And Then There Was One: A Novel

by Patricia Gussin

New York Times and USA Today Best-Selling Author Reaches Deep into the Heart of Any Parent's Worst Nightmare Nine years ago, Katie and Scott Monroe were blessed beyond their wildest dreams with identical triplets, Sammie, Alex, and Jackie. Three beautiful daughters and two adoring parents formed the picture-perfect party of five. But this tight-knit family unravels when the three little girls go to see a movie, but only one emerges from the darkness of the theater. How could Sammie and Alex vanish without a trace? Plunged into the abyss of a parent's worst fear, Katie and Scott hang by a thread—waiting, worrying, not knowing, and confronting the terrifying realization that the kidnapping may not have been a random act. Who took Sammie and Alex? Why? Where are they? When will they be found? And what if they're never found, or not found alive? When Jackie, the remaining triplet, crumbles under the weight of grief and survivor's guilt, Katie and Scott struggle to hold out hope and hold on to what remains of their family. Until—or unless—Sammie and Alex are found safe, this picture-perfect family can't be put back together again.Perfect for fans of Lisa Unger and Alafair Burke

Genres: Mystery, Fiction, Thriller, Suspense, Thriller Suspense, Mystery Thriller, Drama

316 pages, Kindle Edition

First published January 1, 2010

About the author

New York Times and USA Today best-selling author Patricia Gussin is a physician who grew up in Grand Rapids, Michigan, practiced in Philadelphia, and now lives in Longboat Key, Florida and Amagansett, NY. She is the author of seven novels including Shadow of Death, nominated Best First Novel by the International Thriller Writers Association, and After the Fall, Gold Medal winner of the Florida Book Award for Popular Fiction in 2015, and second-time Gold Medal Winner for Popular Fiction in 2017 for Come Home. Patricia’s novels are classified as mystery/thrillers and fall within the sub-genre of domestic suspense. Her novels are inspired by her medical expertise and her experience as a mother of six, trying to balance family and career.
She and her husband Robert Gussin are also vineyards owners in New Zealand, growing grapes for Villa Maria Estates Winery.

Reviews

[Cici1114 · Rating 2 out of 5]

In all my many years as an avid reader, I have never read anything as unprofessionally edited as this book. How can an author forget the name of her character, who was Keith Franklin until the end of the book and then is referred to as Ken Franklin? How can Sheila become Shiela. There were additional spelling and punctuation errors as well. The story was fine at the beginning but then quickly became contrived and ludicrous. I admit I jumped to the end to see "who did it". That name was misspelled too at one point. A waste of time! Totally unsatisfying; needed more edits than my HS students' papers!

[Lorrie · Rating 2 out of 5]

I had to check out the author's bio when I finished reading this book. The title was so captivating, the premise so interesting, the book so shallow. I couldn't wait to read this book since it was about a multi-ethnic family, a mystery......I could not recommend this book to anyone. The book needs an editor's help, it needs to class up a tad, it needs a lot of work. The idea is good. The book needs some work.

[Tyler · Rating 2 out of 5]

Synopsis: Katie and Scott Monroe are a bi-racial couple who have nine-ear-old identical triplet girls. Scott used to catch for the Yankees and Katie is a child psychologist, often testifying in child abuse cases. The family is torn apart when two of their daughters are kidnapped from a movie theater leaving one sister behind. The book follows the search for clues and the search for their daughters.

My Review: This book preys on a parent's fears. I enjoyed the book, but too much of it just feels fabricated. It feels like the author was trying to cram everything bad into the book that they could. Too many coincidences for my liking. In addition, the book was poorly edited with spelling errors throughout and questionable grammar in places as well.

Disclaimer: While there is no description of child abuse, there are allusions to it and some language that may be disturbing.

[Paula Phillips · Rating 3 out of 5]

In the mood for a mystery novel? Once upon a time, there were three girls that were identical triplets who had gone to the movies with their cousin. One of the girls Jackie had gone into one of the cinemas with her cousin and the other two girls Sammie and Alex had gone to see the movie right next door. Jackie and their cousin's movie had finished first, so they waited for them, but neither girl came out of the theater. We later learn that Sammie and Alex have been kidnapped and so begins a tale of Katie and Scott's nightmare as they hunt for their daughters and during this time secrets and skeletons that should have stayed in the closet are revealed from ex-boyfriends, past lives, and enemies. What will happen though when days pass with no ransom or notes? Who has their daughters and why? What will happen when their remaining triplet falls ill and lands in the hospital? Now with two girls missing and the third not waking up, Katie and Scott's relationship will be put to the test, and their limits broadened as they fight against the clock to save their whole family. I have to admit that though I did enjoy parts of this story, I did find that it was too busy and had provided the reader with far too many possible suspects and though the characters did all intertwine there were parts of the story and characters that were deemed unnecessary to the story's ending. If you do love your mystery novels and are a fan of shows like Criminal Minds and Chicago PD, then take a trip down memory lane and check out this 2010 release "And Then There was One" by Patricia Gussin today.

[Lauren · Rating 3 out of 5]

The actual story line was a good one to read. It kept me interested, I cared about the main characters, and I was anxious to see how it would turn out. But please...GET AN EDITOR!! The misspellings, punctuation errors, random quotation marks, changes in names, and incorrect dates had me so annoyed I could barely stand it!

[Paola · Rating 1 out of 5]

The premise was good. But my god! the editing was awful, everything seemed patched up, characters were in and out not really sure why. everything seemed so over the top and like the author was trying to cover too much.Too bad, I was really looking forward to reading this one.

[Lynda Kelly · Rating 1 out of 5]

LOVED the cover on this book and the story sounded everso intriguing so I bought it, even though the author's unknown to me. Sometimes this is a good thing, sometimes it hasn't been the best decision I ever made and the latter is applicable in this case. I checked to see how old the author was as it seemed quite a juvenile style of writing but she isn't a young writer. The family featured are of a mixed marriage and this was referred to a great deal when it really didn't need to be. This edition was the first one but it felt like she'd hopped on the old wagon of recent wokeness to me, which I just find tiresome in the extreme.
However, I didn't pack it in at only 10% for any of these reasons, but because I got sick and tired of highlighting mistakes. I'd just had enough by 30 pages into it.
We had speechmarks missed out (3 lots in those few pages I'd noted), she wrote Nike's not Nikes, Monroe's not Monroes, breech not breach and I gave in, with a loud sigh when I read this sentence, didn't really understand it, then realised it needed a hyphen for it to make sense !! "Check out time's noon".....something so simple but makes a GREAT difference to the whole meaning of the sentence when "check-out time's noon" would've made perfect sense !
I find it most peculiar when adults use the word "pop" when referring to a fizzy beverage, too. It was mentioned that it is something they do in Michigan but it makes them sound like they're young toddlers !!
If I had to take a stab I'd say the security guard is one to watch as he was extremely eager to insert himself into the investigation and killers get off on doing this. However, I just couldn't face anymore interruptions in needing to highlight mistakes.

[Kristen · Rating 3 out of 5]

I originally gave up on this book during a prior reading challenge, and a few nights back decided to just suffer through the first bits again and finish it. I’m glad that I read it. I don’t usually pick up mysteries or thrillers, but this actually held my interest after a certain point.

My biggest complaint is that the book definitely needs an editor. Aside from the hundreds of minor grammatical mistakes, the author actually seemed to forget the names of her characters at certain points. Keith became Ken, Spansky became Spanksy, and Clarence once became Jake? This was made all the more irritating by the sheer amount of characters you’re exposed to, causing you sit back for a minute and think, “wait, who?”

Adding to that huge cast of characters was the fact that at least 50% of them had at least one POV appearance. The three main suspects, the three daughters, the parents, the FBI agents, the culprits, etc. I’d assume that this was part of the reason I’d first dropped the book, considering it’s a bit of a pain keeping track of everyone at first and you’ll likely have to be in the mood to try it.

Aside from that, there is some disturbing content inside that I’d rather never read about again, and a lot of the connections that led to closing the case started to seem extremely unlikely and farfetched by the end.

[Jodi · Rating 4 out of 5]

And Then There Was One, is a good summer read- keeps your interest, engaging plot, etc. Great writing, finely developed characters, 100% plausible plot--not so much. Three identical 9 year old triplets go to the movies with their older cousin and decide to split up and see two different movies. The rub- two of the triplets don't come back out. So starts this fast moving story about a family dealing with this tragedy, the suspects, the remaining triplet's survivor's guilt, etc. The author handles the sensitive storyline very well, creating suspense without violence. I liked that :)

[Carey Laffoon · Rating 1 out of 5]

I feel like I just wasted precious time reading this book. There are so many "people" introduced in this book that did not need an introduction. Maybe the author felt it added to the "who done it"?? I can think of a million ways to make this story more interesting and the way it ended...horrible. Do not waste your time (or money).

[Barbara S. Collins · Rating 5 out of 5]

A GREAT READ

I enjoyed this book very much. This book could have been written by JAMES PATTERSON . IT IS ONE OF THE BEST MYSTERIES I HAVE READ LATELY. I WILL LOOK FOR PATRICIA GUSSIN AGAIN VIRGO70 a definite five star read

[Pat Timpanaro · Rating 3 out of 5]

I was the only person in our mystery book group who didn't hate this book. I didn't love it, but I didn't hate it. I enjoyed the first part of the book because you didn't know the identity or motivation of the bad guy. Once that was revealed, the book became predictable and less interesting.

I think two things are noteworthy about the book.

First, the main family is biracial and other than being presented as fact, the same way age or education is presented, race is never discussed and there are no issues. I don't think this is realistic.

Second, the FBI makes a lot of mistakes. I don't think they're as omniscient as they're often presented, I don't think they would be this inept in real life.

I really can't recommend this book, but I'm sorry I read it.

[Pamela Kelley · Rating 5 out of 5]

Exciting Fast Paced Kidnapping Mystery To The End

Scott and Katie Monroe have triplet daughters one day. The next two are missing. Kidnapped by an overweight middle aged white woman according to Wittiness. Then two different ransom demands come in. Who has the girls? The FBI is working non stop trying to find them. Then one gets away but the bad guys still have one of the girls. Will they get her back or will she be harmed by the crazy people? Read the book. It's full of twists and turns. So many suspects and bad guys. Will Katie rethink her job in life and the
kind of people it puts her in front of? Will life get better for their family as a result of the kidnapping?

[Terri · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was quite an interesting story about triplet girls who go to the Mall theater to see a movie. One of their older cousins takes one triplet to see one movie while the other two sisters see another. When they come out to meet after the show, two of the triplets are missing. The story tells what it is like when children are missing. How many think the parents are involved. How frightening it is when days go by with no clues or leads. The media camps out where the parents live and work but nothing seems to help. Do they rescue the two triplets? Does the other sister figure out where the girls are? This was a great story to read on an airplane flight last week.

[Stephanie · Rating 4 out of 5]

The story opens with a baseball star and forensic psychologist finding out that two of their triplets are missing. The story runs through the investigation as you would imagine any real investigation would. It twists and turns from suspect to family member to FBI agent and back. It is quick paced and every chapter leaves you wanting more.

I really enjoyed this book. I felt this was an interesting story with many different twists in turns, but gave the feel of how a real investigation would go and the ripple of affect it has on others. I’m not a huge crier and I teared up at the end.

[Lynn · Rating 4 out of 5]

Find them!

A parents worse nightmare! This story was well written and showed that no matter what we never give up until WE KNOW. This story had it all...enemies, delusional, pervert, siblings, parents, dedicated law enforcement, love, and most of all, A Happy Ending for a family🤗
Thanks for writing this story and giving me a happy ending!
Lynn

[Jeanne · Rating 4 out of 5]

Crazy!!

I have a hard time giving a 5 star rating. This was a good read but not quite a 5. It was pretty predictable but definitely kept my interest the entire time. I would still recommend it if psych thrillers are your thing.

[Celyon Fenty · Rating 3 out of 5]

OK

It was a good read, finished it in a couple of days. Some of it was a bit hard to believe. Some of it was a bit too much, I guess for shock value, but it didn't really match up with the story. I'd give the author one more read just to see if that's how all her novels read.

[Lois Welsh · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is a hardcover book. I had a hard time putting the book down when I had chores to do because I was hooked on what was going to happen next. I did figure out a few things before it was revealed. This is the first time I have read this Author and I am glad that I did.

[Kimberly · Rating 2 out of 5]

a tough end to my spring break thriller-a-thon. this book is heavy with child abuse triggers. it was tough going in the beginning, typos and really awkward dialogue. but as soon as "spanky" showed up, it was not the book for me

[MeWriter · Rating 3 out of 5]

Very good story with interesting plot. Unnecessary sexual and racial references throughout. Ending was very neat and tidy.

[Denise · Rating 4 out of 5]

It was a very twisty read.

[Phyllis Stinson · Rating 5 out of 5]

Excellent Read

This was non stop action and heartbreak. I could't put it down! I do feel Obama could have been left out!!

[Sandy Samuel · Rating 5 out of 5]

Wow!

This was a real "on the edge of your seat" book! I was sure it would end differently. It was SO good!!

[Joni Bratcher · Rating 5 out of 5]

Immediately drew me in

Great read! The mystery drew me in from the first page. I will be checking out more work by this author.

[Jamie Allison · Rating 1 out of 5]

1.5 stars. Terrible editing. Had this on my to-read list for years and so disappointed 😔

[Kim Erwin · Rating 2 out of 5]

Why did I bother to finish it? Boring with a cliched ending.

[Dorothy Deusing · Rating 5 out of 5]

Three as one

Great thriller keeps you wanting to get to the next part. Excellent very well done. Just the kind of book i enjoy. Thanks for your writing style.

[Regina · Rating 2 out of 5]

August 2014

[Elizabeth · Rating 5 out of 5]

So many twists and turns!! Great read!