A cleverly written addictive thriller that had the reader compelled from the first to large page.
I literally could not put this book down, it was heart wrenching, scary, claustrophobic and twisted. A girl on the run from an incident when her best friend was killed on the way home from a night out. Miraculously Meg survived but knew her life would never be the same again. Hiding herself away in a crumbling house on a cliff top she thought she would be safe……..but then there is a blackout!
This is a heart thumping read, definitely one to be discussed with my reading group. It jumps between the past and the present but you get to realise what Meg has had to cover up in her past to lead her to where she is. A great read.

Whilst the story has three timelines Ms Goodwin does a great job in putting them altogether.

We start with Meg is hiding in a run down cabin in Norfolk but in the middle of nowhere close to a cliff edge, There is a cross country chase by two guys in connection with the night she and her friend, Cat, were involved with drugs at a party. The plot explains why, as she is running scared, and she ends up in the shack in a blackout

It is difficult to explain the story further without spoilers, but suffice it to say the writing is exciting, well described and full of twists. I loved it!

Thanks to Net Galley and Avon Books UK for the chance to read and review.

I did love this book! Edge of the seat reading & I just couldn't put this book down.
Megan Fellows life is turned into a nightmare after a night out with her best friend Cat. This story is an unimaginable tale but very believable where you lose all trust & hope in your life.
Great writing by Sarah Goodwin making the tension & fear seep into your soul!

This one wasn’t much of the synopsis. Yes, Meg and Cat are on a night out and walk home from the pub to be followed by two men. Yes the police arrive to save them and things only go worse from there. This happens in 2022. The secondary timeline is a year later following Megan the aftermath.

I thought I liked this. I was enjoyed the first bit. It was an easy read, and I was interested to know what happened the night of the walk home to lead to Megan today however,I found myself frustrated by the twists. It was almost like it was too much and it was trying too hard. The last 15-20% of the story is super repetitive and unnecessarily long also. It could have done with being shorter.

I won’t give up on Goodwin because of this, but it wasn’t my favourite by far.

THE BLACKOUT by Sarah Goodwin is a propulsive thriller that had me hooked!

We meet Meg as she is starting her night out with her best friend Cat, who insists on getting Meg out.

Jumping into a timeline surround the night of a blackout, Meg is clearly not OK, a year into the future, and using a new name.

What happened that night and what happens the night of the blackout converge in unexpected ways that had me turning the pages quickly!

For a thriller with more than 350 pages, this was a really fast read! I was very much interested in what was happening and why. I enjoyed the cat-and-mouse aspect of this story, and when the why's were revealed, it became intense. I am not sure I loved the why's, but the story kept me engaged throughout!

Ultimately, by the time I finished, I had a couple things besides the why's that left me with this story feeling just OK. It was a bit far-fetched, and for me it has to be way out there for that to matter to me.

It was still quite entertaining, so for a fast-paced thriller fan, I'd recommend a look!

Thank you to @netgalley and @htpbooks for sharing this digital ARC and letting me share my thoughts. It was published August 31st, so available now!

The Blackout is the fourth book I have read by Sarah Goodwin and as had really enjoyed them all and had given 5 star reviews for Stranded, The Resort and The thirteenth girl, so I was looking forward to her next instalment as has become one of my favourite authors.

A night out in Bristol for Meg and her best mate Cat turns into a complete nightmare for them both when they end up drunk and without phones or any money to get home so have to walk and soon think someone is following them. Things go wrong and then go from bad to much worse and at times was quite a difficult read.

Unfortunately compared to Sarah's previous books, this one fell fell short for me, as although the writing was good and the story well paced, I could not like any of the characters and in the end couldn't care less whether what happened to any of them. The background became gave them less appeal and flipped between the present and the past. The story ended very quickly, which actually was a relief, but had expected a last minute twist but not on this occasion.

A big thank you to Avon Books UK, Avon for the opportunity to read and review this book and look forward to reading the next book by this author.

This book starts out with our main characters Meg and Cat leaving a bar. After they are unable to find enough
money for a cab they decide the best choice is to walk home. When two men start to follow the girls with nothing but bad intentions things really get dark. The girls take shelter in an abandoned house however desperate for safety. The book flashes between what happened on that night walk to one year after when Meg is terrified and the people have come back to wreak havoc on her life once again. This story while listed as a thriller had everything that a great horror movie has it really left me gasping for breath and desperate to find out the answers. I loved the main characters but the best part about this book was the plot. It was unlike
anything I have ever read before. I loved the back and forth because it really let the reader feel the tension and the fear that was happening as well as the anger that was the aftermath. While time changes aren't my favourite thing in novels the author wrote this perfectly so it was very easy to understand what was happening and when and given the plot of the story I can't imagine it being written any other way and still packing quite the punch like it did. This book was incredibly scary not so much in a typical sense but more in the sense where this could really happen to you and everything you fear about in the dark is suddenly happening. What also made this so scary is this type of thing has happened to real people, where someone follows them, strangers attack at night, etc. This book kept me on the edge of my seat the entire time and I couldn't put it down because I was desperate to see how everything would play out. This book was full of action and suspense and I really enjoyed how we were fed just bits and pieces of information through the story until the end when it all came together. Great read and unlike anything I have read before. This is one horror book that I can't wait to see hit the selves. The only thing I have to say is clear your schedule before you start this book because once it starts its like a roller coaster that you can't get off of until the very end. This book stands
out immensely and I don't believe that there will ever be anything even close to this written again. Great job and I'm so glad that I was given the chance to check it out, it was amazing.

Oh hey, Sarah Goodwin, you really got me with this one...

The Blackout, just slipped right into one of my most favored books and I can almost guarantee it will do the same for you.

I sat down with my kindle, not knowing what I was going to pick next. I don't have any particular order, Im basically a cover snob and pick up whatever speaks to my mood at that moment. I suppose I must have been in a dark mood as I settled in with The Blackout. I had promised myself I would only read "a few chapters" before I had to start dinner.

Im such a liar....

My husband knew what it meant when he walked in and I had a book in my hand. He went straight for a cup of noodles.

THIS BOOK IS WILD!!!!!!!!!

I got completely lost within the pages, I was at the edge of my seat, eyes bulging, fearing what lurked in the next chapter. I couldn't get there fast enough and there was no way in heck I was putting this one down.

My mind is completely blown

BESTSELLER right here.

Don't read the reviews, don't read the back of the book, go into this one blind and feel all the suspense that this book holds. I loved it! 5 stars!

Check out this teaser :

Don’t miss the new, totally addictive psychological thriller from Sarah Goodwin, with bombshell twists that will leave you stunned. Fans of The Sanatorium, The Paris Apartment and One of the Girls will be hooked from the very first page.

You can't outrun the past…

Summer, 2022. When Meg and Cat are forced to take a dangerous shortcut home one night, they notice two men silently following them. Suddenly running for their lives, they scramble into an abandoned building to hide and wait for help.

…for what’s done in the dark will come to light…

One year later. Attempting to escape the horrors of that fateful night, Meg barricades herself into a safehouse at the edge of a crumbling sea cliff. As a storm rages outside, a blackout plunges the house into darkness. But Meg’s not alone.

Kind of disappointed. A couple of decent twists, but otherwise mediocre.

Told in two timelines:
Meg and Cat go for a night out on the town. A series of unfortunate events leaves them with dead phones and no money, so they have to take the chance to walk home. It's cold, the middle of the night, and it's deserted. All of a sudden, they are followed by two menacing men.

In the present, a woman is working as a cleaner. As her past is slowly revealed, it becomes clear that things are not as they seem. Then there's a blackout.

I can't say too much without giving away the story, but suffice it to say that I didn't have complete buy in for the motivations of the characters and for what happens along the way. Many of the choices just seem ridiculous.

The writing is very atmospheric and I was caught up in the narrative as things were happening. The author creates a great sense of frantic fear and I could picture what was happening clearly in my head.

One very disappointing thing for me was that at 80% I thought, wow, there must be a great twist coming up because there's still so much to go! But alas, the end of the book was close and the last 15% of the book is a short story. So be warned, this book is shorter than you think it is.

I like this author and will read more of her books, but this one just fell a bit short for me.

I love this author because she is probably a little bit insane. I was so addicted to this that I failed to pay attention to the rest of my life for a few hours. I would call it an escape but it is very twisty and intense.
Our girl goes out for drinks with her bestie on the anniversary of her brother's tragic death. They are normal drunk girls and she ends up breaking her phone and losing her wallet and ultimately due to other tragic incidents that night she loses her best friend. Today she is living in a dilapidated cabin under an assumed name because she is avoiding the men who caused that death.
I felt like I was in that cabin with her! I was terrified.
Bravo. I want more books like this.

The blackout - lights off and the two people you've been hiding from for the last year are here to get you.
Will you escape?
Although 384 pages long this felt like a much shorter book - it took me no time to race through it, which is generally an indicator that I've both enjoyed a book and that it has drawn me in. There were elements about the book that I didn't like - the deliberate drip feeding of the narrator's back story rather than it being clear what had happened, in this case felt a little clunky. As a story though, a good thriller, perfect for summer holidays. Thank you to Netgalley for giving me the opportunity to read this ARC

Mixed bag for me this one! I loved the atmosphere that was created, and some of the twists were good, but I disliked the characters which left me not really caring about them! I found it initially interesting but sadly became bored.

This claustrophobic and intense psychological suspense moves between Meg's past and present, revealing her increasingly dark secrets. There is an intentional air of predictability about this; as you read, you are waiting for the next bad thing to happen. Most characters are unlikeable, but some have a reason for this. I like the atmospheric setting, the suspenseful build-up and the contemporary vibe of this crime noir.
I received a copy of this book from the publisher.

I found he plot and all of the actions by all of the characters to be completely unbelievable. I could not strain myself to make this believable. I just wasn’t.

Thank you NetGalley for this advanced reader copy in exchange for my free and voluntary review. This novel is a true gem, that keeps you hopping and guessing to the end, and this is all comes together. Excellent storyline and I highly recommend!

There was definitely something lacking in this book for me to enjoy it. The dual timelines were a bit confusing, and I never got a real understanding of Meg until the very end. It's difficult to feel a connection or empathy for a character that just doesn't appeal to you. I also never really understood Meg's decision to go into hiding after her traumatic night out and why it took so long for the cops to find her. I really enjoyed Goodwin's book Stranded, so I was disappointed with this one.

This begins with two young women Meg and Cat who after losing their money have to walk a long way home after a late night partying and drinking.
In the beginning the book seemed promising, there was some suspense and atmosphere but soon the book changed I I really wasn't enjoying reading it as it became hard to follow. The epilogue also didn't conclude the story satisfactorily for me. It all felt very disjointed.
Thanks to netgalley and the publishers for this read.

The Blackout is a gripping, fast paced read. Once I started it I just could not put it down, I was on the edge of my seat throughout. I absolutely loved it and highly recommend it.

Thank you to NetGalley and Avon Books UK for my ARC.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publishers for this ARC.

No phone, no money and completely wasted the only choice Meg and Cat have is to walk home in the dark, but when taking a quick shortcut they start being followed by two men. A year later and Meg is hiding in an abandoned cottage hiding from someone, but what happened that night?

This book was an easy read for me, the first half was action packed and super tense but it definitely slowed down and got a bit repetitive in the second half.

I didn’t really care for many of the characters as they didn’t really have an backstory, they were just there.

Not a big fan of the epilogue, I much prefer my books to have closure and it all be tied up in a neat bow 😂.

Overall a medium paced easy read with multiples povs and some twisty parts.

Thank you to NetGalley for my ARC.

I requested this book because I really liked the write up ‘This is a twisty locked-room thriller for fans of Sarah Pearse, Lucy Foley and Jane Harper that will leave you breathless.’ But this is not an author I’m familiar with.

Meg and Cat take a shortcut home and end up being chased into an abandoned building. We then catch up with Meg a year later as she hides out near a cliff edge.

What happened in that building all those years ago? Who is it that still trying to get to her now?

I liked the start of the book. There was a nice build up of plot as we alternated between the night a year ago and what Meg was up to nowadays. The character of Cat was a great one, I’m sure everyone would want her on their nights out.

However, I really struggled with how negative Meg’s life appeared. The night out goes from bad to worse. Her present life seems really unrealistic and unsustainable. There was no let up of anything positive happening to break that tension.

The locked in element wasn’t as long as you’d expect. But the situation went on and on. I found this difficult because not much happened. Again, the tension never altered which might frustrate some readers.

There were no big surprises in this novel for me. I found it quite predictable. It was a good idea but it just needs a bit of a polish to entertain all readers.