On Halloween, a group of teenage students meet in the woods near Sally in the Wood, a road steeped in local lore and rumored to be haunted by the ghost of a murdered girl. By the end of the night, one student will be dead.
Rachel, the school guidance counselor, is trying to keep a handle on her increasingly distant teenaged daughter, Ellie, while students and parents panic and mourn. Her ex-husband and detective Ben, dealing with a personal crisis of his own, has concerns about his daughter’s safety as he investigates the death of one of her classmates. Meanwhile, Ellie is keeping secrets from both her parents, including one about where she was that night.
Told from multiple perspectives and with Hannah Richell’s distinct “atmospheric and ever-twisting” (Emylia Hall, author of the Shell House Detective Mysteries) prose, One Dark Night is a white-knuckled and suspenseful thriller about urban legends, privilege, and how the past continues to haunt us. ~taken from Goodreads
Rachel, the school guidance counselor, is trying to keep a handle on her increasingly distant teenaged daughter, Ellie, while students and parents panic and mourn. Her ex-husband and detective Ben, dealing with a personal crisis of his own, has concerns about his daughter’s safety as he investigates the death of one of her classmates. Meanwhile, Ellie is keeping secrets from both her parents, including one about where she was that night.
Told from multiple perspectives and with Hannah Richell’s distinct “atmospheric and ever-twisting” (Emylia Hall, author of the Shell House Detective Mysteries) prose, One Dark Night is a white-knuckled and suspenseful thriller about urban legends, privilege, and how the past continues to haunt us. ~taken from Goodreads
This was my second novel from author, Hannah Richell. I really loved "The Search Party" and was so excited to read this latest novel. I have to admit up front, this one went by VERY slow.
It wasn't until half way through the plot that the story even got remotely interesting. I really had to convince myself to pick up this book daily, as the characters weren't that interesting and the plot moved at a snail's pace.
I completely missed the alternating character points of views until almost 2/3 of the way through. I am not sure what that says about the writing.
The ghost story aspect had so much potential, but in all honesty it could have been taken out of the story completely and not made a bit of difference in the overall plot. It was like it was a great set up but then an afterthought.
The story itself had some good twists and turns, and because it had so many characters there were some good side stories that caused confusion and overall surprise in the ending.
I think this should be listed more as a young adult mystery. Had I known going in there would be so much teen drama I would have gone in with a different mindset.
Thanks to Netgalley and Atria Books for allowing me a digital copy to read and give my honest review. It was a 3 star read!
"One Dark Night" is available now in the U.S. so get your copy now!
Happy Reading!
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