The Color of Death vs Watch Her Vanish: Which Should You Read?

Both live on shelves: Thriller

The Color of Death Trey Gowdy & Christopher Greyson · 2025 ★★★★☆ 4.5 288 pages · ≈ 5 h 20 m · Moderate

From the number-one New York Times bestselling author and FOX News host Trey Gowdy comes a dark mystery debut about a murder in a small South Carolina town. Assistant DA Colm Truesdale must pick up the pieces of his own…

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Watch Her Vanish Ellery Kane · 2020 ★★★★☆ 4.0 414 pages · ≈ 7 h 40 m · Moderate

‘Absolutely fantastic… I couldn’t put it down once I started.’ Goodreads reviewer, 5 stars   Shutting the car door against the rain, Bonnie instantly feels safe with her husband’s favorite baseball cap on the seat…

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Side by side

The verdict

Readers rate The Color of Death highest: The Color of Death 4.5 · Watch Her Vanish 4.0.
The Color of Death is the quickest read — about 5 hours vs 7 for Watch Her Vanish.
Watch Her Vanish has the widest readership — 2151 ratings behind its score.
Watch Her Vanish runs the darker storyline; The Color of Death stays the lighter read.

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How to choose

Want a one-evening read? The Color of Death ≈ 5h vs 7h for Watch Her Vanish Just want the better-reviewed one? The Color of Death 4.5 vs 4.0 from readers In the mood for something dark? Watch Her Vanish a darker storyline than The Color of Death Want something lighter? The Color of Death an easier tone than Watch Her Vanish

Scores by source

	The Color of Death	Watch Her Vanish
Goodreads	—	4.0 (2151)
Hardcover	3.2 (2)	5.0 (1)
Apple Books	4.5 (418)	4.0 (982)
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Reception

	The Color of Death	Watch Her Vanish
Ratings	418	2151
Editions	5	1
Want to read	—	4163
Reading it now	—	1766
Written reviews	—	169
Wikipedia attention	213	—
Pages	288	414
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Questions readers ask

Which is rated higher: The Color of Death or Watch Her Vanish?

The Color of Death has the higher combined reader rating across sources (The Color of Death 4.5/5, Watch Her Vanish 4.0/5).

Which is shorter to read: The Color of Death or Watch Her Vanish?

The Color of Death is the quickest read. Estimated at 225 words per minute: The Color of Death (288 pages, ≈ 5 h 20 m); Watch Her Vanish (414 pages, ≈ 7 h 40 m).

Which is harder to read: The Color of Death or Watch Her Vanish?

Estimated difficulty, based on era, reader shelves and length — The Color of Death: Moderate; Watch Her Vanish: Moderate.