Excellent read, easily the best I’ve read in a long time! This is a thriller that captivated me from the beginning and I couldn’t wait to find out the secrets but still dreaded getting to the end of the book because then the crazy ride would be over. Highly recommend!

The book was definitely a crazy ride, get this: A new psychological thriller from suspense powerhouse S.F. Kosa featuring a decades-old secret, a mysterious cult fire, and a woman looking to outrun the ashes of her past...until they come roaring back once more.

I am familiar with cults and the psychology behind it (lots of Documentaries), however this is the first fiction book I read about them. I would say if you're not familiar with cults, or are interested in reading fiction books about them, this is a good start, it's dark but not too dark for a beginner.

Loved the writing style, I was on the edge of my seat, assuming things were one way for them to turn out to be totally different. Great cliffhangers and red herrings, you won't believe it!

All the characters and situations inside the cult were so accurate and creepy. It's so fascinating how anyone in a vulnerable position can find themselves in a cult without knowing it's a cult 😳

I loved this book. One of my favorite elements was the strong sense of place, with the Central Oregon high desert location. That was also a strong feature of Kosa's first book, The Quiet Girl -- not the location itself (which in that book was the environs of Cape Cod), but the fidelity and vividness with which she rendered it.

This book, Kosa's second, is much more polished than The Quiet Girl, although it shares some techniques: a powerful use of alternating timelines, and a deft hand at introducing telling clues at just the right point.

Otherwise, they couldn't be more different. The Night We Burned is set on the opposite coast, and includes characters who are rootless and without resources. They fall prey to a cult, with a doomsday scenario. One member manages to escape the carnage and create a normal-seeming life, which is threatened when news stories begin to revive that cult's history.

I liked Dora, the cult-survivor-turned-fact-checker. She was mixed up and devious, but my sympathies were with her. Anyone who thinks the drama was hyped need only remember Waco and Jonestown.

Thanks to NetGalley and Sourcebooks Landmark for an advance readers copy.

Hands down one of the best thrillers I have read in a long time. S.F. Kosa is able to wrap up a thriller like no one I have read before. Readers will have no choice but to stay up late into the night reading this amazing psychological thriller.

This is a have to read author!

Thank you to Netgalley for a copy of S.F. Kosa The Night We Burned.

This very well crafted thriller kept me guessing until the very end- so no spoilers from me! Dora might have escaped the Oracles but she can't escape herself and now her past is threatening her. She's put herself on a rigid rigorous schedule, keeps apart from others, and works hard as a fact checker for an online magazine. When Max one of the writers, decides to take on an intriguing story about a former cult member who has been murdered, she knows that she might lose everything. This alternates chapters between past and present. You know, don't you, that Ezster's invitation to Christy will lead to trouble. The evolution of the Oracles and Dora's desperate effort to keep ahead of Max and Noah, a college student who has been working on identifying the unidentified victims of a horrible fore as well as possibly living members of the Oracles come to a head. You, like me, might guess part of this but I didn't get it all and was surprised. The end is a bit over the top to be sure but it works. Thanks to netgalley. A real page turner!

#TheNightWeBurned #NetGalley
Fantastic.
Dora is always aware of the line between fact and fiction. As a fact checker at an online magazine, her job depends on it. And as a woman outrunning her secrets, so does her life. But when a murder crops up in her old town, one linked to a deadly fire at a cult compound twenty years prior, suddenly all of Dora's carefully spun deceptions are at risk.
Because she's seen a murder like this before. She knows what the police missed.
And if she doesn't stop the story, she may be next. As Dora follows the journalist, altering facts to hide her identity along the way, she's thrown back into a world she tried desperately to leave behind. One of ritual and belonging, of danger and darkness. A world where two girls promised to help each other through...until it all went up in flames.
And Dora knows, she won't be lucky enough to escape twice.
It was really gripping. Omg I couldn't put it down. Brilliant job by the author.
Thanks to NetGalley and Sourcebooks Landmark for giving me an advanced copy.

4.5 stars! What a thrilling, page-turner of a read! The story line unfolds over two timelines - 2000 when Parvaneh belonged to the Oracles of Innocence Cult, and 2020, when an online reporter realizes that a murder is linked to the Oracles, and Dora, the fact-checker, who does all she can to keep her past a secret. As each timeline unfolds, you know something bad is coming in 2000. And the TWIST near the end - such a great use of dual timelines!!!! I don't want to say too much for fear of ruining the story for someone else, but this is a fantastic thriller with great characters.

"Dora is always aware of the line between fact and fiction. As a fact checker at an online magazine, her job depends on it. And as a woman outrunning her secrets, so does her life. But when a murder crops up in her old town, one linked to a deadly fire at a cult compound twenty years prior, suddenly all of Dora's carefully spun deceptions are at risk.

Because she's seen a murder like this before. She knows what the police missed.
And if she doesn't stop the story, she may be next.

As Dora follows the journalist, altering facts to hide her identity along the way, she's thrown back into a world she tried desperately to leave behind. One of ritual and belonging, of danger and darkness. A world where two girls promised to help each other through...until it all went up in flames.

And Dora knows, she won't be lucky enough to escape twice."

Thanks to NetGalley for the free ARC in exchange for my honest review.

Dora thinks she has successfully left her past hidden behind her until one day it all comes crashing down. Working for an online up and coming magazine as an editor and fact checker she attends a staff meeting one morning when Miles, a hot shot investigator discusses a story he wants to look into involving a religious cult, an horrific fire with few survivors and a terrible murder all linked together that would unmask Dora and her carefully hidden past.
Dora decides to work with Miles and try to get ahead of the story before he discovers the truth. As her deception threatens to reveal the horrors of that night so long ago and Miles relentlessly pursues the truth of the dark secrets of the cult Dora becomes increasingly desperate to outrun her past.
Thank you NetGalley for the advanced copy in exchange for my review.

The Night We Burned is absolutely incredible. A dark and captivating look into cults that kept me turning pages as fast as I could read!

The Night we Burned is a novel that tells the story of a cult. I have never read anything like it...

I was instantly captivated by the story of Dora. Dora has some dark secrets that she is trying to put in her past. Can Dora truly run from the one thing that still haunts her to this day?

You have my attention S.F. Kosa! I see you! this was an incredible read that you will not be able to put down. I am still at a loss for words after reading the conclusion (very well done) . I do not want to continue as I do not want to leak a spoiler but I will say this, YOU DO NOT WANT TO MISS THIS!

I have always been fascinated by cults so I was really excited after I read the synopsis of this book. It did not disappoint. I kept reading and reading to see what was going to happen next. The twist at the end was so surprising and made me want to re-read other parts of the book now that I would see it in a different light. I really enjoyed this book and would definitely be interested in reading more from this author. I received a free copy of this book from netgalley and the publisher in exchange for my honest review.

The Night We Burned is a fascinating, disturbing and sad look at cults and cult psychology. Dora confused and frustrated me but her actions were understandable. I sympathized with her and wanted things to end well for her. There are surprises—some can be guessed but others are skillfully placed and unexpected.
At one point Dora thinks, “No one ever joins a cult. Not on purpose. They hook up with nice people. They connect with the message of a strong leader. They feel like they belong when the rest of the world has stomped on them or turned them away. And that’s why they stay. It’s not like it’s better on the outside, right?”
Advanced reader copy courtesy of the publishers at NetGalley for review.

I had no idea what to expect as I began to read this book. But it turned out to be so much more and so much better than I expected. Kosa tells the riveting story of what it is like to become embroiled in a cult. Although fiction, it read like it could have been a real story, How the protagonist gets taken in step by step and what happens to her and those around her along the way. Twist ending I did not see coming.

I read a copy of this book on NetGalley.

Stancie CHamberlain

I was so happy when I seen this book on my approval list! YAY!!!!!
And let me tell you it was everything and then some! Amazing writing first off rip! Like I absolutely loved it!
This fast-paced thriller will have you wanting more! I know I couldn't stop reading and wished it didn't end ever!

5 HUGE STARS!!! This novel knocked my socks off!!! The Night We Burned is a mystery/thriller that is centered around Dora, a survivor of not only a cult, but a cult that most of its followers died in a horrific fire. Twenty years have passed and Dora has done her best to put that life behind her, but that’s all about to change!

Ohhhhh my, this book is completely unputdownable! The twists and turns are plentiful and so darn well-placed! I can think of several times that were so jaw-dropping, I actual had to reread to make sure I read it correctly. I have never read S.F. Kosa before, but I am officially a fan and she will definitely be an automatic 1-click author for me now! The Night We Burned is a 5++++ star novel that would make a fantastic book club selection! In fact, I’ve texted friends/family that they need to pre-order this gem because I NEED to discuss this novel in depth!

Wow just wow. I really enjoyed this book. The book follows Dora, who is a newspaper fact checker who is hiding a dark past. The problem is that her past is suddenly coming back as the anniversary approaches. Suddenly Dora follows a journalist who she works with and is covering a story that could bring her past to life. She starts altering facts to hide her identity along the way, she's thrown back into a world she tried desperately to leave behind. One of ritual and belonging, of danger and darkness. A world where two girls promised to help each other through...until it all went up in flames.

This book was fantastic. I read it in one sitting. I was completely pulled into the stories and the characters. Excellent book!!

I really enjoyed this twisty thrill ride! It was well written, dizzying from the numerous twist and turns, thrilling, chilling, and shocking! Very fast paced, but one that intrigues you until the end! A bit of a roller coaster ride, which will loop you around and keep you wondering what’s next and what’s actually happening, but once you finish you know you loved the entire ride! Highly, highly recommend!

Will make sure to buzz around and use low Amazon reviewer number on release!

An excellent addition to the crowded thriller genre. A recommended first purchase for collections where similar titles are popular.

Thank you to #NetGalley and to #SOURCEBOOKSLandmark for this ARC in exchange for an honest review.

A fast-paced read filled with some good twists and turns. I thoroughly enjoyed this novel.

This book had me guessing until the last chapter. The story moves back and forth between 2000 and 2020 as it follows characters of a cult in Oregon and how the fair in the present day.
Dora, a copy writer and fact checker at an online magazine travels from Portland to Bend with her colleague to solve the mystery of a fire that ended the infamous cult 20 years prior; did anyone else not found survive and if so, where are they now? As truths are discovered and character backgrounds are explored, the reader is drawn deeper and deeper into the story. I could not wait to read about the last night and the deadly fire, but at the same time I wanted to know more about the present day characters and what lengths they would go to to keep their secrets in the past. I was at the edge of my chair and guessing almost until the very end. Even after discovering some well kept secrets, I was so invested in the story line I could not put this book down until I had finished it.
The study guide at the end was useful to fully explore themes of the cult and the characters. And now that my pulse has settled and my nerves are calm ... I’m ready to explore more in depth about this book!