Darkest Night by Tara Thomas is a sexy and thrilling romantic suspense novel. I wasn't sure what to expect from this writer. I have never read any of her previous books. But now, I can say that I will be reading every book she writes! I was entertained from the first page. Dark, edgy, and hot...all of the right combinations to make me want to read this.

The characters were different as the day is to night. Tilly is super smart, works hard, and pays her own way. After her parents died, she has had no one else to care about or care about her. Until, bad things start happening to her. And her past crush, now a grown man, walks back into her life. Complicated, messy, and fun. Tilly struggles with the events as much as accepting that Keaton has returned and he still cares. Someone is after her and Keaton's family. The question why lingers...

Keaton is one of three brothers. Their father created a business empire that is successful. The sons now run it. Except, Keaton is the last son dragging his heels into the family business. Keaton is forced to spend the summer with a family friend's daughter. A woman whom he wants nothing to do with...and as the story unravels, neither do I. Keaton finds his past crush and best friend, Tilly, at a gentleman's bar. There, things just got complex for them both.

Darkest Night is full of surprises. Tara Thomas kept me on my toes. Death keeps happening, and it is only time before disaster really hits them all.

I loved the suspense. I still have no idea who is behind it all of the dark stuff. But there's former crushes, family secrets, and family friends who are anything but friendly. Blackmail, threats, and arrests happen here, too. Exciting and full of action. Darkest Night is a must read for all.

Darkest night by tara Thomas.
Tilky brocks works at a gentlemans nightclub. Keaton Benedict is from her past. When they meet again they fall in love. But someone wants keaton for herself and she will do anything to get him.
A fantastic read. Loved the story and the characters. Very steamy with a hint of mystery. Looking forward to reading more from tara thomas. Highy recommended. 5*

I really enjoyed this story. the characters are easy to relate to, funny, and sweet! The storyline is just twisted and convoluted enough to keep you guessing and wondering what is coming next. It really had a great element of romance, suspense, and sexy all rolled into one.

This is the story of Tilly who returns to her small town and runs in to her long lost love Keaton Benedict. The attraction is still there but there are many obstacles in their path that they may not be able to overcome. Story was a little confusing at times and could have been better developed. All in all, a good story.

The Darkest Night by Tara Thomas is a modern romantic thriller and part one of the Sons of Broad series. I received an ARC copy from NetGalley and St. Martin's Press in exchange for my honest opinion.

This story follows Tilly weeks before her college graduation. She reunites with her childhood love Keaton, one brother of three belonging to the Benedict fortune, and her life begins to unravel. When Tilly's life is in danger, Keaton moves her into the Benedict mansion to keep her safe. Not only do Tilly and Keaton have to deal with a killer, but they have obstacles within their circle that could prevent them from being together.

Lovers reunited is an endearing premise, and Tilly and Keaton are sweet together. When things started to go wrong, especially during the threat from a childhood friend of theirs, I was rooting for them. The other Benedict brothers were engaging as well. I assume the rest of the Sons of Broad series will follow them and I would be interested in their stories based on what I read here.

The focus in this story was off for me. I found myself uninterested in the thriller aspect of it. I did not find the bad guy intimidating, and I think a fear of him was necessary to keep my concern for the main characters. I just wanted it over so we could get on with the rest of the story. With the ruining of Tilly's family's reputation when she was young, to the reuniting of Tilly and Keaton, through to the threat of extortion to Keaton and his family, I think there was too much to include a murder mystery. I like a good murder mystery, but here I did not want it or need it, which is unfortunate.

There are aspects of this story I enjoyed. As stated, I would be willing to give another book in this series a chance. All opinions are my own and may not match that of others. I urge all readers to come to their own conclusions.

Second chance love......can Tilly come back from her family loosing everything to scandal. Keaton is a notorious bachelor who once loved Tilly can he again? This book is enthralling......you won't wanna put it down....loved it

Tilly and Keaton never had the chance to develop a romance in their teens due to criminal accusations that tore their families apart. But their feelings for one another rekindle after a chance encounter, and steadily grow as they work together to solve a mysterious death. Along the way, they realize that assumptions prevented them from remaining in each other's life for years and strive not to assume anything moving forward. Rather, they open up about their feelings and lives as they work to stay one step ahead of a killer while figuring out how to jump start the love that had been stalled years before.

I don't like to give anything below a three but this just was not my cup of tea. From the obvious grammatical errors to the dialogue, I couldn't seem to get into it. I loved the plot of the story - unfortunately, the flow of the story (no distinction when point of view changed) and the forced dialogue, I did not enjoy this. It was too cheesy and there was no chemistry between the two characters.

In this new romance/thriller/mystery series the characters were likable. The Benedict brothers own a large company in Charleston. The youngest brother Keaton, reconnects with childhood friend, Tilly, and a new romance begins. Both characters begin to feel threatened as the bodies pile up.
There are many characters to keep track of. Some are better developed than others. Understandably, the story is a continuing one since this book is first in a series. However, the reader is left with some unanswered questions:
What history has precipitated the abrasive relationship between the brothers Knox and Kip?
Who is the evil force behind the murders and why is the Benedict Family his target?
What significance do the characters Bea and Jade have to the story and to the Benedict Family?
I began this series hoping for more of a mystery. This book was more focused on the romance.

I received a free ARC from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

From the publisher: "In this first novel in the explosive, brand-new romantic suspense Sons of Broad series from Tara Thomas comes a novel of deadly secrets and hidden danger. In the sultry streets of Charleston, one family, ruled by its powerful, take-no-prisoners sons, has risen to the top. But a merciless killer is out to destroy them…and everyone they hold close…"

I'd give this 2 1/2 stars, rounding up because of the authors track record. I really, REALLY wanted to like this book. I really enjoyed the author's work as Tara Sue Me, so I know she's got what it takes to write romance, and there have been suspense elements in her last few works as Tara Sue Me so I was hopeful. But something about this particular work just didn't click for me.

Good stuff first: The main characters were involved in a grown-up relationship. They didn't keep secrets and they talked openly and honestly with each other. There's plenty of drama in the book without adding to it by including slamming doors and miscommunications. I appreciated that. I thought the concept was intriguing and for the most part the book is well written and flowed decently.

Not so good stuff: From a technical perspective the word choices were sometimes out of place and jarring, and the book switched POV often enough that it was easy to get lost. It's not the easiest thing in the world to write romantic suspense - in my experience authors usually have to pick which of those two elements they want to be dominant (no pun intended) and this book tried to split the difference, which watered down the whole book. It's a shame; I kept waiting for it to get better, for the choices to be less predictable and the dialogue less melodramatic, but it never happened. I did push through to the end, but I was glad it was over, not sad to see it go.

Absolutely amazing. Phenomenal. Only part that slightly confused me were the references to “Brent” since I was unfamiliar with the other series characters. Other than that I adored every single character in this book, the good ones AND the bad ones!

Amazon will not let me publish review until released

Ugh! You know you've found a good book, and a fabulous new author when you finish the story, only to reopen your kindle app to keep reading. 🤦🏻‍♀️
Super amazing, and I will definitely be getting the next books!

This book was the perfect combination of sexy and suspenseful! I mean, helloooooo Keaton am I right? (I am, you'll just have to trust me).
While this book contains sex, it's not the in-your-face super graphic sex. It's wonderfully written. And yes! I just loved it.

I cannot wait for y'all to get your hands on this beauty!

It took me about 3 attempts over several weeks to get past the first 10 pages of this book... and I don't know why!

There is a good element of whodunnit-ness (yes I do know that this is not a real word) to the book but I was slightly annoyed that there was so much left hanging... I know trilogies (given there are 3 bros I assume 3 books) have to have some connecting themes but not enough was resolved/revealed about the Gentleman to make me interested enough to read the next book...

Overall an ok read (after I got past page 11!) but not one of my favourites

The story of Tilly & Keaton is suspenseful & intense. I enjoyed the twists & turns & really want to know the rest of the story. I can't wait for the sequel to come out. I'm hoping this won't go on for too many books because I'd really like to know who the Gentleman is & Jade's story. Then there is Bea & Knox, Kipling, & of course Tilly & Keaton's romance. Can't wait!

Suspenseful and leaves you guessing who the bad guy is throughout the book. It's a cliffhanger so can't wait for the next book. Very exciting

I received a review copy from the publisher via Netgalley. What started as a promising book fell short for me. The description of this book implies the Benedict brothers are ruthless and powerful and bad to the core, but all evidence to the contrary. Keaton and Tilly were best friends and shared one kiss before a scandal separated them. Running into each other again right as people around Tilly begin dying reunites them as Keaton helps her.

Their reunion romance was a little too easy and quick for me. There is a lack of development that could have made this book better. A lot of characters are introduced and very little is done to build up their importance and how they all fit together and it leads to the story being somewhat disjointed and hard to get invested into.

Only part of the mystery is solved with the overall mystery being carried forward to the rest of the series I assume. I hope the future books provide the character development lacking here.

The series has a lot of potential - I will continue to read to see how it all ends.

I wanted to like this story so badly, but I struggled with this one as a suspense. As a romance, I would give it a solid 4 stars. As a suspense, it was more like 3.5 stars. And I know the majority of my reviews don't specifically state how I rated it exactly, but since I'm on the fence on this one, I wanted to express where I was coming from.
Keaton and Tilly have a past. They were friends growing up until circumstances sent them in different directions. Life unexpectedly bring them together again and they want to reconnect and find out about the other. They lead very different lives growing up, but at the core, they are more alike. I enjoyed watching the relationship develop between the two of them. They still had to learn about each other, but they felt like they had never been apart. But the chemistry between them was hard to deny. But soon, bad things started happening and they needed to find out what was going on before it was too late. While this book was a suspense, it wasn't edge of my seat suspenseful or hard to figure out. It was easy to go with, but I wasn't drawn in. To me, this felt like romance trying to also be suspense. Would I read the other books in the series? Yes, I'd like to see what happens next. I didn't dislike this book, it just wasn't captivating to me like other suspense books I've read.

The story begins with Tilly Brock, a young woman working at a gentleman's club. This is not her job of choice, but rather to help pay the bills. One night she crosses paths yet again with Keaton Benedict. Coming face to face with her childhood crush, it feels as if time has stopped.

Keaton has never forgotten the girl that got under his skin. Nothing and I repeat nothing will stand in his way of being with the girl of his dreams.

Until one night changes everything!

Danger is lurking in every corner, secrets that have been buried come into play, and Keaton will do whatever it takes to protect the woman he loves.

The Darkest Night is a fast-paced romantic suspense. Working her way towards a teaching degree by waiting tables at a gentlemen's club, Tilly comes face to face with a blast from her past. Keaton, her best friend, the son of the man who accused her father of stealing from the company and drove her family to poverty. The story lost me a little here because she fell back in to the relationship with Keaton after eight years without any hard feelings or reservations or really any kind of lets get reacquainted period. The vamping up of suspense here really saved the story for me. Someone is murdering the people Tilly works with and a threat seems to hang over her head. Keaton jumps in to save the day, offering Tilly a save place to stay. But forces are at work in Keaton's life that puts Tilly in even more danger as Tilly and Keaton's relationship go from 0 to 100 mph in two seconds. Beatings, blackmail, and murder pepper the story with a dash of something extra to keep the reader hanging on. An unlikely ally emerges from the shadows and helps save the day. The suspense is unpredictable and still unresolved over who is trying to destroy the Benedicts even as Tilly and Keaton seem to have their HEA on the way. The story appears to continue into the next book in the series. My voluntary, unbiased review is based upon a review copy from Netgalley.