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What She Left Paperback – August 17, 2017
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But Helen wasn't abducted or murdered. She's chosen to walk away, abandoning her family, husband Sam, and her home.
Where has Helen gone, and why? What has driven her from her seemingly perfect life? What is she looking for? Sam is tormented by these questions, and gradually begins to lose his grip on work and his family life.
He sees Helen everywhere in the faces of strangers. He's losing control.
But then one day, it really is Helen's face he sees...
- Print length383 pages
- LanguageEnglish
- PublisherAllen & Unwin
- Publication dateAugust 17, 2017
- Dimensions6.14 x 1.22 x 9.25 inches
- ISBN-109781760292492
- ISBN-13978-1760292492
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Product details
- ASIN : 1760292494
- Publisher : Allen & Unwin
- Publication date : August 17, 2017
- Edition : Main
- Language : English
- Print length : 383 pages
- ISBN-10 : 9781760292492
- ISBN-13 : 978-1760292492
- Item Weight : 1.19 pounds
- Dimensions : 6.14 x 1.22 x 9.25 inches
- Best Sellers Rank: #285,300 in Contemporary Romance (Books)
- Customer Reviews:
About the author

Rosie Fiore is the author of eight published novels, including Wonder Women, After Isabella and What She Left, as well as The After Wife, written as Cass Hunter. She is a teacher of creative writing and a Royal Literary Fund Fellow. She lives in North London with her family, and can frequently be found wandering on the Heath or haunting a churchyard.
Customer reviews
Customer Reviews, including Product Star Ratings help customers to learn more about the product and decide whether it is the right product for them.
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Learn more how customers reviews work on AmazonTop reviews from the United States
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- Reviewed in the United States on January 2, 2018Such a beautiful read. I couldn't put it down. Rosie has a wonderful way of writing in simple easy English, but at the same time expresting huge emotions without being melodramatic. I laughed., cried, sympathised with and hated the various characters at times. Thank you, Rosie, for giving me so much pleasure.
- Reviewed in the United States on January 16, 2018This is a very different sort of family story. When Helen disappears, it's not because she's been kidnapped or murdered. She just walks away from her family one morning. The book is told from four different viewpoints: Sam, Helen, Sam's oldest daughter, and Lara (a mother with a child at the same school as Sam's girls).
Through the various viewpoints, we learn more and more about Helen and her life, and how her disappearance impacts her family. When we get about midway through the story, we learn some surprising information about Helen that shows readers a different side of her and of the story.
I was grabbed by this story from the first chapter and could hardly bear the times I had to put it down. Seeing how the family members grew and developed through the story was a joy.
- Reviewed in the United States on December 16, 2017If it wasn’t near Christmas time I’m sure I would have flown through this book.
I have really enjoyed my journey in this great read. To some readers it may seem slow to start, or they may get fed up of waiting to hear what happened to Helen.
Sam is married to his second wife Helen. He has two girls from his previous marriage. Unfortunately his first wife died.
Five years Sam and Helen have been together. She cooks, cleans, sorts etc to perfection.
Sam works full time.
To all and purposes this family unit seems to be settled and comfortable.
One day Helen ups and leaves.
She’s not murdered or kidnapped.
She walks out on her husband and daughters who she adores.
But why?
Sam reports her missing.
Helen is found alive and well but wants no contact.
I found Sam annoying at times and self centred when he should have helped his daughters cope.
The chapters alternate between Sam, Helen, his older daughter and Laura.
When I got the insight to how his daughter was feeling I wanted to shake Sam, he should have made more time to talk with them and listen.
Tim, Sams brother seemed to be his rock. It didn’t appear that way at times, but he was.
A father trying to hold down a job, see to his daughters, take them to school and clean house was way too much for Sam. He often found his head in a bottle.
When we got to over halfway through this book we learn more about Helen in a surprising way which puts an entirely new slant on Helen.
At the end of this read yes, I had a lump in my throat.
I was torn.
Unhappy for Sam and his girls but he was moving towards the light.
Helen, I was sad, but part of me was happy too.
The epilogue blew my mind.
What a fantastic book.
Thank you Atlantic books for surprising me in the post with this one.
- Reviewed in the United States on October 5, 2017I found i could not put the book down. Rosie Fiora creates plausible dysfunctional family personalities and explains them well in their response to the intially inexplicaple disappearance of Helen, the wife of Sam and step mother to his two daughters from his first marriage. The narrative is as much about the evolving dysfunctions in Sam's family and relationships as it is about finding Helen whose personal story only emerges well into the read. The search for Helen none the less succesfuly carries the story forward. As her own dysfunctional background and personal vulnerability emerge Sam's insensitivity and obsessive nature becomes more obvious and defined. There is no happy ending but there are glimmers of understanding and trust at the end. 'What she left' is an apt title for the aftermath of family breakdowns. The narrative is disturbing for its portrayal of middleclass family life and how easily familial structures can unravel.
- Reviewed in the United States on January 20, 2018Sam has found his soulmate Helen after losing his first wife leaving him with two small girls. After several years together and Helen being a housewife, she leaves home to go on a course, turns the corner and disappears. Her husband is meant to be collecting the children from school but has left her a message to say he has been called away and hence can’t get there. When the school call him he realises something could be wrong- very wrong. Helen is always so organised- her life and the family plans are so organised that almost everything is on a spreadsheet. So where is she?
This is a very different “missing person” book- one that makes you stop and think about life. Not in the realm of murder or kidnap- a totally different scenario. I won’t give anything away but towards the end there are some very true, reflective words in a stunning piece of writing which made me stop and think about my own life and journey. A very well written account mainly of characters. We feel for Sam and then realise that at times he is his own worst enemy- at times you may want to shout at him in frustration for his actions, mostly to himself. For Lara who does her best to help but ends up being somewhat of a doormat. For the children having lost a second mother figure. You wonder why she could leave a blissful life- from the outside and then find out that little bit more. The ending I was wondering about before I got there- what would happen? Would there be a happy one? No spoilers- just to say - perfect.
Top reviews from other countries
- ChitraReviewed in India on July 6, 2019
5.0 out of 5 stars Unputdownable
From the minute i picked up this one I couldn't put it down. Fast paced and well etched characters. Highly recommend.
- Lincs ReaderReviewed in the United Kingdom on February 2, 2018
5.0 out of 5 stars I'd certainly recommend What She Left
What She Left is the first of Rosie Fiore's books that I've read, although I do have a copy of her April 2017 release, After Isabella on my to-be-read shelf and I'm determined to get to it soon.
I have been completely and utterly absorbed in What She Left, it's been a real roller-coaster of a read; one of those books that when you put it down you continue to think about the story, eager to get back to it and constantly intrigued by both the plot and the excellently created characters.
Helen Cooper has it all. She's organised and efficient, her husband Sam is lusted after by all of the other school-gate mothers. Her two girls are perfectly turned out, talented and pretty. Her house is spotless, her handbag is tidy and her whole life is planned down to the exact second. Husband Sam is a high-earner, he spends time away from the home on business, safe in the knowledge that he will return to freshly ironed clothes and wholesome meals, and happy that what happens when away on business, stays away on business.
When Helen fails to collect the girls from school, it's a major event. This never happens. When Helen fails to return home that night, or the next day, or the following day, everyone knows that something terrible has happened. When the police inform Sam that Helen has been found, safe and well, he is over the moon. When he learns that she doesn't intend to come home, he is devastated and confused.
Gradually, over the next few months, Sam begins to realise that Helen really wasn't who, or what she claimed to be. He realises that he never knew his wife. It gradually dawns on him that his life has been a lie, just as Helen's has.
Rosie Fiore is a clever writer. The book is structured incredibly well, told in four parts and narrated in different voices; Sam, Helen and Miranda, their daughter. Not only does this allow the reader to learn more about the relationships within this unusual family, it also gives a good glimpse into each character ... and their reliability.
Whilst What She Left does contain mystery and some tension, it's not a crime story. It certainly looks at certain crimes and the consequences of these on both the victim and their family and friends. There's a complexity to this story that adds such a lot to the overall story, and one of the best parts of the novel, for me, was this author's ability to create a character in Sam who is so believable, but actually really not very nice at all.
I'd certainly recommend What She Left, it's pacy and well written with some intricate plot turns and fabulous character creation. I'll look forward to reading more from this author.
- sally whitfieldReviewed in the United Kingdom on September 30, 2018
4.0 out of 5 stars Interesting read
I liked this story, I thought the author did an excellent job in the way she wrote her characters they were very believable and engaging. The main character Sam was very well written I went through every emotion with him I truly understand why he behaved like he did.. in some parts of the story I felt for him then a few pages along I detested him. The ending was good and everything tied up nicely.
- Dr. Clare L. LynchReviewed in the United Kingdom on October 10, 2017
5.0 out of 5 stars One for fans of Gone Girl/Girl on the Train
This is a really gripping page-turner. It's a well-paced thriller that I couldn't put down until I found out why Helen, a woman who seems to have it all (the handsome husband, the spirited young daughters, the beautiful home), decides one day to walk out on her perfect life and start anew.
The story unfolds through the eyes of various characters, all of whom are all well-rounded. Helen's husband, Sam, for example, is sympathetic to the extent that much of the story is told from his perspective. However, he is deeply, deeply flawed. The fact that he was neither a straightforward romantic hero nor a one-dimensional villain made the story very real for me.
Above all, I loved that the book has a feminist message, without ever being preachy. And, despite the subject matter, it contained a couple of jokes that had me laughing out loud.
To sum up, What She Left is an intriguing read that reminds me of Gone Girl and The Girl on the Train - but warmer, somehow. And with more likeable characters.
- Akilesh SridharanReviewed in India on August 27, 2019
4.0 out of 5 stars Good Family Mystery Drama
What happens when a mother leaves her family one fine summer morning and never returns? And what if she reports to the nearby police station that she had voluntarily moved on and she is safe and well? The story of Helen and Sam, husband and wife, is well-written and narrated until the secret is revealed.