No Time for Goodbye
by Linwood Barclay
List Price:
Our Price: $4.29
You Save: $17.71 (80%)
Availability: Usually ships in 1-2 business days
Buy Used: from $0.01 (click here)
Category: Book
See more book details and other editions
Book Summary Information
Author: Linwood BarclayEdition: Hardcover
Audio: English (Unknown); English (Original Language); English (Published)
Published: 2007-09-25
ISBN: 055380555X
Number of pages: 352
Publisher: Bantam
Book Reviews of No Time for Goodbye
Book Review: Simply marvelous
Summary: 5 Stars
Those familiar with Linwood Barclay's previous novels, take note: NO TIME FOR GOODBYE is quite a different work for him. There is not a trace of good old Zack Walker here, though protagonist Terry Archer, a high school English teacher, could be decent buds with him should their paths ever cross. While the Walker books --- BAD MOVE, BAD GUYS, LONE WOLF and STONE RAIN --- were suburban caper novels, occasionally bordering on the comedic, NO TIME FOR GOODBYE is the stuff of nightmarish mystery.
Terry Archer is married to Cynthia Bigge, a woman with a past. Cynthia was a semi-rebellious 14-year-old when her family vanished overnight from their suburban Connecticut home. She had it better than most would have in such circumstances, being taken in and raised by a loving aunt and later meeting and marrying Terry, a supporting husband who truly loves her even as he is occasionally plagued by her understandable overprotectiveness of their daughter and his fleeting self-doubt over Cynthia's story.
Things come to a head, however, when a television news magazine does a feature on the mysterious, long-ago disappearance of Cynthia's family. Cynthia suddenly feels as if she is being followed; she sees a man at a shopping mall who, she is certain, is a grownup version of her missing brother; and her father's trademark fedora is found resting on their kitchen table. Terry is not completely sure that his wife isn't perhaps making some of it up, as a secondary symptom of some serious emotional problems. His love for her is such, however, that he gives her the benefit of the doubt.
Things are ratcheted up a notch or three when Terry and Cynthia hire a private investigator, whose questions spark a pair of horrendous occurrences that in turn bring the events that began over a quarter century before to a shocking conclusion.
While Barclay's work has always been enjoyable and worth reading, NO TIME FOR GOODBYE is in a class all by itself. Barclay is simply marvelous as he appears to repeatedly paint himself into a corner, only to deftly exit through the door that happened to be there all along, in plain view. As I approached the conclusion, I couldn't help but shout "OF COURSE!" as all was revealed. The author plays fair, providing a clue or two early on as to the impetus behind the disappearance of three-quarters of the Bigge family. But a good deal of the enjoyment of the book is not so much the surprise of the solution but the manner in which Barclay carries it off.
--- Reviewed by Joe Hartlaub
Summary of No Time for Goodbye
The house was deathly quiet. That was the first sign that something was terribly wrong. Fourteen-year-old Cynthia Bigge woke that morning to find herself alone. Her family?mother, father, and brother?had vanished without a word, without a note, without a trace. Twenty-five years later, Cynthia is still looking for answers. Now she is about to learn the devastating truth.From critically acclaimed author Linwood Barclay comes a new suspense thriller that strikes to the core of our most primal fear. What if you woke one day to find your entire life had changed? If everyone you loved had disappeared overnight without so much as a chance to ask why?
Cynthia and Terry Archer still live in Milford, Connecticut, not far from the old Bigge house on Hickory Street. With a solid marriage and a young daughter, the Archers seem on track for a successful future. But the questions raised by Cynthia?s past still haunt her, and her obsession to find the answers threatens to destroy everything they?ve worked for. For Cynthia, there can be no closure until she finds out why her family disappeared?and how they could have left her behind.
Terry thinks the segment on the popular TV crime-stopper program Deadline is a mistake. But his wife hopes that someone watching will have a lead to her missing family. Sure enough, it?s Cynthia who spots the strange car cruising the neighborhood, hears the untraceable phone calls, and discovers the ominous ?gifts.? And as Cynthia?s nerves begin to unravel, no one?s innocence is guaranteed, not even her own. By the time the first body is found, it?s clear that her past is more of a mystery than she ever imagined?or may ever survive.
Someone has returned to this Connecticut town to finish what was started twenty-five years ago. And by the time Terry and Cynthia discover the killer?s shocking identity, it will be too late even for goodbye.
Canadian Books
Book Subjects
- Arts & Photography
- Biographies & Memoirs
- Business & Investing
- Children's Books
- Comics & Graphic Novels
- Computers & Internet
- Cooking, Food & Wine
- Entertainment
- Gay & Lesbian
- Health, Mind & Body
- History
- Home & Garden
- Horror
- Law
- Literature & Fiction
- Mystery & Thrillers
- Nonfiction
- Outdoors & Nature
- Parenting & Families
- Professional & Technical
- Reference
- Religion & Spirituality
- Romance
- Science
- Science Fiction & Fantasy
- Sports
- Teens
- Travel
Most talked about in Canadian Books
The Far Side of the Worldby Patrick O'Brian
HarperCollins Publishers Canada, Limited; Published: 2003; Mass Market Paperback; Book
Master and Commanderby Patrick O'Brian
PerfectBound; Published: 2003-11-25; Unknown Binding; Book
Noble Deedsby Christine M. Fraser
HarperCollins Publishers Canada, Limited; Published: 1996; Paperback; Book
Forms of Devotion: Stories and Picturesby Diane Schoemperlen
Harpercollins Canada; Published: 1998-03; Hardcover; Book
Best price: $7.97
Price in other shops:
A Daystar of Fearby Geoffrey Jenkins
Harper Collins; Published: 1994; Hardcover; Book
At A Loss For Words: A Post-Romantic Novelby Diane Schoemperlen
Harpercollins Canada; Published: 2008-02-29; Hardcover; Book
Best price: $2.62
Price in other shops:
Acquainted with the Night : Excursions Through the World after Darkby Christopher Dewdney
HarperCollins Publishers Canada, Limited; Published: 2004; Hardcover; Book
Best price: $106.16
The Birthday Presentby Barbara Vine
Penguin Canada; Published: 2008-08-07; Paperback; Book
Best price: $24.00
The Sky Is Fallingby Kit Pearson
Penguin Books Canada, Limited; Published: 1991; Paperback; Book
Water For Elephantsby Sara Gruen
The Easton Press; Published: 2006; Hardcover; Book
Best price: $256.55
Similar Books and other products
Bad Guysby Linwood Barclay
Bantam; Published: 2006-05; Mass Market Paperback; Book
Best price: $4.40
Price in other shops:
Bad Moveby Linwood Barclay
Bantam; Published: 2005-04-26; Mass Market Paperback; Book
Best price: $3.73
Price in other shops:
Stone Rainby Linwood Barclay
Bantam; Published: 2007-05-01; Mass Market Paperback; Book
Best price: $4.41
Price in other shops:
Lone Wolfby Linwood Barclay
Bantam; Published: 2006-09-26; Mass Market Paperback; Book
Best price: $4.38
Price in other shops:
Too Close to Homeby Linwood Barclay
Bantam; Published: 2008-09-30; Hardcover; Book
Best price: $1.46
Price in other shops:
Fear the Worst: A Novelby Linwood Barclay
Bantam; Published: 2009-08-11; Hardcover; Book
Best price: $1.91
Price in other shops:
Never Look Away: A Thrillerby Linwood Barclay
Delacorte Press; Published: 2010-03-09; Hardcover; Book
Best price: $2.45
Price in other shops:
The Accident: A Thrillerby Linwood Barclay
Bantam; Published: 2011-08-09; Hardcover; Book
Best price: $9.62
Price in other shops:
Too Close to Home: A Thrillerby Linwood Barclay
Bantam; Published: 2009-07-28; Mass Market Paperback; Book
Best price: $1.93
Price in other shops:
Fear the Worst: A Thrillerby Linwood Barclay
Dell; Published: 2010-02-23; Mass Market Paperback; Book
Best price: $2.60
Price in other shops: