Rating: 
Summary: Powerful departure but good
Review: I agree is one of the other reviewers. If you're looking for the Evan Hunter of decades past, don't read this book. You'll be disappointed. However, if you're interested is a powerful story of mental illness and denial, then buy The Moment She Was Gone and read it. I have long been a fan of Evan Hunter. The Moment She Was Gone is a fitting departure from his normal work. I applaud him for having the courage of a different vision.
I was easily able to identify with most of the characters in this novel. That is a testament of Mr. Hunters ability to tell a story and develope characters that are interesting and believable. Buy this book and read it. A great weekend read.
Rating:
Summary: Hard to put down
Review: I checked this book out on the basis of the author having written "Blackboard Jungle." I was not disappointed. Hunter, in spare, cogent style, offers a sensitive, realistic view of a condition difficult for families to face. The author covers various family member reactions such as denying, ennabling and defying.
Rating:
Summary: Hard to put down
Review: I checked this book out on the basis of the author having written "Blackboard Jungle." I was not disappointed. Hunter, in spare, cogent style, offers a sensitive, realistic view of a condition difficult for families to face. The author covers various family member reactions such as denying, ennabling and defying.
Rating: 
Summary: Yet more proof that Evan Hunter (& Ed McBain) are brilliant!
Review: I just finished reading 'The Moment She Was Gone' and after I sat and collected myself and my thoughts, all I can say is "WOW!!!". I found this novel (just like every other Evan Hunter, Ed McBain, Richard Marsten, Ezra Hannon, Curt Cannon, Hunt Collins & John Abbott novel) to be absolutely mesmerizing. The characters are so richly defined, the plots so beautifully detailed, and the storytelling so wonderfully presented that I own almost the entire Evan Hunter (et al) catalog. They are all keepers because they are all worthy of re-reading over and over. 'The Moment She Was Gone' was no different. My heart ached for Andy Gulliver as well as everyone else affected by Annie. Personally, I do not know anyone with a mental imbalance but I found this book to be completely believable and hypnotic. I desperately wanted Annie to get the help she needed and for her relationship with her brother to be normal again. Such a beautiful book and deserving of fifty stars but I was only allowed to give five. Long live Evan Hunter!!!
Rating:
Summary: Yet more proof that Evan Hunter (& Ed McBain) are brilliant!
Review: I just finished reading 'The Moment She Was Gone' and after I sat and collected myself and my thoughts, all I can say is "WOW!!!". I found this novel (just like every other Evan Hunter, Ed McBain, Richard Marsten, Ezra Hannon, Curt Cannon, Hunt Collins & John Abbott novel) to be absolutely mesmerizing. The characters are so richly defined, the plots so beautifully detailed, and the storytelling so wonderfully presented that I own almost the entire Evan Hunter (et al) catalog. They are all keepers because they are all worthy of re-reading over and over. 'The Moment She Was Gone' was no different. My heart ached for Andy Gulliver as well as everyone else affected by Annie. Personally, I do not know anyone with a mental imbalance but I found this book to be completely believable and hypnotic. I desperately wanted Annie to get the help she needed and for her relationship with her brother to be normal again. Such a beautiful book and deserving of fifty stars but I was only allowed to give five. Long live Evan Hunter!!!
Rating: 
Summary: Who cares when she left, they ALL stayed too long!!!!
Review: I stopped reading half way through the book. I realize the characters were supposed to be confusing, yet mysterious enough to keep us intrigued; instead the family members were little more than caricatures of every disfunctional family ever imagined. Some novels are character driven, others rely on plot.This book is devoid of both. Mr. Hunter has great abilility, but this book seems more like a rough draft; that needs a stabilizing narrator the reader can identify with; then a finished work. Extremely disappointing, I want my time and money back.
Rating:
Summary: Who cares when she left, they ALL stayed too long!!!!
Review: I stopped reading half way through the book. I realize the characters were supposed to be confusing, yet mysterious enough to keep us intrigued; instead the family members were little more than caricatures of every disfunctional family ever imagined. Some novels are character driven, others rely on plot.This book is devoid of both. Mr. Hunter has great abilility, but this book seems more like a rough draft; that needs a stabilizing narrator the reader can identify with; then a finished work. Extremely disappointing, I want my time and money back.
Rating:
Summary: Brilliant - just don't expect a typical Hunter/McBain book
Review: I think the bad reviews are coming from readers already familiar with the popular novels of Evan Hunter/Ed McBain. If you want the 87th Precinct, this ain't it.But what it IS is brilliant. The book deals with some very real (and hard to like) characters dealing with mental illness, which seems to run in the family, based on the way all the characters act. It's dark, emotional, and frankly scary - to contemplate the horror of living with a loved one dealing with this illness. It's such a departure from most of his body of work that I was amazed that he had this sort of book in him. My recommendation is to read this as if it were written by a new novelist you've never heard of, and only if you enjoy dark, emotional writing that investigates the complex undercurrents of a dysfunctional family. This is NOT cheerful stuff. But it's amazingly real, at least to me. I've known people like this, and the author NAILS their personalities. I also strongly recommend the audio version of this book - narrator Dan Futterman does an amazing job of capturing the stilted voices and mannerisms of this uptight, denial-ridden family. It's a pity this book is being panned like this, but I'm convinced it's because the readers wanted more of the "same old same old" from Hunter. He definitely did not deliver that. But for readers willing to explore a dark, challenging topic in a story filled with some very flawed but very human characters, I recommend this highly.
Rating:
Summary: I couldn't put it down!
Review: I'd been after this book for ages, and I finally got my hands on it (on honeymoon, no less), I found it almost impossible to put down. As a confirmed Ed McBain fan, I'm not sure what I was expecting, but unlike what one of the other reviewers says below, this book is filled with characters that seem more 'real' and 'human' - I defy anyone with a shred of emotion or empathy not to care about what happens to the characters Mr Hunter creates here.
I've read most McBain novels, and a lot of Hunter novels. To my mind, this is the best Hunter novel...ever - I found it more affecting and much harder to put down than "The Blackboard Jungle", which is the book Hunter is most well known for to most people.
I simply can't recommend this book highly enough. Isn't there a ranking better than 5 stars??
Rating:
Summary: Excellent Book
Review: I've been a fan of Ed McBain's for years, but haven't read an Evan Hunter book since I read Blackboard Jungle 20 years ago. Recently I read Candyland, which Mr Hunter created as a collaboration between his two persona. And to my surprise, I found I enjoyed the Hunter half better. So when I saw his latest I picked it up. And I was not disappointed. Mr Hunter delves into the dilemma of a family dealing with a relative suffering a mental illness. But they refuse to see it. I finished the book in a day, because I just couldn't put it down.
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