The Night Before
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3.8 • 104 Ratings
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- $14.99
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- $14.99
Publisher Description
Riveting and compulsive, national bestselling author Wendy Walker’s The Night Before “takes you to deep, dark places few thrillers dare to go” as two sisters uncover long-buried secrets when an internet date spirals out of control.
Laura Lochner has never been lucky in love. She falls too hard and too fast, always choosing the wrong men. Devastated by the end of her last relationship, she fled her Wall Street job and New York City apartment for her sister’s home in the Connecticut suburb where they both grew up. Though still haunted by the tragedy that’s defined her entire life, Laura is determined to take one more chance on love with a man she’s met on an Internet dating site.
Rosie Ferro has spent most of her life worrying about her troubled sister. Fearless but fragile, Laura has always walked an emotional tightrope, and Rosie has always been there to catch her. Laura’s return, under mysterious circumstances, has cast a shadow over Rosie’s peaceful life with her husband and young son – a shadow that grows darker as Laura leaves the house for her blind date.
When Laura does not return home the following morning, Rosie fears the worst. She’s not responding to calls or texts, and she’s left no information about the man she planned to meet. As Rosie begins a desperate search to find her sister, she is not just worried about what this man might have done to Laura. She’s worried about what Laura may have done to him…
Praise for The Night Before:
"Wendy Walker proves her ingenuity with her latest hair-raising chiller. Teeming with taut writing, an abundance of jaw-dropping revelations, and Walker's uncanny insight into the dark side of human nature, The Night Before is irresistible." - Mary Kubica, bestselling author of The Good Girl
"Pulse-pounding action makes you race to the finish of this addictive thriller...The writing sings, and the twists deliver." - Liv Constantine, bestselling author of The Last Mrs. Parrish
Customer Reviews
Strong psychological thriller
Strong psychological thriller, with nice twists and complex characters.
I found All is Not Forgotten and Emma in the Night to be great psychological thrillers, with good suspense, depth in characters, and excellent writing. I’m glad to present to you today The Night Before, the upcoming novel by the same author, Wendy Walker. I was lucky to win this book! Thanks to the generous publishers!
There are definitely some common elements with the two previous novels.
The main character is also a young woman, Laura here, who has experienced a traumatic event as a teen. Years later, she is still struggling with what happened that day, and she sees a psychologist to help her, especially as the trauma seems to make her irresistibly choose the wrong men.
The last one left her, so she’s back living with her sister Rosie, her husband, (and their toddler). The three of them actually grew up together as neighbors.
The chapters alternate between notes from these sessions with Dr Broody; between Laura’s perspective, as she goes out on a Thursday night with a date she found on a dating site. And between her sister Rosie’s perspective, getting more and more worried in the aftermath of that date. I don’t want to reveal more about the plot.
One thing I didn’t understand, and I didn’t see the relevance of, is the fact that the sessions with her psychologist are not presented in chronological order. Why? Let me know when you read the book, I’m curious.
Apart from that, I found it extremely well done, to the point that for most of the book, I kept wondering if Laura was a victim or a culprit, or both (as nicely hint at on the book cover), even though I started collecting hints at what happened at a third of the novel.
I like the strong psychological elements in Walker’s novels, and the fragility of her heroines. And some totally unexpected twists in the evolution of the characters, and in the complexity of the relationships between them all.
I find Wendy Walker to be a strong author, and I’m looking forward to reading more books by her.