Little Girl Gone is the debut novel by Alexandra Burt and is literally everywhere I look right now. Seriously, if you haven’t yet heard of it where exactly have you been over the past few weeks? Practically everyone’s talking about this book at the moment and have either read it, are currently reading it or have it on their TBR piles. This book was a truly gripping, twisty and compelling read that I can tell is in with a very good chance of reaching the number one spot in the charts.
When we first meet Estelle Paradise she’s waking up in a hospital after being involved in a serious car accident. As a result of the accident Estelle has amnesia but if there’s one thing she knows for certain it’s that her daughter, Mia, is missing. With no other explanation as to who took Mia from her crib or, more to the point how, people are very quick to jump to the conclusion that Estelle is to blame for Mia’s disappearance - the police think so and so does her husband. However, Dr Ari at a pschyiatric unit specialises in helping people to unlock their memories and working with Estelle we see how things are not black and white, how there is much, much more to the disappearance of Mia than meets the eye.
In addition to being a book in which a crime was investigated it was also very much psychological giving the reader an insight into postnatal depression, something which I don’t feel is recognised enough or given as much coverage in fiction as other mental health conditions. I’ve got a big interest in all things mental health and found that I was, therefore, very much absorbed from the start.
Before I started reading this novel I wasn’t really sure what to expect but was mightily impressed and blown away by what I read. In fact there were times when I was reading it that I couldn’t believe that what I was reading was a debut novel as it was incredibly accomplished. I really hope this isn’t the first and last novel we see from Alexandra Burt as I certainly want to read more from her and feel she could have a very long and successful career as an author ahead of her.
If you’ve got this book on your TBR pile I urge you to make it the next book you read. If you haven’t yet got a copy of it, what are you waiting for? Get a copy on your Kindle or buy the paperback version from all good bookshops. A book that deserves all the five-star reviews it gets - simply outstanding and not to be missed!
