Last Night Together

I don't really know where to start with this book. When I saw the premise for the book, I knew it was something that I needed to read. I love books which are set over a short time period and this one fits the bill.

All I can say about this book is don't start it unless you have a spare few hours ahead of you as once you begin you won't want to put it down. The story starts with a phonecall from Mia to her husband Ben, she's at a hotel and needs help, someone is dead and she needs him to bring bags, a hammer, bleach and various other items.

Ben assists as he loves his wife (even though she was at a seedy hotel with another man) and so begins a night of mayhem, murder, blackmail, arson and a lot, lot more.

You need to read this book with a sense of abandon, forget realism and just enjoy the ride as Mia and Ben have a night they will never forget.

Whilst it will never win the Booker Prize, it is a fun, enjoyable and ridiculous read.

Thanks to Netgalley and Hera Books for an ARC in exchange for an honest review

I seem to be the first to review this book…lovely. Thrillers are dime a dozen right now, especially of marital variety, so one must exercise caution. I’ve tried to be very selective with my choices (not an easy thing to do with new books, which often have no reviews) and this one definitely worked out.
Never read the author, but would again, based on this. Intriguing plot, good writing, complex characters cut freestyle without any cookie cutter assistance.
Some marriages end in fights and tears, some in loaded silences and mountains of resentments, some just sort of dissolve over the years…but for the couple in this story it’ll all end in blood, someone else’s blood, but still, lots of it. Over one explosive night’s events, a two-decade strong couple still reeling from the death of their young daughter, will reevaluate all they know about each other, will really get to know what each other has become.
This is a story of what happens when your beloved wife calls you in the middle of the night to help her dispose of a body of a man she just killed. Told in real time to maximize the narrative dynamism, the story and the situation spiral out from there, with the ever-mounting pressure and the ever-increasing body count. And yes, the spiraling ends up in a major diabolical sort of situation that seems like a far cry from the simple self-defenceish kind of initial murder, but that’s the nature of these thrillers, gotta systematically turn the dial up, boil that pot and all in it. But then again, presumably it goes a long way to exculpate the protagonists, because sometimes murder is just downright justifiable.
I won’t say any more than that, this thriller, like every thriller, hinges on its plot twists, and unlike every thriller, this one is certainly worth a read. A fun ride through a very dark night. Recommended. Thanks Netgalley.

When I read the synopsis for this book I thought it sounded like it could be a great story and even though I had never read anything by this author, I decided to request it and give it a shot. I loved it! A very fast paced, action packed story with lots of craziness and suspense to keep you reading straight to the very end! Highly recommend!

I really enjoyed this book, it grabbed me from the very first page. I love how it is split in two separate chapters for each character chronicling every half an hour in one night.

From the very first page this book draws you in. The suspense starts straight away and you instantly want to find out what on earth is going on.

Loved how the story is told through both Ben and Mia perspective’s.

It’s very fast paced and action packed, every chapter leading to something else. However I found it quite far fetched at times and often found myself thinking this is a bit silly.

Overall an enjoyable read and it kept me hooked throughout. I read over two evenings!

Thank you NetGalley and Hera books for the opportunity to read this.

This book is so gripping that I couldnt have put it down even if I had wanted too, which coincidently I didnt want too. The story is so unpredictable and tense full of suspense and mystery, I loved it.

This was a very peculiar book. Completely unrealistic and a little bit quirky. But despite it being something I would never usually pick up, I actually enjoyed it. The style of writing and the pace takes a little bit of getting used to but it was good overall.

I read Last Night Together in one sitting. It was fast paced and twisty and kept me intrigued right to the end. It was my first read by P.D Viner but it will not be my last.

Thank you to NetGalley and Hera Books for my ARC,

Very quirky read,I enjoyed it,well written,very quick paced and just holds you back from unbelief as the next happens,very different and very worthwhile of a read

Quirky, Frenetic Suspense…
A frantic telephone call from Mia to husband Ben and so begins a catalogue of lies and secrets. How far will this couple go to protect each other, protect themselves and save their marriage? Quirky and frenetic suspense for a one sit read.

Ben receives a call in the middle of the night from his wife, Mia, who should be sleeping soundly beside him (but isn't) and what she tells him next will change both of their lives forever.

Ben immediately goes to her aid despite the nagging feeling he has in his stomach telling him things are about to go very wrong. It's an internal warning that he should have heeded.

Wow, I am thrilled to tell you that I really enjoyed this one. I had very little expectations going in because all these psychological thrillers are a dime a dozen these days and this reader has had her expectations dashed more often than I care to admit. But, Hallelujah, we have ourselves a winner. This is a psych thriller, domestic suspense mash up that is filled to the brim with lies and secrets and all that juicy goodness I love in my fiction. My loyalties wavered between Ben and Mia throughout the story.

This book is going to require suspension of disbelief. As I was reading along I was thinking to myself that this situation would never happen in real life and then I had to remind myself of all the 48 Hours Mysteries and Dateline episodes I've seen where reality is indeed scarier than fiction so maybe this isn't too out there. Maybe, just maybe, this could happen with the right circumstances and with people lacking the morals I like to think most of us possess. Either way, realistic or not, I had a heck of a time with this one. P.D. Viners note at the end also gave me a chuckle. He seems like a really great guy and I wish him continued success in is writing career. 4 stars!

Thank you to NetGalley and Hera Books for my complimentary copy. The arc I received is titled Last Night Together not The Call but they are the same book.

The relationship of a married couple is set to the ultimate test when she calls him and tells that she killed a man. A twisty and scary read that I couldn’t put down!

Wow. I was expecting something crazy with this book, and it definitely delivered! This is a fast paced read, and it has Ben & Mia's viewpoints over one of the worst nights of their lives. I really liked seeing this from both their sides - it really added to the tension, seeing what they were thinking. There's so many secrets revealed by both of them, along with the horrors of the night - just when you think you know what happened & what's going on, you realise you don't. It's intense, gory and gripping, and I really enjoyed it!

Synopsis:
On their wedding day, Ben and Mia swore to always be there for each other. So when Mia calls Ben in the middle of the night telling him she killed a man in a hotel room, he comes to help her get rid of the body, no matter what went wrong with their marriage. But Mia hasn't told Ben the whole truth. And Ben has some terrible secrets on his own...

My thoughts:
Holy hell, this book was intense, twisty, and everything I could have wished for. So many secrets and lies, it kept me on edge the whole time. I loved how I never knew which one of the characters I could trust, who was the good person - or if there even was a good person. TBH, I liked Ben more, he was so relatable in his decisions, even though they weren't always right. All in all, I absolutely LOVED this book. I just think It could have done without the twist before the final one, it made everything seem a bit unrealistic and over the top.

Parts of this book reminded me of:
- That Night by Gillian McAllister

This was my first book by P.D. Viner, and it definitely won't be my last!

“…after tonight he will hate me and I don’t blame him. I’ve trapped him. It was mean of me to use his wedding vows like that, when he wrote them with so much love, because I’m pretty sure neither of us mentioned anything about helping the other cover up a killing. I don’t think that comes under ‘in sickness or in health and forsaking all others’…”

The Call is the third novel by British author, P.D. Viner. At a minute before midnight in early February, Ben Kingdom wakes from an unusually deep sleep to hear his wife, Mia calling for his help. She’s not there, in the house, and when he calls her mobile, he hears it ringing. Locating it, in her hidden handbag, amongst all the usual essentials she carries, has him puzzled.

And then a phone rings (the landline!!), the answering machine clicks in, and he sees that she has left multiple, increasingly frantic, messages. When he finally talks to Mia, she begs for his help, invoking their marriage vows, is vague about just what has happened, except that it involves a dead man, and gives him very specific instructions on what he must bring if he agrees to help her out: gloves, bleach, towels, garbage bags, a knife and hammer (?!), and how to avoid being seen or tracked.

Can such a beginning fail to intrigue the reader? Little more, however, can be said about the plot of this riveting page-turner without spoilers, although it perhaps doesn’t give too much away to reveal that Viner manages to include arson, dumpster diving with a difference, an unconventional use for a certain date-rape drug, lies, secrets, infidelity and grief.

This is a story that plays out over a mere seven hours and each chapter is headed with a time; the narrative alternates between Mia and Ben, so the reader is privy to both perspectives on what occurs; flashbacks fill in a bit of the couple’s history. One of these narrators turns out to be quite unreliable, continually lying (often by omission), but the other hasn’t been completely candid either.

Many chapters end with a loaded remark that adds another layer, another complication, another twist to the story. Sometimes drama tips into melodrama, and the reader may need to don their disbelief suspenders at times, so the best advice is to just keep them on, go with the flow and enjoy the rollercoaster ride.

Despite the grittiness of the story, there is plenty of black humour, much of it relying on incongruity e.g. Ben ready to disapprove if Mia has shoplifted two cans of drink, just hours after he has helped her conceal a body.

Viner does have a way with words: Ben, in the dumpster “It’s disgusting in here, and there’s barely enough light to see anything clearly. It’s wet, in an oozy bin-juice way; all rot and decay and entropy – the three unknown brothers of the seven deadly dwarves.” A gripping thriller that surprises, at times, by being laugh-out-loud funny.
This unbiased review is from an uncorrected proof copy provided by NetGalley and Hera Books.

Intriguing plot - great story. First book I have read by PD Viner but definitely not the last one. Do yourself a favor and read this one - you will not be disappointed.

It was an insane book with unreliable characters. Everyone has their own set of lies, and there are so many problems in one night, just when they get past one, there's another. And in between they are disclosing the truths they hid from each other.
It is fast-paced and the characters are well-written even when they are unlikable.

Wow what a start to this one! When Ben arrives at Mia’s hotel room, the scene is horrific – but over the course of the night it will get much worse. All their secrets will be uncovered, and they will discover how far they’ll go to protect themselves and each other… will they kill for love? Or will they die for it? They have twelve hours to save their marriage, and their lives. The clock is ticking…⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

This was a totally different read for me , especially the way it was done. It was really good abs I thoroughly enjoyed it. What a well written book!

Last Night Together is a fun, high-energy read. You may have to suspend disbelief for a while but if you do this thriller offers you a rollercoaster of a ride as more and more secrets come out.

I literally couldn’t put this book down from the moment I picked it up. A phone call in the middle of the night. A wife needs her husbands help. When he arrived at the hotel it was a horrific scene. As more secrets come to light he is finding it harder to make the choice of who he wants to believe. Or what he wants to do. I received an advance review copy for free, and I am leaving this review voluntarily.

I’m a bit speechless, this story is thriller meets ‘Who’s Afraid of Virginia Woolf’ mash up and it’s really best read in one go. Broken up in 1/2 hour increments, we follow the fantastical night of Ben and Mia and the dead body and so much more. This book was originally titled “Last Night Together” but is now titled “The Call”. Thank you Netgalley, Hera Books and the author for this eARC in exchange for my honest review.