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There are currently 36 member reviews
for The Lost Man
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Diane D. (Mount Pleasant, SC)
Fantastic Family Saga
I thoroughly enjoyed reading The Lost Man by Jane Harper. An engrossing story of three brothers growing up and living in the Australian Outback, Harper immediately draws the reader in with a death. What follows is a satisfying journey into the family's past, rife with secrets and betrayals. Harper's descriptions of the dry, vast outback will leave you thirsty! I highly recommend this book to readers who enjoy a great family drama where you are invested in each and every character and enjoy some twists and turns!
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Joan B. (Ellicott City, MD)
The Lost Man
The Prologue took me to the Outback that I experienced nearly twenty years ago. Descriptively, the desolation and solitude surpassed imagination. The reader could relate to the Bright family's struggle for survival.
Three brothers were dealing with normal sibling rivalry as well as the psychological tension of mysterious incidents. Nathan, the older, and Cameron, middle child, traded 6yplaces as protagonist and antagonist from day to day. Bub, much younger, did not show much of his personality.
The framework of the story included a series of interactions that inferred the basis of a mystery. Which of the brothers was really lost? How did maturing in the Bright family affect each brother's response to the family problems and pleasures?
The resolution to this mystery is one that is gourmet food for thought. It is a great basis for a stimulating book club discussion. This is a great thought-provoking read...DO IT!
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Randi H. (Bronx, NY)
Excellent!
I thought The Lost Man was a wonderful book and enjoyed it even more than Jane Harper's previous two entertaining novels featuring Aaron Falk.
Very atmospherically set in the Australia outback, The Lost Man centers its story around family dynamics and how the choices we make have consequences, intended or not. Nathan Bright must come to terms with his decisions when his brother Cameron dies, under what may or may not be suspicious circumstances.
This book lingers in my mind long after I finished reading it.
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Elizabeth S. (East Hartford, CT)
Another winner from Australian Jane Harper
Jane Harper's third novel, a stand alone, again takes place in the vast outback of Australia. Once again she focuses on a death with few possible suspects. Amazingly, she manages to turn the plot many ways without ever revealing the culprit until the very end. I read this in one sitting, forgoing dinner and sleep to find out what secrets were hidden in this rural shepherding family. Neither violent nor focuses on a damsel in distress, Harper provides a gripping plot sure to hold your attention.
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Nikki M. (Fort Wayne, IN)
Good Aussie Mystery
The setting of "The Lost Man" plays a key role in the plot of this mystery. A very lonely, stark desolate Australian landscape matched the characters lives and actions. I felt the entire novel had a sense of sadness and loneliness. I did not see the surprise ending coming!
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Deborah C. (Seattle, WA)
A Book About Place
Another great book by Jane Harper! To me, the most important "character" in the book was the isolated Australian outback where the story takes place. The location informs every aspect of the story, and the author did an amazing job of describing the rugged--almost alien--terrain as well as its impact on the people who live there. While I felt the book was a little slow to get started, and I wouldn't characterize it as a page turner, I would definitely recommend this to fans of family drama, with the added bonus of exploring a fascinating, but unforgiving, environment from the comfort of your own home.
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Anne G. (Austin, TX)
The Lost Man by Jane Harper
This book opens with a dead body and proceeds with a strong sense of foreboding. Add in the Australian outback where harsh conditions and hundreds of miles separate landowners and you've got the first hundred pages of Jane Harper's The Lost Man. Brothers Nathan, Cameron, and Bub know these conditions and how to survive. But when Cam turns up dead with no signs of struggle and a truck full of water and supplies, the remaining brothers are not willing to accept heat and dehydration as the cause of his death.
If you've read either of Harper's previous books you know they start with a slow build, the revealing of a number of clues and the developing story until she adeptly brings it all back together for the emotional resolution and wrap-up.
The characters in this story were so strong and the reader is drawn into this family circle that feels both loving and broken. I think this is my favorite yet.
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