The novel The Reappearance of Rachel Price by Holly Jackson follows an eighteen year old teenager Bel Price, whose mother, Rachel Price, vanished without a trace sixteen years ago when Bel was a toddler. This puzzling and obscure case spread like wildfire throughout the town, and nobody ever found her.

Years later, a documentary crew starts filming for the case. Following this, Rachel turns up out of nowhere. Although her story doesn’t add up. This brings up the question, who does Bel trust now? She is determined to uncover the truth.

Besides the mystery and suspecting, there was slight romance going on that made readers feel that it was boring and underwhelming, all things considered, unnecessary given the dark thriller genre. Adding on to that, there is some unnecessary dialogue that readers found boring and repetitive. Some also found the ending too overly dramatic and unrealistic, and felt it was overall not worth the 448 pages. Furthermore, the ending left readers with unanswered questions as the ending felt fairly rushed and how the suspense was there for nothing.

Apart from that, Jackson’s writing is slow-paced and doesn’t use much of a large vocabulary; therefore, it’s not complex but may be an ideal book for someone who’s just beginning their thriller journey. Readers enjoyed the main character Bel a lot because she was a ‘real’ or ‘realistic’ character that other teenagers could relate to. The novel goes into detail about family dynamics and how Bel connects with her mother after being absent most of her life. 

Overall, The Reappearance of Rachel Price by Holly Jackson has its pros and cons, but altogether is an interesting and gripping book that’s recommended for readers new to the thriller/mystery genre.