By: Georgina Cross
Narrators: Brittany Pressley, Kirby Heyborne Random House Audio
ISBN: 9780593496893
Publisher: Random House/Bantam
Publication Date: 08/01/2023
Format: Other
My Rating: 3.5 Stars (ARC)
One night. That’s all the time a family has to decide what to do with the man they believe murdered their daughter: Do they forgive him, or do they take justice into their own hands?
The anonymous letters arrive in the mail, one by one: To find out what really happened to Meg, meet at this location. Don’t tell anyone you’re coming. In one night, you’ll find out everything you need to know.
Ten years after her murder, the letters tell Meghan’s family exactly when and where to meet: a cliffside home on the Oregon coast. But on the night they’re promised answers, the convicted killer—her high school boyfriend, Cal, who spent only ten years in prison for murder—is found unconscious in his car after it slammed into a tree near the house where the family is sitting and waiting. Is he really the one who invited them to gather?
As a storm rampages along the Pacific Northwest, the power cuts off and leaves the family with no chance of returning to the main road and finding help. So they drag Cal back to the house for the remainder of the night. How easy it would be to let him die and claim it was an accident. Or do they help him instead? As the hours tick by, it becomes an excruciating choice. Half of the family wants to kill him. The other half wants him to regain consciousness so he can tell them what he knows.
But if Cal wakes up, he might reveal that someone in the family knows more than they’re letting on. And if that’s the case, who is the real killer? And are they already in the house?
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My Review
Georgina Cross returns following Nanny Needed with her latest locked-in suspense thriller, ONE NIGHT —Ten years after a murder; anonymous letters arrive in the mail one by one to the victim's family instructing where to meet to determine the killer's fate.
Atmospheric, intense, mysterious!
One night. A family has to decide what to do with the man they believe murdered their daughter, Meghan. Forgive or take justice into their own hands?
Ten years after Megan's (Meg) murder, the letters instruct her family when and where to meet: a creepy cliffside home on the Oregon coast. They are not to tell anyone they are coming. They are supposed to find out what happened to Megan. She was only seventeen when she died, and her body was found in a creek. She drowned.
Cal is out of prison. On this night, the convicted killer, her high school boyfriend, Cal (who spent ten years in prison for the murder), is found unconscious in his car in an accident near the house where they are waiting.
Who is the person who sent the letters? Was it Cal? Or someone else? Is this a trap or a con?
The dinner place cards read: Paul (dad), Alice (sister), Geoff (uncle), Rebecca (stepmom), Maureen (mother), Samantha/Sam (sister).
Prologue: Meghan (the oldest sister)
Told from alternating POV:
Maureen, Sam, Rebecca, Cal (boyfriend)
and one chapter, Alice and Meghan
First, we hear from Meghan ten years earlier- a blow to the head. It is not who she suspected. We also hear from Cal with his past letters (journal) from prison to the Chisholm family.
Megan was not a nice person. She bullied, manipulated, and tormented others. Who was her killer?
As we hear from different POVs, the storm continues to rage along the Pacific Northwest. The power cuts off, and they are trapped. They bring in Cal. Will they help him or let him die? They do not all agree on his future. Will they believe him?
Secrets will be uncovered. But will ALL the dark secrets be revealed?
MY THOUGHTS: While this was a suspenseful locked room thriller, I felt the setup was more mysterious than the unveiling itself, which seemed a little immature and a letdown. Not sure I liked the ending. This appears to be more of a YA book. I am not a fan of teenage girl drama. No likable characters here, and I was not invested in them.
Thanks to Random House and NetGalley for an advanced reading copy in exchange for an honest review.
@JudithDCollins | #JDCMustReadBooks
Pub Date: Aug 1, 2023
My Rating: 3.5 Stars
Praise
“A tense and perfectly paced thriller set on a remote stretch of Oregon coastline as a family comes face-to-face with their beloved daughter’s killer. In One Night, Georgina Cross perfectly captures the family’s fury and grief as they confront their daughter’s former boyfriend, and the desperate measures some of them might take to enact revenge. This is a locked-room stunner that unfolds at breakneck speed.”
—Kimberly Belle, USA Today bestselling author of The Personal Assistant
“What wouldn’t a parent do to uncover the truth about their child’s passing? In this atmospheric, gothic, beautifully realized story thick with tension that builds to a shriek, Cross establishes herself as a major player in the world of suspense. This book is so full of Christie-esque twists and turns, I couldn’t turn the pages quickly enough. . . . Deliciously creepy.”
—J. T. Ellison, New York Times bestselling author of It’s One of Us
“A clever, atmospheric, and emotionally astute locked-room thriller with unforgettable characters and suspense that will leave you breathless . . . This is a deep dive into a family’s grief, full of dark secrets and surprising twists. Clear your schedule!”
—Christina McDonald, USA Today bestselling author
“Tense, atmospheric, and chilling, One Night places a grieving family back at the scene of the crime with their daughter’s convicted killer. But what really happened to Meg? A locked-room thriller set in a house perched on a cliff along the Oregon Coast, you’ll race through the pages to discover every dark secret and shocking twist. I loved it.”
—Kaira Rouda, USA Today bestselling author of The Widow and Beneath the Surface
About the Author
Georgina Cross is the author of Nanny Needed, The Stepdaughter, The Missing Woman, and The Niece.
She has worked as a journalist and spent nine years in business development for an aerospace and defense contractor before joining the Huntsville/Madison County Chamber of Commerce.
She now writes full-time and lives in Alabama with her husband and their combined family of four sons. WEBSITE
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