An interesting story but it seemed to end rather abruptly. Ava is a respected food writer. She thinks she found the perfect house to rent as she finishes her latest book but she didn't know the right things that would keep her safe.
The suspense slowly builds around the secret that is keeping Ava away from her sister. Now she has another secret that could lead to her death.

I received an Advanced Reader's Copy from the author and Ballantine Books. The opinions expressed are entirely my own.
#TheShapeofNight #NetGalley

Review#54 THE SHAPE OF NIGHT by Tess Gerritson and reading for Netgalley.
A ghost story with a lot of twists and turns. Ava moves into the old house of a sea Captain to concentrate on writing her cook book but her own ghosts are haunting her as well as the ghost of the Captain. ⭐⭐⭐⭐Four stars

In a departure from her usual plots, Tess Gerritsen has written a very creepy thriller set on the coast of Maine. Ava is a food writer who has retreated from Boston to a small Maine town under mysterious circumstances. The house she rents is a sea-side mansion that belonged to a captain who disappeared in a storm at sea in the 1860's, and fairly quickly becomes evident to her that the house is haunted by him. The fact that she knows she drinks too much, and also is consumed by guilt for something that happened on New Year's Eve, combined with her loneliness, combine to make her vulnerable to being seduced by the spirit of the captain. Ava desperately reaches out to some ghost hunters who feel she is in serious danger, but it takes research into past mysteries that surround the house for the degree of danger to be realized. Although it seemed that there were some loose ends at book's end, this is an exciting read for fans of ghost stories.

I have never read Tess Gerritsen books but am familiar with the TV series Rizzoli & Isles based on her books. I must say I was captivated at the start of the book with the setting and a little mystery. However, '50 shades' with a jealous controlling ghost just didnt work for me. The detailed sex scenes could have been eliminated altogether and still been a good story.. I think I was hoping for a little more like '"The Ghost &
Mrs. Muir". The characters were not all fully developed and some hints of their relationships seemed to vanish.. I did enjoy most of the book and completed just to see what happens.
I received this book as a complimentary copy for an unbiased review. The opinions expressed are my own. Thanks to the author,publisher, and NetGalley for the advanced copy.

I have been a longtime reader of Tess Garrison's Rizzoli and Isles series. I understood that The Shape of Night was a stand alone book and was going to be a little different in nature than her previous books. What I hadn't expected was how different it would be.

The premise intrigued me - a woman trying to escape her past flees to an old mansion on the sea in Maine. And I was excited to see how the supernatural element would tie into the old house. However I simply didn't like the main character Ava and I quickly became frustrated with her choices. When the big reveal came regarding her past and who was involved I reached my limits with her and her horrible decisions.

The supernatural angle was creepy and more sexual in nature then I had anticipated but the overall elements of it hooked me in and was what kept me reading. I was just so curious as to what really was taking place in that house!. Overall a three star read for me. I did not care for the main character but a creepy, haunted mansion on the ocean definitely engaged me.

Thank you Netgalley and Ballentine Books for an ebook arc in exchange for an honest review.

Oof. As a very big fan of the Rizzoli and Isles mysteries by Tess Gerritsen, I was looking forward to this standalone novel. I haven't yet read books by Gerritsen outside of the Rizzoli and Isles series, but I didn't expect such a departure from the style of writing that I had grown to love and admire -- a style that I thought I would find in any piece of fiction by Gerritsen.

Instead, I found The Shape of Night to be vapid and embarrassing. I was grateful I was reading it on a Kindle so others wouldn't know what I was reading and judge me for it. The main character, Ava Collette, wasn't fleshed out enough to be believable. This was true of most of the characters (major and minor) throughout the novel. I couldn't understand many motivations for choices Ava made. Much of the plot (included Ava's big secret regarding her move to a spooky house) was predictable. Much of the plot (like Ava's decisions to stay in the spooky house despite warnings from locals) was frustrating. Sometimes plotlines weren't finished (like the reason one woman in particular gives Ava side eye at the coffee shop in town) -- which an intelligent reader can piece together at the end of the novel, but it felt like shoddy editor and/or author endurance with the novel.

There are several romance novels that I can not only stomach but truly enjoy and relish (e.g. the In Death series). The Shape of Night is not one of them. Romantic scenes (gratefully in this case) were often not included for the reader, however the apparent frequency Ava experiences intimacy with a particular man were often referenced as to why Ava makes particular choices. I was surprised by this because the first intimate scene Ava experiences is a fairly graphic scene (that I regret reading).

All in all, it seems that this novel takes on several different challenges that are exciting to a reader in a blurb, but are not carried through to a satisfying finish.

Thank you to NetGalley for an ARC.

Wow!! This is much different than this author’s usual books. However Shape of Night just farther proves how much of a stunning author Tess Gerristen is. Everything she writes is golden. Highly enjoyable and most definitely recommend this book.

I have typically enjoyed Tess Gerritsen's titles, so was pleased to receive an Advanced Reading Copy of her latest. Sadly, I was disappointed. Two words people: ghost sex.

Okay, I'll give you the ghost story. I'll give you the troubled protagonist with personal demons. I'll give you the murder mystery (unassuming as it may be). But I will not give you ghost sex! It's like the publisher thought the book needed more 50 shades of spice and this was the result.

No. Just no.

Not what I was expecting... Old house, creepy sounds and a ghost? Hannibal, the cat was my favorite. This just didn't work for me.

4.5 stars! I generally do not get scared or creeped out by most books but this one had me a little spooked at night. I love books where I feel like I am actually there and I can get lost in the story. I felt like I was right there with Ava as she lived in Brodie’s Watch. I had no idea which way the story was going and the twists and turns kept me guessing.

I really wanted to like this book. I love Tess Gerritsen, but this book was just too weird for me. For me the book was a cross between The Ghost of Mrs. Muir and Fifty Shades of Grey. The story was well told, but I did not care for the plot and story line.

Ava is a successful food writer who rents an old mansion in Maine named Brodie's Watch to write her newest book and escape her past. While in the house she hears noises and experiences "interactions" with a presence. It's one thing to sense a ghostly presence in the house, but BDSM sex scenes with a ghost...too much! It was so unrealistic I couldn't get into the story.

I received an advanced copy of this title by the publisher, via NetGalley, in exchange for my honest review.

This book was not like any other the author has written. Definitely not for me. Also I did not like the supernatural theme.

I really like Tess Gerritsen's books and this is no exception. I am not a big fan of paranormal activity but this did not spoil the action or the characters in the story. Imagine finding the perfect home by the sea to finish your cookbook only to be face to face with the original owner who died at sea. There appears to be other girls in that house who died yet Ava is unable to make herself leave. The attention she receives from the ghost is worth the fear.

I have heard of Tess Gerritsen but had never read and of her of books. So I was really excited to read this one! Unfortunately it wasn't my favorite. Her writing style is good and easy to read. I couldn't relate to the characters. I will definitely try one of her other books!

I received this ARC from Netgalley and the publisher in exchange for my honest review.

**Thanks to the publisher and NetGalley for the ARC I received in exchange for my honest review. **

**3.5 stars

Let me start by saying that at around the 25% mark I almost decided to stop reading. But I kept going and overall am glad I did because I ended up liking the supernatural element and the overall book much more then I thought I would. However I was not expecting the 50 shades of gray elements. I’m not a prude but was just surprised by it. At one point I found it hard to believe this was the same writer of the Rizzoli & Isles series that I loved so much as they are that different.

If you are expecting a mystery along the lines of her almost famous series then do NOT read this, but if you can handle some sex in an interesting setting (the house is pretty much a character itself), a little mystery and a ghost element with great descriptions of food (the main character is a chef) then read this book.

#TheShapeofNight #NetGalley

If I didn't trust Random House I would think this was written by someone else, not Tess Gerritsen. I'm a fan of her work but this is totally different from anything she has written.

Ava is an author who rented an old gothic home for the summer by the sea. She intends to write, drink (she has a drinking problem) and try to forget a secret that is keeping her from a relationship with her sister. She think she can finish her cookbook without interruptions at this place. Soon she learns there is distraction in the form of Captain Brodie, who built the home in the 1800's and died at sea. His death is followed by the deaths of several women who have lived there since. It is rumored that he haunts the home.

When Ava sees Captain Brodie for the first time, she thinks she is imagining things, but she confronts the apparition, who feels all too real and attractive, and who also welcomes her into his arms. This is where it got too far fetched for me, the realism conveyed in the sexual scenes and the S&M scenes. Not my cup of tea.

It was easy to figure out what happened with her sister and why she avoids her. I found the story a bit intriguing but not of the caliber I've come to expect from Gerritsen's crime fiction novels. My thanks to NetGalley, Random House and author Gerritsen for the e-ARC and the opportunity to state my opinion. On sale October 1st.

Having read and enjoyed several of Tess Gerritsen’s books I was prepared to enjoy this one as well. It is definitely a different edgier style for her. Ava rents an old mansion on the Maine coastline, planning to finish her cookbook compilation of down east recipes enjoyed in previous centuries. Instantaneously she has a reaction to the house, or does the house have a reaction to her? The paranormal aspects of the book were too much of a stretch for me, making the book too much of a fantasy read for my personal taste. Loved reading about the gorgeous house though.
Many thanks to Tess Gerritsen, Ballantine Books, and NetGalley for affording me the opportunity to read this arc. Those who love Gerritsen’s prior books may be disappointed in this one.

Not her normal genre but I totally enjoyed this book from beginning to end hoping to see more. My go to author didn't disappoint me. Filled with whodunit and an equally great ending.

Ava Collette has decided to live in a small Maine town for a few months while she finishes her New England cookbook. She rents out a beautiful mansion with an amazing views of the ocean. But living in a historical mansion also includes many stories of the original owner, Captain Jeremiah Brodie. During the gathering of information for her book, she quickly gets consumed in the history until she begins seeing Captain Brodie. Is it a figment of her imagination, a drunken hallucination, or is she really seeing an apparition?

This was a great novel, I was drawn in quickly and could not put it down. I love the way Tess Gerritsen writes, it always just flows. Not only does she have a ghost story but she even squeezes a mystery into the mix! A fabulous read through and through!

Ava is a food writer from Boston who has leased a reputedly haunted Brodie’s Watch in Maine for the summer. She has a lot of personal baggage and guilt over things in her past, and isn’t sure whether she is interacting with the 19th century sea captain’s ghost, or is just overindulging in alcohol. Apparently there have been a few suspicious deaths connected to this house—could the ghost be responsible? I liked the way the author captured the atmosphere of coastal Maine and the lonely old house, and the spectral S&M added an interesting twist to this ghost story.