Wendy Walker | THE NIGHT BEFORE

Plot (via Goodreads):

Laura Lochner has never been lucky in love. She falls too hard and too fast, always choosing the wrong men. Devastated by the end of her last relationship, she fled her Wall Street job and New York City apartment for her sister’s home in the Connecticut suburb where they both grew up. Though still haunted by the tragedy that’s defined her entire life, Laura is determined to take one more chance on love with a man she’s met on an Internet dating site.

Rosie Ferro has spent most of her life worrying about her troubled sister. Fearless but fragile, Laura has always walked an emotional tightrope, and Rosie has always been there to catch her. Laura’s return, under mysterious circumstances, has cast a shadow over Rosie’s peaceful life with her husband and young son – a shadow that grows darker as Laura leaves the house for her blind date. 

When Laura does not return home the following morning, Rosie fears the worst. She’s not responding to calls or texts, and she’s left no information about the man she planned to meet. As Rosie begins a desperate search to find her sister, she is not just worried about what this man might have done to Laura. She’s worried about what Laura may have done to him…

Review:

I LOVED Emma in the Night so much that I immediately was looking forward to what Wendy Walker would come up with the minute I finished it. After meeting her shortly after reading Emma in the Night and hearing about Wendy's story and her writing process, I was anticipating this new read even more. Cut to last fall when an ominous and intriguing white cover was buzzing on Bookstagram simply staying THE NIGHT BEFORE by Wendy Walker. I was so excited and  the more I learned about this one, the more worth it the wait was. After reading the synopsis, I was already counting down the minutes until I could get my hands on this one.

The plot to this novel is splendid and built masterfully. I loved the very beginning to this one, featuring a rather light and sweet moment between Rosie and Laura that made me not only excited for what was to come, but really helped me build a picture of their relationship before the alternative perspectives split for the remainder of the novel. Well, what an amazing remainder of the novel it was! Walker wastes no time getting to the meat of the story by featuring some ominous tones combined with palpable anxiety and a plethora of creepy moments. One thing I really enjoy about Walker's novels is that there are a few key characters and that is all. There's not an abundance of forgettable characters that pop in and out of the story. There are a solid handful of wonderfully written characters that carry the story and assist with all plot points in the most perfect way.

Now, with the plot to this one, I found that Walker simultaneously weaved between two perspectives with two timelines, both each having a different feel to them. While Rosie's story-line was a little more panic-induced and featured an almost a race-against-the-clock feel to it, I felt my eyes rushing the lines of the pages and embracing Rosie's anxiety and fear. There was more action in her chapters, whereas with Laura's chapters, a more darker psychological and ominous tone was present. I would definitely consider this a suspenseful psychological thriller with an ending I never saw coming and a few twists that were a stepping stone to the big reveal that made this such a pleasurable reading experience. No matter how many books I read throughout a year, I will never forget the experience of reading a Wendy Walker novel.

Special thanks to St. Martins Press for this copy in exchange for my honest review.

Rating: 4.5/5