The Vanishing Place

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

"From the deep dark wilds of the New Zealand bush to searing memories of sins past, The Vanishing Place breaks new ground in a genuinely thrilling ride."-- Lisa Gardner, #1 New York Times bestselling author  

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.

Zoë Rankin grew up in a tiny village in Scotland. She spent many years traveling in Europe, Asia, the Middle East, and Africa, and eventually settled in New Zealand. She has always been as passionate about writing as she is about exploring the outdoors, which she often does with her equally adventurous husband and two- and four-year-old daughters.