Customer Reviews

Since You've Been Gone

5 star:		(17)
4 star:		(6)
3 star:		(4)
2 star:		(2)
1 star:		(2)

 

 

Carlene Thompson has written another blockbuster thrill-ride of a novel. Mrs. Thompson is going out on a limb with this one. "Since You've Been Gone" deals with a woman, Rebecca Ryan, who has ESP psychological powers. Occasionally, Rebecca will get visions in her head of another person's feelings or events that are happening to this particular person. In the past, Rebecca has even helped the police solve a few crimes. Unfortunately, there was one case in particular that Rebecca could not solve- the disappearance and murder of her younger brother, Jonnie, ten or so years ago. The killer was never apprehended.
Rebecca is currently living in New Orleans and she gets a call from her cousin Molly saying that their Aunt Esther has cancer and requests for her presence in West Virginia, the Ryan family's hometown. Rebecca immediately travels up there and on the way, she gets an attack vision of a little boy being kidnapped and being held hostage in a dark, depressing room. He is sad and in mental pain. Rebecca crashes her car into a famous tree in front of a local restaurant. She wakes up later to see Dr. Clay, and old attractive friend back from high school. After Rebecca feels better, she receives news that her cousin Molly's son, Todd, has been kidnapped and that the boy in her vision was Todd. This novels heats up drastically when the kidnapper taunts Rebecca with notes and haunting music. As Rebecca, Molly, and Clay try to determine who kidnapped Todd and what happened to Jonnie, Rebecca has to deal with her drunken mother, Suzanne, and her stepfather, FRANK. This novel of paranormal suspense is right up there with Kay Hooper's psychic series. Carlene Thompson is most certainly one of the best.

An attention-grabbing mystery with a protagonist that has ESP and is able to see through the victim's eyes. Her visions are about to lead her on a chase that will keep you turning the pages. It's not the first time Rebecca Ryan has lost someone close to her. A decade ago she was part of several ongoing police investigations that left her with a desire to leave the town of Sinclair behind and never look back, but this is something she can't walk away from. It has struck too close to home and heart, and she must face the fears and guilt that have kept her prisoner all of these years.

Thompson adds more and more possibilities with the turn of every page. Every time I would figure it to be one scenario, another prospect would immerge. The end came as a total surprise, just the way I like my mysteries. If you enjoy this book another book by this author is DON'T CLOSE YOUR EYES. Kelsana 8/13/02

This was my first story by Carlene Thompson and I really liked it. The characters are great including the secondary characters, the pacing of the story is done real well, and there are enought twists and turns that the ending for me was a bit of a surpirse I don't mind saying.

This is a suspense story not a romance although Rebecca and Clay fall in love, there is no romantic scenes between them so those of you that are turned away from any type of romantic interest will not be disappointed by finding pages of soft looks, and discriptions of deep kisses. In fact that portion of the story is so low key as to almost be non existant. If you like suspense, murder, and a little of the paranormal you will like this book. I can hardly wait until some other titles of this authors finally are delivered to my mail box!

Ten years ago Rebecca Ryan left West Virginia and tried to forget her failure. She had used her clairvoyant gift to help the local police solve several high-profile cases. But when she failed to help a relative, she left.

Now Rebecca returned only to wreck her car before even reaching her family. The wreck was caused by a vision of a seven-year-old boy being kidnapped from his bed. After her old friend, Dr. Clayton Bellamy, stitched her up, she learned to boy was her cousin Molly's son, Todd.

Rebecca now had to open herself up to her psychic ability to help find Todd before it was too late!

Carlene Thompson's writing is so realistic! I could not help but feel everything poor Rebecca did! This story will keep its readers up well into the night.

Page-turner with lots of twists! Carlene creates a likeable heroine with believable ESP--not the kind of ESP that supplies every answer just when it's needed. There is answer to an old mystery and a heart-stopping race against time to solve a new one.
Carlene Thompson's characters are so life-like, including the heroine's cranky dog, Sean! I felt like I could almost see the town of Sinclair. Don't miss this one!

Thompson can always be counted on for twists and turns that keep the reader interested even if you think you've figured out the killer's identity. No one is ever exactly what they seem to be, and the books present a mixture of suspense, some violence, a little romance, and more than a few surprises. This one even includes ESP!

I read the book over a course of two VERY busy days. I'm looking forward to Thompson's next book.

When I began reading SINCE YOU'VE BEEN GONE, I expected the usual action-propelled story of a kidnapped child being tracked by a person with ESP. Instead, I found myself being drawn in by the complex characters, particularly the lead character Rebecca, but also by an intricate story line that skillfully ties present to past. Two thirds of the way through the novel, I was certain I had the mystery solved. I didn't. The ending was exciting and contained more than one surprise.

In her latest offering, Thompson delves into the world of ESP.
Rebecca Ryan, the heroine, first manifested ESP at age nine. She helped with police cases and the paranormal condition seemed like a gift until the kidnapping of her younger brother, whom she could not find. His death devastated her and she moved away from her home in West Virginia, vowing never to return.

Eight years later, history seems to be repeating itself when her young cousin is abducted. In spite of her fear or failure, Rebecca knows she must return to West Virginia and try to help, even though eventually the kidnapper seems to want her life as much as the child's.

Even if you don't believe in ESP, Thompson's well-drawn characters and fast-paced action should hold the interest of any suspense lover. I found this to be my favorite Thompson novel.

This was the first book by Carlene Thompson I read and I couldn't put it down! I bought it last night and just finished. It kept me guessing right until the very end. The ESP adds an interesting twist to the murder mystery!

This novel just didn't hold my interest as much as the previous novels by this author. The story was interesting, but I kept waiting for it to grab me. It never did. I lost interest abd only kept reading because I wanted to know who was behind it all. Must say I was not surprised. Eventhough I didn't care for this novel as much, I'd still read the next.