Serena and Stride are at a crossroad in their lives but when two separate cases and death knocks on their door, the vulnerabilities and their fierceness take center stage as they tackle the perspective cases. The author knows how to tell a complex story where the visually descriptive narrative puts you in the middle of all the actions and a variety of emotions are awaken as the solid plot plays out on the page and all you can do is sit back and follow along with what the author has intended. As this story reached a fevered pitch, the abundance of plot twists, some that gave me pause, enhanced my reading pleasure. When all was said and done, this book blew me away and I did not want it to end. I wanted more Stride and Serena. This is by far, the best book in this terrific series.

This is another winner in a series I like very much.

Jonathan Stride is recovering from a gunshot wound that nearly ended his life and his wife, Serena, is dealing with the death of a mother whom had no chance of mother of the year. Throw in a kidnapping and a cold case involving a suicide…..no way they could be connected, right?

The plot is intriguing, the character development is spot on, and the ending….well you will have to read it for yourself.

Highly recommended!

Interesting plot premise. Zero Night is an original plot. Love his books. Zero Night keeps you turning the pages well into the night. Great characters.

In 2018, when I started reading Brian Freeman’s Alter Ego, (#9 In the Jonathan Stride series), I kept thinking “wait, I KNOW this Jonathan Stride, a cop from Duluth, I recognize his house…” But then I thought maybe I was getting him mixed up with a character in John Sandford’s Lucas Davenport/Virgil Flowers series – or maybe it was in one of Owen Laukkanen’s Kirk Stevens/Carla Windermere series – holy crap, how many mystery/thrillers are set in Minnesota, right? Apparently, quite a few! It turned out to be a 5-star read for me. Thanks to Blackstone Publishing and NetGalley, I received a copy of The Zero Night, #11 In the Stride series, in exchange for this honest review. Since 2020’s Funeral For A Friend (#10 in the series) was only 4-stars, I jumped in, hoping for another ***** read.

Freeman is an absolute master at creating setting (I admit I keep feeling cold reading about Duluth in the winter). As this story opens, Stride is recovering from a gunshot wound After nearly dying of a gunshot wound, Jonathan Stride gets a call from his partner, Maggie Bei, calling with information about a suspicious abduction involving a local lawyer. Maggie tells Stride it’s time for him to come back to work.

Attorney Gavin Webster says he paid $100,000 in ransom to the men who kidnapped his wife. Now they’re gone and so is the cash, and his wife is still missing. Despite Gavin’s claims to be desperate to find her, Stride finds that there is plenty of motive for Gavin to have arranged the kidnapping himself.

Meanwhile, Stride’s wife, Serena, is having personal struggles and she loses control at a crime scene, drawing her gun on a fellow cop. As a result, she is booted off the kidnapping case and assigned to desk duty. She starts looking at a cold case that becomes an obsession.The strain on both Jonathan and Serena makes for a big challenge to their relationship, and it’s all combined to make a great read. Four stars…and while this one wasn’t a solid 5-stars for me, that is possibly more due to my summer malaise rather than a lack on Freeman’s part. I’m still a fan, and recommend him frequently.

Jonathon Stride is Freeman's best series. This was a Serena heavy story and all of it felt unconnected until the last 20 percent
It was good to see Serena have some closure and also to have some cold cases wrapped up.

Brian Freeman continues the Jonathan Stride series in stellar fashion. His portrayal of Stride and now lieutenant Maggie Bei is riveting, and Serena, with all of her problems, is also a well-developed character. They involve themselves in a kidnapping case that doesn't seem true. Freeman deftly develops the case with intrigue.
Thanks NetGalley for the ARC.

When it seems like a character has solved all the crimes, and an author can have no new ideas, you get a pleasant surprise like this one. Johnathan Stride is back in a mult-dimensional plot involving a kidnapping/ransom. Woven into the story is his own marriage relationship to give a genuine human touch to the story.

The eleventh full length novel in the Jonathan Stride series adds another exciting story to my favorite series. With timeless page turning and a family of characters, I feel this is a thriller treat.

This story has emotional aspects that keep it tense throughout. I’ve been pretty good with perp hunting on his books lately but seeing everything unfold remains very suspenseful. I hope the next Stride book is sooner than later!

Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for the opportunity in exchange for an honest review.

Brian Freeman just continues to stun me with this series. This latest STRIDE book is as good as any of the previous books, and I think the best of the previous couple of books. GREAT story, all subplots just as intriguing as the main story, and of course simply phenomenal characters with depth. This one deserves more than just 5 stars in my opinion!

Wow! Great book! This book had a bit of everything!! It had suspense, intrigue, action, murder and so many twists and turns! The storyline was very very interesting and kept me glued to my kindle! The crazy twists definitely got me good! Oh and I was so happy about the dog at the end!! That was awesome! I highly recommend reading this book! Its definitely one of my top favorites! Thank you Netgalley and the publisher for sharing this book with me!