The Night We Lost Him is a family drama/mystery about two siblings investigating the death of their father.

This was a fast read even though the plot was a little slow. I read Laura Dave’s previous novel and thought it was an ok read and I liked this one better. The twist at the end I did not see coming!

I really enjoyed this book! I loved how the complicated family dynamics played such a role in keep the story suspenseful and engaging. As the reader you felt that everyone was an unreliable narrator even though they shared the common goal of figuring out what happened to their father. I found myself staying up to keep reading and I love when a book pulls me in like that.

If you enjoyed the mystery of The Last Thing He Told Me by Laura Dave, then you'll also enjoy her newest book, The Night We Lost Him.

When Mallory's father dies via cliff fall at his beloved home, she assumes (as does law enforcement) that it was an accident. Her father slipped and fell. But her half-brother Sam does not agree. He thinks their father was pushed.

Thus, the two siblings, who don't really spend much time together, end up traveling to California together to find the truth, not only about what really happened that night, but also about who their father really was.

Can you ever really know a person, especially if that person does everything in his power to keep certain parts of his life and the people in it private?

I'm sure this will spark some good book club discussion as everyone tries to guess the who, what, and why of the situation. Is there more to it than the police are letting on? Or are Sam and Mallory on a wild goose chase fueled by grief?

The Night We Lost Him is published by Marysue Ricci Books and will be available to purchase on September 17, 2024. I received a free review copy.

Go into this one for the complicated family story with a touch of mystery. Main character Nora is absolutely excellent, and I only wish a little more about her career was included. Getting to know her father through a series of flashbacks about his life added a layer of intrigue as his past is revealed, and how it connected to the version of him his children knew. A nice sense of atmosphere in both the NYC settings and the coastal California ones.

Another great read by Laura Dave. Fantastic characters that kept me flipping pages long into the night. Packed with secrets, lies and family ties. It was impossible to know who to trust.
Thank you NetGalley, Laura Dave and Simon Element for the opportunity to read and review this book.

Liam Noone found himself in California looking to build a boutique hotel when he saw a home in the distance called Windbreak and he knew he wanted it. It was situated on a cliffside which could be dangerous. That was the big reason he didn’t want his children there. But one day as he peers over the side of the cliff, someone pushes him over.

Liam had been married three times and was the father to twin sons, Sam and Tommy, and a daughter, Nora. He had never been very close to this children. After Liam’s death, Nora said she didn’t want any of his money due to his lack of interest in her as a child. But when Sam tells her that his fall wasn’t an accident, she agrees to join forces with him to investigate it. Nora soon learns that her father left Windbreak to her. In California, they try to figure out if their father had truly been murdered.

As Liam had had three wives, I didn’t find him to be a hands-on father from the story even though he loved his children very much. It’s Liam’s obsession with the woman mentioned in the under the name of Cory. Their love was a kind of relationship that couldn’t have been a true love but one where Cory comes across as selfish leaving Liam to pine for her his entire life. It was almost pathetic. I found the story to be depressing and I’m can’t say I could really connect with the characters who were flawed.

Copy provided by NetGalley in exchange for a fair and honest review.

Although there was a good twist and a nice ending, this book is no way a thriller.
It is more of a family drama. We know from the prologue that someone pushed Liam Noone from a cliff.
Nora Noone is contacted by her half brother Sam to tell her he does not believe their father's death was an accident. They decide to investigate.
There are 2 timelines , the present, narrated by Nora and and the past, narrated by Liam.
Nora has been rocked by her mother's death. She lived with her mother after the divorce, and saw her father sporadically and had little contact with his next 2 families. She has an interesting occupation which I looked up to see if it is real and it is. She is a neuroarchitect and is very successful.
Her brother Sam and his twin Tommy as well as her father's brother Joe all work for her father's very successful hotel firm. All this information is in the. Very first few chapters. The rest of the book is Nora trying to figure out her life and relationships, as well as investigating her father's life. In addition, we have chapters of her father's relationship with his high school girlfriend Cory. It was VERY SLOW MOVING. The last few chapters finally picked up and Nora finally snapped out if her doldrums.
If you are looking for a family drama mixed in with a mystery you will like this book.
Thanks to Netgalley and the publisher for the EARC. This is my honest review.
I think there is already an option for a movie, but I don't know how they will keep the twists and surprises if they actually show the characters.

How well do you know your own family?

That’s one of the underlying questions in this mystery. This is a tale of requited and unrequited love, family dynamics and a pinch of cross-country travel.

This was a slow burn at the same time being a page turner. The pace had a good flow as it wove a non-linear timeline throughout the whole story to give you the full picture.

One thing that I enjoyed was the descriptiveness of everything. Whether it was a meal, a landscape or an interior of a building, Dave went to lengths to make it feel like you were there; it cast a pretty clear image in my minds eye.

Parts of it almost read like an interior subconscious conversation to oneself: how much do you know about yourself and how much do you share with others? And, with that, how much do you take in from others? It was almost as much a self-reflection as it was an awakening of what was happening around the characters.

Thanks so much to the author, Laura Dave, S&S/Mary Sue Rucci Books and NetGalley for the eARC of The Night We Lost Him!

Following the unexpected death of their father, Liam, estranged half siblings Nora and Sam reunite. Neither were particularly close to their father, relationships being kept at arms length at best. Sam approaches Nora with his claim their father's death was an accident which as the reader we already know. The two travel to California to find out what really happened to Liam. What they find leaves them with more questions than answers.

The multiple time lines were interesting to balance. In the present we see Nora on her journey of grief and questioning. In the past we get to see Liam's life through his own eyes. While the writing was excellent as I anticipated, I just didn't connect with the story for the most part. The pace was slower than I enjoy making it hard for me to really connect with the story. With that said, I did enjoy the characters and their development. One thing about me though, I am a sucker for a good love story, which I hadn't anticipated going in. Big plus, I did not see the plot twist, I am normally pretty good a sniffing them out. Overall, I did enjoy my time reading.

Happy publishing day to the author!
This was quite a ride! The suspense is gripping, and I loved how the relationships unfold, even if the pacing dips a bit at times. Overall, it’s a thoughtful exploration of love and loss that kept me hooked.
Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher in exchange for an honest review

The Night We Lost Him is a compelling mystery that follows two siblings as they investigate the unexpected death of their father. Although the novel unfolds at a slower pace, it tells a captivating story that kept me engaged throughout.

One of the book's strengths lies in its character development. I enjoyed getting to know the characters and piecing together the mystery as the story progressed. The pacing felt just right, making it a quick and enjoyable read overall. From the first page, the author sets a vivid atmosphere, enriched with twists and turns that keep the reader on their toes.

Overall, I believe that fans of character-driven, contemporary fiction with a touch of mystery will find this book highly satisfying.

“If you are looking for answers you can’t find, you need to change the question.”

I have seen mixed reviews on this one, and I think it is because it has been marketed as a thriller. But instead, I would say it is a story of family and its drama, yet with a mystery at its center. I grew up watching As the World Turns, and this, friends, has all the elements of a daytime soap opera! And the best way to enjoy those are with a delicious sandwich, on the couch, with a blanket, while you step away from your own life for 30-60 minutes and get lost in the issues of others!

Nora and Sam quickly realize, while trying to solve their father’s death, that they know little about the man they love. They know little about the women he loved or at least married, and they know little about each other. While they learn about others, they also learn about themselves. I appreciated how their relationship develops in this story.

Overall, this story is about love: how we love our family members, grow to love people, or fall out of love. It explores what keeps us from finding or embracing love – fear and past tragedy. It even looks at how we can learn to love ourselves and our journey even if it is different from the journey others want for us. Lastly, it shows readers that true, deep love cannot be denied no matter how much time or space is involved. Love really does endure and conquer all things.

This story showcases how life is messy. It captures how we really don’t know some people, even those closest to us. If you go in expecting a thriller, you will be disappointed, but if you go in expecting drama like Days of Our Lives, I think you will enjoy it like I did.

PS – The twist at the end, got me. I did not have it figured out!

Thank you to @netgalley and @marysuericcibooks for the advanced reader copy. Pick this one up today.

I thoroughly enjoyed The Night we Lost Him. Laura Dave writes a compelling tale. As two siblings try to piece together the events of the night their father fall from a cliff, they find more than they expect. This is part mystery and part love story. With two timelines, we see into the secrets of Liam Noone, the woman he loved his entire life, and the aftermath his death leaves behind.

I was completely pulled in by this story and the characters. This is a very quick read that I literally did not put down from beginning to end. I highly recommend this to anyone who enjoys a story that keeps you guessing and makes you feel at the same time. Laura Dave's books may not meet the expectations of a traditional thriller. It's short on creepy vibes, jump scares and psychological manipulation, but even so she delivers on an engrossing story about the complexity of people and the secrets they keep.

I was excited to read this book although I knew that it was not a follow up to The Last Thing he Told Me. the book started out differently but the author brought into play family drama that she does so well.
When Nora and Sam, estranged half-siblings of wealthy hotel magnate, Liam Noone after his sudden death, they pool their knowledge of him as their father with the people from his past because although the police have rules the fall from a cliff an accident, neither of them believe that it was an accident or a suicide. As they investigate their father's complex past, they discover many facets of the man and hidden secrets leading back to the man they thought that he was and the reality of his existence.
The book was told in short chapters with alternating timelines that described Liam's life from teenager through adulthood, and the contemporary mystery.
Although this is described as a thriller, I think that it was more of a character driven family drama that resolves a mystery. The twist was a surprise and the resolution was effective. The writing is beautiful and descriptive - and even more-so because I just spent the weekend in California and could easily picture the rocky coast with soaring cliffs. I'd love to see this book made into a miniseries.
I received an ARC of this book from NetGalley and the publisher and am leaving this review voluntarily. The opinions expressed are my own.

Easily a five star read!!

I loved everything about this book!
-multiple twists.
-past and present chapters.
-short chapters.
-all the emotions.
-the writing style.

Literally all of it.
I thought I had this book figured out, and it took a completely different turn, nothing I was expecting, and that ending….so good.

Nora and Sam are brought together after their father’s sudden death at his cottage on the California coast. The authorities call it an accident, but they suspect there’s more to the story. As they unravel their father’s complex past, hidden secrets spanning fifty years come to light, revealing truths that change everything they thought they knew about him—and themselves.

I really enjoyed this book! As in her previous work, Laura Dave masterfully blends mystery with family drama. The dynamic within the family was both sad and relatable, and it felt very real. Even though the pace was slow at times, the suspense and the gradual reveal of family secrets kept me intrigued until the end.

Thank you S&S/ Marysue Rucci books and NetGalley for the gifted copy.

Unfortunately this one fell short of my expectations. BUT, this book was marketed as a "riveting page-turner" thriller and it was absolutely not that. I would describe it a slow-burn family drama with a mystery looming overhead. Literally nothing about it was *thrilling.* So if you're not expecting a fast-paced thriller, I believe you may enjoy it more than I did.
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The book begins with the POV and subsequent death of wealthy Liam Noone. The authorities rule his fall off his cliffside home as accidental, but the more that his children undercover about that night and their father's life, the more they start to believe it was no accident. We follow along as his kids Nora and Sam investigate.
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There's a lot of drama outside the main mystery involving main character Nora. She was really unlikeable to me so I found myself not caring about any of her plot (which was most of the book.) There's also short flashbacks of Liam's life and the dual timeline just really threw the pacing off to me and made an already slow-burn even slower. Overall, I just didn't find it an enjoyable read. That said, the majority of reviews on Goodreads are good and I've seen others love it on Instagram. So give it a shot yourself, especially if you loved the author's previous book, 𝙏𝙝𝙚 𝙇𝙖𝙨𝙩 𝙏𝙝𝙞𝙣𝙜 𝙃𝙚 𝙏𝙤𝙡𝙙 𝙈𝙚.
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Thank you to NetGalley and Marysue Rucci Books for the eARC and gifted ARC in exchange for my honest thoughts ✨

Oooooh Laura Dave has done it again!

I really enjoyed The Last Thing He Told Me, and was THRILLED (see what I did there ;) to get an advanced copy of it from my friends at Simon & Schuster and NetGalley.

This one had me hooked from the jump. Liam Noone was an extraordinarily successful hotel magnate. He had three ex wives, and three children, all of whom he kept quite separated. He adored his cliffside cottage in California. So while it wasn't a surprise that he was there when he was scheduled to attend an event for one of his ex wives, it was shocking when he fell off the cliffs to his death. While the local police ruled it an accident, his daughter Sam and her estranged brother Sam do not believe it.

This is a twisty, turvy story that spans years and both coasts. We follow Sam and Nora as they rediscover each other and learn things about their father that they never knew. While uncovering one surprise after the next, they also are forced to confront some tough realities of their own.

This book kept me on my toes, and I let out MASSIVE GASP at one of the big twists. I coudn't put it down, and just adored it!

Congratulations to Laura Dave and this fabulous book that is out TODAY !

The night we lost him by Laura Dave

Liam Noone was a self built, hotel genius creating an experience to astonish all who visited. He was a family man, to his three ex wives and As with most greats, secrets tend to rise when families are intertwined with the past.

Nora and her estranged brother Sam come together when neither one of them believes it was an accident that he fell to his ultimate demise from a property he so loved. This book was a thrill ride and a trip for sure down a tumultuous road with family drama and past skeletons that should have stayed in the closet.

Thank you Netgalley and Simon Element & Marysue Rucci Books

Anything by Laura Dave is always on mine and The Night We Lost Him lived up to my expectations and then some! It is a psychological thriller about a woman and her half brother on a mission to unearth the truth about their father’s sudden death. Along the way they learn about their father’s life but also about themselves. This was more of women’s fiction and family drama than a thriller in how it fully explored and exposed the main character’s emotions and rationale for her life’s choices. I love how the pieces slowly fell into place, giving her so much depth and so many layers. And I loved the little California tidbits.