This was an OK read for me. It seems this author is very hit or miss for me. I adored All is Not Forgotten, couldn't stand Emma in the Night and found The Night Before to be... alright. I'll keep trying the new works of this author, but I hope the quality from her debut returns.

Thank you to NetGalley for the Advanced Reader Copy in exchange for my unbiased review.

I'm already a fan of Wendy Walker and this book did not disappoint. Laura returns to her hometown to live with her sister and her family after a particular heartbreaking breakup. She slowly begins to enter the dating world again via online dating sites. Her first date goes very wrong.

There are a lot of twists and turns in this book and I spent most of the book thinking I had it all figured it...I did not. I only give it 4 stars instead of 5 because I had a little bit of a tough time sorting out some things with one of the characters (I won't elaborate more or it would give too much away). In the end, I definitely recommend this for someone who enjoys thrillers.

4.5 Wow! This twisty thriller is fabulous! I started it yesterday and when I reached for it when I woke up in the middle of the night (insomnia is real, folks!) I couldn't stop reading it. I don't want to give anything away, so just read it and find out for yourself. I suspect this might be the beach read of the summer. Highly recommended!

Wendy Walker creates a spell binding story. I really could not figure out what was happening to Laura, and her Sister Rosie or their family and friends until the very end of this tale. Through it all it kept me totally engaged and wanting to continue reading long into the night....There are many twists into this story and each one came as a surprise to me. I think you will be spending some time reading and enjoying this twisty thriller so I recommend it heartily.

Phenomenal read! Thank you to NetGalley for the ARC in return for an honest review.

5 stars for this one! I could have easily devoured this read in a day, but due to other obligations I was forced to space out my reading time and savor each chapter.

Readers are introduced to Laura, a woman who has experienced difficulty in love, which stems from a distant father. She was the victim of a traumatic experience as a teenager that has followed her throughout her life, and the incident seems to follow her throughout her life. Her sister Rosie and childhood friends Gabe and Joe (now Rosie's husband) are consistent companions throughout her struggles. Laura has difficulty finding love, and goes to an internet website to look for love, where she meets Jonathan. I will stop my specific summary there to avoid any spoilers.

The story is told from Rosie's and Laura's perspectives in both the past and present. Readers are able to follow Laura's first date with Jonathan and Rosie's concern when Laura does not return home from her date. We follow the story over the course of a few days to determine what exactly happened to Laura and why she did not return to Rosie's home after her date.

I enjoyed this read immensely. The pace was perfect, the twists and turns were unexpected and I found myself reading with my mouth hanging open on more than one occasion. I even had to re-read some sections to make sure that I read the passages correctly. In my opinion, all aspects of the story were well explained, and there were no loose ends when I reached the last page.

Highly recommended to anyone who enjoys a fast paced read with an unexpected ending :)

Holy Cow! The Night Before is one twisty tale! It is told from the perspectives of both Laura and her sister Rosie. I am hesitant to tell much of this story at all because I really think that it is best to go in as blind as possible. I had some strong suspicions about twists early on but there were a few in the end that I NEVER saw coming. I love that!!

Laura has recently moved back home and is temporarily living with her sister Rosie and her husband, Joe and their young son. Laura leaves one night to meet someone she met through an online dating service and she doesn't come home. The story goes back and forth between Laura's viewpoint (the night of the date) and Rosie's viewpoint (the time after Laura didn't come home). You get snips of what happens on Laura's date, and what happens the next day(s) when Rosie is frantic about her missing sister. Also, interspersed throughout the story are flashbacks to meetings Laura had with her "therapist," Dr. Brody months before when he helped her work through some of the traumatic issues from her past.

I was mesmerized from about the 25% mark on and really needed to know what had happened. I liked the way the story blended the timelines and viewpoints. It felt that you received necessary information at just the perfect time for the storyline. Very enjoyable read!

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for this ARC in exchange for an honest review.

Well, not a great read for me at all.. couldn’t wait for it to end to tell you the truth. It moved slow for me and I was not interested in the story line..
I’m in the minority here so don’t go by my review if your interested in reading this.

I do however want to thank the publisher through Netgalley for the ARC.

A heart-pounding thriller with well-timed plot twists. Laura dresses up and goes out on a date, but does not return home before the next morning even though her transportation was a minivan borrowed from sister Rosie. Those close to Laura begin to wonder who is in more danger? Laura or her date? Three threads make up our narrative: 1) Laura and "the Night Before" 2) Rosie and the search for Laura beginning the next morning 3) Transcripts from Laura's sessions with her therapist from months earlier. The last entry will break your heart. This will make a fantastic beach or vacation read for summer travelling.

Thank you to St. Martin's Press and NetGalley for a digital ARC in exchange for an honest review.

I received an eARC through Netgalley from the publishers in exchange for an honest review.

A solid 4 stars.

A gripping thriller, although there were a few moments where it lagged, that is intriguing and keeps you guessing. I was actually mad when I had about half an hour left and was done with lunch break and had to go back to work. I loved the alternating chapters from mostly Laura and Rosie, along with a few small chapters about Laura and her psychiatrist.

I loved the old buried secrets and the way they all unraveled.

Fantastic psychological thriller!! The story went back and forth in time and narrators but it was always clear who was talking - and when. The characters are complex and vivid and the story is excellent. It seemed like every other chapter I was saying WHAT?! at one jaw-dropping revelation after another.

I love it when I can't guess the outcome in a thriller and can't figure out 'whodunnit'. There were so many surprises in this book - things I never thought of. I didn't have a clue!

A great thriller. Bravo Wendy Walker!

Full of twists and turns, this was a fantastic story that kept me guessing. Told in alternating perspectives and time periods, this is the story of two sisters, one who has disappeared after a date and one who is searching to find her the sister she loves. Both characters are haunted by their past and the traumatic experiences they were involved in. This is the second book I have read by Walker and I will continue to request her books. Thank you netgalley for this arc in exchange for my honest opinion.

Laura Lochner is about to go out with a man from an Internet dating website. Still recovering from her last relationship, devastated by being dumped, is it too soon to try again?!
Leaving everything behind in New York City, coming back to her home town in Connecticut to live with her sister Rosie and her husband Joe and baby boy Mason.
Haunted by a past traumatic event from a teenage romance gone wrong.
When Laura doesn't return home from her date the night before, Rosie knows something is really wrong. But is Rosie worried for her sister Laura, or the man she went out with?!
This twisty, intriguing psychological thriller will have you on edge as Rosie, Joe and childhood friend Gabe, follow the clues that lead back to Laura.
I didn't guess any of the stunning reveals at the end!
Thank you to St. Martin's Press and NetGalley for the free ebook in exchange for an honest review.

I loved Emma in the Night by Wendy Walker and the premise of this was intriguing - what happened to Laura? She went on a date and is missing. However, she also has a troubled past - something happened that kept her away from her hometown and is making it difficult to date. This did have an unreliable narrator - is Laura a victim, a murderer, or somewhere in between? It was hard to put together the past with the present and some of the past seemed to be repetitive (she needs to be loved, we get it). However, the mystery storyline was really interesting and the twists and turns it took were hard to predict. I thought I had it figured out but I was wrong! However, it did end well and everything was explained, which I always appreciate in a book.
Overall, I did follow the narration (jumping from the night before forward and the morning after forward) but at times it was a little tough to really grasp what was happening and how. I liked this book as a thriller because it was hard to predict and everything wrapped up in a way that made sense. I also couldn't stop reading and flew through the book, which is always a great sign as well.

Many readers may not have heard of Wendy Walker but with her upcoming publication, The Night Before, I am sure that she will soon become a name to remember in the Psychological Thriller category. This book had all the right ingredients of an alluring and nail-biting thriller and I was lost in Laura's world of confusion, distress and desperation. I was a little disappointed to find out that the author had decided to follow one of the latest trends in the industry with an unreliable female narrator but quickly warmed to Laura and her personality. The first few chapters flew by as I was immersed in her world and was keen to discover how her first date after the big break up would transpire.

I read the rest of this book in only one other sitting, eager to find out what had happened to Laura after she disappeared. Blaming her date seemed obvious but the rest of the characters involved appeared to be so distressed about her disappearance that it really left the field wide open for all other surprises. The author really delivered here as we were taken on a roller coaster of twists, riddles and mind games where all characters were involved.

Although I enjoyed the premise of this book, I was slightly disappointed with how it ended and in particular the way in which Laura's disappearance was handled. At first the events seemed a little far-fetched, especially considering how the characters were originally portrayed, but it slowly started to make sense and all came together in the final few chapters. I would have preferred a different ending but looking back at all the hints the author left, I can understand why and how she chose to develop the plot the way she did. Tense, suspenseful and captivating, The Night Walker is a must read for all Psychological Thriller fans.

The Night Before will be out to buy on 14th May!

Many thanks to the publisher and Netgalley for providing a free advanced reader's copy in exchange for my honest review.

Ah, yes! I have been waiting since the exceptional Emma in the Night, Wendy Walker's previous novel released in 2017, for her follow-up. I had much trepidation as The Night Before like it's predecessor is based around the relationship of two very different sisters, Rosie and Laura, and because recently I had lost interest in reading family-based thrillers due to many of them being practically identical. But I must say, for all intents and purposes Ms Walker has renewed my faith in domestic thrillers based around the family dynamic and the secrets inherent in each household.

The author plays on the fact that siblings, despite being from the same genetic gene pool, can be as different as chalk and cheese; I enjoyed this a lot as it slowly built up the tension but it was also believable as I can vouch that my brother and I are both incredibly different and in the spirit of Rosie and Laura, opposites in some cases. Once all of the threads to the plot seamlessly combine and I looked back at the planning involved I was in awe of Ms Walker's genius.

Based around the idea that two siblings may have spent the entirety of their formative years together yet know little to nothing about each other's true characters, the story unravels with a series of stunning and surprising twists, each more mindblowing than the last. Walker is one of the very best thriller writers out there and this is nothing short of a page-turner with bags of suspense, a clever plot, plenty of pace and engaging characters. A dark, disturbing and compulsive must-read and one I enjoyed immensely. Many thanks to St. Martin's Press for an ARC.

Laura has always had bad luck with men and her sister Rosie has spent most of her life worrying about her. One day Laura meets a man on a dating site and everyone's worse fear comes true - she doesn't come home after. Did she drink too much and stay the night? Or did something more sinister happen to her? To him?

The Night Before is a well written, fast pace psychological thriller told through alternative timelines and narrators. It's hard to speak much about it without giving too much away but it definitely had me hooked. I flew through this book in two sittings and could not put it down. It was everything I needed to pull me out of my recent book slump. I would highly recommend it to any thriller lovers.

Thank you St. Martin's Press for sending me an advanced copy for an honest review!

I will be posting a review sometime between 5/9-5/11 and another on publication day. I have featured the book twice in the links below.

I received an ARC from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review. This book is captivating and pulls you in to the distress the main character is experiencing. The plot keeps you on edge until the very end. Enjoy! 📚

Wow, very suspenseful! I couldn’t put this down, and couldn’t believe the turn of events on the ending. Definitely recommend!

I NEED MORE, DAMN IT.

This was such a compulsive read. I did guess a couple of the big reveals, but there were so many small twists and turns along the way that I did not see coming at all, and they 100% made up for my predictions being correct. I don't want to say anymore and give even a tiny sliver of the plot away, so all I'll say is: read it!! You won't regret it.

Thank you to St. Martin's Press and NetGalley for the eARC! This review will be posted on Goodreads, and to Amazon's and Barnes & Noble's websites on the date of publication.

Wendy Walker hits it out of the park with her new book The Night Before. What a wonderful psychological suspense read!! With twists and turns galore, Walker keeps ratcheting up the suspense until the pages seem to turn themselves. I was ready to jump out of my skin wanting to know what would happen next; and the ending was awesome – I never saw it coming!!

The story focuses on four life-long friends (two sisters and two boys) who grew up on the same street in Branston, Connecticut. It is told through the voices of Laura, Rosie, and Laura’s therapist’s notes. Laura, the youngest of the four at 28, has just returned to Branston after living in NYC. She is temporarily staying with her sister, Rosie and her family (husband Joe and toddler son Mason) following a nasty breakup. Rosie, 30, has been married to their childhood friend Joe for 13 years. They live only one mile from the house Rosie and Laura grew up in. Gabe rounds out the quartet of friends. He now lives with his wife Melissa in his childhood home, next to the house where Rosie and Laura’s family lived.

Laura left town ten years ago following the post-graduation murder of schoolmate Mitch Adler. Though Laura was found standing over the body with a bloodied bat and wearing blood-spattered clothes, she was not charged in his death. A homeless man was found guilty of the crime and died in prison. This was not the first episode of violence involving Laura though, and she decided to move away to start anew where no one knew her name or her past.

Ignoring her pattern of bad decisions regarding men, Laura decides that the best way to get past the devastation of her recent breakup is to start dating again. She signs up with an online-dating service and much to Rosie’s dismay, is soon off on a date. But she doesn’t return. Who should we be afraid for??

This is a book you want to read. I give it 5 stars!

Many thanks to NetGalley and St. Martin’s Press for allowing me to read an ARC of the book in exchange for an unbiased review. All opinions expressed here are my own.