Effortless entertainment, despite its longish length, Two Nights in Lisbon is easy to pick up and very bingeable (especially if you go the audiobook route). Fans of Taken and The Bourne Identity movie series should be able to find a lot to like here.

Chris Pavone's writing is punchy and brisk; the no bullshit attitude really helps maintaining momentum, even when the book veers into lengthy aside/commentary, and not moving plot, they are delivered with such conviction that I'm persuaded of their relevance. Not obvious at first glance, but Two Nights in Lisbon is 100% a story with an ensemble cast, and the number kind of sneaks up on you. Before you realize, you're juggling with 10+ characters critical to the central plot. While I did lose track of a couple names, I don't think it has impacted my overall enjoyment.

My main gripe with Two Nights in Lisbon is its ending. Even though I appreciate the general direction it has taken, it unfortunately invalidates the emotional journey of the protagonist up to that point—the reveal ended up introducing giant plot holes to the mix.

Two Nights in Lisbon is actually pretty smartly packaged, with an artsy, abstract cover, provocative title, and a strong female protagonist, even though under the hood it's very much a Lee Child/Harlan Coben type of action thriller storytelling—which are books I wouldn't have considered picking up. The atypical marketing worked, and I'm happy to say I did not feel tricked.

This book dragged for so long and not even the twists could save it. Also being Portuguese and from Lisbon, i found the all setting very Americanized and label us a bit as dumb from the start with hotel staff that don't understand English at least the basic??? when she is in a 5* or so what hotel? like no no no the whole plot was just meh and a bit over the top

Ariel Pryce wakes up by herself in Lisbon. Her new husband is gone. Has he been kidnapped? Murdered? Did he run out on her? The possibilities are numerous. The local police and the American Embassy don't seem to be concerned. But as we learn more about Ariel and her husband, other options emerge.

Is her husband scamming her? Can even Ariel be trusted? Is the conspiracy coming from the CIA? Or even the local Lisbon police?

Chris Pavone has created a wonderful novel full of twists and turns. Well written, with great character development, the reader is swept along on a sea of mystery. I highly recommend this book to all readers of mystery and suspense.

The story really dragged, but eventually, there were decent twists. I feel like the story would've benefitted from some tightening/fat cutting.

This is a fast paced thriller that keeps you on the edge of your seat from page one when Ariel wakes up in a Lisbon hotel and finds her husband gone. There's no note and he doesn't answer his phone. As the day wears on and Ariel becomes more distraught, she tries to get help from the local police, and then the American Embassy. Instead of helping, everyone seems to believe that her younger husband is simply off with another woman.
Parts of Ariel's life story are interwoven into her frantic search through the streets of Lisbon, but instead of slowing the story down, these glimpses of a younger Ariel deepen the tension. Scenes from the point of view of the police and the embassy staff add another dimension to the story. Two Nights in Lisbon has a very satisfying twisted ending and I enjoyed every single page. Highly recommended.

I did enjoy this book a lot more than I expected to, and the ending was a surprise. There were times though when I felt the story dragged a little bit and I felt like overall it could have been shorter. There were also a lot of great social issues presented, although at times it felt like the author was trying to make a case about injustices that no one was disagreeing with it.

Interesting concept. The characters were relatable and there was great development. Enjoyed it, but the pacing felt a little slow in the middle of the book. The ending was a surprise twist I did not expect. Overall, enjoyable book but felt a bit forgettable.

male authors stop writing female protagonists challenge because they are actively ruining them
two nights in lisbon felt like the longest book i had read this year, and i finished THE STAND
the writing feels like the author wanted to be a smart and pretentious writer who had many Big Thoughts but in reality he doesn’t know how to incorporate them without destroying the characters or pacing
main character infuriated me to no end - he wrote her like she was the hottest person on earth, either people fell in love with her or wanted to sa her
and the sa scenes. why was that graphic detail needed at all.
political aspect ruined the ending for me too - WE GET IT ITS THE FOURTH OF JULY AND THE CIA IS INVOLVED OMFG UNNECESSARY
pacing sucked plot took a nosedive at the end and the writing is too convoluted to know what its trying to convey

I just finished reading the book "Two Nights in Lisbon" by Chris Pavone. Many thanks to NetGally and Farar, Strauss and Giroux for an advanced copy in exchange for an honest review.
This story takes place in the beautiful capital of Portugal,, Lisbon. The story centers around a couple (Ariel and John) who are in Lisbon for John's work. One morning Ariel wakes up and finds that John is missing. She becomes frantic because there is no note and she cannot reach him by phone. SHe contacts the Police but they don't seem too concerned, so she goes to the American Embassy where she is met with the same non-chalance. While looking for clues, she is approached by a mystery man on a motorcycle who hands her a phone, which begins to ring. When Ariel answers the phone, she is told that her husband has been kidnapped and she has 48 hours to come up with 3 million Euros. Where is she going to get the money? How can the police or the Embassy help her, and who can she trust?...
Let me start by saying that this book is VERY long. I felt at times that is was too wordy, but it didn't stop me from reading it. The twists and turns and mysteries and clues made it exciting and difficult to put down.
I also felt that there were SOOOOO many characters that it was hard to keep track of everyone. If you decide to read this book (which I hope you do), I will suggest that you read it every day so you don't forget who is who.
The story is told from Ariel's perspective, both past and present. You learn about her past which helps explain her present actions in the book. Bet there is one main question which is only answered in the end and WOW, is it ever a GREAT answer.
I really liked this book. It had everything a mystery thriller should have: a main character that was sympathetic and brave and totally rootworthy, and a villain that had no redeeming qualities whatsoever. The other characters (Portuguese Police, the Reporter and John) were well written and equally interesting.
All in All a wonderful exciting, mysterious, thrilling, rollercoaster of a ride with such a great ending I can't even tell you. Definately a MUST READ!

3.5 Stars. Thank you to Netgalley and Farrar, Straus and Giroux for the e-arc. While this was a solid story it did take me longer than usual to read. The story was good enough and there was enough mystery to keep me going till the end. I like that not everything is told at once like you know enough but not completely so you have to keep going to find out

I started reading this book while in Lisbon! The imagery of the places that the author wrote about were very fresh and vivid in my mind. Ariel Pryce’s husband disappears one morning and she goes off on a somewhat convoluted search to find him. Parts of the actions that she takes don’t make sense until the end … and even so, they were a bit contrived. Other than that, it was a well written and very quick read!

This review was also posted on Goodreads.

Starts fast, lulls a little, winds up tight, springs to a sharp, smart, and cunning finish.
She wakes in a foreign country, realizes her husband is missing, and the race begins. There’s a deep seated motive underlying Ariel’s actions that she is carefully constructing a new life to put an old life behind her.
There is a plot hidden in here, only revealed later by layer to get to the truth, to the socially relevant core.
This is the first novel I’ve read by Chris Pavone, but won’t be the last.
Thank you to NetGalley, Macmillian Audio, and the author for an advanced copy. This review is my own opinion.

After reading this I'm keen to go back to Pavone's earlier novel Expats. Two Nights in Lisbon ticked all the boxes of a good thriller. It hit the ground running with a dramatic first chapter; it kept up the pace with clever plotting and cinematic prose and it had a great plot twist I didn't see coming. This would be an easy book to recommend to readers of contemporary thrillers.
Thanks to the publishers and Netgalley for an ARC in exchange for an honest review.

I would say this was a solid 3.5 stars for me. I wish we had gotten a little more background on Ariel and I felt like I could have used less about her son. I thought I knew where the book was going until the last few chapters. I liked the twist because it wasn't what I had predicted at all. Overall a great thriller. Would recommend to fellow thriller lovers.

The story begins well and Ariel’s frustration and desperation to find her missing husband is well portrayed. As we get to know more about her, you cannot help sympathize with what she has gone through in the past. The increasing interest and involvement of the police, Consular Services and CIA is left mostly unexplained in the first half of the novel so much so that it seems unrealistic. The “political” element of the thriller is introduced in the latter half of the story and adds significantly to the suspense and overall atmosphere of the novel

Thanks to NetGalley and. Farrar, Straus and Giroux for the advance reader copy. I had thought i reviewed this book before because I remember seeing it twice in my shelf. I looked for the review and I didn't see it on Goodreads or anywhere else. I am not sure what happened but I want to send my review now. The book was fast paced but a bit too long for a thriller. It was very twisted and quite an "edge of your seat" read. Imagine being away and your husband goes missing. Where do you go? What do you do? Read this book and see what his wife did. Good read.

I’m not sure how I ended up with this book twice in my netgalley shelf but I’ve reviewed this previous & really enjoyed it lol.

It took me over 100 pages to truly get into this book, and if I didn't LOVE one of the author's previous novels (The Expats), I would have given up at some point within those pages for sure. But I pressed on, and I'm glad I did, although Two Nights in Lisbon ended up only okay for me. I had two main issues with the book - the main character and the pace of of the novel. The main character, April, was not interesting to me at all. She had a strange attitude that I couldn't put my finger on - not superior exactly, not aggressive, maybe hostile? As the book goes on and we learn more about April's past, her personality makes more sense but for me, by that time, I was already on the path to not liking her. The other thing that I thought was strange was the pacing of the book - it felt very slow to me. It felt way too long, things took forever to happen, and it felt repetitive. For a thriller, none of these things are great to see. I will say that although I had a feeling about the ending, I was still surprised by it and I liked how Pavone wrapped things up. Overall I enjoyed the book but it was not anywhere near as thrilling and impressive as The Expats.

Compelling suspense with an unexpected ending. I felt that it got bogged down in the last third and I was anxious for it to wrap up. Still, a sold enjoyable read.

Similar to other reviewers, I loved this ride...but it felt long. The concept of an American woman waking up in a foreign country with her husband missing was gripping from the jump, with lots of twists along the way to keep you guessing. Overall, solid read!