Book Description:
Sean pulls me to him, and we both laugh happily, as we stroll home from our favourite wine bar. It’s our first evening out since our baby girl was born. I’ve only thought about Kitty a couple of times, wondering if she’s settled without my goodnight kiss. But our perfect night is shattered when I see the police car and the two officers on the front steps of our home…
Someone has reported our sweet baby missing.
When I rush inside the house and mercifully find our little girl tucked up inside her crib, you’ll think that’s the end of the story.
And when Sean says a prayer of thanks, the police close the case and I hold Kitty in a tight embrace, you’ll feel grateful it was all one big mistake.
But you’ll be wrong.
You don’t know what I did fifteen years ago, the lies I’ve told or the reason I desperately want the police out of my house. I’m sure the person who reported Kitty missing knows everything about my past…
You don’t know how much danger I’m in. Or how far I’ll go to keep my family safe…
Utterly captivating and gripping until the final page, The Night Out is perfect for fans of The Family Upstairs, The Housemaid and The Marriage.
BLOG TOUR REVIEW
Review for 'The Night Out' by Wendy Clarke.
Read and reviewed via NetGalley for Wendy Clarke, Bookouture publishers and Bookouture anonymous
Publication date 8th June 2023.
This is the third book I have read by this author. I have previously read 'Blind Date' and 'Childhood Sweetheart' which I would highly recommend!!
I was originally drawn to this book by its stunning eye catching cover and intriguing sounding synopsis and title. I am also a huge fan of Wendy after reading 'Blind Date' and 'Childhood Sweetheart' and if this book is half as good as they are it is guaranteed to be a page turner! The synopsis stated that this book is 'Utterly captivating and gripping until the final page, The Night Out is perfect for fans of The Family Upstairs, The Housemaid and The Marriage.' I am a huge fan of 'The Family Upstairs' and 'The Housemaid' so am looking forward to seeing if this lives up to this statement. I must admit I was also biased due to the publisher being Bookouture. I have yet to read a book published by Bookouture that I haven't enjoyed. Hopefully this won't be the first... Watch this space! (Written before I started reading the book).
This novel consists of a prologue and 49 chapters. The chapters are short to medium in length so easy to read 'just one more chapter' before bed...OK, I know yeah right, but still just in case!
This book is based in Shoreham-by-Sea, England 🏴, UK 🇬🇧. I always enjoy when books are set in the UK as I'm from Wales and have sometimes visited areas mentioned in the book. This makes it easier to picture where the scenes are set at times. I have actually holidayed in Scotland on several occasions so will be keeping an eye out to see if I recognise any places mentioned.
This book is written in a mix of third and first person perspective and the protagonists are Elise and Megan. The benefits of books written in first person perspective are as long as they are well written it makes you feel that you are being spoken to by the protagonist and it can create more of a bond between yourselves and them. If there are several protagonists you also get to see more of what is going on. The benefits of third person perspective with multiple protagonists are that it let's you see the bigger picture of what's going on and you get to know more characters more, what they are thinking and what they are doing. It feels like you get to see the whole picture and not miss out in anything. To have the benefit of both first and third person perspective ensures you don't miss out on anything.
'The Night Out' discusses some topics that may upset some readers or may not be suitable for others. I like to point this out ahead of time in my reviews so you can judge if this book is for you or not. In this book Wendy discusses/includes domestic violence.
OMG!!! Wow!!! I was NOT expecting any of that!! Mind absolutely BLOWN!!!!
Well, well, well Wow!!! What an absolute cracker of a book!!! This book sucked me straight in from beginning to the explosive ending.
It was very well written with excellent descriptions which put me straight into the storyline. The blog, title and the cover suited the book perfectly.
This book is yet another huge success by the amazing Wendy Clarke!!! The storyline was very fast paced and filled with secrets, lies, drama, tension and suspense. The prologue had me hook,line and sinker and gives readers something to sink their teeth and imaginations into immediately! A very believable storyline which kept me on edge throughout. I loved all the twists and turns and throughout it kept me guessing what was going on and who was doing what. I would NEVER have guessed at the ending so a MASSIVE WELL DONE to Wendy. I have read many thrillers and it's getting harder and harder for me to be surprised so great job there. There were so many mysteries in this book it just kept getting better and better!!! It was filled with suspense, romance, tension, friendship, lies and deceit and kept me on the edge of my seat throughout!!! My heart was pounding and the hairs on my arms were raised while I was on the edge of my seat biting my nails reading this!! If you pick this up make sure you clear your diaries as you will NOT be able to put it down until the explosive ending!!! I loved the storyline and just loved everything about it. It was all done perfectly!! This would make an absolutely amazing movie!!! In this book we meet Elise who is a mum to Megan, whose dad is her ex Alex who is also a police offiger, and Kitty, whose dad is her husband Sean. Elise and Sean go for a night out but when they return it is to find police at their house after receiving a call saying Kitty has been taken. However, Kitty is fine at home with Megan. Elise is relieved to find Kitty safe but has been put on edge as she knows who made the call and she knows she has been found. She thought she finally had the quiet life with her loving husband and children but things have now changed. Megan is a typical teenager but knows there is something not right with her mum. Megan was told Elise had a one night stand with the man who is her father but when she finds an article saying Alex (her father) misses his daughter after his wife Elise absconded with her Megan starts questioning everything she knows. Is Alex dangerous and the reason they are in hiding or is Elise the dangerous one? Is Megan and Elise in danger? You'll have to pick up your copy of this amazing page turner to get the answers to this question and more. Wendy's fantastic and evocative writing skills bring the storyline and characters to life and sucks you straight into the book!! Wendy does an amazing job weaving the multiple timelines and protagonists stories together perfectly to build the storyline up gripping the reader throughout. I would love to see this absolutely compelling and addictive page turner turned into a movie!!
It is set over multiple time lines. When books show what has happened in the past and what is happening in the present I find it really helps the reader (if it is well done) understand why things are happening and what has lead to the present activities and decisions. It also shows the bigger picture.
THE characters were fantastic, solid and completely believable, or are they?? Wendy's fantastic evocative skills brings each of the characters to life so they jump out of the pages. It is hard to say too much without giving anything away which I certainly don't want to do. Wendy portrays the characters perfectly and regardless of how you feel about them they all played their parts perfectly. Megan is a typical teenager and very realistic. She thinks her mother is too strict and also takes on a lot of responsibility for her baby sister Kitty. With most teenagers Megan seems to think she knows better than her Mum but at the same time I did feel for her with everything going on and her not knowing the truth about her parentage. Alex and Sean are the complete opposites of each other and our main character Elise is another realistic and strong character but I am going to leave it there so you can see for yourselves.
Well done Wendy on yet another mind blowing page turner!! This is exactly why you are one of my favourite authors . Here's to your next success 🥂
Make sure you read to the very end of the book to read the first chapter of Wendy's ''What She Saw' which promises to be just as addictive as this book and is one I'm definitely looking forward to reading myself!!
Overall a compelling, page turning, mind blowing psychological thriller that will keep you up late at night
Genres covered in this novel include Crime, Thriller And Mystery Adventures, Women's Psychological Fiction, Thriller, Mystery, Suspense, Women's Popular Fiction, Psychological Thriller, Literary Fiction, Suspense Thriller, Psychological Literary Fiction, Psychological Fiction, Contemporary Fiction, Psychological Theiler, Noir Fiction, Womens Psychological, Domestic Thriller, Thriller, Mystery ,Thriller & Suspense Literary Fiction, Romantic Suspense, Psychological Suspense, Women's Writers & Fiction, Domestic Fiction, Domestic Thriller and Thriller amongst others.
I would recommend this book to the fans of the above as well as fans of Lisa Jewell, Rachel Abbott, K.L Slater, T.M Logan,The Housemaid, The Widow, The Housewarming, The Family Upstairs, The Marriage, The Perfect Marriage, The Wife, Daniel Hurst and anyone after an addictive psychological thriller.
354 pages.
This book is just £1.99 to purchase on kindle, free with kindle unlimited and £9.99 in paperback via Amazon at time of review, which I think is an absolute bargain for this book!!!
Rated 5 /5 (I LOVED it ) on Goodreads, Instagram, Amazon UK and Amazon US and on over 30 Facebook pages plus my blog on Facebook.
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Author Bio:
Wendy Clarke was a teacher until the small primary school where she worked closed down. Now she is a writer of psychological suspense but is also well known for her short stories and serials which regularly appear in national women’s magazines.Wendy has two children and three step-children and lives with her husband, cat and step-dog in Sussex. When not writing, she is usually indulging in her passion for dancing, singing or watching any programme that involves food!
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Audio:
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