Catherine and her team help people disappear. She helps a family stay hidden in Mexico City until the husband/father can testify against a pharmaceutical company. Her methods are a bit unconventional.
Eva and Pete's marriage is a bit shaky. While in London, Eva took what she thought was an innocent photo, but then she sees the man in the pic following her. She tells Pete, but he is skeptical. Now in Hong Kong on an anniversary trip, she disappears, and Pete becomes frantic. He contacts his boss, Forrest Holcomb. When her friend and sometimes lover, Holly/Forrest Holcomb, asks for Catherine's assistance, she sends Jack and Stevie to Hong Kong to track Eva.
Meanwhile in NYC, a cop is investigating the supposed kidnapping of a wealthy man's wife and son. What she finds will possibly surprise you.
I didn't realize this was book 2, so now I have to read book 1! Good series! ( )

Londoners Eva Lombard and her husband Pete are in Hong Kong for a romantic getaway when Pete wakes up in their hotel room to an empty bed, and his wife gone without a trace. He calls on the CEO of his investment firm, Forrest "Holly" Holcomb, who enlists the help of his ex-flame, Catherine, the enigmatic operator behind the darknet witness protection program known as The Burial Society. As a favor to Holly, Catherine sends her team of highly trained Society members on a dangerous chase through Hong Kong to find Eva--while she takes care of pressing business at home.

I thought the premise of the story was intriguing but I didn’t find any of the characters to be interesting or appealing. Although there were some exciting moments, overall the story was only so-so to me. ( )

Over quarantine I read some of this book. I enjoy reading and fell into the book easily but also didn’t have a problem putting it down. I honestly just couldn’t get into the book to enjoy it. I felt like the characters had no depth, the entire story fell flat and I just stopped reading it half way through and started a new book. ( )

There are many stories out there that have multiple facets including many different characters and diverging storylines and they don’t always hold together well, I am glad to say this isn’t one of those stories. While there is a fairly complex story here with many different aspects, it holds together well. I do find the concept of the Burial Society fascinating. Led by Catherine, this secret society stands up for the abused and disadvantaged, giving these vulnerable people a fresh start anonymously. Their latest case comes as a favor to a very old friend of Catherine’s. An employee of his has a missing wife in Hong Kong and her husband, Peter, suspects foul play in her sudden disappearance. Catherine sends in 2 of her associates to track the missing wife, Eva, and their search yields a web of treachery and deceit that will circle around and become personal for Catherine. This story keeps unraveling down to the last page. As a second book in an ongoing series there are some missing pieces that may leave small holes in the plot if you haven’t read book 1. I have not read book 1, but I didn’t feel too lost, it is mostly small plot points that may be missing. An fun follow up novel in the series. Thank you to Netgalley for the early copy in exchange for an honest review. ( )

The Empty Bed (The Burial Society #2) by Nina Sadowsky
3.5 Stars
Eva Lombard is not loving her life in London, as a formal journalist turned housewife, her only companion is her dog Baxter and bottles of wine, but a series of random events leads her to suspect that she is being followed. When her husband Peter surprises her with a romantic getaway to Hong Kong to rekindle their relationship, a chance to get away is exactly what she needs. But as Eva explains her fears, Peter attributes it to paranoia and their long flight leads to a martial quarrel. The next day, Peter wakes up in the hotel to discover Eva missing, and the fears Eva mentioned of being pursued now seem to bear truth. Finding himself the prime suspect in his wife’s disappearance and trapped in a foreign country, Peter reaches out to his boss, Forrest “Holly” Holcomb.
Holly contacts the enigmatic organizational leader Catherine of the Burial Society, a secretive operation specializing in privatized witness protection. As a favor to her old flame, she sends a pair of newly partnered Society members across the globe to find Eva while she takes care of other business. First, protecting a family against retribution from a vengeful big pharmaceutical company who will stop at nothing to keep their secrets intact. Second, avoiding up and coming FBI agent, Magali Guzman, from exposing the Society’s secrets as her search for the missing wife and son of an affluent businessman has their paths nearly crossing.
Sadowsky uniquely weaves the multiple storylines together. Her characters are real and flawed, recognizable and relatable because of their struggles. I liked that we got to know Catherine much more in this novel, but so many facets of her background are still unknown and it is frustrating to connect with the main narrator when she is untouchable. Her new Society members, Stephanie and Jake hold the book together. Their personas are well developed by exploring their thoughts, hopes and fears. The storyline of Guzman felt like it was providing the background for a spin off novel. Overall, the story was a quick and easy read. ( )