Well, not really something you would read on Valentine's Day on purpose, it was a little different, especially considering the day.

I knew it would be emotional as per the hint in the blurb on the website. And the blurb was totally correct. A remembrance of what happened back in Nora's childhood that was affecting her was cray, cray. And I mean that in a good way. Not the event, but how she stowed it away and lived her life. That is, until her daughter reached a certain age.

I thoroughly enjoyed reading this book. I did not see the ending coming.

Thanks to Blackstone Publishing and Net Galley for providing me with a free e-galley in exchange for an honest, unbiased review.

This book hooked me from the beginning. It took me a little bit to get used to the writing style, but once I got used to it the book went along smoothly. This book covers a very sensitive and painful topic but does it in a very well written way. Parts of this book left me feeling emotional and raw. This book gives you an intimate look into the broken mind of Nora and the trauma that she has endured. This book is incredibly well written and a must read. This is a sensitive topic so keep that in mind when you pick up this book.

I really didn’t expect this novel to take all the twists and turns that it took. As the novel began to close, I couldn’t believe that the author really chose that ending for the main character. With everything that had occurred, it just didn’t seem right.

Nora is not content teaching high school like she used to be. Vacation is coming soon for her and her family but not before she begins to have visions. These visions scare Nora as they speak to her and mention subjects that she knows nothing about. Speaking with a psychiatrist, her visions evolve, causing Nora to fear them. I enjoyed this confusing period in the novel as it added a mysterious element and it created tension to many areas within the novel. As Nora speaks with her psychiatrist, we meet Margaret, someone from Nora’s past. Margaret was an important part of Nora’s past and she is needed now to help Nora get through this current period in her life.

I enjoyed this novel as it did a great job dealing with some tough issues but there were times when I was reading, that I thought it would have been nice to have more information on some of the individuals I was reading about. I didn’t think there was a lot of information about Nora’s husband. We knew the negatives but there had to be some positives in there somewhere, right? Her brother James, we know they were close but some information on their childhood would have sealed the deal for me. I liked Nora for the most part. She was intense, creative and her emotions were deep. I wanted something different for her as the novel ended, nothing nice and neat, just a different ending.

I received a copy of this novel from NetGalley and Blackstone Publishing in exchange for an honest review.

I received a free ARC from Netgalley in exchange for an honest review. This book didn't live up to my expectations. It starts off with a teacher who keeps "seeing" a little girl. She starts to see a psychologist who determines that her visions are due to a childhood trauma. Through the book, she is trying to work through the trauma with her psychologist, be a good mom, fix her marriage and continue teaching. The book was interesting, but not a captivating read. You discover what her childhood trauma was but nothing else really happens in the book.

I wanted to like this book, but I just couldn't get into it. I did not finish the book.

I was given this book for my honest review.

I really wanted to like this books. I thought for sure I would enjoy it based on reading what the book was written about. I thought I would be able to relate to the main character because our daughters are the same age. Unfortunately for me this was not the case and I didn't finish the book. I dont think the book was badly written. I believe someone who likes this genre and is not simply 'trying it out' would enjoy this book.

I don't know what I was expecting but it certainly wasn't this! I want to start this review by giving a trigger warning: this novel deals with child abuse and may be disturbing for some readers.

I thought that this novel would be a terrifying read based on the synopsis, but I did not expect it to be as emotionally evocative as it was. This is a book that deals with the way the human mind deals with trauma, and how it protects you from your own memories. This was a dark and gripping story, and you would be hard-pressed to not be affected by the things you read. The author did an absolutely fantastic job of weaving the past and the present together, and illustrating how memories can be distorted. This novel delivers on so many levels, and it took me by surprise from the start. If anything, I would want the story to be a little longer to explore the issues mentioned in the book further. This is a solid 4/5 star book and I would recommend this to anyone who is looking for a dark and emotional psychological story (but keep in mind the trigger warning)!

Thank you to NetGalley and Blackstone Publishing for this ARC in exchange for my honest review.

I just couldn't do it. I was not a fan, I could not get into this book. I was disappointed.

This story is beautifully written and a very emotional read. Although this book deals with child molestation and mental health issues, it does so with great insight and compassion as one woman deals with her childhood demons.

My thanks to Netgalley, the author, and the publisher for the opportunity to read and review this book.

It is absolutely incredible to me that The Night Child is Anna Quinn's debut novel. She writes so smoothly and in such a polished way, that it is hard to believe she has not been writing for decades.

The Night Child is an excellent book; the beautifully told and powerful story of Nora Brown and her struggle to survive what she assumes is mental-illness. A high-school English teacher, Nora is married to Paul, and together they have a young daughter Fiona who is about to turn six.

At the end of school one day, Nora sees the floating face of a child. This terrifies her. She sees it again, and yet again when the child tells her to "remember the Valentine's dress". Panicked, and fearful that she might be mentally ill like her mother, she immediately seeks help. It begins a journey of self-discovery that she never imagined.

Quinn shows much psychological sensitivity to the subject she presents and the reader is spellbound as we learn what Nora's story is. Watching her discover, and deal with the truth, gaining the support of some and losing the support of others as they also come to terms with it is heart-wrenching.

This is a riveting and important read. Anna Quinn gives a voice to the children who survived this nightmare, to those trying to survive, and to those who couldn't stop believing it was their fault, couldn't continue, and are forever lost to us.

Many, many thanks to the author for writing this, and to NetGalley and Blackstone Publishing for allowing me to read an e-ARC of this most memorable book. The opinions expressed in this review are strictly my own.

I cannot review this book properly without a spoiler flag.

A poignant read by an author who spent a decade working on this, her debut. Powerful stuff. I could hardly put it down. An excellent book club read. So many questions to explore.

Spoilers below the cut...

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~


This is a very poignant story about the terrible damage that child abuse and child sexual abuse can cause. Major trigger warning for those with a history of abuse, though the final moments of this book can only be described as uplifting. As someone who spent years doing work within the child welfare system, I can definitely state that the extreme reaction to the abuse shown in this book is not an exaggeration. Children do what they can to survive their experiences and while what is shown here is a rarer solution, compartmentalization can go this far.

A detailed insight into the life of a family when the wife discovers she has a multiple personality, which has been hidden for many years...to escape the pain in her childhood. Very well written, sad but worth the read. The physiatrist character provides the reader with an account of how to deal with and reconcile, or at least accept the fact that her father abused her, and to try and get on with her life..

I have seen a lot of advanced praise for this book so when I was granted a copy of it via Netgalley I was incredibly excited to dive in. I have always been a big fan of the dark and twisty psychological thrillers this, however, fell a little flat for me.

The good: This made a great vacation read and I was able to go through the whole novel in a day and a half poolside. The premise was good and made you think about the way that your past may be intentionally burying itself in our subconscious to protect and insulate us from emotional trauma.

The not so great: It may be a function of the copy I received but I found myself confused at times about what characters were in each scene. More delineation between especially the male characters would have helped this tremendously.

Trigger warning for abuse and mental illness.

Based on other feedback that I read, there are a lot of people who really enjoyed this story. Please don't let my lukewarm response prevent you from picking up this novel.

Thank you to Anna Quinn, Blackstone Publishing and NetGalley for the opportunity to read this book in exchange for an honest review.

I enjoyed this story. I did not expect it to end the way it did but it was interesting.

THE NIGHT CHILD is the dark and moving debut novel from Anna Quinn. I feel like I should include a trigger warning, but on the other hand, a trigger warning gives you a heads up as to what is going to happen and I think it's best to let the author tell the story as she intended. Just be aware that there are very disturbing elements within.

I'm not going to run down the entire plot for you, but it begins with Nora, a high school English teacher, seeing an hallucination of a face with startling blue eyes. Here begins Nora's decline. Whose face it and what does it mean? You'll have to read this to find out!

Being a seasoned reader of dark fiction, I pretty much knew where this story was going as soon as I began reading. Anna Quinn does a good job at depicting all the different psychological aspects of this situation, including the reactions of other family members and coworkers. My only problem was this: I didn't care for any of the characters. I felt pity for Nora and for her immediate family, but maybe that's what the author intended? Perhaps Nora's coldness was yet another symptom of her underlying issues and partially the result of her husband being such a jerk?

That said, this was a touching and disturbing story dealing with heartbreaking situations and I believe that it deals with mental illness, (or coming to terms with difficult, horrendous circumstances) in a stark, but believable way. For that reason, I recommend this book to those who think they can handle the worst of humanity.

*Thank you to NetGalley and to the publisher for the e-ARC of this book in exchange for my honest feedback. This is it.*

The Night Child was an unexpected surprise. The writing is very terse and suspenseful and the reader can really get a feel for the characters. Nora is suffering some time of psychological breakdown and begins to see a therapist to dig deeper into her distress. While this happens, her husband may or not be having an affair and she is raising her 6 year old daughter. Nora begins to have a breakthrough with her therapist and what is revealed is part of her childhood that she pushed as far away from herself as possible. The book is great for about the first three-quarters and then loses a bit of its believability at the end. Still, a worthwhile story.

Intricate and delicate, this novel took me a bit to get into but held on tightly once I was in there. I'd recommend it to friends, particularly those that like thrillers.

Nora lives and teaches in Seattle with her husband and six-year old daughter. Though things have been a little strained in her marriage recently, that alone doesn't explain how unsettled she's been feeling. When she starts seeing the ghostly face of a young girl, she fears she is coming apart at the seams. After visiting her doctor and a neurologist, she finally seeks the help of a psychiatrist, fearing that she is losing her mind. What she discovers in her therapy sessions will change her life forever.

The beauty of not familiarizing myself with a book's summary prior to starting it is I go in not quite knowing what to expect. Having had the book for a while before starting it, I made assumptions about the genre based on the cover and title: a thriller, maybe a paranormal thriller. But I couldn't have been more wrong.

Very much a character driven story, this is about Nora coming to terms with childhood trauma that she had suppressed for decades. Facing her demons is necessary to her healing, and that healing leads to upheavals in her life that she doesn't think she can bear. But through the process, she learns more about herself, giving herself to let go of things in her life that she doesn't really want after all, opening herself up to new possibilities, and becoming more whole.

The journey is a painful one, and I felt all along the way. The story is beautifully written, and empathizing with Nora took no effort whatsoever. From the first chapter, I was pulled fully into her world, and putting it down was my only struggle.

Note: For those who might be intensely affected by themes of child abuse (in any form), I will say that this book is emotional, but not overly graphic. This is NOT A Little Life or Sybil or When Rabbit Howls (all books I've read that wrung me out, agonizingly painful). None of the very short scenes of her recollecting her childhood trauma are gratuitous, just informative enough to get across what happened to her. Still, I think it's important that people know about these kinds of things going in.

In a nutshell, an exceptionally emotional and well-written book that I'd recommend wholeheartedly.

Absolutely an incredible read. Emotional, beautiful, touching.

And here’s another truth— ultimately, you are the one who will save you. Not me. You. You’ll have to work hard . Harder than you’ve ever worked on anything in your life. I can support you, advise you, but in the end, you are the one who will reconstruct the broken pieces, patch the cracks. You will make the choice to transcend this—whatever it is.”

“And for the record, most of what I know comes from my life, not school. Don’t you think for a moment I haven’t had my share of hell.”

“You’ve been guarding this secret for a lifetime, Nora,” he says gently. “You don’t have to anymore. You don’t need to. It’s the secrets that make us sick; it’s the telling that heals.”

Anna Quinn has done an Amazing job with this book. It is a beautifully written story about some not so beautiful things. A story of strength, recovery, and accepting your past and everything inside of you.

The Night Child is about Nora; wife, mother, teacher. Despite watching her mother die as a young girl and being left by her father, she doesn’t feel broken. She has accepted everything… Or so she thought. The first time she sees the girls face she convinces herself she imagined it, but when it happens again she decides she needs to talk to someone. However talking is bringing up things she never imagined. She soon finds herself torn apart and her world falling to pieces, until she faces it she can’t heal.

I’ll admit that this book was a little bit of a challenge for me personally. I never wanted to stop reading but I had to put in down a few times. The way the author discussed the subjects was appropriate as well as feeling completely real in the way flashbacks can happen at times, with seemingly meaningless objects or phrases as triggers. This is a book everyone should read but not everyone will be able to read. I absolutely loved this book!