Kate Green, former professional soccer player turned sports reporter, is volunteering at her children’s school when her best friend, Yvette, frantically tells her that police are swarming her mansion home. The two women quickly drive to Yvette’s house, only to learn that her husband Kurt, a local celebrity and NBA player, has been murdered in their kitchen. Yvette is adamant she played no part in his death, but she quickly becomes the primary suspect in the case. To prove Yvette’s innocence, Kate must work closely with her estranged father, an NYPD detective, to solve the case and uncover the truth.

Lights Out was a classic domestic thriller with the added element of having an amateur detective main character. This was by no means a bad book, but it was missing some of the fast-paced twistiness that I’ve come to expect from this genre. The writing was well-done, but the plot dragged on at times. Kate was also a polarizing character, since she was written in a way to make the audience root for her, but I found her somewhat unlikeable. Overall, I’m not unhappy I read this book, but I am on the fence as to whether I would continue the series.

3.5 stars

Thank you to NetGalley and Thomas & Mercer for an advanced copy of this book in exchange for my honest review!

I read this book and the information went into my head and then it went right back out. I couldn’t connect with the characters or retain what actually happened. I tried audio and kindle version, I am going to try the actual book and see if I make it better.

I really enjoyed this book. It was different than anything else I've read recently. I couldn't put it down! I will keep an eye out for this author's future work!

I very much enjoyed this book, I finished it in like 2 days. The audio is now available on KU! I would definitely recommend. The plot was great and fast paced.

It was a pretty good book and I finished it in a day.
I enjoyed seeing the unraveling of the story and finding out who murdered the husband.
I’m looking forward to more books with Kate Green!
Definitely would recommend this book.

This was very rare for me but I couldn't finish this book. I tried multiple times but it just wasn't grabbing my attention I went back to it to try again but again I just couldn't get into it wasnt for me. From what I read it was very slow paced. Maybe I will try again

Gripping, right from the start—you won’t be able to put this book down! If this book spins off into a series with the main character becoming an investigative journalist, I will read every one. Nancy Drew meets Erin Andrews in the female main character, Kate Green, who is almost too curious for her own good. The story line is well thought out and will keep you guessing until the very final twist. I thoroughly enjoyed this author’s writing style, and I appreciated that there was only one point of view because that helped keep the suspense going. Highly recommend if thriller/suspense/dramas are your genres of choice.

Picked this one up because all of the reviews on Amazon were 4s and 5s, so I was hoping for a truly un-put-downable thriller mystery.... I put this book down many times.

There are so many different side plots happening that are just thrown in haphazardly to give the characters more substance but then take away from the plot that we're already trying to focus on. The main story is that Kate's best friend's (Yvette) husband has been murdered and, as they should, the police start their efforts by looking into the wife. However, we only dive into that for a moment before we're told that Kate has to take her son to therapy because - oh? - he almost died by an overdose a short while ago? And this is really rocking their family dynamic.

But wait, back to the murder! Actually no, not yet, we also have to find out that not only is Kate an ex-pro soccer player turned journalist, but she's actually a DISGRACED journalist right now because of a video that got leaked. But we're never truly told what happens in the video (or if we are, I don't remember because so much other unnecessary stuff happens).

We also have ample descriptions of food and clothing, and don't forget that Kate thinks that anyone who drinks their coffee any way besides black is crazy and that drinks with sugar and milk are too "froo-froo". I thought in the year 2023/2024 we had left coffee-shaming in the past.

The murder plot is FINALLY resolved in the last 10% of the book, and it feels like it's now a race to the finish to get through the rest of the necessary information in 30 pages or less. I won't spoil any of the details but just know... none of it was explained well and then we get a "shock" with like 10 pages left. None of the characters truly developed, the murder plot seemed to take a backseat, and everything seemed to be repeated 100 times.

Not my cup of tea, but it is an easy book to read so recommend if you need something as a palette cleanser after a fantastic, 500+ page book.

💛𝙱𝚘𝚘𝚔 𝚁𝚎𝚟𝚒𝚎𝚠💛

💡💡💡

📄: 𝟸𝟽𝟿 𝚙𝚊𝚐𝚎𝚜
🎧/📱:𝙰𝚞𝚍𝚒𝚘 𝚊𝚗𝚍 𝙴 𝙱𝚘𝚘𝚔
😐: 𝚈𝚎𝚜 𝙸 𝚆𝚘𝚞𝚕𝚍 𝚁𝚎𝚌𝚘𝚖𝚖𝚎𝚗𝚍 𝚒𝚏 𝚃𝙱𝚁 𝚒𝚜 𝚜𝚑𝚘𝚛𝚝
🗓️: 𝙽𝚘𝚟𝚎𝚖𝚋𝚎𝚛 𝟷, 𝟸𝟶𝟸𝟹

𝙴𝚟𝚎𝚛𝚢𝚘𝚗𝚎 𝚑𝚊𝚜 𝚍𝚒𝚏𝚏𝚎𝚛𝚎𝚗𝚝 𝚘𝚙𝚒𝚗𝚒𝚘𝚗𝚜 𝚜𝚘, 𝚛𝚎𝚊𝚍 𝚒𝚏 𝚢𝚘𝚞 𝚕𝚒𝚔𝚎.....
*𝚂𝚙𝚘𝚛𝚝𝚜 𝙼𝚞𝚛𝚍𝚎𝚛 𝙼𝚢𝚜𝚝𝚎𝚛𝚢
*𝙰𝚞𝚍𝚒𝚘 𝚘𝚗 𝙺𝚄
*𝙵𝚒𝚛𝚜𝚝 𝙱𝚘𝚘𝚔 𝙸𝚗 𝚂𝚎𝚛𝚒𝚎𝚜

I read and listened to this one but think I liked it better when I read it. Maybe I just didn’t like the narrator. The story is fine. Has suspense and makes you question who done it but nothing I’m going to tell all my friends about. I believe there’s gonna be a second book and I’d probably read it.

This was a decent debut novel. Did it knock my socks off? No. But it hooked me in quick, was a fast/easy read, and left me wanting to know how it was going to play out even though it was all pretty predictable.

Kate is our main character here. A sports reporter on suspension who takes it upon herself to investigate the murder of her best friend’s hubby who also happens to be a famous athlete. Kate has some pretty heavy family stuff going on herself, which was a solid attempt at character building here. The thing is, everything Kate did through basically this whole book was just so far fetched and unrealistic that it was hard to actually like her. There were a ton of side characters, some more relevant than others, most adding very little to the actual meat of this story. And all of the men were awful, literally not one of them was even a halfway decent dude.

What worked? Kate’s story itself was compelling. She’s a strong career woman who is also a single mom. She loves her kids and their relationship was both entertaining and heartwarming. She’s a badass chick who didn’t take any nonsense from anyone, including her estranged detective father who enters the scene. The novel was fast paced and quick to get through, and the last 20% or so were wild.

What didn’t work? Honestly the writing felt a bit amateurish, but it’s a debut novel so there is grace for that as far as I’m concerned. The story and ending were pretty predictable overall. And a lot of it was not so far fetched that it was hard to connect with.

The ending left on a a pretty cheesy cliffhanger, but I gotta tell ya, I will probably be back for more. IN HOPES that the author does a deep dive into Kate, her life, and relationships and gives us more depth there. There is potential.

Thank you, NetGalley and Thomas & Mercer for providing me with an eARC.

Wow! What a fast paced novel. I found myself unable to put this down and finished it in one day. I would definitely recommend this to those looking g for a fast thriller.

If you are a fan of sports and enjoy thrillers this one is for you. It’s fast paced and starts off with a bang, throwing the reader right into the action. This is definitely a great start to a promising new series. Even more unbelievable is that this is a debut novel!

Basketball star Kurt Russel is found dead in his home. His wife Yvette learns this when she is decorating for a Halloween dance with her best friend Kate. Kate, was a professional athlete and now is on the other side as a sports reporter. She will stop at nothing to clear her friend Yvete from her husband’s murder. Kate is uncovering more than she expected while also trying to keep her job and reputation intact!
𝗥𝗲𝗮𝗱 𝗶𝗳 𝘆𝗼𝘂 𝗘𝗻𝗷𝗼𝘆:
Short chapters
Fast paced thriller
Strong female characters
Sports

This book was okay, left too long and not enough thrill. I thought the ending could've been a little more exciting

This is a great story that is well laid out. It is engaging and has a lot of thrills. The mystery of the killer is pretty well identified early on but it still retains its excitement. There are enough characters to keep it interesting and the way they are woven together by the end is well done. I can’t wait for book 2!

This was overall pretty good, but I didn't tear through it like I thought I would, based on a lot of reviews I've seen. That said, I enjoyed the main character and would really like to read further books in the series, especially as she works through her relationship with her dad -- also can't wait to see what additional fuckery her stupid ex-husband gets up to.

3 stars

Would like to read more from this author

“Lights Out” follows Kate, a former professional soccer player turned sports reporter who finds herself in the middle of a murder investigation when her best friend’s husband, a renowned NBA star is found murdered. Yvette, Kate’s best friend, is the prime suspect in the murder investigation but Kate is certain that her best friend did not commit this terrible crime.

Kate spearheads her own investigation, unravelling secrets and lies along her way. Despite the skepticism from the police department, and the public, Kate sticks to her gut and truly believes that her friend is innocent. The story unfolds as Kate navigates amateur sleuthing and a race against time to save her friend from a life in prison.

This book was very well written. I was hooked right from the beginning and couldn’t put it down. I wanted to know what was going to happen next.

This book was an engaging and quick read. I rated it 4 stars as there were many questions I had that were left unanswered. Hopefully there will be a second book that will answer all of my questions.

I really like this book. It has everything: murder, family drama, suspense, mystery, and a thrilling story.

NBA superstar Kurt Robbins is killed, and the prime suspect in his murder is none other than his wife…and Kate’s best friend. Kate knows that Yvette’s marriage isn’t exactly stable, but her friend is no murderer, and Kate is determined to prove it with her investigation. While she tries to salvage Yvette’s life, Kate’s own continues to unravel. Her career is in limbo. Gossip columns speculate about her future. Her children are battling their demons. And her estranged father suddenly reenters her life as a detective assigned to Kurt’s homicide case.

Kate has a lot on her plate, but she is intelligent and a loyal friend, even to those who may not deserve it. Everyone in this exclusive community knows each other and has their own little secrets. The story is well-written, easy to follow, and hard to put down...Fantastic Debut Novel, with a brilliant ending and I highly recommend it.

Reviews Posted on GoodReads, Amazon, Barnes and Noble, and Bookbub

Thank you, NetGalley and Thomas & Mercer for providing me with an eARC.

Heart pounding thriller that left me on the edge of my seat. I thoroughly enjoyed reading this one. Definitely one of the best books this year.

I really enjoyed this debut novel and look forward to the next book in this series in 2024. Former Olympic soccer player turned sports reporter Kate Green is going through a rough patch in her career. On top of that, NBA superstar Kurt Robbins is murdered and the main suspect is his wife, Kate’s best friend Yvette. Kate’s quest to prove Yvette’s innocence puts her squarely in the path of her estranged father - an NYPD detective assigned to the case. Kate’s teenage children have never even met her father Liam. Kate’s career limbo gives her plenty of time to become an amateur investigator and she’s really good at it. She uncovers many secrets, lies, and betrayals. Thanks to #netgalley #thomas&mercer and #elisehartkipness for this ARC in exchange for an honest review.

This was a really 𝐠𝐫𝐞𝐚𝐭 debut thriller that was filled with 𝐒𝐎 𝐌𝐔𝐂𝐇 𝐃𝐑𝐀𝐌𝐀 - secrets, affairs, betrayals, money, and of course…murder!
I was afraid that I wasn’t going to enjoy it since I’m not a sports fan but there’s only some occasional references throughout but definitely enough for a 𝐕𝐄𝐑𝐘 enjoyable plot!
Overall, this was a fast-paced read with short chapters which I always love and twists and turns in every chapter!
I suggest pre-ordering this super suspenseful thriller 𝐍𝐎𝐖!