All The Hidden Pieces

by Jillian Thomadsen

One September morning, Greta Carpenter gets a phone call that will upend her life. Within minutes, she and her family hastily abandon their home. Where did they go and why? Det. Roberta Hobbs has been assigned to uncover the family’s whereabouts. Hobbs is a confident, intelligent police veteran. However, each passing day brings her closer to her unresolved past, forcing her to confront her own demons before she can solve the case. This dual-timeline suspense novel takes us back to 2004 as the events that lead to the family’s disappearance slowly unfold…and in present time, Hobbs must race to solve the mystery before it’s too late.

Genres: Fiction, Mystery

301 pages, Kindle Edition

Published April 21, 2018

About the author

Jillian Thomadsen wrote All the Hidden Pieces, a suspense novel about a family that receives a mysterious phone call and then suddenly disappears. The book's subplot hinges on the love a mother has for her dyslexic son -- and the lengths she'll go to prevent him from falling through the cracks.

Thomadsen grew up in Baltimore, and has lived in Virginia, New York City and Los Angeles before finally settling in St. Louis, MO in 2013. Before becoming a writer, Jillian worked in the Fixed Income Divisions of Goldman Sachs and Morgan Stanley, and the Energy Markets Division of Macquarie Bank. All through her time working in finance, she continued her childhood dream of being a writer, and eventually she decided to leave her career in finance and to focus more on her writing. All the Hidden Pieces is her first published novel.

Reviews

[ZB · Rating 3 out of 5]

(3.5) This is a crime story where literally everything is a red herring and there is no crime! And it almost works - but the ending is so ludicrous that it feels ripped from a different book (though I genuinely liked the ending and found it risky and moving). The through-line of a mom fighting for her son’s dignity and respect in the education system was powerful. But the pieces didn’t gel and the characters weren’t fleshed out enough for their choices to make sense. The concept, though!

[Aly · Rating 5 out of 5]

I think this book is a sweet and fun book to read. I think I learned something from it too. The story kept me reading until the end. I was not sure what would happen next. *This book was given to me for free at my request and I provided this voluntary review.*

[Tina Lynch · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book is amazing. Here's what I loved about it...the suspense part is riveting.The family disappears and I honestly had no idea how it was going to go. I could not put the book down until I found out. There's also a very sweet subplot about a mom raising a son with dyslexia. Reading this you really get a sense of the issues faced by parents of kids with learning disabilities and the fierce protective love the main character, Greta, has for her son.
I would recommend this book to anyone who wants to be absorbed in a suspenseful plot.

[Debbie · Rating 5 out of 5]

This was a compelling mystery that I couldn’t put down! The author expertly wove the past and present together in a taut story that kept surprising me. It was expertly plotted and suspenseful but not violent or misogynistic like many mysteries. I stayed up late, devouring it in a day and I was sad to see it end. I’m looking forward to reading more books by Jillian Thomadsen.

[Carmel McCartin · Rating 4 out of 5]

Kept me guessing till the end. A great read

[Tatum · Rating 3 out of 5]

Easy read and surprised by the ending!

[Chris · Rating 4 out of 5]

Solid read with lots of things to like about this one. Mystery and suspense with added touch of parenting and parenting special needs.

[iamnotabookworm · Rating 5 out of 5]

So, this book is a suspense-thriller. At first glance, you may think that it's a bit of drama. I thought so. The title seems to suggest that some secrets are about to be uncovered. Major drama, right? Well, not too far out. This book is really a revelation. There's family drama, I give you that. Yes, secrets are about to be revealed and more.

I know I've said in my previous posts that I am a mystery, suspense, thriller fan. It's my favorite genre. The guessing game and the excitement keeps me glued to the stories. And being such a big fan, I have become familiar with some of the things that come with thriller stories. I then start to formulate my own theories as to how the rest of the story will unfold or who the killer is or what the big mystery is about. Unfortunately, in this book, my experience and great affinity with mysteries wasn't very helpful. This is a very riveting story and a few suspects were thrown in but were actually too far from what really is going on. And that's the best part. I love that a story could throw me out of my wits and keep me wondering. And at the end of it all, I would be flabbergasted because it was totally different. It's a satisfaction every reader loves, to be thrown out of the loop yet the ending is way way much better for it. I crave that kind of high. This story delivered it all with much gusto and much more.

Nothing could have prepared me for this story. The blurb may have been a bit long than usual but there's more to it. You would think that it has summarized the story in all its essence but you are very very wrong. There's more and much more. I love it! That's why it's good to read blurbs to at least know what you're walking into. But it's much more satisfying, like ice-cold water after a parching walk under the sun, to read each page and find out that there's a great deal more to know. It's an adventure in itself going through each page and be more confused and horrified that all your theories had to be scrapped.
It's a great satisfaction to realize that the author is a master and has played you cruelly in her hands. Cruel because you can never figure it out for yourself.

I had the time of my life reading this book. I never put it down. I had to finish it if I wanted to maintain my sanity. I need to find all the hidden pieces and where each character fits into the story. The ending was so far out of my thoughts that it was a relief and really satisfying to finally know. Ah, what a great adventure it is having to accompany Detective Hobbs and be as astounded as she is when the truth finally hit her. It was wow!

I can't say enough how I have enjoyed this story and how I was confused and bewildered by the turn of events. I was actually happy to be confused and be out of my wits figuring it out. It's one of the best things about this book. You will never know. So, I gave this 5/5 puzzle pieces. Everything just fits perfectly.

There was something about accepting an apology so many years after the fact that made it insufferable It was like the nominal payment of a library fee many years after the book had been destroyed in a horrible fire - long after the fine was written off.
- Jillian Thomadsen, All the Hidden Pieces -

Thank you again, Jillian Thomadsen for the review copy. I'm looking forward to you next stories that would make confused yet satisfied at the end.

[Carolyn Hastings · Rating 5 out of 5]

I decided that since October is Dyslexia Awareness Month, it was high time I got to and read this book that has been sitting in my Kindle library for a few months. After all, it was the dyslexia element that had initially piqued my interest in the story.
Jillian Thomadsen has drawn on her own experiences as a mother of a child with dyslexia to cleverly craft an intriguing mystery that hinges on the positive and negative attributes of what it is to be dyslexic. Aptly titled, All The Hidden Pieces hooks the reader into a tantalising game of hide’n’seek and like all good suspense stories, there is an unexpected twist at the end which carries the moral of the tale.
This is a book that will definitely appeal to a broad readership from YA to seniors and especially to those readers who like stories that are driven by plot and characters that are not caught up in coarse language, violence and sex. Dyslexic readers may find it easier to use a text-to-speech app to help them access the text. It would be good to have an audio-book version available.

[Jieqi Xu · Rating 4 out of 5]

Was totally not what I expected. Had gotten the e-book awhile back and when I started reading it recently, I had totally forgotten what the synopsis was about. The suspense was presented very well and at every step of the way, I was kept guessing about what actually happened to the family. Along the way, most characters were also given their personalities and developed pretty well. When the mystery is finally solved, it was a strange feeling for me. The first thing I felt was mild indignation that nobody died?! After all that I've read, I was expecting a mystery to be solved, someone to be caught and be responsible for their actions. But the next thing I felt was a sense of calm. I realised that I have been conditioned to always expect something bad to happen and these mysteries/ suspense must always result in the good will triumph over evil. This has opened my mind and reminded me that not everything that happens will be bad. What looks like a bad situation may not be actually the case. It's a refreshing read and I really enjoyed it.

[Dave Wickenden · Rating 5 out of 5]

Detective Roberta Hobbs and her partner are assigned to the disappearance of an entire family. Greta, the mother who has disappeared, has done everything to protect her family. Both women have secrets that threaten to overwhelm them. The story is told through the eyes of both women but from different times until they collide in the present.

I thoroughly enjoyed this mystery. The characters were enduring and realistic. As fear for Greta and her family mounts, the reader will race through the pages to find out what has happened. I look forward to more from this author.

[Pat · Rating 4 out of 5]

All The Hidden Places

Greta ran away from home at sixteen and finally met Griffin. After a couple of years and having John, they divorced. She never got along with her mother-in-law but when Marcia had a stroke they became close.

This story is how Marcia left Greta money and a sail boat. Greta took off the day she found out that Marcia had passed and no one knew where she and her family were.

The police listed them as missing persons. Read the story to find out what happens, how they are found and just enjoy this great story.

[Louise G · Rating 5 out of 5]

Who doesn't try to figure out the solution to a mystery before the big reveal at the end? Good luck doing so with Jillian Thomadsen's "All the Hidden Pieces." This winner of the St. Louis County Library 2020 Indie Author Project Regional Contest is an intriguing, well-written book that's a jaw-dropper when the mystery is revealed. Fun to read! Full disclosure, Jillian is my daughter-in-law but if I didn't think this was an actual good book, I wouldn't bother saying so in public like this.

[Dante Carlisle · Rating 4 out of 5]

I really enjoyed this novel. It was one of those strange situations where Jillian and I met in person and I was able to trade her a copy of my novel for hers. Normally I don't enjoy mysteries of this sort, but I was pleasantly surprised. The characters had depth that made you truly care about them. A fantastic read.

[Saravanan · Rating 3 out of 5]

இரண்டு வரைப்படத்தில் மறைத்திருக்கும் எண்களை கண்டுப்பிடிப்பதால் இந்த பெயர்? ஒரு குடும்பமே காணாமல் போய் விட்டது. ஆனால் அந்தளவுக்கு விறுவிறுப்பு இல்லாமல், வெவ்வேறு கால கட்டங்களில் நடந்த நிகழ்வுகள் மாறி மாறி சொல்லப்பட்டுள்ளதால் கொஞ்சம் சஸ்பென்ஸ் ஆக இருக்கிறது. மற்றபடி சாதாரணமாக கதை நகருகிறது.

[Stuart Malcolm · Rating 4 out of 5]

A genuinely surprising thriller. This has a fairly standard set up - a family suddenly disappears and slowly a picture of the past emerges - but it is a better than average one. Maybe it’s a little slow in the middle but overall a fun read that keeps you guessing.

[Sivvy · Rating 3 out of 5]

Not a bad read, and it certainly kept my interest throughout. I just felt that the ending was a bit of a let-down after all of the twists and turns that had preceded it, but a decent enough tale all the same.

[Audrey · Rating 3 out of 5]

A great first novel. I wanted it to end differently though! Not sure how, but more scandalous or something.

[Carrie · Rating 3 out of 5]

It’s like she got to the end but didn’t know how to wrap it up. I thoroughly enjoyed this until the last 15 pages! Don’t know that the ending was believable.

[Jen · Rating 4 out of 5]

It started out a bit slow but got better as the story went along. Really enjoyed this nook.