I really enjoyed this debut novel and look forward to the next book in this series in 2024. Former Olympic soccer player turned sports reporter Kate Green is going through a rough patch in her career. On top of that, NBA superstar Kurt Robbins is murdered and the main suspect is his wife, Kate’s best friend Yvette. Kate’s quest to prove Yvette’s innocence puts her squarely in the path of her estranged father - an NYPD detective assigned to the case. Kate’s teenage children have never even met her father Liam. Kate’s career limbo gives her plenty of time to become an amateur investigator and she’s really good at it. She uncovers many secrets, lies, and betrayals. Thanks to #netgalley #thomas&mercer and #elisehartkipness for this ARC in exchange for an honest review.

This was a really 𝐠𝐫𝐞𝐚𝐭 debut thriller that was filled with 𝐒𝐎 𝐌𝐔𝐂𝐇 𝐃𝐑𝐀𝐌𝐀 - secrets, affairs, betrayals, money, and of course…murder!
I was afraid that I wasn’t going to enjoy it since I’m not a sports fan but there’s only some occasional references throughout but definitely enough for a 𝐕𝐄𝐑𝐘 enjoyable plot!
Overall, this was a fast-paced read with short chapters which I always love and twists and turns in every chapter!
I suggest pre-ordering this super suspenseful thriller 𝐍𝐎𝐖!

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for this eARC. I wanted to like this book - I'm a big fan of thrillers in general, but this one didn't really work. Aside from some major plot holes, I think what was most frustrating for me was the likeability of the main character. Reporter Kate Green has been ousted from her job for speaking unkindly to one of the star players on a basketball team that she is interviewing... who she knows... and has spoken with often before because she is friends with one of the team wives.

But then a murder occurs and suddenly, instead of worrying about her job and how to feed her two children, Kate Green becomes an amateur sleuth, despite the fact that two agencies are currently working on the crime, one of which employs her estranged father who is suddenly nice again despite his years of abuse and neglect?

It was just a jump too far for me. I wanted a cozy mystery, but this didn't leave me wanting more.

In this exciting debut novel comes a fast-paced thriller that follows a sports reporter’s journey off the court…and into a world of murder and deception.

Excellent mystery with great characters and plot twists. Great for mystery lovers of all types.

Finished in one setting. The book goes at a good pace where the story line moves continuously forward. The characters are flushed out well. The ending made me want to throw my Kindle against the wall since the twist shocked me. Elise does an amazing job having you feel strong feelings for actions and characters. It was also nice to have her reporting background brought in and I learned a lot about a career I never knew about. The one critique I have is the ending was rushed and a lot of descriptions that weren’t necessarily needed to move the story forward.

Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for a copy of this book! I found this to be page turning and a great story! It started off a little slow while the story developed but around the halfway mark it really picked up and had lots of twists that I didn't see coming. I always love when a mystery book has me stumped and the ending is a surprise and I couldn't figure it out! I'm looking forward to reading more of the author's books in the future and will recommend this one to others that love mystery/thrillers. Overall I really enjoyed this book and the characters. My only wish was that we dug into the background of other characters more and not had such a focus on the wife for most of the storyline.

Thank you again to all that let me read a copy of this book!

Just wow. This amazing debut takes you on a thrill ride from start to finish. Kate Green is an intelligent character with exceptional investigative skills and a life that seems to be imploding. I love how her mind works and while she doesn't have much of a relationship with her dad she seems to have inherited her puzzle-solving skills from him. I enjoyed the setting, the quick chapters, the fast pace of the plotline, and all the twists that prevented me from guessing the killer. With a shocking surprise at the end this a book that thriller fans won't want to miss!

I really enjoyed this one. The sports aspect made it more interesting and added a lot to plot and character.

Lights Out is a very well written suspense. I enjoyed the plot and character development. I recommend this book. My thanks to the publisher and Netgalley. This is my unbiased review.

I really enjoyed this book. I felt like I was part of the novel trying to follow the leads to solve Kurt’s murder. A few small plot twists seamlessly embedded made the read even more enjoyable.

Thank you NetGalley, Elise Hart Kipness, and Thomas & Mercer for allowing me to read Lights Out in exchange for an honest review.

The main character, Kate, became a strong lead as the plot moved along. I admired how much support she had for her friend, so much so, that she would do her own investigation in the hopes of finding her friend's husband's killer. The other characters were never fully developed, so they all felt a bit bland in the story.

It was interesting for what it was. Probably not one I would go back to read again.

Lights Out had an interesting premise and packed some good revelations & twists, but the pacing made it difficult to enjoy the first 2/3rd of the book. It starts out very slow, and the writing style is way too descriptive for my personal preference. Then, we get so many twists and turns in the final few pages of the book. I wish they were paced better throughout the story.

I really enjoyed this debut book by Elise Hart Kipness.with an interesting cast of characters. The lead, Kate was well drawn, and I liked the portrayal of the angst ridden teenagers. Not all the characters were sympathetic, which reflects real life. The final denouement was a real twist in the tale. Looking forward to the next book in the series.

Kate Green is a former Olympic athlete and current sports reporter, on leave after a scandal involving an unfortunate interview. After her friend's NBA star husband is shot to death, Kate puts herself in the middle of the murder investigation when her friend is under suspicion.

Sadly I didn't love this one. It was heavily character driven and all of the characters were flat to me, especially Kate. She was boring and made questionable decisions. The mystery was predictable, even the "twist" at the end and I didn't like how it wrapped up.

Wonderful debut! This book pulled me right out of a mystery/thriller reading slump. The fast paced, quick read leaves me eagerly waiting for the next book in this series. Thank you #netgalley for the opportunity to read this exceptional debut novel.

3 stars

With all the raving reviews this has I was very excited and curious about this book and I'm sad to say that although it was fun and interesting, it didn't live up to my expectations.
I found the main character annoying and a lot of her problems would have been easily fixed with a bit more communication. Also the mystery wasn't that mysterious. I caught who the killer was pretty early on and that took a lot of the enjoyment.
Still this was a fun debut novel and I'm interested to see what else this author has to give.

Thank you to Netgalley and the publishers for the chance to read this book in exchange for an honest review.

This was such a fast paced, fun read. There were soooo many possible suspects and red herrings that I wish I was reading with a friend so we could discuss our theories every couple of chapters! My only bit of criticism would be that sometimes it felt like scenes were over described (the author talks about an ant on the concrete for example) but perhaps that is intentional. With an abundance of seemingly unimportant details, major clues are able to sneak by the reader. The ending leaves it open for another book (not a cliffhanger) and I will definitely be reading that one!

This kept me on the edge of my seat the whole way through! I highly recommend this to any thriller book clubs out there! Obsessed!

Lights Out centers on Kate Green, a former Olympic soccer player turned sports reporter living in Greenwich amongst a community of wealthy, relatively crime free families. At least, that was the case until her best friend's husband is found deceased and Kate steps in to try to clear her friend's name when the lead detective seems hellbent to find her guilty of the crime.

To be clear, Lights Out is perfectly fine - to the point where I'm sure it'll be phenomenal to someone(s), particularly those who already love a good whodunit. It moves quickly, and I can appreciate the relatively unique perspective of a main (female) protagonist coming from a sports background.

However, Kate, while not without her redeeming qualities, has a number of moments of 'not like those other girls' thinking that I personally found grating. (A single small example - the book makes certain you know that Kate drinks her coffee black, none of those "frilly drinks" for her.) I also struggled personally to relate or sympathize with the sometimes tone-deaf perspective of the ultrarich and privileged. While it could just be my degree of exposure to crime thrillers, the ending yowled at me from miles away.

To be fair, keeping in mind it's a debut I do think it's a solid point of entry as a novel, although nothing I personally would return to or think of months down the line.

I’m a sports fan but I’m sure even those who aren’t will love this suspenseful novel. Lights Out was brilliant and kept my attention from chapter one!