Well, Sarah Pekkanen has done it again….another novel that kept me on my toes the whole time I was listening to it. I got to listen to an ARC of this audiobook from NetGalley and the publisher in exchange for my honest opinion of the book. It definitely did not disappoint.
This book is told from two points of view—a mother, Ruth, who is overprotective of her daughter, even though that daughter is an adult. The other point of view is the daughter, Catherine, who ends up realizing that her mother is a major control freak. But why is she? Why does she seemingly ruin Catherine’s relationships and lie to her?
Please read or listen to this book to find out…you’ll be so glad you did! I really liked the narrator in the audiobook version as well. Winning all around for this one!!

Thank you for allowing me to read this ARC of Gone Tonight. It was also my first audio book and I really enjoyed that.

It is a twisting story of the relationship between a mother - Ruth and daughter. - Catherine. Ruth was a young unwed mother when she gave birth to Catherine when she was 17 years old. Knowing she would be kicked out of her home, Ruth fled to several states to raise Catherine as a single mom.

Fast forward to Catherine in her 20's and we find Ruth unwilling to let Catherine move on to take a job out of state. What transpires are a lot of plot twists and turns which makes for an intriguing read.

Like with any Pekkanen novel, the twists are amazing and hit right up until the final page.

I absolutely loved this domestic/psychological thriller. Ruth and Catherine were both so layered…in their relationship with each other, in their separate adult lives…and the whole time, I kept wondering whether this is a case of nurture vs nature winning out in the end.

I can’t say much else because everything I thought I knew in the beginning? Not exactly the truth by the end. Would I recommend this? Wholeheartedly.

Main Characters:
-- Catherine Sterling – 24 years old, recently graduated from nursing school, works in the Memory Wing of Sunrise Senior Living, and plans to start a job at Johns Hopkins
-- Ruth Sterling – 42 years old, estranged from her family when she became pregnant as a teenager, Catherine’s mother, works as a waiter in a diner, beginning to show signs of early onset Alzheimer’s

I discovered Sarah Pekkanen when I read "The Wife Between Us," which she co-authored with Greer Hendricks. She (they) will always be on my must-read list, and "Gone Tonight" is just another example of why.

Split into three acts, Gone Tonight tells the stories of Catherine and her mother Ruth. Shunned by her family when she became pregnant in high school, Ruth never looked back and focused solely on providing for and protecting Catherine. So all of Catherine’s life, it has been just Ruth and Catherine. Ruth is determined to start writing down her past so that Catherine will know how they came to be on their own.

Having recently completed nursing school, Catherine accepted a job at Johns Hopkins and plans to move to Baltimore until she realizes that her mother has been showing signs of memory problems. But as she starts looking into why Ruth kept her memory issues a secret, Catherine discovers there are a lot of things that Ruth has been keeping secret.

Oh the secrets…and they just keep on coming. Pekkanen does a great job of giving us those “I did not see that coming” moments.

Chapters alternate between Catherine and Ruth, so we as readers understand their motivations way before they understand one another. And if they would just really talk to one another…if Ruth would just tell Catherine the truth…. But real life doesn’t work like that. People don’t always have the conversations they should, especially if they feel like they’re trying to protect the other person.

I will not say anymore because I don’t want to spoil this one. Order this one now. You won’t be sorry you did.

3.5 rounded up to 4

Before reading this check out trigger warnings as there is murder and sexual abuse of a child.

This is the story of Ruth, Catherine and James…I didn’t like any of them. Actually I sort of liked James but I don’t think I was supposed to like him.

I was interested in this one from start to finish but the characters kept getting muddled in my head.

I really liked unpacking the Alzheimer’s angle I in this one. I thought it was a clever was to move the story forward to its ultimate conclusion.

The ending was wrapped up nicely. I’m a fan of that because more often than not, I don’t like open ended books.

While it wasn’t my fav by this author, it was decent and I have no regrets. It think it’s worth a read.

I did the audiobook and Kate Mara was the narrator, she did a nice job with Gone Tonight.

I absolutely devoured this book. I thought the plot was different from any book I’ve read before and it kept me sucked in from beginning to end.

Ruth, a single mom to her adult daughter Catherine, starts to exhibit some disturbing symptoms of early onset Alzheimer’s. Catherine wants to know everything about her mom. How well does she really know her? This book explores and answers those questions during this intriguing book. How much can a parent protect a child? How far would someone go to protect their child? This riveting book has unexpected twists. I highly recommend!

Unbeknownst to her daughter Catherine, Ruth Sterling has deep secrets that she has kept hidden all of Catherine’s life. When Catherine decides to move away and make a life of her own, the truth comes tumbling out bit by bit with astonishing repercussions and both women’s lives are soon in grave danger. I thoroughly enjoyed this and did not anticipate the outcome.

This was my first book by Sarah alone. It holds the same psychological, creepy, twisty buildup that I have come to associate with her and Greer's books.
I will say, and this is a me thing, I really do hate when thrillers use sexual assault as a plot point. This turned me off to the story pretty quickly but I did stick by it and finish it.
It wasn't a great fit for me but I can see how other readers who don't have the same triggers may find it really intriguing and fun to read.

Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for the gifted copy.

Thank you to NetGalley and St. Martin's Press for providing me with an Advanced Reading Copy in exchange for my review.

I'm a fan of thrillers and the synopsis of this book sounded really good - and it was. The main characters are mother and daughter, Ruth and Catherine. The chapters alternate between these characters perspectives and I thought this format worked really well here. I liked learning each characters insights as the story unfolded. There were twists and turns and some surprises. I recommend this book for fans of Sarah Pekkanen and lovers of mysteries and thrillers.

Not sure this is my favorite by Sarah Pekkanen (one half of the Greer Hendrix duo) but still an enjoyable read. Fans of a slow-burn will like this.

Thank you to NetGalley for this ARC audibook of "Gone Tonight." It was different than anything else I have read in a long time. I enjoyed the narrator as well. I would recommend this to anyone who loves a good thriller.

I've had a few meh thrillers lately so when I got to this one I wound up bingeing it pretty quickly. I loved the multiple POVs and flashbacks. I wasn't sure which perspective was reliable since they contradicted each other a bit. I had a few theories but kept questioning if I was right as things went along. It was a fun buddy read that brought up many different theories and discussion. Pick up a copy if you like psychological thrillers with unreliable perspectives.

Gone Tonight is an adult fiction mystery/thriller by author Sarah Pekkanen.

Ruth and Catherine are a mother and daughter who live modestly and have no other family and no really close friends. They have moved around a lot, changing apartments, changing schools, and changing cities over the years. Catherine is an adult (24 years) and still lives with Ruth. Ruth keeps running because she is hiding a deep, dark secret. The book is told by both Ruth and Catherine in alternating POV chapters.

Ruth will do anything to keep her daughter from learning the truth as Catherine prepares to take a job in a different city and move away from Ruth.

Simultaneously, Ruth is trying to keep the truth from Catherine while Catherine is trying to find out more about her mother’s past.

This was a very fast paced novel with lots of tension which I enjoyed. The chapters are short and keep you wanting more.

This book could be an instruction manual on how to disappear and not be found. I loved the creative ways that Ruth used to hide from her past and cover her tracks. There was so many little things I would never have thought of.

I recommend this book to anyone who likes mystery/thrillers and fast paced novels with lots of twists. The ending was wrapped up nicely and did not leave me with lingering questions.

Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for this ARC. Gone Tonight will be available on August 1st. 2023.

I went into this book blind just because I've read other books co-wriitten by this author and I've always enjoyed them. I'm glad I didn't know the premise as it made it even more interesting not knowing right away what the baseline for the story was. The story is full of suspense and mystery that will keep you intrigued until the very end. Definitely recommend adding it to your summer thrill reading list!

All I need to say is “Wow!” The writing and narration was AMAZING! I loved the mother/daughter relationship, the tension, and the mystery. This is one of those books that you couldn’t wait to find out the mystery but you were sad for it to me over! This book is going to be a major hit this summer! This book needs to be on your TBR!

Rating 4.5 stars but rounding up to 5 stars on Goodreads.

This book! I was thinking about it all the time when I wasn't reading it. It starts out as a slow burn and reads like just about any other contemporary fiction novel...until we learn that we don't know the whole truth. From that point on, it's hard to put down and full of suspense and anticipation.

The story alternates in point of view between Ruth and Catherine, and the truth slowly begins to leak out as one actively seeks the truth and the other takes pains to hide it. This isn't your typical thriller - it can go long stretches without real action - but it's still a page turner.

Thanks to NetGalley for early access to this book!

I really enjoyed this book and the back and forth of mother and daughter. I wish the mom had been more honest when she became an adult. I also wasn’t sure who to believe at times.

I have only read Sarah Pekkanen when she paired up with Greer Hendrick and I had loved both those books. I must say, Sarah Pekkanen stand-alone is just as good! The book has dual-POV which I love! There is Ruth, the mother, who has a past she hasn't shared with her daughter. Then there is Catherine, who is shocked to find out that her mother hid her past and told her so many lies for over the last 2 decades.
But the past catches up with them and they need to work together to get out of this.
I could NOT put this down! Loved it.

I liked the premise of this book and the secrets that were kept. The story had a great flow and kept me interested throughout.