This was a great mystery! I definitely suspected everyone! I do think I don't love how dev and Jais relationship got wrapped up at the end. He is after all a pedophile and that was weirdly glossed over but other than that liked it.

I'm always down for a locked room thriller and The Night of the Storm is just that. I enjoyed this one and found all of the cultural information really interesting as well.

Usually, I wouldn't say I like mysteries but I loved this one. It was amazing. Thank you to the author for making this book

This was a great debut for a new author in the Thriller genre. I loved the storm premise of the story. The family drama was juicy. The ending packed a last-minute surprise that I didn’t see coming.

**Thank you to the publisher for allowing me to review this book in exchange for an honest review.**

Thank you to Netgalley and Dutton for the eARC! If you enjoy a locked room trope and family drama in a thriller - this book is for you. The plot was predictable but in a way that allowed for some realism and the motive for murder was genuinely shocking! It's a feat when a novel is well-plotted and twisty, often I find with thrillers it's one or the other. I'm so looking forward to the next outing from Nishita Parekh, this was a stunning thriller!

I liked that this followed an Indian family because I like to read diversely and read stories from cultures different from my own. I was interested in the dynamics of the family however, I found the book to be really predictable. I didn't guess every twist, but I did guess the overall twist and a few throughout. I still enjoyed it but because I read so many thrillers, this one likely won't stick with me.

The Night of the Storm is a locked-in murder mystery that takes place over the course of a night in which a family is trapped together during a hurricane. Jia is a single mother trying her best to raise her son (Ishaan) while fighting for custody with her estranged husband. When a hurricane hits Houston Tx, Jia and Ishaan flee their apartment and head to her sister, Seema's family home. Once there secrets and lies begin to unearth with the rise in flood waters. We spend a good half of the book getting to know the characters and the flaws that plague each character ranging from adultery, communication issues, mansplaining, and custody battle. For a murder mystery, I felt there was more of a character study on family dynamics than a suspenseful whodunnit.

When we finally got to the big plot twist reveal, I was disappointed and slightly bored. I quickly had guessed who the murderer(s) was/were and had an inkling on why they did what they did. The story was said to be a fast-paced thriller, but unfortunately, it fell short of both fast pace and thriller.

I was excited for this, but ultimately feel unfulfilled at the close. I am giving it 3 stars as I appreciate the author's skill at creating characters with depth and the family dynamic/drama.

Tropes: Locked- In Murder, Family drama
Triggers: Cheating, Adultery, Custody battle, dysfunctional family, murder, hurricane, storm, flooding

The Night of the Storm by Nishita Prekha is a well written story that I really enjoyed reading.

The characters were complex, and well developed.

The Night of the Storm is a locked room thriller set during a hurricane in Texas. Jia and her son take shelter with her sister’s family when all hell breaks loose. As the storm escalates, tensions rise quickly, and soon someone’s dead. Jia immediately begins her own investigation which seems to be putting her in a bad light.

Jia is naive and she could’ve been honest with her sister and her son months prior to the night this book takes place. It seems everyone in this book is hiding something. If everyone had been honest, a lot could’ve been saved in these relationships.

While I figured out the villain very early on, I didn’t see the other twists at the end coming. I enjoy a good locked room thriller and this was entertaining.

Thanks to Netgalley and the publisher for this copy! This book is available now.

2.5*

Based on the premise, I was pumped to give this book a shot. A locked-room thriller that takes place over the course of a single night! A dysfunctional family harboring secrets from each other while in close quarters! Sadly, Night Of The Storm by debut author Nishita Parekh didn’t quite hit the mark for me.

The story follows a family trapped inside during Hurricane Harvey and unravels as secrets, opinions, feelings, and murders (??) come to light. Quickly our characters realize that this won’t just be a matter of getting through an annoying night stuck with family members that push their buttons- but a matter of literally surviving the night.

I like that this book defines the characters and the stakes very clearly right from the start. But I really didn’t jive with the writing; it felt very clunky, info-dumpy, and exposition-heavy, even well past the halfway point. You’re essentially spoon-fed the mystery, the meaning, and everything that happens throughout the night, and I really craved a more engaging way of getting to know the characters rather than just constantly being told every element and every back story. Especially when there are so many characters (none of which I cared about whatsoever), it just gets old after a while. I personally love hypothesizing when reading a thriller/mystery, and it seemed more like the author just wanted to guide the reader right along the same pace as the main POV character.

I think there are a lot of good ideas here- a solid premise, some interesting-enough themes, and even a *really fun* final chapter reveal. But the execution leaves a lot to be desired, and overall this book just fell flat for me.

Thanks to Netgalley and the publisher for the digital ARC in exchange for an honest review! (I also purchased my own copy of the audiobook.) Night Of The Storm is out now.

Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

My Selling Pitch:
The most generic thriller whose only selling point is that it's not about white people. It tries to redeem a pedophile and a murderer for the sake of the kids!

On my do not read list.

Pre-reading:
This looks like the most generic thriller based on the cover, but I do love a locked room mystery.

Thick of it:
Girl and you didn’t take that as a massive red flag?

Panoply

Exigencies

It’s a bit overwritten, but that’s kinda typical for the genre.

What garbage anime boy is her son in the audiobook?

Schadenfreude

This book is giving written with a thesaurus.

Girlypop is a bad sister. You show your sibling those messages, the fuck.

It’s giving boy mom. Hey Bestie, if you’re convinced your son is going to steal something from your sister‘s house, maybe you need to do a better job of parenting.

This writing is really bad.

What kind of idiot mistakes pepperoni for tomatoes

Is it really his kid? I'm gonna go with no. (YUP.)

Let him have the fucking iPad. You’re not better than us.

And I’ve hit dnf cringe levels.

It’s so overwritten.

I feel like Indian guy who’s a finance guru is also a stereotype. Like is that not just a variation on the Genius Bar?

Oh, this just got wildly racist

Wait, who the fuck is Molly. This introduction to her makes no sense.

Literally no one is going to classify her as a bad mom because she has to Uber to an appointment while her car is in the shop. Literally no one would think that. Also, you have a week to fix it and the entire town, including where your evaluation is, is getting its shit rocked by a hurricane. Things get damaged in a hurricane.

Literally everyone in this book sucks and deserves what they get.

Girl, you can change a tire.

I feel like they’re gonna try to make Vipul seem like the villain, but it’s just Seema. (YUP.)

It feels very insensitive to talk about your child like that. Also, if you’re not prepared to raise a son, don’t have one.

All this culture shit is insane and only reinforces how fucking toxic and patriarchal those traditions are and why you should fucking get rid of all of them.

But like you literally live in America. You’re a grown ass adult who’s not financially dependent on them. You don’t have to do any of this.

I don’t wanna be disrespectful and be like fuck this culture, but fuck this culture. It cannot co-exist with feminism at least in this iteration of it

Listen, I like a ginger as much as the next girl, but I don't think anyone’s calling them the perfect specimen.

If he's cracked out on caffeine, how did he shoot a video with steady hands?

Oh, did she actually have an affair with the neighbor and that’s why she’s making her kid learn Spanish and he's faking a limp? (YUP.)

Oh, I guess at least they’re aware that he’s a fucking liar.

No one has vinyl flooring in a multimillion dollar home, especially in Texas.

Mullioned

A sam!

So Vipul replaced all 4 tires last month, so obviously his wife is slashing them. How dare he spend money on another woman lol.

I mean you were a bit of a willing participant. You asked him to get milk.

She's a shitty mom.

Wow, what terrible body positivity!

Uh, not responding is not innocent, my dude.

The glass is literally always on the wrong side.

I’m so bored. I guessed the book like the second I opened it, and it’s not well written.

Dude, what is it with thrillers this year trying to give pedophiles redemption arcs?

Fusillade

Nadir

Why are you letting her literally get away with murder? She's not a good mom lmao.

Imagine monetizing your brother’s murder.

Wow, incredibly bad. Going on the do not read list.

Scintilla

She ate off their dirty dishes in the sink. That’s disgusting.

Post-reading:
This is a terrible thriller. I cracked it open and immediately knew what happened. All the characters in this book suck. They're one-note cliches. They don't feel like real people. No one in this book reacts like an adult, and the book tries to talk about cultural differences but without any nuance.

It attempts to redeem a pedophile because hey, at least he's a good dad. The book has extreme blood family superiority which is such shit. A child is not better off with a literal murderer just because that murderer shoved her out her hoo ha. Get real.

It comes across as extremely privileged to ignore evacuation orders, but then call on emergency services multiple times. Natural consequences, you know?

It's overwritten. It feels like it was written with a thesaurus. The main character’s mommy guilt is insufferable to read, and yet well deserved. She's a bad mom. She does not have her child’s best interests at heart. It's misogynistic. It's fatphobic.

There's really nothing redeemable here, and it's going on my do not read list.

Who should read this:
No one
People who love a predictable thriller

Do I want to reread this:
No

Similar books:
* Gone Girl by Gillian Flynn-OG domestic revenge thriller
* The Perfect Marriage by Jeneva Rose-predictable domestic revenge thriller
* No Exit by Taylor Adams-the best locked room whodunit. I will die on this hill.
* The Maid’s Diary by Loreth Anne White-revenge thriller
* None of This is True by Lisa Jewell-domestic suspense, attempts a pedo redemption arc
* The Housemaid by Frieda McFadden-revenge thriller, affairs
* Wrong Place Wrong Time by Gillian McAllister-mommy thriller, boys will be boys energy
* The Guest List by Lucy Foley-revenge thriller, affairs, ensemble cast, locked room whodunnit

I finished this multi-genre book in one day. I simply couldn’t stop listening (the narrator is tops!). It was a fast-paced ride the entire time – from the hurricane to the family secrets, to the death, it was a shock and surprise around each corner.

Jai is forced to head to her sister’s family home with her son due to Hurricane Harvey. As she hunkers down with her sister Seema, her brother-in-law, his mother, and his brother and sister-in-law, family secrets come out in the most dangerous ways.

From potential affairs to the shocking reason Jai is divorcing her husband, it was a never-ending thrill ride. Add in the tensions between the sisters, Jai’s relationship struggles with her preteen son, and the brother’s drama and you’ve got one hell of a story.

Why we Love it: I love that the author was inspired to write a thriller that starred an Indian family like her own and that her family and their experience during Hurricane Harvey was the inspiration for this story.

After two weeks of kids and I being sick and family being in town I finally got to settle in with a book and this being my first logged read of February I'm so disappointed.

Every character was totally insufferable. In fact, the whole book was insufferable. It's so slow going and once it picked up, I lost interest in much of the family and their drama.

The coolest thing about this book was that it's set during hurricane Harvey so it brought a bit of modern history into the story but still not interesting enough for me.

Yes, this is a debut author so maybe the next book will fare better.

Thank you to the publisher for an advanced copy in exchange for my honest opinion. All thoughts are my own.

This book is a bit spastic. It jumps timelines without much notice and there are quite a few characters to keep up with. It just didn’t read very smoothly. It was a bit choppy. However, I did finish it. It is an entertaining read. It just has a few minor issues.

story execution fell short. the author ends most chapters on a cliff hanger type of suspense and then nothing ever happened.

This was a great book. I loved every paragraph, every sentence and every word of this masterpiece! I read it in 12 hours, which is a lot for me to do! It had everything and more laid out in the novel! I sure hope There is more to come from this author! I am totally hooked!

I am not having much luck with books lately. This book was just not for me. For one, the main character is terrible. Not only does she whine and feel sorry for herself 100% of the time (which isn't bad in itself), she constantly asks herself incredibly dumb questions. I understand the exposition is important in a book to make the story fuller, when it is literally every internal monologue, it's insufferable. I couldn't wait for the book to end. I'm hoping this is a debut fluke and these kinks will be worked out in future books because this author really does have promise, but the overall story really needs to be better developed. Thrillers/mysteries need to make sense from start to finish. They need a logical rhythm. This just felt like trying too hard to create suspense when it should just feel natural.

Thank you to @NetGalley and @punguinbook for this ARC in exchange for my honest review.

I enjoyed this suspenseful, locked-in thriller and was very SURPRISED who the killer was! This was a slow-burn for me, but nevertheless, it kept me intrigued.

Jia is a recently divorced single mother who moves with her 12 year old son to Houston, near her wealthy, supportive sister. During a category 5 Hurricane, she, her son and her sister’s in-laws wait the storm out in Seema’s large house. The family gets trapped in with a strange neighbor who ends up dead due to anaphylactic shock. Jia’s brother in-law, Vipul makes unwanted advances towards her, resulting in a witnessed slap to the face. The next morning, storm still enraging, he is found murdered and Jia prime suspect.

Accusations fly, the list of suspects grow, ulterior motives are discovered and flooding waters rise leaving them to scramble to the roof top in the SHOCKING final show down.

https://www.instagram.com/p/C3R5E6cO2OE/?utm_source=ig_web_copy_link&igsh=MzRlODBiNWFlZA==

I loved the setting and family dynamics. I have not read many Indian authors/characters and really enjoyed the viewpoint. I think this could have easily been written as just a family drama and worked reallu well. That being said, I felt the use of locked room mystery to be a bit of a crutch and led to the twists being a bit too obvious. There were so many storylines that were being held to unravel all at once and in trying to do so much it came across as shallow and predictable. Overall this was a quick read that I enjoyed, but fell a bit flat..

Wow…..that’s all I can think after reading this book! Never would have saw that ending come although some points in the book were sort of hints but not enough for it to be a dead giveaway. Definitely couldn’t put this one down!