This book started off a bit slow for me, but once it picked up it I didn’t want to put it down! Loved the plot twists that kept me guessing. Will look for other books by this author!

Thank you to NetGalley and St. Martin’s Press for my advance reader copy in exchange for my honest feedback.

Thank you so much to NetGalley and St. Martin's Press for my copy of Gone Tonight by Sarah Pekkanen in exchange for an honest review. It publishes August 1, 2023.
First off, I think Kate Mara did an excellent job narrating this book, very well done! I would definitely listen to anything by this narrator!
Secondly, this was my first book that was a solo book by Sarah Pekkanen, and she definitely holds her own! Just when I would think I was onto something, I realized that was exactly what she wanted me to do! She is a master of this genre, and I applaud her work! The characters were so interesting, I wanted to know so much more, and she delivered! You can also tell the depths of research that was done on the topics important to this story! If you like thrillers, definitely give this a go!

Gone Tonight
by Sarah Pekkanen
Pub Date: 01 Aug 2023

Gone Tonight was an excellent story about a relationship between a mother and daughter. The story was completely original and very plausible. I liked it from the start.

I would describe it as jaw dropping, addictive, a very tense twisted story that kept me hooked from the first page. I highly recommend this 5 star book!

Synopsis:

Catherine Sterling thinks she knows her mother. Ruth Sterling is quiet, hardworking, and lives for her daughter. All her life, it's been just the two of them against the world. But now, Catherine is ready to spread her wings, move from home, and begin a new career. And Ruth Sterling will do anything to prevent that from happening.

Ruth Sterling thinks she knows her daughter. Catherine would never rebel, would never question anything about her mother's past or background. But when Ruth's desperate quest to keep her daughter by her side begins to reveal cracks in Ruth's carefully-constructed world, both mother and daughter begin a dance of deception.

Many thanks to #NetGalley, #StMartinsPress and #GoneTonight for a copy of this E-ARC. All opinions are my own.

Catherine and her mother Ruth have always depended on each other but suddenly things begin to fall apart when Catherine decides to move to another city and start a new job. Ruth knows she has to prevent Catherine from leaving and will do anything to make it happen.
I sadly found the story dragged along and it was a bit repetitive. Some of the ending was sort of predictable for me and I found it lacking. That's my opinion only.

Gone Tonight is a thriller that looks at a mother's secret past and the lengths she goes to protect her daughter. The chapters alternate POV between the mother and daughter and overall, the format works. It wasn't my favorite thriller of the summer but it definitely kept my attention throughout.

Thank you to #NetGalley, Sarah Pekkanen and St Martin’s Press for the opportunity to read an advance copy of GONE TONIGHT, to be published 1 August 2023. This domestic thriller was about two women: mother and daughter, who for 24 years lived on the run, unbeknownst to the daughter. It was presented from their own perspectives and involved some pretty fancy footwork on the part of the mother — to keep a variety of facts hidden from her daughter. But then the past came back to haunt them, with a surprise twist at the end. Well structured storyline and overall a good read. 4/5 Stars. #NetGalley. #SarahPekkanen #St Martin’sPress. #GONETONIGHT

Catherine and Ruth have a wonderful mother and daughter relationship. They are each others rock. Until some questionable things begin coming up and Catherine is beginning to wonder if she truly knows her mother.

I enjoyed the plot and way this story is written! This multilayered storyline keeps you on your toes as we get both Catherine and Ruth’s points of view. Has Ruth been keeping secrets from Catherine? Has she been lying to her? What is truth?

I loved how the nuggets of truth are dropped and the way we learn what’s real and what’s truly going on. Great writing and great twists! How far would you go to protect your daughter?

Thank you to NetGalley and St Martin’s Press for the ARC of this ebook in exchange for an honest review.
Ruth and Catherine are mother and daughter, surviving life together. Catherine is certain that her mother is keeping secrets, and she is determined to find out.
I really enjoyed this book, it was like unpeeling an onion, there is always one more layer. I liked the characterization of both Catherine and Ruth, and how the story is told from both points of view.
I look forward to reading more by Sarah Pekkanen.

In Gone Tonight we follow the Mother and daughter duo, Catherine and her mother Ruth. All of their life’s it’s been just the two of them for as long as Catherine can remember but soon she will be leaving the nest. And Ruth will do anything to prevent that from happening.⁣
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This book is not at all what it seems! It’s definitely an intense read that kept me going. For one,the complex relationship between mother and daughter will keep you turning the page that’s for sure! This novel is a slow burn but I would say It’s definitely worth it and I really loved the ending.⁣
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After reading Gone Tonight I’m definitely going to be checking out Sarah Pekkanen’s other books! Make to grab yourself a copy of this one when it releases on august first.

This is the only thriller that was able to bring me to tears more than once. I was invested in the lives of Catherine and Ruth instantly. Their complicated mother-daughter relationship propelled this emotional thriller that was filled with deception, betrayal, and breathtaking suspense. It's a slow burn that is unquestionably worth the wait. Catherine and Ruth are multi-dimensional, full of flaws, and undying love and devotion to each other. The writing beautifully portrays the intricate and intriguing dynamic between mother and daughter. There were several twists I never saw coming. The initial twist blew me away. ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐Thank you, NetGalley and St. Martin’s Press for my ARC.

This book all seemed so mundane, until it wasn’t. I kept asking myself when the thriller part would kick in and had a few questions. Why was her mother keeping these secrets for so long? Your daughter is 24 now. Don’t you think she would have been fine to know these things by now? If you believe her safety depends on your vigilance, wouldn’t she try to be safer if she knew the whole picture?

The first half of the book was relatively slow due to how mundane things seemed. Once things started unfolding, it picked up, and I found the book much more enjoyable. The more Catherine dug into the secrets her mother was keeping for her, the worse it got. I enjoyed the alternating viewpoints and that the chapters were fairly short, giving you an easy stopping place. I like how this one came together. Thank you, St. Martin’s, for sending over an advanced copy

I really liked the books this author co-wrote, so I was excited to read this one! The story line excited me and I loved the odd mother/daughter relationship. The ending was a bit quick, but, overall, very good book! I would read another by this author (not with her co-writer!).

⭐️: 3/5

Ruth Sterling and her daughter Catherine have always been each other’s only family. Catherine thinks she knows her mother, but when she begins to spread her wings and start a career away from her mother’s influence, she finds that Ruth may take drastic measures to make sure that does not happen.

I’ve read all of the books coauthored by Sarah Pekkanen and Greer Hendricks, but I’ve never read one by just one of the authors in the writing duo, so I was intrigued by this one. I had an inkling that I liked the writing style of one more than the other, and in the beginning on the book it felt like it was Pekkanen’s that I liked better, but by the end I was unsure again. I was really intrigued in the setup of the story, with the secrets that both mother and daughter kept from each other and the mystery that the reader was drawn into about Ruth’s true past. My favorite parts were Ruth’s journal entries into the past. The way that the perspective switched from mother to daughter every chapter kept the book moving along really smoothly, and the shorter chapters made it a singable read. Where this fell a little flat for me was just the character development. I get frustrated so easily by the dumb thriller bimbo trope, and I felt like both of the characters fell into that trap. It just felt overdramatic and annoying at points, especially with how whiny Catherine was. She constantly overreacts, while Ruth constantly lies for really no reason. I liked this read as a bit of a mindless thriller, but that was all it was for me.

Thank you to @netgalley and @stmartinspress for this eARC in exchange for my honest review!!

This book started out like a slow burn, I didn’t know who to believe and wasn’t sure where the storyline was going. But once things started unraveling, they unraveled quickly and had me on the edge of my seat anxious to find out what was going to happen. Pekkanen does an excellent job exploring the complex relationships between mothers and daughters, in a captivating thriller that makes you question how far you can or should go to protect the people you love. This book is full of twists and turns that will keep you guessing until the very end.

Thank you @sarahpekkanen, @stmartinspress & @netgalley for the gifted ARC of this book.

Gone Tonight was a pretty good story about mother and daughter, Ruth and Catherine, and the consequences of keeping secrets. It wasn't quite what I expected from the description but I enjoyed it nonetheless. The writing was exceptional as all Pekkanen novels are. I wasn't much a fan of either of these women during most of the book but understood the mother's story and motive much better by the end. Still, I felt something was missing that should've clicked in place earlier in the story. Overall it was good read.

I have never met a Sarah Pekkanen book I didn't like! That being said, I have only ever read her novels co-written with Greer Hendrick so I was VERY excited to get my hands on this one and check it out! Many thanks to NetGalley for the advanced copy of this gem! It started as a slow bun (bordered a little too slow for me at times) with twists and tension, but took off in the second half and had me speeding to finish, unable to put it down! I liked the alternating story line and found myself grasping for more of each character's plot line as their chapters ended and shifted to the next character's POV.

I enjoyed the mother/daughter storyline (being that I am both), however, thought the daughter was a little hard on her mom in the end. Her stubborn curiosity was one thing, but her disdain near the end is off-putting. Unsure if that is a purposeful, telling characteristic of her parentage or not, but, nonetheless I thought she could have been a little more grateful to her mother after everything. Overall I thoroughly enjoyed watching all the pieces of this puzzle fall into place and would love more installments of this mother daughter duo in the future if that's in the cards for Pekkanen!

This book. Wow. Pekkanen always delivers (admittedly I'm mostly familiar with her novels co-authored with Greer Hendricks) but Gone Tonight was next level and definitely put Pekkanen on my radar as a solo author.

We've all read books where people don't really know the people they love and where people were hiding things. This was done differently and it felt fresh even if it wasn't the most original concept.

With alternating narrators - Ruth and her daughter Catherine - we learn of a story about a mother and daughter who are basically alone in the world. Fearful her time and luck are running out, Ruth starts to tell her story by writing it down to share with Catherine in the event she disappears. What unfolds is terrifying but also devastatingly sad and traumatic.

There were twists in this novel I totally didn't expect and I loved that big reveals were made early on. Nothing was dragged out but I was still kept on the edge of my seat at every turn.

This novel also makes you think - what lengths would you go to in order to protect the people you love? How deep is a mother's love?

All in all, this was a shockingly good one and a book I'll definitely recommend.

Thank you to St. Martin's Press, MacMillan Audio, and NetGalley for the copy.

I enjoyed this read. The pace was a little slow for my taste but the plot kept me going. Overall, I think the pace was slow to medium and a mix of character and plot driven. This is a dark, emotional, tense, mysterious read. Things seemed predictable but then the author would throw another twist in.

I enjoyed Catherine’s perspective the most and seeing the information of her mother unfold.

The narrator for the audiobook was not my favorite but also did not ruin the story.

I will be recommending this to my reading friends.

4.5 stars. Thank you NetGalley and St. Martin’s Press for the ARC of Gone Tonight! Pub date 8/1/23.
I have read several books from Sarah Pekkanen that she has written jointly with Greer Hendricks, so I was looking forward to reading her newest solo novel.
Told from alternating points of view, the story follows Ruth and her newly college-graduated daughter, Catherine. Their close relationship encounters new challenges as Catherine sets out to discover who her mother really is and what she is hiding from her past.
I thoroughly enjoyed this slow-burn psychological thriller, which fell just short of 5-stars due to a few plot holes and a fairly predictable grand reveal at the end.

Gone Tonight draws you in slowly but surely and keeps you reading as you follow Ruth and Catherine who are mother and daughter.

Secrets, secrets, secrets. Crazy meets crazy and I love crazy.

Catherine is about to leave the nest and Ruth must keep her daughter their at all costs.

Does Catherine really know her mother.

It seems not.

Twists and turns, secrets and lies will the mother and daughter bond break or survive.

Sarah Pekkanen keeps you hooked from the first to the last page.

Thanks to NetGalley and St Martin's Press for an excellent read.