I had not read any of Wendy Walker’s previous books but I had heard good things about them, so was thrilled to get this ARC.

The book starts off purposely vague. Laura has taken leave from her job as an analyst for a Wall Street firm, supposedly because of an extremely bad breakup. She’s returned to her hometown and is living with her sister, brother in law and nephew. One night she goes out on an Internet date and doesn’t come home. We know there’s something off about Laura and something we don’t know about her past.

The chapters alternate between Laura and Rosie and thus we are given their different perspectives. The chapters also bounce around on the timeline. Therapy sessions with Laura from months before, the night of the date with Laura and the day after with Rosie.

I didn’t know what to make of Laura. She recognizes she’s got issues, she calls herself broken. As the book goes on, we learn more and more about those issues.

I usually know where things are going with books like this. But not with this one. I did not see either of the big twists coming at all.

I love that this book delves into keeping secrets and how much damage it can do.

My thanks to netgalley and St. Martin’s Press for an advance copy of this book.

Laura shows up at her sister Rosie’s house after being away for ten years, seeking respite from a heartbreak. Her sister and husband Joe encourage her to go on dates. Finally, she gives in and goes on a blind date with a guy she met on a dating site. When Laura she doesn't come home afterwards, Rosie becomes frantic with worry.

The Night Before is told from the perspectives of Laura and Rosie, As the story unfolds, buried secrets begin to unravel, The reader also gets insights into Laura's life through her sessions with her therapist. Overall, an engaging thriller with twists and turns that will keep you turning the pages.

I received an ARC of this book in exchange for an honest review.

This is my second Wendy Walker novel to read and I just have to SHOUT a huge KUDOS to her!!

Dark, demented and crazy are just some of the adjectives I’d use to describe this psychological thriller…I seem to have a pattern of reading these lately but, they’re my favorite genre.

Laura has had man issues since her childhood and ends up going on a date with a man from a dating site..everything that happens after that is something you have to read for yourself!! It’s much deeper than that but, you’ll find out and you’ll be left with the same feeling as I. Wendy Walker hit a home Run with this book!

A HUGE thanks to St Martins Press for the arc of this book! I haven’t finished a book this fast in a long time!

Thank you MacMillan for the arc. I have been wanting to read this author for awhile. This book did not disappoint. The mystery kept me engaged and the twists were fantastic, I highly recommend.

Wow! I read this one in a huge thriller binge-session (5 books!) and it was definitely my favorite. It’s a really well-written, twisty and fun thriller: Laura has a troubled history of bad romantic relationships and after a particularly bad break-up, she returns to her small town and moves in with sister Rosie. She ends up going on a blind date with a mysterious man one night and fails to return home the next day, forcing her sister and childhood friends to try and track her down before it’s too late. The author does a great job using time jumps (Laura’s troubled youth, Laura’s bad date, Rosie searching for Laura the next day when she goes missing) to build several interweaving mysteries. I loved formidable female characters and the sister relationship at the center and thought the various twists and ending were very well-executed. Thanks to St Martin's Press and Net Galley for the advanced copy!

“The Night Before” has been on my “want to read” list for quite a while and I genuinely enjoyed it. A young woman, suspected but never charged with a crime in her youth, suddenly quits her job and moves in with her older sister’s family in the hometown she escaped a decade earlier. In an attempt to go through the steps of a normal life, she goes on a date with a guy she met on an app and doesn’t come home. Her sister is left to wonder if she was harmed or if she harmed someone else. There were a couple of big twists I didn’t see coming and I liked the flashback/current time structure with various chapters narrated from different characters points of view. It added to the building tension of what happened back in high school and what’s happening now. I’d recommend this novel.

The Night Before is one of many recent psychological thrillers, with the whole woman-in-danger thing, but on steroids. The publisher’s blurb was vague, and that is probably a good thing, as it made the surprises more effective.

As the story opens, a woman named Laura is getting ready for a blind date, and she isn’t totally sure she is ready to date again after a bad breakup, but she is intrigued enough by this guy’s picture, his profile, and their conversations, and she is feeling hopeful and excited, which clinches it—she’s going!

Laura has recently moved back to her hometown, and moved in with her older sister Rosie and Rosie’s family. Laura was involved in a tragic, mysterious incident, years ago, and although no one seems to know what really happened, Laura knows Rosie is still worried about her. Maybe with good reason: Laura goes on the date, and vanishes. Rosie, her husband, and a friend try to figure out what happened, but they need to unravel the mystery of what happened to Laura years ago.

Lots of twists and turns, good suspense, and the alternating narratives make it hard to trust anyone, since everyone seems to be hiding something. Thanks to St. Martin’s Press and NetGalley. Four stars.

I found this book to be intriguing. I was fascinated by Laura and trying to understand her mindset and thinking. I was very interested on things that had happened in her childhood and how they had affected her so many years later as an adult. This story was well writing and it was spun into a web of lies that make it difficult to understand people’s motives.
This is a story about Laura Lochner who experiences a breakup which leads her to return to her home town after so many years. She moves in with her sister, Rosie and brother-in-law, Joe and nephew Mason. Laura has history in this small town, as a teenager her boyfriend was murdered. So coming home is very difficult and it brings up memories and feelings that make Laura’s head spin. Laura’s effort to get over her breakup joins on online dating site and plans to go on a date. When the morning comes and Laura has not returned Rosie is concern and starts looking for her.
Will Rosie and Joe find Laura? Will Laura come to terms with her past and will she ever get home again? Will they ever understand why things had to happen this way?

Laura Lochner is back in her hometown and living with her sister Rose. They are a close pair and with Rose’s husband Joe and his best friend Gabe, they have always been a tight group. After a tragic death, Laura has tried to start her life over, away from home. Something happens that brings her back and she tries to get her life on track. She is going on a date with someone she matched up with online. The story takes us between the present and the night before when Laura meets up with the mysterious Jonathan Fielding. When she doesn’t return home the next morning, Rose sets out to find where she is and just who this man really is.

I loved how this story took us between the actual date, the search for Laura, and her sessions with a therapist. You learn so much of the back story of how she got to be who she was and there are a few excellent twists thrown in. I cannot say I saw what was coming but it all made such perfect sense. I loved the character of Laura. The way she was written, you could just see all the wheels turning in her brain. You could see how she wanted to be so different than how she was. So much of what we are is a product of the past and not only our own past.

Definitely a page turner! It comes out May 14th so put it on your radar.

Thanks to Netgalley and St. Martin’s Press for an advance copy of this book. They are really one of my very favorite publishers.

This book was just ok. It was definitely maybe a 2.5-3 star range for me. I didn't love it but I didn't hate it. The characters felt underdeveloped, the plot was kind of contrived and the "reveal" wasn't super earth shattering in my opinion. And honestly possibly even a little predictable. The writing flowed well and it was fast paced and very readable try to read it in as few sittings as you can so you stay enveloped in the story. This book will work great for some. It was just ok for me.

Twelve hours earlier, she was... Hopeful. Excited. Safe. Now she's gone.

Now THAT is how you draw a reader in! As soon as I read those few lines I knew I had to pick this book up right away.

One Thursday night, Laura goes on a blind date with a man from a dating website and never returns home. From there, the story line alternates between Laura and her sister, Rosie, detailing hidden secrets from their past and the difficulties of the present. Without spoiling any more of the plot, I can tell you that this book completely threw me through a loop.

This was a quick read and very hard to put down. If you want a suspenseful, twist-filled thriller, then look no further!

Thank you to NetGalley, St. Martin’s Press, and Wendy Walker for the ARC!

I don't know where to begin. I'm in awe of the way Wendy weaves an amazing story together that keeps you guessing from start to finish. Her writing is impeccable. The story flows well and the characters are top notch. From about 70% on I couldn't put the book down. I was dying to know what was going to happen. If you love being on the edge of your seat this is the perfect book for you!

The Night Before was an enjoyable read overall. Although I didn't love it, it was definitely good enough that I'd give another Wendy Walker book a try.

Laura Lochner heads out for a first date and doesn't come home that night. Her sister, Rosie, is worried. Did something befall Laura? Or should she be more worried about her sister's date? The story moves back and forth across timelines and perspectives and I found the first half moved along really quickly and it kept my attention. And it was a quick twisty-turn style of read. And then there was a twist that came out of nowhere and it didn't work quite as well for me. I'd give it a 4 for the first half and then 3 for the second half.

Thanks to NetGalley, the author, and St. Martin's Press for the opportunity to read an advance copy in exchange for a review.

The Night Before is the second book from Wendy Walker I’ve read. This thriller follows two sisters who uncover long held secrets when an internet date spirals out of control. I may be in the minority here, but I wasn’t a fan of this thriller at all which is unfortunate because I really loved Wendy Walker’s other book, Emma In The Night. I found this book to be underwhelming and too predictable. The book starts off a bit slow and doesn’t pick up until about a third of the way into it. Though I enjoyed the various perspectives, the writing felt flat and a bit repetitive. The characters lack depth. The main character, Laura, seems to overthink too much and most of the characters just make bad choices which you can’t even feel sorry for them. I’d recommend skipping this one as there are better thrillers out there.

I so wanted to hole up in my safe little den and read this thriller until the last page, but life kept getting in the way! You will find yourself hooked right away and reeled in just so far, thrown back out (with all the puzzles you thought were solved, ripped apart), reeled in again, etc. Love the way the story was told, through the eyes of two sisters, with transcripts of Laura’s therapy sessions slowly revealing pieces of the puzzle, Getting to know the five main characters was a treat, with facets of their stories slowly revealed in chapters clearly labeled with specific time frames, which definitely helped develop both the story line and the suspense. Just when you think you know... another twist and turn...you will be guessing until the end. Many thanks to Wendy Walker, St. Martin’s Press (who seem to publish the best thrillers), and Net Galley for affording me the opportunity to read an ARC of this excellent thriller, soon to be released on May 14th. Don’t miss this one!

Thank you to the publisher and Netgalley for the Advanced Reader Copy in exchange for an honest review.

It took me some time to get into this book, but once I did, I was hooked!
Laura Lochner goes back to her hometown after an unexpected breakup with her boyfriend. She moves in with her sister, her brother-in-law and her nephew. When Laura goes out on a date with a man she met online, and doesn't come home the next morning, her sister and brother-in-law are worried. As they search for her, some events from the past resurface and Laura's past and present behaviour is put into question.

I couldn't put this book down once it got going, I just HAD to know what happened to Laura on the night she disappeared. A really good keep-you-guessing thriller!

I enjoyed The Night Before by Wendy Walker. I found it entertaining but sadly, wasn’t as engrossed in the book as I thought I would be. It had a good plot and twists I definitely didn’t see coming but found the end very cliche and predictable. Overall, I’ve rated it a three stars and added my review onto my GoodReads - blog and Instagram review to follow.

Thank you to NetGalley, Wendy Walker and St. Martin’s Press for the free e-book in exchange for an honest review.

Laura has never been lucky in love because she always falls too hard and fast for the wrong men. Devastated by her last breakup, she fled her current life to move back in with her sister in her hometown. She is still haunted by the tragedy that over took her life when she was a teenager and it makes her more willing to go on dates with men from online. Rosie has spent her whole life looking after and worrying about her younger sister. Laura’s return has upset Rosie’s peaceful life and she can’t help but wonder why. When Laura doesn’t return home the morning after her date and Rosie fears the worst has happened. She won’t answer any calls and she left no information behind for her family to be able to find her. Rosie begins the desperate search for her sister and worried not only about what he may have done to her sister, but what her sister has done to her date.

I loved that the chapters went back and forth between the past and present to see the story unfold from a totally different way and from two different people. I loved how it was so fast paced that I couldn’t help but to keep reading because you just had to know what was going on. There were so many twists and turns in this novel that I didn’t see coming because you begin to trust these characters and there is one that we shouldn’t trust. It is so easy to trust Rosie in this novel and you don’t know what’s going on with Laura, so it was easy to mistrust her even though you didn’t know why. The writing was just fabulous and I was addicted to these characters and the storyline. I would definitely recommend this novel to anyone! It is a must read for me!

Out May 14th!

Thank you to NetGalley and St. Martin’s Press for giving me the opportunity to read The Night Before by Wendy Walker. in exchange for a honest review.

I really enjoyed this book. It had just enough twists and turns and had me guessing "who done it". The book flowed very well and was an easy read. I will definitely be reading more books by Wendy Walker.
I never really got a deep connection with the characters though.

I really enjoyed this book from start to finish! I could not figure it out the whole book on who it was that was doing this to Laura. I love books that keep you guessing and also don't have the villain come out of left field. I really liked the character development of Laura, at first you think she is just some airhead but then throughout her story you learn the depth of her character. I love the bond between Laura and Elise, it reminds me of my own sister and my dynamic, yes you love them and will do anything for them but also they get on your nerves and you get fed up with them when they do the same thing over and over again.