Guilt ridden from an unspeakable act, a woman escapes her life to a coastal town in Maine where she rents a house on the sea, proceeds to drink too much, sees the ghost of a fallen ship captain and tries to solve the mystery if a missing woman.
I am still not quite sure about this one. It was hard not to like because it was well written, and the characters were solid, but the plot was a little far out there for me. I was engaged throughout the story, even the parts where I was questioning it, so because of that a 4 star rating.

Thanks to Netgalley and the publisher and author for an ARC of this book. The opinions expressed are my own.

One of my favorite authors because of Rizzoli and Isles, in this departure Tess Gerritsen isn't sure if it's a cozy mystery set in a quaint Maine fishing village a la Murder She Wrote or a science fiction with scary ghosts or a thriller chiller with dead people washing onshore or a steamy erotic romance. With something for everyone, she delivers not much for anyone. Predictable plot twists and characters..

I hadn't actually read anything by Gerritsen before and was really sucked in by the blurb from this book. However, I was not impressed and found it to be lacking. I'm sure her loyal fans will enjoy it much more than I did.

This is a suspenseful story set in Maine. I was surprised to have a ghost as a character. I like Gerritsen's writing and would recommend this to readers looking for a supernatural mystery. I received this book for my unbiased review.

2.5 stars.

Ava Collette rents a house in Maine in hopes of finishing a recipe book. She encounters the ghost of the original owner, and has some disturbing dreams. She finds out that the house has a sinister history and begins to drink too much. Is she really seeing a ghost, or is the alcohol playing games with her mind?

As much as I wanted to like this book, to be honest, I just didn’t care for it. I sure wasn’t expecting Rizzoli and Isles, but I guess paranormal/gothic with S&M sex scenes is just not my cup of tea.

Thanks to the publisher and NetGalley for the ARC e-book in exchange for my honest review.

Couldn’t even finish this one. I can suspend reality with the best of them but when the protagonist starts having sex with a ghost I have to draw the line. The story drags on and the writing is awful. Hard pass.

Ava Collette, a young woman who writes cook books, has rented a 150 yr old Maine coastal mansion (quite cheaply) for a few months in order to finish a long past due book. She immediately senses strange phenomena in the house. Her heavy drinking might contribute to the apparition of the sea captain who built the house and who appears to Ava and does some very unusual things to her. A string of unusual deaths are connected with the house - all women who are similar in appearance to Ava. When her life is threatened, she finally finds the truth.

This book is part beach read, part Gothic romance, part murder mystery, part erotica, and part cookbook! It did allow me to escape from the tedium of self-isolation during this virus pandemic, and brought some excitement.

Thank you NetGalley for providing me with is ARC in exchange for an honest opinion

This was my first Tess Gerritsen book, and although I can see why others enjoy her, I wasn't a huge fan of this book. I was excited by the description, but overall had a hard time connecting with the story. Simply not for me!

I really liked this book - it was a good mystery and a good spooky story. Once again, Tess did a great job

Wooohoo! Chemistry, passion, sexy, danger, obsession. Two main characters were written beautifully. The connection they had came off the pages. The mystery, all the other side characters and suspects were superbly written. I couldn’t quite pin down the main suspect. It was truly a nail biter. I was creeped out. Not gonna lie. I wanted to fast forward but refrained to keep all the feels going. Good job ! Read it!

Well, this was a surprise. I recently became a fan of Rizzoli and Isles and jumped at the chance to read a book my Tess Gerritsen. I kept waiting for those two characters to enter the book, but it turns out this was not a R&I book. So, I rolled with it.

Eva is a food writer who rents a beach house to write her long past deadline cookbook and to drink way too much to assuage her guilt from a New Years Eve gone wrong. The house is beautiful and home to a long-dead ship captain who built it a hundred years ago. An unidentified woman’s body washes up on the shore and this is a very small part of most of the story. Anyone paying the slightest bit of attention will guess who and whodunnit. The mystery is secondary, the ghost story is the main plot.

The Shape of Night could be described as the love child of “The Ghost and Mrs. Muir” and “50 Shades of Grey” raised by Agatha Christie.

Fluffy, steamy fun, and a perfect escapist read during quarantine. 3.5 stars.

Thank you to NetGalley and Penguin Random House for the eARC in exchange for an unbiased review.

The Shape of Night by Tess Gerristen is the kind of book you can't put down. If you are looking for a captivating escape currently The Shape of Night is perfect! Ava is fleeing a traumatic experience and finds herself in a quiet small town in Maine. The isolated seaside mansion seems perfect. Well that is until the ghost of the sea captain confronts Ava and seems just a little bit too real. Will Ava discover something nefarious in this small seaside town? Read The Shape of Night by Tess Gerritsen and find out for yourself!

I love Tess Gerritsen and this book was no exception! It was very different from her other work that I’ve read, but I enjoyed it just as much. This was a great paranormal thriller crossed with paranormal romance and she did it very well. I would be interested to read more of this genre from her!

The Shape of Night by Tess Gerritsen was not what I was expecting from the blurb. I was hoping for a modern take on The Ghost and Mrs. Muir (a suspenseful mystery with some paranormal elements). It has some of that, but then it takes a trip into the dark side. There are intimate scenes that resemble a dark Fifty Shades of Grey. It certainly was not what I was suspecting nor was it something I wished to read. I found myself skimming through the last sixty percent of the book. I could not get into The Shape of Night. I did not like Ava who overly indulges in alcohol because of guilt which makes her an unreliable narrator. I thought the pacing was slow and the descriptions were wordy. There was repetition and predictability as well. I was expecting more from Tess Gerritsen who gave us Jane Rizzoli and Maura Isles (I still miss the television show). While The Shape of Night was not for me, I suggest you obtain a sample to see if it suits you. That is the beauty of books. There are so many novels available that there is something for every type of reader. The Shape of Night just did not come together as a gothic paranormal mystery.

I was an early huge fan of Tess Gerritsen but then she sort of lost me with the Rizzoli and Isle series. I wasn’t opposed to them but already had enough series I was into so chose not to take them on. Still I kept a watch on what new work Gerritsen was creating. This I loved! Not part of the series and set in Maine. She expertly weaves a gothic romance, a ghost and a mystery with as always a strong female lead character. I hope she continues to bring us more great stand alones. (Fab cover as well!)

Thank you NetGalley for a copy of this book in exchange for my honest review.

There's no denying that Tess Gerritsen is a brilliant author. This book was just as amazing as her others.
I'd label this as a paranormal thriller with some steamy romance mixed it.
Ava & Captain Brody definitely had some intense chemistry.

Well written, especially from what is expected from Tess Gerritsen. I look forward to more of her work, but for now I highly recommend this title and can promise you won't be let down... RF Cisneros

This was a paranormal romance thriller. I did not enjoy the "50 shades of gray" between Ava and Captain Brody. I can't help but wonder if it was all in her head, in her drunken stupor that she every "saw" him.
What intruiged me was the mystery of all these woman who have lived in the house and had "mysterious deaths".

So let me start by saying that given Tess Gerritsen has a long history of writing cop and lawyer mysteries, and she has become well known as the force behind Rizzoli and Isles, this definitely feels like a departure from her typical style. In this mystery offering, we have the classic scenario of a woman trying to flee her own conscience after she accidentally sleeps with her beloved sister’s husband, and then he has a terrible car accident that ultimately claims his life. Consumed by overwhelming shame, Ava Collette, a cookbook writer flees her Boston home, seeking isolation in a small main town. Luck is by her side as a recently emptied, stately old semi mansion named Brodies Watch lies vacant. The house is dated to the 1800’s and was originally built by an old sea captain who died on the open seas, and who’s body was never found. Rumor holds that he haunts the old house. Seeking solitude, Ava is willing to overlook the issues with the house, and she settles in to finish her now overdue cookbook about New England cooking recipes and experiences. It isn’t long; however, before it becomes painfully obvious that the house has secrets, and Ava finds herself consumed into the idea that Captain Brodie is a real, embodied entity. Not a believer in ghosts, Ava vows to get the bottom of what is going on at Brodie’s Watch, and she ends up biting off more than she can chew as threats appear not on in the metaphysical world, but in the real world as well. The story itself is entertaining. There is some mystery here for readers as to how much of the experiences with this “ghost” are real, and how much of it is engineered in the mind of Ava. I have long been a fan of Tess Gerritsen, and even though this is a very different story from her usual, I enjoyed it. Thank you to Netgalley for the advanced copy.

I expected this one to be more in line with the Rizzoli and Isles series, rather than a romantic suspense - which is much less my area of interest with Tess Gerritsen.