The Stolen Hours
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- Create Date：2021-09-08 11:21:29
- Update Date：2025-09-06
- Status：finish
- Author：Allen Eskens
- ISBN：1549194208
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Summary
Lila Nash， Joe Talbert’s beloved girlfriend from the USA Today-bestseller The Life We Bury and The Shadows We Hide， takes the lead for the first time in this thrilling new mystery， as she races to outsmart a serial killer and to escape the dark hold of her own past。
Lila Nash is on the verge of landing her dream job—working as a prosecutor under the Hennepin County Attorney—and has finally settled into a happy life with her boyfriend， Joe Talbert。 But when a new case crosses her desk， things take a personal turn。 Sadie Vauk has been pulled from the Mississippi River， barely alive。 The police believe her assailant to be local photographer Gavin Spenser， but their evidence is slim。
Gavin has been preparing for this moment。 He knows that Sadie’s escape might cause a lesser mind to panic， but he’s no lesser mind。 After years of working from the shadows， he will finally match wits with the best， and he knows that he will win。
But Lila is driven by her own dark secret。 Eight years before， she too survived an unspeakable attack。 The more determined Lila becomes to put Gavin behind bars， however， the more elusive justice becomes。 Battling a new boss and haunted by her own ghosts， the clock is ticking。 In a race against an evil mastermind， it will take everything Lila’s got to face what she has feared the most—and to put an end to a killer’s ruthless plan。
Lila Nash is on the verge of landing her dream job—working as a prosecutor under the Hennepin County Attorney—and has finally settled into a happy life with her boyfriend， Joe Talbert。 But when a new case crosses her desk， things take a personal turn。 Sadie Vauk has been pulled from the Mississippi River， barely alive。 The police believe her assailant to be local photographer Gavin Spenser， but their evidence is slim。
Gavin has been preparing for this moment。 He knows that Sadie’s escape might cause a lesser mind to panic， but he’s no lesser mind。 After years of working from the shadows， he will finally match wits with the best， and he knows that he will win。
But Lila is driven by her own dark secret。 Eight years before， she too survived an unspeakable attack。 The more determined Lila becomes to put Gavin behind bars， however， the more elusive justice becomes。 Battling a new boss and haunted by her own ghosts， the clock is ticking。 In a race against an evil mastermind， it will take everything Lila’s got to face what she has feared the most—and to put an end to a killer’s ruthless plan。
Reviews
Steve
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Allen Eskens， the tremendous thriller writer， has done it again。 This time he has penned a near-flawless mystery/thriller that hits all of the marks at a resounding pace。 The characters are accessible because they remind us of ourselves or someone we know。 The protagonist is incredibly sympathetic， and we root for a favorable outcome， perhaps knowing that it may not occur。 Eskens is a skilled writer who deserves accolades and cheers。
Darla
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Lila Nash is kicking butt and taking names。 She has almost reached her goal of passing the bar and working in the prosecutor's office。 A suspect in a kidnapping appears before the judge and Lila is thrown back to the most traumatic night of her life。 But， does she even know this guy？ Could that night from eight years ago come back with a vengeance？ Or will it be Lila taking control？ Told in three parallel narratives -- 1） Gavin Spencer， the OCD criminal mastermind 2） Lila Nash and the legal stra Lila Nash is kicking butt and taking names。 She has almost reached her goal of passing the bar and working in the prosecutor's office。 A suspect in a kidnapping appears before the judge and Lila is thrown back to the most traumatic night of her life。 But， does she even know this guy？ Could that night from eight years ago come back with a vengeance？ Or will it be Lila taking control？ Told in three parallel narratives -- 1） Gavin Spencer， the OCD criminal mastermind 2） Lila Nash and the legal strategy， and 3） Niki Vang， detective extraordinaire。 This is a fantastic combination of #metoo， a legal thriller， and a police procedural。 Now that I have read three books featuring Lila and Joe I do hope that the next one will have a plot where Lila and Joe work together like they did in The Life We Bury。 Thank you to Mulholland Books and Edelweiss+ for a DRC in exchange for an honest review。 。。。more
Jamie
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I won this book in a goodreads giveaway。 This book was a great introduction to Allen Eskens - I really enjoyed this book and will be going back to read some of his earlier novels。 Lila is working towards her dream job as a prosecutor， and is quickly drawn in to a new case when a woman's body is pulled from the Mississippi River。 Little does she know that her new case has similarities to several other unsolved cases， and brings up some unresolved memories from her own past。 The lead suspect， Gavi I won this book in a goodreads giveaway。 This book was a great introduction to Allen Eskens - I really enjoyed this book and will be going back to read some of his earlier novels。 Lila is working towards her dream job as a prosecutor， and is quickly drawn in to a new case when a woman's body is pulled from the Mississippi River。 Little does she know that her new case has similarities to several other unsolved cases， and brings up some unresolved memories from her own past。 The lead suspect， Gavin Spencer， has a grand plan to avoid going to jail for this crime， but will Lila outsmart him in the end？ I enjoyed the steady pace of the novel， the little nuggets of information that the author introduced， and how he tied everything together in the end。 I also really enjoyed Lila as a character， and her slow build of confidence she gained throughout the story， and would love to see her appear in future novels as a prosecutor taking down the bad guys。 。。。more
Rachel （TheShadesofOrange）
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4。0 StarsI consider Allen Esken to be one of the most talented authors writing today so it is no surprise that loved his latest mystery。 Unlike so many authors in the genre， he never gets stuck in a mold or formula。 Each novel is unique from his previous ones， offering a fresh perspective。 This novel features characters from his previous work but can certainly read like a standalone without any confusion。 However， as a dedicated reader of Esken's work， I was delighted to see the return of some f 4。0 StarsI consider Allen Esken to be one of the most talented authors writing today so it is no surprise that loved his latest mystery。 Unlike so many authors in the genre， he never gets stuck in a mold or formula。 Each novel is unique from his previous ones， offering a fresh perspective。 This novel features characters from his previous work but can certainly read like a standalone without any confusion。 However， as a dedicated reader of Esken's work， I was delighted to see the return of some familiar characters。 There was great character work in this one with emotional and challenging moments。 Content warnings for sexual assault and self harm。As for the story itself， it was engrossing and well plotted。 Some of the twists were guessable but yet I still very much enjoyed the reading experience。 I particularly enjoyed reading from "the bad guy's perspective"。I would definitely recommend this one （and this author） to any reader looking for an engaging mystery with smart characters。Disclaimer: I received a copy of this book from the publisher。 。。。more
Carrie
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The Stolen Hours by Allen Eskens is a standalone thriller but it does have ties to other books by Allen Eskens。 The main character in The Stolen Hours is the girlfriend of one of Eskens’ previous characters， Joe Talbert。 However， while the lead in this book is a spin off character you do not need to have read the Joe Talbert series to love this book as my rating reflects since I’ve never read the first series myself。Lila Nash has been working for years to land her dream job of becoming a prosecu The Stolen Hours by Allen Eskens is a standalone thriller but it does have ties to other books by Allen Eskens。 The main character in The Stolen Hours is the girlfriend of one of Eskens’ previous characters， Joe Talbert。 However， while the lead in this book is a spin off character you do not need to have read the Joe Talbert series to love this book as my rating reflects since I’ve never read the first series myself。Lila Nash has been working for years to land her dream job of becoming a prosecutor of violent criminals。 When she takes on a case of a victim that had survived an attack Lila’s own past comes flooding back to her as being a survivor herself。 But the moment in the courtroom that Lila hesitates could put her career at risk which makes Lila even more determined to prove herself and put Gavin Spenser behind bars where he belongs。Being a huge fan of legal thrillers I was excited to pick up The Stolen Hours and begin following this new feisty yet flawed lead， Lila Nash。 This one wasn’t heavy on the courtroom drama that comes with some legal thrillers。 Instead this is focused on outside of the courtroom and with finding the evidence that is needed to prosecute。 There are multiple layers and all kinds of twists and turns for our lead that brings her own past into the present。 Personally I think that The Stolen Hours should be slapped with a warning label that once beginning to read it’s impossible to put down。I received an advance copy from the publisher via NetGalley。For more reviews please visit https://carriesbookreviews。com/ 。。。more
Maudaevee
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This is my first book by Eskens， I really enjoyed it and would recommend。 The characters and pacing drew me right in。
Kerry
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I received "The Stolen Hours" as an ARC through goodreads。 I really like a good mystery and this one was not an exception。 I'll be asking my librarian to order more books by Allen Eskens。 WARNING - - The Bad Guy， Gavin is really CREEPY。 I received "The Stolen Hours" as an ARC through goodreads。 I really like a good mystery and this one was not an exception。 I'll be asking my librarian to order more books by Allen Eskens。 WARNING - - The Bad Guy， Gavin is really CREEPY。 。。。more
Kaceey
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Looks like Lila’s past just caught up to her！ So…Is she ready to face it？ Lila has a new job with the prosecutor’s office。 Her boss would like nothing more than to see her fall flat on her face and watch her new career go down in flames。 He wants her gone！ And an untimely stumble in the courtroom may have just provided him with the ammunition he needs。 But Lila has good reason to freeze。 The defendant may be the same person who attacked her years ago。 Now accused of rape and attempted murder of Looks like Lila’s past just caught up to her！ So…Is she ready to face it？ Lila has a new job with the prosecutor’s office。 Her boss would like nothing more than to see her fall flat on her face and watch her new career go down in flames。 He wants her gone！ And an untimely stumble in the courtroom may have just provided him with the ammunition he needs。 But Lila has good reason to freeze。 The defendant may be the same person who attacked her years ago。 Now accused of rape and attempted murder of another woman。 Shocked， she wonders。 Are there other women out there？ Could he be a serial rapist/murderer？ This was a rapid-fire murder mystery that drew me in right from the beginning。 I was fascinated by the different perspectives and how the storylines played out。 Running parallel until ultimately converging。 I was hoping for a bit more of an explosive ending but all in all， it was a completely satisfying read and certainly looking forward to his next！ A buddy read with Susanne。 Posted to: https://books-are-a-girls-best-friend。。。Thank you to NetGalley and Mulholland Books。 。。。more
Susanne Strong
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Review posted to blog: https://books-are-a-girls-best-friend。。。A masterful character-driven mystery suspense， about Lila Nash， who fans of Allen Eskens have come to know and love。 Lila Nash， the girlfriend of Joe Talbert （from The Life We Bury and The Shadows We Hide）， has always been focused on her career and she is finally exactly where she wants to be。 Working for Hennepin County as Prosecutor。 Awaiting her bar results， she is this close to having everything she wants。 When a case involving Review posted to blog: https://books-are-a-girls-best-friend。。。A masterful character-driven mystery suspense， about Lila Nash， who fans of Allen Eskens have come to know and love。 Lila Nash， the girlfriend of Joe Talbert （from The Life We Bury and The Shadows We Hide）， has always been focused on her career and she is finally exactly where she wants to be。 Working for Hennepin County as Prosecutor。 Awaiting her bar results， she is this close to having everything she wants。 When a case involving a woman named Sadie Vaulk who was drugged， assaulted， and almost murdered， falls into Lila’s lap， it hits really close to home。 Investigating this case with Lila， is Detective Nikki Vang （who Eskens fans may recall as being Max Rupert’s former partner in prior novels）。 Once Detective Vang starts looking into this case， she discovers several other women who went missing years prior and whose bodies were disposed of in the same way the assailant attempted to dispose of Ms。 Vaulk’s and it becomes clear that this is the work of a serial。 Taut， tense， and dramatic， The Stolen Hours is captivating from the first sentence。 As a huge fan of Allen Eskens， I have been waiting for the release of this novel since having read his last novel， Nothing More Dangerous。 It did not disappoint。 I adore Lila and was cheering her on throughout。 Though I thought this book wrapped up a tad neatly， I thoroughly enjoyed it and loved the ending。 Having met the author， Allen Eskens， in early March 2020， right before the shutdown， I got a chance to discuss all of his characters with him， including my personal favorite， Max Rupert。 It was an absolutely fabulous conversation and he even gave me a sneak peek into his plans for future novels。 I won’t spoil the surprise， but let’s just say that I will be waiting with bated breath for his next book。 This was a buddy read with Kaceey which we both enjoyed quite a bit。A huge thank you to Mulholland Books via NetGalley。 。。。more
Tiger
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Good， but not great book from one of my favorite authors。 Lila Nash is working extremely hard to become a prosecutor in Minneapolis and when a woman is pulled from the Mississippi River barely alive， Lila gets the case against a brilliant suspect。。。。。。。。a suspect that Lila thinks may have crossed her own path many years ago。 Sensitive subject matter handled very well by Eskens， but for me the book just seems to lack a "Wow" factor。 3。5 stars rounded up。 Good， but not great book from one of my favorite authors。 Lila Nash is working extremely hard to become a prosecutor in Minneapolis and when a woman is pulled from the Mississippi River barely alive， Lila gets the case against a brilliant suspect。。。。。。。。a suspect that Lila thinks may have crossed her own path many years ago。 Sensitive subject matter handled very well by Eskens， but for me the book just seems to lack a "Wow" factor。 3。5 stars rounded up。 。。。more
Margaret Wasielczyk
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I received this book as an ARC from Goodreads and really enjoyed it。 This is my first book from this author， the story was written very seamlessly and kept me engaged in the mystery the whole time。 I recommend this book and am eager to read more from this author。
MarilynW
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The Stolen Hours by Allen Eskens Life is looking good for Lila Nash and her boyfriend， Joe Talbert。 Awaiting the results of her bar exam， Lila works as a prosecutor under the Hennepin County Attorney’s office in Minneapolis。 Due to an accident taking her old boss out of action， Lila is assigned to work under a vindictive prosecutor who is determined to ruin any chances of a law career for her。 But Lila is no stranger to adversity or the cruelty of others。 Despite her stoic demeanor， Lila continu The Stolen Hours by Allen Eskens Life is looking good for Lila Nash and her boyfriend， Joe Talbert。 Awaiting the results of her bar exam， Lila works as a prosecutor under the Hennepin County Attorney’s office in Minneapolis。 Due to an accident taking her old boss out of action， Lila is assigned to work under a vindictive prosecutor who is determined to ruin any chances of a law career for her。 But Lila is no stranger to adversity or the cruelty of others。 Despite her stoic demeanor， Lila continues to struggle with the memories and hurt inflicted on her when she got drunk at a high school party， eight years ago。 She knows what it means to be physically attacked and to have that time in her life exposed for all to see。 She's worked so hard to pull herself up and above that time in her life only to now have a powerful man determined to destroy it。 On another front is Gavin Spenser， a local photographer who police suspect attempted to murder a young woman。 Lila is pretty sure Gavin was involved in her attack all those years ago。 As Lila works to pull together other cases similar to the young woman's attack， cases where the women were murdered， Gavin is one step ahead of the police and Lila and he actually welcomes this game of hide and seek。 Gavin is hiding in plain sight and Lila is determined to bring him down， even as her career is threatened by those who should be on her side。 The Stolen Hours is a stand alone that does not require the reading of any previous books by Eskens。 This time Joe Talbert， who was featured in two Eskens books， sits in the background as Lila's past and present collide in a way that could undermine Lila's very sense of self。 As much as she wanted to have put the past behind her， she knows she can't do that yet。 I enjoyed watching Lila use her brains to try to outsmart a man who has been playing a game long before anyone knew what he was doing。 Publication: September 7， 2021Thank you to Mulholland Books for this print ARC。 。。。more
Kristin
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I really liked this book。 This was my first by this author， so I wasn't familiar with the secondary character featured in his other novels。 I thought it read like an episode of Criminal Minds in the best way possible， where you follow both the protagonist and the bad guy。 I liked the interconnectedness of the plotlines。 Lila and Andi were really well-written， strong female characters。 I also appreciated how accurate this book is with regard to actual legal practice。 Gavin was such a great bad I really liked this book。 This was my first by this author， so I wasn't familiar with the secondary character featured in his other novels。 I thought it read like an episode of Criminal Minds in the best way possible， where you follow both the protagonist and the bad guy。 I liked the interconnectedness of the plotlines。 Lila and Andi were really well-written， strong female characters。 I also appreciated how accurate this book is with regard to actual legal practice。 Gavin was such a great bad guy， too - he was super creepy！ I would highly recommend this book and look forward to reading the author's other works。 Full Disclosure: I won this in a Goodreads Giveaway！ 。。。more
Teresa Warner
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Received an ARC from Goodreads。 This is a new author for me but my favorite genre to read。 I recommend this one and enjoyed it！
Cyndi
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Allen Eskens is an above and beyond excellent writer and his latest proves this without a doubt。 The whole story was flawlessly told and wrought with suspense。 The characters were flawed and very relatable， particularly the protagonist。 Eskens has written a series and 2 standalones and each is exquisitely told and not at all cookie cutter plots that imitate each other。 I highly recommend this to fans of mystery， suspense and general fiction。Many thanks to Netgalley， Edelweiss， Mulholland Books a Allen Eskens is an above and beyond excellent writer and his latest proves this without a doubt。 The whole story was flawlessly told and wrought with suspense。 The characters were flawed and very relatable， particularly the protagonist。 Eskens has written a series and 2 standalones and each is exquisitely told and not at all cookie cutter plots that imitate each other。 I highly recommend this to fans of mystery， suspense and general fiction。Many thanks to Netgalley， Edelweiss， Mulholland Books and Allen Eskens for my complimentary ARC in exchange for an honest review。 All opinions are my own。 。。。more
Mike Hughes
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This was an incredible book。 Loved every word of it。 Eskens stays inside his world he has created and this time we get to spend alot of time with Lila， Joe's girlfried。 She is such a great character。 this story has it all， some mystery， suspense and some great twists。 Gavin Spencer is a very creepy villian as well and i really liked the inner thoughts of his twisted mind。 Allen Eskens is one of my top three authors right now and he continues to get better each time out。 This was an incredible book。 Loved every word of it。 Eskens stays inside his world he has created and this time we get to spend alot of time with Lila， Joe's girlfried。 She is such a great character。 this story has it all， some mystery， suspense and some great twists。 Gavin Spencer is a very creepy villian as well and i really liked the inner thoughts of his twisted mind。 Allen Eskens is one of my top three authors right now and he continues to get better each time out。 。。。more
Dana
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This was so good。 finished in one sitting。 Thank you for the ARC。 Amazing read。
Dorie - Cats&Books :）
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***HAPPY PUBLICATION DAY***This novel was 5* all the way， the writing flows so well and the story is riveting。As with all of Mr。 Esken’s previous novels， this is a strongly character driven， multi-layered mystery which also includes some courtroom drama。 In this novel we turn away from the male protagonists that I have grown to love so that we can get to know Lila Nash。 What an amazingly strong woman she is。 Lila had some deep personal problems and trauma in high school that she overcame to get ***HAPPY PUBLICATION DAY***This novel was 5* all the way， the writing flows so well and the story is riveting。As with all of Mr。 Esken’s previous novels， this is a strongly character driven， multi-layered mystery which also includes some courtroom drama。 In this novel we turn away from the male protagonists that I have grown to love so that we can get to know Lila Nash。 What an amazingly strong woman she is。 Lila had some deep personal problems and trauma in high school that she overcame to get where she is now。 Lila is working as a prosecutor under the Hennepin County Attorney’s office in Minneapolis， she is awaiting the results of her bar exam。 She admires the attorney she is working under， Andi Fitch， and they are starting to forge a good working relationship。 THERE IS EVIL LURKING IN THE CITY THAT LILA NOW CALLS HOME。。 As the novel opens， a woman named Sadie Vaulk， is struggling for her life after being drugged， assaulted and thrown into a river near a large falls。 But Sadie is stronger than her assailant thought and is a good swimmer。 She manages to clear her drugged mind and draws enough strength to swim to shore where she is rescued by the police， barely alive。When this case comes across Lila’s desk she feels a strong urge to find this monster and bring him to justice。 The DA and police work together and identify the likely killer as Gavin Spencer， a local photographer。 They have no solid evidence to convict him。 It was Detective Nikki Vang who was working Sadie’s case who started to put the pieces together。 The details of the assault， etc triggered a memory of past women found dead， tied the same way， tossed in the river！！Together the detectives and Lila start to work backwards through Gavin’s life， linking him to various murders during the past years。 There were never any witnesses or survivors before。 This time， Lila is determined he will pay for the lives that he has ruined。 She has a personal connection to his story which you will discover when you read the novel！！！Meanwhile， Gavin， a psychopath who has killed before， is planning how he will cover up his assault of Sadie。 He is a serial killer who has gotten away with his crimes before and he is sure that he is clever enough that he has once more “covered his tracks”。 It’s an incredible view into the mind of a killer！！There are so many strong women in this novel， the lead detective， Nikki Vang; Andi Fitch， Lila’s supervising attorney and mentor and of course Lila herself！！ It’s exciting to watch her growth from the beginning of the novel until it’s riveting ending。 She learns how strong she really is and is able to find some peace with her past。Mr。 Esken’s ability to make me feel and hear what this serial killer was thinking was amazing。 The tension never lets up during the entire novel and the CONCLUSION IS STUNNING AND NOT ONE SOON TO BE FORGOTTEN！！！It was a privilege to read and review this beautifully written suspense novel。。 I received an ARC of “The Stolen Hours” from the author and publisher through Edelweiss。 。。。more
Reference
google book https://www.google.com/search?tbm=bks&q=The Stolen Hours
hathitrust digital library https://babel.hathitrust.org/cgi/ls?q1=The Stolen Hours&field1=ocr&a=srchls&ft=ft&lmt=ft
The British Library https://bll01.primo.exlibrisgroup.com/discovery/search?query=any,contains,The Stolen Hours&tab=LibraryCatalog&search_scope=Not_BL_Suppress&vid=44BL_INST:BLL01&lang=en&offset=0