The Man Who Disappeared
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Review
'Down at the core, beneath its several layers, THE MAN WHO DISAPPEARED is a well-crafted suspense story...Morrall digs beneath the surface to mine psychological nuggets, some of them gold.' (Rachel Hore, Independent on Sunday )
'A wise, intelligent and surprising novel, in which - as in life - nothing is simple' (Kate Saunders, The Times )
'A highly achieved, engrossing read... Superbly imagined, it reads like documentary truth.' (Tom Adair, Scotsman )
'Compelling...In clear, concise prose, Morrall movingly depicts Kate's strength in the face of adversity, and Felix's excoriating regret at the damage done.' (Marie Claire )
'An absorbing novel about deception and self-discovery' (Grazia )
'An inspiring story about a woman who finds inner strength as her world crumbles' (TV Times )
'an engaging, unpretentious read' (Scottish Sunday Herald )
'A wise, intelligent and surprising novel, in which - as in life - nothing is simple' (Kate Saunders, The Times )
'A highly achieved, engrossing read... Superbly imagined, it reads like documentary truth.' (Tom Adair, Scotsman )
'Compelling...In clear, concise prose, Morrall movingly depicts Kate's strength in the face of adversity, and Felix's excoriating regret at the damage done.' (Marie Claire )
'An absorbing novel about deception and self-discovery' (Grazia )
'An inspiring story about a woman who finds inner strength as her world crumbles' (TV Times )
'an engaging, unpretentious read' (Scottish Sunday Herald )
Product Description
What would you do if, out of the blue, your husband disappeared and you found out he was a suspected criminal?
When reliable, respectable Felix Kendall vanishes, his wife Kate is left reeling. As she and their children cope with the shocking impact on their comfortable lives, Kate realises that, if Felix is guilty, she never truly knew the man she loved. But as she faces the possibility that he might not return, she also discovers strengths she never knew she had.
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Most Helpful Customer Reviews
43 of 45 people found the following review helpful
Format:Hardcover
Clare Morrall's The Man Who Disappeared is perhaps more accurately about the wife and young family of the disappearing man. The book tells the story of the impact on a family when their well-to-do life is shattered following the discovery that the husband, a partner in an accountancy firm, has been involved in a money laundering operation and has fled both his family and the police.
It's not clear at first how much Felix Kendall is involved in the scandal and his disappearance prompts speculation that he is the criminal mastermind behind the plan. He leaves behind his wife, Kate, two young children (a third is at university) to not only deal with the absence of the father/husband, but also to deal with the press and the absence of money as the family's bank accounts are frozen. Career house-wife Kate is forced to take low paid work and the family has to move out of its comfortable home into a dingy flat. The family wonder if Felix will return and if they even want that to happen.
It's a fascinating scenario, and realistically plausible. But somehow it never quite grips as it should. Everyone copes just too well. However, it's an interesting alternative to the sugary chick lit genre.
It's not clear at first how much Felix Kendall is involved in the scandal and his disappearance prompts speculation that he is the criminal mastermind behind the plan. He leaves behind his wife, Kate, two young children (a third is at university) to not only deal with the absence of the father/husband, but also to deal with the press and the absence of money as the family's bank accounts are frozen. Career house-wife Kate is forced to take low paid work and the family has to move out of its comfortable home into a dingy flat. The family wonder if Felix will return and if they even want that to happen.
It's a fascinating scenario, and realistically plausible. But somehow it never quite grips as it should. Everyone copes just too well. However, it's an interesting alternative to the sugary chick lit genre.
35 of 37 people found the following review helpful
Format:Hardcover
This is one of the TV Book Club's Summer Reads selection and one which I was pleased to see. I have read two of Morrall's previous novels, " Astonishing Splashes of Colour" and "The Language of Others", both of which examined characters on the periphery of society, one with synaesthesia and one with Asperger Syndrome. I enjoy the quirkiness of her novels, their introspectiveness and total lack of showiness.
In "The Man who Disappeared", Felix Kendall is the one on the outside looking in, standing on the pavement gazing longingly at real life portraits of family life in lit front rooms, a family life he yearns for having been orphaned at an early age. He's as unreadable as the sphinx which perhaps explains why his wife Kate and his children remained blissfully unaware of his involvement in a money laundering scheme - the discovery of which leads to Felix disappearing without a trace, his family left to pick up the pieces.
This isn't an in your face, action thriller, quite the opposite - man vanishes, wife has to struggle on with all the usual humdrum chores of life. In this tightly knit narrative, we see the after effects of Felix's disappearance, especially those which impinge on his family not just in material but also in emotional terms. How well do you ever know someone? There aren't any great exaggerations/dramatic scenes at play here - it's all focussed on people like Kate who discovers she never really knew the man she worshipped and how unsettling that must be in every respect.
"Was he ever the man she'd thought he was? It now seems as if he was little more than a model of Action Man, designed to bend and adapt to all circumstances...He was a blank space, inviting creativity, a man for all seasons."
Forced to downsize home, school, friends, everything from their previous life the family are put through the mill. Yet, in the midst of this zooming in on the family left behind, there are some telling insights into Felix too and why he felt compelled to disappear. Whilst he doesn't win us over entirely, he doesn't emerge as the arch-villain of the piece either - a testament, I feel to the depth and skill of Morrall's characterisation. It's a sad, sad situation (sorry, Elton..) to which there is no easy remedy and sorry doesn't go anywhere near.
The ending of the novel doesn't leave us feeling unrealistically upbeat but perhaps more resigned to the fact that life isn't plain sailing for any of us as Kate realises later on,
"Nobody saunters through life on a clear, straight road with no red lights, roundabouts or traffic jams."
This is a quiet, understated novel with many hidden layers - just like the people in our lives...
In "The Man who Disappeared", Felix Kendall is the one on the outside looking in, standing on the pavement gazing longingly at real life portraits of family life in lit front rooms, a family life he yearns for having been orphaned at an early age. He's as unreadable as the sphinx which perhaps explains why his wife Kate and his children remained blissfully unaware of his involvement in a money laundering scheme - the discovery of which leads to Felix disappearing without a trace, his family left to pick up the pieces.
This isn't an in your face, action thriller, quite the opposite - man vanishes, wife has to struggle on with all the usual humdrum chores of life. In this tightly knit narrative, we see the after effects of Felix's disappearance, especially those which impinge on his family not just in material but also in emotional terms. How well do you ever know someone? There aren't any great exaggerations/dramatic scenes at play here - it's all focussed on people like Kate who discovers she never really knew the man she worshipped and how unsettling that must be in every respect.
"Was he ever the man she'd thought he was? It now seems as if he was little more than a model of Action Man, designed to bend and adapt to all circumstances...He was a blank space, inviting creativity, a man for all seasons."
Forced to downsize home, school, friends, everything from their previous life the family are put through the mill. Yet, in the midst of this zooming in on the family left behind, there are some telling insights into Felix too and why he felt compelled to disappear. Whilst he doesn't win us over entirely, he doesn't emerge as the arch-villain of the piece either - a testament, I feel to the depth and skill of Morrall's characterisation. It's a sad, sad situation (sorry, Elton..) to which there is no easy remedy and sorry doesn't go anywhere near.
The ending of the novel doesn't leave us feeling unrealistically upbeat but perhaps more resigned to the fact that life isn't plain sailing for any of us as Kate realises later on,
"Nobody saunters through life on a clear, straight road with no red lights, roundabouts or traffic jams."
This is a quiet, understated novel with many hidden layers - just like the people in our lives...
7 of 7 people found the following review helpful
Format:Paperback
It says on the front of this book that the author, Clare Morrall, was Booker-shortlisted for 'Astonishing Splashes of Colour'. Oh dear! What complete drivel this book was and, oh, how 'astonished' I am! I persevered until about the last 30 pages and really couldn't be bothered wasting any more time on the inane conversations going on between Felix, Kate and the children. I didn't like the stereotyping of the Asian newsagents and also the council housing tenants. It was all so predictable that I somehow nearly convinced myself that there must be some monumental surprise at the end and that all would be worthwhile. Alas, this was not the case. I am somewhat mystified as to how reviewers from well-regarded publications can pour such accolades on this book, eg 'engrossing' 'superbly imagined' 'well-crafted suspense story' psychological nuggets, some of them gold'. The only nuggets I came across were pebbles that sank to the bottom!
Most Recent Customer Reviews
Ok - not as exciting as the title sounds
The book is primarily about the wife and children of Felix Kendall and how they cope after he disappears, after the police get wind of his alleged involvement in money laundering. Read more
Published 16 days ago by M. Block
Loved this, despite its flaws
Felix Kendall has worked hard to build a privileged lifestyle for himself and his family. But one day, he vanishes with no apparent trace, leaving his wife Kate and three children... Read more
Published 2 months ago by Nicola Wilson
book and characters in search of an identity
was attracted to this because of "Astonishing splashes of colour" which was well-written, and also the reviews on the cover. Read more
Published 10 months ago by kaper
Readable... But rarely unimaginative and disappointing
I was very disappointed in this book. I love reading and at first, I was intrigued by the plot - it seemed like a good story and a bit of mystery. Read more
Published 13 months ago by Y. Rodgers
Readable but.......
Described as a "well-crafted suspense story...." I had expected something along the lines of the early Nicci French novels, I was, however, disappointed in the lack of suspense. Read more
Published 14 months ago by Jood
Quick read but uninvolving
I was expecting more from this book than it actually delivered. The plot sounded interesting: Kate's husband Felix disappears after becoming involved in crime, she finds she never... Read more
Published 15 months ago by Reddy
Disappointing
Although I found the book easy to read and found myself eager to read on this book was also disappointing. Read more
Published 16 months ago by Debbie
LACKS PASSION AND LIFE
This was an page turner, and it was readable, but somehow it lacked passion. I did not feel any closer to the main characters at the end than I did at the start. The end was fine. Read more
Published 16 months ago by bibliophile
great premise but disappointing read
This should have been a great book. The premise is an interesting one: how does the family left behind cope when the husband and father simply vanishes? Read more
Published 19 months ago by Cris
First ever review
Enjoyable read and had me gripped for a while. Would like to have known more about the characters especially those who we didn't actually meet but who were central to the... Read more
Published 20 months ago by Bookworm
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