I didn't know how I would feel about this one when I started it, but a friend recommended it, so I went for it! It was a good one, but It was hard to keep reading at times.

Mary Kubica writes stories that get not only let you crawl inside the psyche of her characters but into the psyche of yourself.

This wasn't my favorite of her books. I loved her others better. But thank you for letting me read it.

Thank you NetGalley for the opportunity to review this book and thank you to the publisher. I always enjoy a book by Mary Kubica. Thank you for letting me review “When the lights go out.” I recommend this book but I am a fan of the Author. I hope you will give it a read. I give no spoilers. It was a fast paced thriller and those are my favorite types of books. Looking forward to reading more books by the author. #WhenthelightsGoOut

I loved Mary Kubica’s previous books, but this one was very infuriating. I absolutely hated the ending.

Reading this book was a struggle. The first half was tedious and largely detailed the physical and mental manifestations of sleep deprivation/insomnia. The story, which flips back and forth in time with the mother and daughter, takes you convincingly (and ploddingly) a path of how Jessie Sloan’s became Jessie Sloan. The ending, which is probably intended to be a twist, is confusing and a complete let-down. A truly disappointing read.

I really love Mary Kubica and her writing! This was another great, fast paced thriller, with an twist ending I did not see coming! Great book!

Well that was an interesting read. I have to admit, it wasn't my favorite from Kubica. I absolutely loved the first half of this novel, but Kubica slowly started to lose me a little more and more as the chapters went on. I thought the beginning of the novel was great and really intriguing how it would go back and forth between past and present, but the story really lost its steam around the halfway point.

Honestly, this book was pretty entertaining, I was just disappointed by the ending. I thought it seemed like Kubica put so much work into the story and then got tired at the end and just threw something together for the ending. It just didn't feel right for the novel and I hate that such a great story had such a weak finish. I hate to admit it, but I probably wouldn't recommend this read to friends. Thank you to NetGalley for sending this novel in exchange for an honest review.

Rating 2/5

Perfect suspense. Mary Kubica is a master of plotting. I am always in awe of the way she spins a story perfectly and wraps up all the loose ends. You can never go wrong with one of her books.

Mary Kubrick does a great job of drawing the reader into the stories of Eden and Jessie. The story was a complicated one including the death of a mother, another mother who is infertile and a child who wants to know who she is. I really loved the story of Eden and her quest to have a child, but her desperation ultimately became her downfall and also stretched the imagination. The tale of Jessie, who was unable to sleep and just counting the days until she felt she would just go ahead and die from lack of sleep, elicited sympathy. I didn’t really relate to either character, but I did like how the author slowly interweaved their stories and had so many twists, especially with Jessie’s landlady. I found the plot slow to develop but at the same time mesmerizing because I wanted to find out what happened to Jessie. Readers of psychological thrillers will enjoy this new book by Mary Kubica and will delight in figuring out the meaning of the title.

This was not my favorite Mary Kubica book, but I did enjoy it. I just didn't stay as engaged with the characters or mystery in this one. I liked Jessie, and I was rooting for her, but I found myself not as invested in the ending. I really liked the take on insomnia, and this book had a little Nightmare on Elm Street vibe which I enjoyed. I think that if you are a fan of Mary Kubica, definitely give this one a go.

Just when she thinks she's going to be able to start her life over, starting college and getting her own apartment, Jessica finds out that her dreams of beginning college aren't going to pan out. Her social security number has been flagged, she can't enroll. In When the Lights Go Out by Mary Kubica, split second decisions may ruin the lives of more people than could have been imagined.

Jessica is grieving the loss of her mother, and you can feel that grief hard through out this novel. She took most of her life caring for her mother, and now she has time to do the things that she wants, but she feels guilty at the same time. As the story progresses, we get to see the life of Jessie's mom pan out, as Eden, her mother, is narrating several chapters. 

We get to learn about some things in Eden's past that may have an affect on Jessica to this day, and it's interesting to see how someone can make a rash decision, only for it to ruin a life twenty years in the future. This book has a lot of twists, but they weren't that surprising to me.

I really do like Mary Kubica, but I felt like this was a run of the mill type of thriller. If you would even consider it a thriller. It's interesting, and it's a good book, but nothing super exciting happened. I give this book 3 out of 5 stars.

Unfortunately, I was unable to get into this title. It just wasn't a good fit for me. Thanks so much for the opportunity to read this title. I will not be posting a review online, in order not to skew the ratings.

Mary Konica is one of the best writers of our generation and I can never say no to one of her books! I am forever waiting for her next masterpiece and this book definitely will go down as a masterpiece.

I have voluntarily read and reviewed a copy of this title given to me via NetGalley. I really enjoyed this book. It was really well written and it just had you trying to solve the mystery. I look forward to seeing what’s next from this author.

When the Lights Go Out tells the story of Jesse Sloane living life after her mother's death from cancer. She realizes that she may not be who she thought she was and starts searching for who she really is. Kubica has a way of telling a story inching the reader along with little bread crumbs until the big reveal. This story was lacking believability/interest for me, because how could you be so clueless about not ever using or seeing your governmental documentation. Jesse is an adult and she has never thought about taxes, passports, drivers licenses, having a bank account, etc.... The idea of this story is good even the ending redeemed the story somewhat, but it is hard to get to the end.

I loved the premise of this story and was excited to read Mary Kubica’s latest. I thoroughly enjoyed her novel “Every Last Lie”. This current storyline fell flat for me and definitely was not one of her best.

I have enjoyed Ms Kubica’s other books but this one just missed the mark with me. Jesse is a young woman whose mother just died. She is grieving and suffering from insomnia but refuses to get any help other than talking to a guy she met in the hospital. She did not instill sympathy in me. I wanted to tell her to grow up and see a doctor. The twist about the missing social security number and birth certificate could have been suspenseful but it fell flat for me. I kept reading to discover the meaning of it but the ending was disappointing. I gave it 2 stars because the style of writing, switching from mother Eden to Daughter Jesse, was interesting. I liked Eden’s storyline better than Jesse’s. The lesson here was- don’t keep a secret from your family that will come back to haunt them after you are gone. Thanks to Netgalley for allowing me to read this. I will give Ms Kubica’s works another chance.

When the Lights Go Out by Mary Kubica is going to be one of those absolutely love it to I don't get it kind of books. But there is one thing that is for sure. It will stay with you. It will disturb you and on some levels, it may even soothe you. But it will not be easily forgotten.

Jessie Sloane's mother is dying. The cancer taking her away bit by bit. Jessie has been caring for her for years and now that the time is so close, she is not sure how she is going to move on with her own life. She rents a new apartment and applies for college. But her life begins to unravel when the college informs her that her social security number has raised a red flag. It seems that it belongs to someone else.

"...It's the strangest thing,' she says. 'There was a death certificate on file for a Jessica Sloane, from seventeen years ago. With your birth date and your social security number. By the looks of this Ms. Sloane,' she says, and I amend Jessie, because Ms. Sloane is Mom. 'By the looks of this, Jessie,' she says, and the words that follow punch me so hard in the gut they make it almost impossible to breathe. 'By the looks of this, you're already dead.'
And then she laughs as if somehow or other this is funny..."

Still trying to process the grief she feels, Jessie does not know what to make of all of this. She doesn't even know where her birth certificate is and she has never gotten a driver's license. There simply was no need for one. She hasn't been sleeping and the insomnia is beginning to play tricks with her mind. She is seeing and hearing things that are not there. The thin veil between reality and dreams has begun to unravel in her mind.

"...It's just most little girls call their mother Mom or Mommy.'
She leaves it at that and so I ask, 'And I didn't?' thinking suddenly that Eleanor is mistaken. That she's wrong. Time has altered these memories of hers, or she's mistaken Mom and me for some other cleaning lady and child. Another child with dimples like mine. Because in all my life, she's only ever been one thing to me-Mom-or so I think.
Eleanor shakes her head and at the same time I see my hands before me, gripping the edges of the countertop, also shaking.
'You didn't,' she says. 'You called her by her given name.'
Eleanor tells me that Mom would put up with it to a certain extent but then every now and again she'd get down and whisper in my ear, We've talked about this, Jessie. Remember? Same as she said about my own name. You're to call me mom.
'For a short while, you'd remember. You'd remember to call your mother, Mom. But before too long, you'd forget and go back to calling her by her Christian name, Eden..."

Twenty years earlier and two hundred and fifty miles away, Eden is moving into her beautiful new home with her husband. Only one thing would make her life perfect. A baby. A precious baby girl to call her own.

Mary Kubica is one of those female writers who everyone was quick to compare to Gillian Flynn when Gone Girl exploded across the literary marketplace. But now Kubica has carved out her own spot on the landscape and When The Lights Go Out is a terrific addition to her brand of creepy mystery novels.

When The Lights Go Out is not your typical mystery and it is hard to go into this without giving away too much of the story and I would hate to do that. It is a emotional and mental trip through a sense of lost identity. Who are you really if you are not who you grew up believing you were. Where do you turn? Who do you trust?

The grief Jessie goes through is palpable and the angst as well. The desperation that fuels Eden is tense and frightening. When the Lights Go Out is a tour de force by a writer well into her craft.

A terrific and disturbing tale.

I didn’t like this novel. It was very disjointed and dragged. Not what I usually expect from this author. Thank you for the opportunity to read this novel.