How far would a mother go to protect her child? Ruth Sterling would do anything to protect her daughter, Catherine. It seems Ruth has early onset Alzheimer’s but Catherine soon starts questioning things and soon realizes she doesn’t know anything about her mom’s past and because of that she feels she doesn’t even know her mom at all.

This book started out a little slow and I was wondering where it was headed in the first few chapters. But the pace soon picked up and things got really tense towards the end. The story alternated between Catherine and Ruth, past and present, and we, along with Catherine, start uncovering the secrets that Ruth has been hiding for years.

This was a solid thriller and I absolutely enjoyed it. I was at the edge of my seat and had a hard time putting this one down. Gone Tonight is a must read for thriller fans.

Catherine and her mother Ruth have pretty involved albeit a slightly dysfunctional looking relationship. 24-year old Catherine, a trained nurse, still resides with her single mother and even allows her to track her location on the phone. Just when Catherine tries to spread her wings by moving out to a different city, she learns that her mother is suffering from Alzheimer's. Thereafter unfolds a complex web of secrets. I don't want to say more because I don't want to spoil the suspense. Written in typical Pekkanen style, this book is an unputdownable, fast paced read. Perfect for the long summer beach reading coming up!!

Thank you Netgalley, St Martin's Press and Sarah Pekkanen for the ARC.

This is a very slow burn, character driven thriller that focuses on a single mother and her daughter and their life together. Their relationship is incredibly close, yet daughter Catherine starts to realize that all may not be as it seems with her mother. The pace is so slow that I actually checked the description again to see if this was really the thriller that I expected, but as it progresses, it starts to race toward some very surprising conclusions. I look forward to what she writes next! Thank you to Netgalley and St. Martin's Press for the advance digital copy.

This book had a slow build to an intense story. I liked the alternating perspective of the mom and daughter with the past being told through journal entries. The author did a good job of presenting information in a way that I could emphasize with both of them. She also presented the setting of a memory care facility and an Alzheimer's diagnosis with respect and seemingly good facts. There were a few things that dropped that I wasn't expecting and it made the book fast paced for me. I read it in a just a few days. The ending was exciting and worked for me. A 5 star read!

I've enjoyed a few different books by Sarah Pekkanen and Greer Hendricks, but this is the first one I've read in which Sarah is the sole author. The first part of the book reads like a domestic drama with a close, but at times tense, relationship between a mother and a daughter. The narrative alternates between Ruth Sterling and her daughter, Catherine. It's obvious Ruth is keeping secrets from Catherine, but whether or not she has good intentions isn't clear. My opinion kept changing as the book progressed.

The story gets more suspenseful as it continues, becoming more of a thriller, but some of the reveals made it hard to root for either mother or daughter. I enjoyed the plot twists in the last part of the book although a couple things didn't seem to add up. The ending is purposely ambiguous and works well for the book. I would rate it 3.5 stars, rounded up to 4 stars.

I received an advance copy of this ebook at no cost from NetGalley and St. Martin's Press, but my review is voluntary and unbiased.

Gone Tonight
By: Sarah Pekkanen

4 Stars

A daughter should know her mother, right? Catherine Sterling thinks so. When she is on the verge of a big move, secrets about her mother Ruth, begin to make her question her entire life. It's always been just the two of them. A move and now secrets, threaten that bond. Ruth Sterling has a very scary past, one which she believes will put not only her in danger, but her daughter as well. So she has hid it, among other things. As her mother she will do anthing to protect Catherine, just like she always has has, right?

This was a fast paced thriller with an awesome set of characters. It almost felt like I was getting 2 storylines that converged with a shocking twist of an end. I was pleasantly surprised at how easy this story was to grab and keep my attention. Another great thriller for the win.

I'd like to thank the author and netgalley for this ARC copy in return for an honest review.
Stormi Ellis
Boundless Book Reviews

This was certainly a twisted story. It has lots of surprises and secrets along the way. I was a bit surprised by some of them. It’s definitely a keep you on the edge of your seat book! Thanks to the publisher and Netgalley for the early copy

I listened to the audiobook and thought the narrator could have been better about distinguishing voices for characters or had 2 narrators. Love this author, she is great about writing books that are both suspenseful and emotional.

Gone tonight is a slow paced thriller.( if that’s not a thing it should be) Catherine Sterlings mom has the beginnings of Alzheimer’s and seems to be holding Catherine back from her big move. Catherine starts to unravel the mystery of her mom and so much more, The ending was a perfect way to end their stories or maybe even continue them?!

I’ve been a big fan of Sarah Pekkanen’s thrillers with Greer Hendricks, and was super excited to see that she had a solo novel releasing!

Catherine Sterling thinks she knows her mother. It’s always just been the two of them. But when she is about to embark on a new career in a new city, she begins to realize that everything she thought she knew about her mother was a lie.

🔍 alternating POVs
🔍 slow burn
🔍 mother-daughter story

This slow-burn is told in alternating POVs. I enjoyed getting both Catherine and Ruth’s perspectives. Pekkanen did a great job of revealing twists that shock both the reader and Catherine. Some of Ruth’s chapters include notebook entries explaining her story, and these entries made me keep wanting more!

Thank you to the publisher for the gifted copy.

Wow. I loved the past books I read co-written by this author, but this is my first book she's written solo. And just wow. I was immediately hooked and binged it in 2 days on vacation. What a twisty wild ride!

Gone Tonight is a domestic thriller told in alternating POV chapters between Ruth and her daughter Catherine. Ruth also creates some journal entries that give us information about her past.

Catherine is getting ready to move after nursing school, and Ruth begins to show signs of Alzheimers. Catherine is devastated and changes her plans to stay at home to care for her mother. Ruth has been very secretive about her entire life and past and Catherine is determined to find out more about her mom before it's too late.

I appreciated the detail and obvious research the author put into the bits about the Memory Care Center that Catherine works at, and the symptoms of these diseases.

I seriously don't want to give anything away. If you are a domestic thriller fan, grab this book as soon as it's out!

This one wasn’t my favorite. Loved how the book was written in dual povs and with Ruth, the mother, writing to her daughter about her past since she now has early onset dementia. I wanted more from the big reveal and felt that it was kind of impossible how long Ruth remained in hiding as a teenager with a baby.

Excellent story about a mother who will do anything to protect her child. There are plenty of twists and turns as this story unfolds leaving us on a bit of a cliffhanger! Sarah Pekkanen can always be counted on to give us a spellbinder!

Many thanks to NetGalley and St. Martin's Press for this ARC!

This was one of those books that I simultaneously couldn't put down and didn't want to end!

Ruth Sterling is a single mom working hard to provide for and protect her daughter, Catherine. Catherine is in her early 20s and about to move away from home for the first time to start a new job at a hospital in geriatrics in a new city. But then Ruth starts forgetting little things and getting lost on her way home from the local drugstore. As someone who works in a nursing home caring for people with dementia and Alzheimer's, Catherine recognizes the signs and after a Dr. Appointment seems to confirm the diagnosis, Catherine realizes her plans to move away may need to change.

But this development starts Catherine asking even more questions about her mother's past. Why did they move around so much? Where did she grow up? What was her family like? Catherine stumbles into an investigation that she didn't even know existed bringing her closer and closer to the truth about Ruth's past . . . and the danger that hides therein.

I loved how the book started off seemingly as a tale of a mother and daughter grappling with illness before it slowly transformed into a compelling and suspenseful thriller!

Thank you to St. Martin's press for the advance copy provided through NetGalley.

Twenty-four year old Catherine Sterling has only known life with an overprotective mother. They don’t have any other family and share an apartment and car and each other’s phone locations. They have moved several times but this will be the first time that they will live separately as Catherine has taken a job as a nurse at a hospital in another city. All that is threatened when Catherine starts noticing some strange behaviours from her mother that may result in Catherine not taking her new job. From Ruth’s perspective, she will do anything to protect her daughter including keeping her as close as possible. Ruth has secrets that are threatening to cause harm to her and Catherine and decides to keep a journal to pass on to her daughter, should anything go awry.

As a fan of short chapters, mother/daughter stories and alternating POVs, I was hooked. I binged the last 50% of this book and loved all the crumbs dropped along the way. It was a slower burn for the first half and I have read comments from reviewers saying this wasn’t for them but I didn’t mind it one bit. I was invested in the storyline, the deception and discoveries, the suspenseful jaw drop moments and in the journal entries.

I was in the mood to read escapism and didn’t care about believability. So if you don’t mind suspending belief and are looking for a story to keep you on your toes, then pick up Gone Tonight by @sarahpekkanen when it comes out August 1st.

Thank you to @netgalley and @stmartinspress for an ARC in exchange for my honest opinions.

As always, potential triggers will be shared to my StoryGraph review (also Pomoevareads)

Catherine Sterling grew up with just her single mother, Ruth. They've always been close with it being just the two of them and they moved around a lot. Catherine never thought to question her mother's decisions growing up. But now that Catherine is moving away from home, it seems like Ruth will do anything to keep her close. Catherine begins to wonder if she even knows her mother at all.

It took me a good third of the book to get into the story. Things got off to a really slow start, but once things picked up I was invested and couldn't stop reading.

Gone Tonight is an enjoyable, twisty novel about a mother and daughter keeping secrets from each other. Ruth Sterling has run from her past for the last twenty-five years. Around that time, she had a daughter, Catherine. Ruth has been a devoted, but seemingly codependent mother. Ruth is only in her early 40s and has been diagnosed with early onset Alzheimer's disease. Though she was headed to Johns Hopkins for graduate school, Catherine feels compelled to stay home with her mother. From there, we learn more and more about Ruth's past. The story is riveting, though I did see some of the reveals coming. I enjoyed Kate Mara's audiobook narration, but it would have been easier to follow if there were two narrators for the dual viewpoints.

Thank you NetGalley and the publishers for providing this ebook / audiobook ARC. All thoughts are my own.

I was unreasonably excited when I found out Sarah Pekkanan was writing her new book, Gone Tonight, and camped out on Netgalley until I got an early copy! Thank you St Martin’s Press, I love y’all! This drops next Tuesday, 8/1/23, so get ready. This cat and mouse suspense thriller will have you guessing until the very last page!

Ruth Sterling has lived a small, quiet life. She has a routine, she has rules. Don’t tell people too much personal information, keep a go-bag, and do anything to keep her daughter Catherine safe. Catherine is young woman now. Keeping her safe isn’t as easy as it used to be, but the stakes couldn’t be higher and she’s running out of time. What are you willing to do to protect those you love? The question deceptively simple, the answer far more nuanced.

I binge read this in an afternoon, so you’ve been warned friends, clear your schedule. Pekkanan crafts a tale, weaving in backstory, shifting point of view, and dropping just enough information I was always just a hair behind. Each clue had the potential to shift everything I thought I knew. I loved the dance between Ruth and Catherine, the tension of letting go so specific to mothers and daughters. the authenticity obscures the lies and betrayal. Are there morally grey aspects to Ruth? I haven’t decided, but can’t wait to discuss this with my book besties!

I recommend to readers who love suspense thrillers, have previously read and loved Sarah Pekkanan, and those looking for a great mystery summer read! This makes a fantastic buddy-read, there’s so much to discuss!

I really really tried with this one. I wanted to enjoy it because I enjoy her work but I couldn’t.
It starts so slow, there is nothing drawing you in.
The big draws of Ruth’s past aren’t enough to make up for the slow and non progressive story line.

I did enjoy the tension of the story, but I couldn't help be think that had the mom and daughter just communicated, things would have worked out a little differently. It's like the miscommunication trope from romance but make it thrilling.

I received an advance copy in exchange for an honest review. All thoughts are my own.