This was a great read but, unfortunately, did not hit hard as a thriller.

Jia is a single mom of 12 yr old Ishaan. Her divorced status makes her almost a pariah due to her Indian culture. When Hurricane Harvey hits Houston, TX, Jia must take her son to her sisters home and into an unknown danger.

What I loved about this book was the intricate details on Indian culture and the different families/siblings' lives and relationships. I loved how in-depth the author went with each character's background. The main issue I have with this book was how the thriller aspect of the story just didn't have my full attention. However, as a family drama, this was excellent.

Out January 16, 2023!

Thank you, Netgalley and Publisher, for this Arc!

I love reading books like this that take a genre that I love, mystery, and they integrate a closer look at a culture that maybe I didn’t have any type of background knowledge into before reading about it. I really shouldn’t be surprised at how the Indian culture deems woman, yet I really was. It saddens me to know that woman are so disregarded. Especially those that feel they need a divorce. Yet I am glad to see a book that is bringing that injustice to light, even though it is not really the main focus in this book. The mystery is really quite fun. The twists are reveled at the perfect times, and the realizations tie up the book nicely. This will be a great book to recommend.
Thank you to Penguin Group Dutton and Netgalley for allowing me to read an advance copy of this book.

It took me a while to get into this, but once I got going, I found it pretty good. I would most definitely take the chance and read more from this author!

This was such a fantastic read. I enjoyed the twisty family dynamics that kept getting revealed as the storm went on.

Unusual and very interesting plot.
I thought the character development was on point and there was several good twists to the story.
Great debut novel.
Would like to see another book by this author.

I love locked room thrillers and love to see how each one is different from the next. This story, while it was a locked room thriller, definitely had more of a domestic and family situation going on. It took a while to get the story moving along, but a good read.

I am so thankful to Dutton Books, Nishita Parekh, and Netgalley for granting me advanced digital and physical access to The Night of the Storm before it hits shelves on January 16, 2024. This wasn't necessarily MY CUP OF TEA, but I can't wait to deliver this book to one of my dear friends to see how she likes it.

The Night of the Storm tells a catastrophic tale of the before, during, and aftermath of Hurricane Harvey as it made landfall in suburban Texas. Our main character flees to her sister's home for refuge but finds that she opens a whole new can of worms as someone in this family is OUT FOR BLOOD and is working in cohesion with the steadily arriving natural disaster. Everyone in the family has a secret and if you think your family has drama, just you wait until you dive into this hot mess.

2.5 stars rounded up

The cover and the title of this book drew me in. I love a good locked door thriller but this was definitely more domestic drama than thriller for me. The beginning was very slow. It definitely picks up at the end and I really enjoyed the final twist, but overall this was just okay for me.

Thank you to NetGalley and Penguin Group Dutton for the advanced copy in exchange for my honest review.

Thank you to netgalley and dutton group (penguin) for sending me an arc of this book for an exchange of my honest review

rating: 2.5/5 stars

While I was drawn in by the cover and synopsis, the book just wasn't for me. I struggled through a huge chunk of it. It was more of family drama than actual thriller and some of the characters were just incredibly difficult to connect with. The end was good, though it took a lot for me to get there. I'd give this author a second chance because the writing style is good, the story just was not my cup of tea.

This wasn't the book for me. It started so slowly I nearly gave up on it. I just couldn't believe some of the decisions made by Jia and that made it hard for me to connect with her. The ending was compelling but not all readers will make it that far.

This one was a struggle to get through for me. The last 10% was, honestly, great. However, I really didn’t like any of the characters and felt the rest of the story was choppy and cumbersome.

When I read the synopsis for this book, I thought that I would be hooked. I settled in for what I thought was going to be an immersive experience, but instead family drama began. I mean I am a sucker for some good family drama. If you met mine you would see why. Honestly, I was bored throughout this book. It was sort of predictable and just didn't speak to me.

This was the first book I have read from this author and I did enjoy the story. The book is about Jia, a divorced single mom, whom is in the middle of a hurricane warning and goes with her son to stay with her sister and brother in law, along with other family, to ride out the storm. While the storm rages on, people start dying, and Jia is trying to figure out who is the murderer and how is she going to survive to get her son and herself to safety.
This was a good book overall, however, some of the twists were predictable and I had wished it was faster paced and a little darker than it was. Overall, I enjoyed the book and would recommend it to those who enjoy a thriller with mystery, family drama and secrets, along with trying to survive a natural disaster.
Thank you to Netgalley, the publisher, and author fir the ARC of this book!

This book had me panicking and second guessing myself! A claustrophobic mystery/thriller set during a hurricane where a family must shelter together and try not to kill each other. Until someone actually does.

Thank you to Penguin Group Dutton and NetGalley for this ARC in exchange for my honest review. All opinions are my own.

The title and cover reeled me in. The beginning was promising, but it fell flat and the shock factor wasn't there. It was very predictable. It had storms, murder, family tension, but it did not grab me. I hated everyone.

The Night of the Storm by debut novelist Nishita Parekh takes place in Texas during Hurricane Harvey. The book follows Jia, a recently divorced mother of a 12 year old son Ishaan. Jia is just trying to make ends meet and make sure Ishaan stays out of trouble. When Jia recieves word that they must evacuate their apartment due to possible flooding from the strom. Seema, Jia's older sister wants her and Ishaan to bunker down at her house in Sugar Land. Against her better judgement Jia decides to go. As the flood waters keep rising and Vipul, Seema's husband keeps making advances at Jia she knows that she must tell Seema the truth or leave the safety of the house with Ishaan. When one of the guest's suddenly dies everyone in the house is a suspect, including Ishaan. This book had an unbeilvable twist at the end that I didn't even guess. Nishita Parekh gave an beautiful history of of the Indian cultural and how even living in America, women are seen with less worth. That surprised me the most. If you liked the the following books then you will love The Night of the Storm. The Guest List by Lucy Foley, Every Vow You Break by Peter Swanson, The House Across the Lake and The Only One Left by Riley Sager, The Guest House by Robin Morgan-Bentley, and She Started It by Sian Gilbert.

I received a copy of this from NetGalley in return for an honest review.

1.5 stars rounded up

This was marketed as a locked-room mystery/thriller. While yes, the characters were technically locked-in, it was more drama than either mystery or thriller. It had a really interesting layout and setting for a good mystery where all the characters are trapped and unable to leave due to a hurricane, and there were really interesting family dynamics that came up. However, due to the time jumps and fact that there was only one POV where it was clear Jia wasn't revealing necessary information (which can be fine if done well), I never felt connected to any of the characters and instead found myself annoyed by Jia and her actions. She was very judgey, yet hated that everyone was judging her.

Characters aside, I also found the writing style a tad annoying as well. Every chapter ended the same way, with a big suspense only for no payoff in the next chapter. There was so much tension in the house amongst the characters but nothing really seemed to happen. Even when there were murders it was over characters that weren't built enough to care about so it didn't seem like a big deal either. And the pacing was very slow. I feel like this book could have been at least 50 pages shorter because there were so many chapters that didn't have impact on the overall story. In the end, if this book was marketed as a family drama or something in that realm, it would have been more accurate.

The writing for this one was a little choppy at times, so it took a little for me to get hooked. The last half was exciting and suspenseful. The twists were sort of predictable (even the very last one, I predicted early on) and I found the idea of no one evacuating for the storm somewhat unrealistic. There was a lot going on beyond the murders and it was interesting to read about the Indian culture and expectations of women. Everyone being stranded in the house definitely added to the suspense and wondering who you could trust. For a debut novel, definitely recommend!

Thank you NetGalley for the ARC! Review live now on GoodReads.

An enjoyable domestic thriller! A locked room murder mystery set in Houston during Hurricane Harvey. This debut novel, featuring an Indian extended family, touches on divorce, motherhood, family dynamics, and cultural pressures/expectations. The conclusion made perfect sense without being too obvious, my favorite type of thriller ending! The ending had me on the edge of my seat. A solid, entertaining thriller with a standout setting!

Thank you NetGalley and Dutton for the review copy.

I am a big fan of locked-room mysteries and loved the idea of a family trapped by a massive hurricane and facing the prospect that one of their number is a murderer. I was also drawn in immediately by the author’s warm introduction of believable people, an aspect that is often missing from such mysteries. It is bad enough to be caught up in a Category 4 hurricane, even worse when the family squabbles make being confined together so difficult, and adding a murder to the mix is REALLY tough!
I am not a big fan of family dramas, though, and as the book progressed I became a bit impatient as it was obvious that the family’ s many issues, like divorces, adultery, and parenting, were the focus rather than the mystery.
I guessed the solution to the mystery halfway through the book and was disappointed in the denouement.
As a result, I cannot recommend The Night of the Storm for dedicated mystery buffs, but the family drama was very well done and likely to please those who enjoy books about family dynamics.
Many thanks to NetGalley and PENGUIN for this advance review copy.