The Vanishing Place

By: Zoë Rankin

Narrated by: Eva Seymour, Gareth Reeves

Instant #1 International Bestseller • A New York Times and Washington Post's Best Thriller of 2025

A shocking murder in the New Zealand bush—and the witness who looks all too familiar—draws a woman back to the very place she swore she’d never return to in this breakneck debut thriller.

A child who ran from the forest.
A woman who must return to it

Growing up with her younger siblings in the unforgiving New Zealand bush, Effie believed their parents had cut them off from civilization because they loved Nature. She never suspected that their reasons might be more menacing. After witnessing a terrifying episode of violence, she escaped the wilderness to forge a life for herself halfway across the globe.

Now, when she learns the only witness to a murder is a little girl who looks just like her, Effie is compelled to return to the scene of her troubled childhood, where the secrets of her upbringing and the terrors of her past come rushing back to the surface. In order to find out once and for all what became of her family—and possibly help this mysterious girl who could be her younger self—Effie must face her greatest fears once more.

Very good

The ending was contrived and kinda ruined a very good book. I enjoyed the storytelling overall.

Did not see THAT coming.

Great listen. Narration spot on. Lots of twists and turns that kept me glued in place.

I wanted to like this book but . . .

Rankin is a skilled writer who has a lovely way with words, and her females characters, especially Effie, really come to life. She has amazing insight into childhood experience and responses to trauma. But I found the plot very heavy and I felt nauseated a lot of the time I was listening. The ending also felt a bit contrived to me, with new characters and pieces of paper miraculously appearing at the last minute to explain everything. I felt those plot points should have been worked in more integrally to the story from the beginning. I will definitely be looking for her next book though, as I think she has great promise.

Loved it!

I am surprised this book isn’t on the top of everyone’s listen page. Writing was excellent, reading was wonderful and the story both interesting and heartbreaking. This is a story about a mother and father taking their kids out into the bush to live away from others. What happens next is crazy!

Suspense

Scary because it’s possible. The horror is real and painful. The crazy is so crazy it’s scary!