girl quite a bit so decided to give this one a try. It’s good, a bit different, and interesting twists at the end. Overall, it’s a good story, but the narrator is just okay. I had to listen at 1.5 speed to overcome my annoyance with the whispering/breathless narration. I still enjoyed the story!

Hints of the supernatural……

This novel has a lot of elements I enjoy in a book——old house, a mystery, and a touch of the supernatural. Unfortunately the narration distracted so much from the story that at times it was difficult to stick with. She was so breathy and overly dramatic with the softness and loudness of her voice I sometimes had to replay and listen again just to understand the narrative. Otherwise I enjoyed the author’s work.

The Epitome of Scottish Mystery

This is an incredibly well crafted and exceptionally written modern gothic mystery.
The characters (and there are quite a few) are thoroughly developed and the story develops more and more tension, depth, and suspense and things progress.
It’s clever, constructed creatively, and truly eerie,
The reader can’t ever quite guess where things are going and it’s impossible to suss out who is responsible for these spooky happenings and the history our protagonist is trying to come to terms with.
One of the best books I’ve ever read,
IMO this is still Lexie Elliott’s most impressive creations (and she’s written some insanely good books).
I’ve read the hard copy once and listened to it twice in 3 years.
I can’t say that about a single other book in my library of almost 700.
It speaks for itself. Just read this book!
Elizabeth Knoweldon performs the narration flawlessly and masters many ages, genders, and accents.
A wonderful experience.

Really good, but more a thriller than a haunting

I was really looking for a haunting book and that's what it is advertised as. I mean, don't get me wrong, solid story, but it's not really what I was hoping for.
Also, the writing style is a bit more extravagant than needed.

Thoroughly enjoyable

Great listen and the narrator makes you feel as though you’re there sharing the story with all of the characters.