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joybeljera's review against another edition
dark
mysterious
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
Hard to get through because pf the anxiety I got while reading it. The inner dialogue made me feel like I was crazy but it was for these reasons that I think makes it a great read for a thriller. It was meant to be a difficult read. TW: LOTS of gaslighting going on in this book.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Violence and Blood
Moderate: Gaslighting
melannedavis's review against another edition
dark
mysterious
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5
Content Warnings
Moderate: Violence, Murder, Physical abuse, Mental illness, and Stalking
klackey224's review against another edition
Book is way more violent and triggering than the description details. If you have PTSD, have experienced the trauma of gaslighting, or generally just don't do well with crimes against children, it's best to skip it. I was looking forward to reading it as part of Jimmy Fallon's book club, but after 4 chapters (I think?) I was already so anxious I couldn't read anymore. I skipped to the end just to see if there was a sense of justice, but it wasn't enough.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death, Emotional abuse, Gaslighting, Murder, Pedophilia, Stalking, and Violence
c_m_m's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
3.75
Content Warnings
Graphic: Pedophilia, Violence, and Stalking
booklvrkat's review
dark
emotional
mysterious
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5
Setting: Winter, New England, Massachusetts, an older farmhouse purchased with her husband.
Time of day: Night, bedtime for her young children.
Senses Used: Touch, it’s suffocatingly dark so she’s going to have to escape with her sense of direction and small touches. Hearing, she knows the sound of her home like the back of her hand, every creak, rumble, and click. Sight, not much since the farmhouse is old and the corners hold shadows darker than ink. Smell, is that fire?
“Easier to believe a woman’s lying than that bad things happened on your watch. Easier to believe the simplest thing is always correct. And it’s simple to say a woman is crazy.”
From a first-time author, this psychological thriller is mind-boggling. Tracy Sierra knows just what to describe to notch up the tension as the mother is grabbing her children, trying to keep them quiet, all the while eluding the shadow-man she’s just seen in her house. While the tension is extreme throughout the story, and as the past to present timelines intersect, we learn that all is not as expected, and to be believed she’s going to have to take matters into her own hands. I listened to this story in one day, the narrator, Emily Ellet (she’s fabulous, and I will be looking for her voice again). I was breathless and thunderstruck in the blizzard of this story.
Fun fact: Tracy Sierra used her own house and the mystery behind it for the description of this story.
CW/TW: misogyny, gun violence, kidnapping, stalking, gaslighting, pedophilia, chronic illness
Content Warnings
Graphic: Stalking, Misogyny, Gaslighting, Gun violence, and Kidnapping
Moderate: Violence, Chronic illness, Pedophilia, and Toxic relationship
readingonfordearlife's review
dark
emotional
mysterious
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.75
Content Warnings
Graphic: Misogyny, Stalking, Violence, and Death
Moderate: Gun violence
lovelymisanthrope's review against another edition
dark
emotional
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5
I picked this up because it is the Literally Dead Book Club pick for the month of April.
"Nightwatching" follows a mother one blizzarding evening as she is home alone with her two young children. She is awoken to a noise and quickly realizes that they are not alone in the house. Now, she is determined to get herself and her children to safety.
I ran the gambit of emotions during this book. I was scared of the intruder and what might happen to the children, I was angry that the main character was seemingly dismissed by everyone, and I was inspired by her love for her children, no matter what.
The book dragged a little bit for me in the beginning because the author chose to go into a lot of detail about what was happening with the intruder. I think for a lot of people this was probably an appealing aspect because it increases the anxiety of whether or not they will make it out of the house unscathed. However, for me, I just wanted to move on. I wanted to see the fallout of whether they made it out or not. I was very pleased to see the story progress forward.
This book really solidified for me how little I like cops as a general rule. They always seem so quick to dismiss women, and that was definitely the case for the mother in this book. I also HATED her father-in-law. There are a lot of themes of misogyny in this book that fueled the fire.
The mother is not a trained cop or detective, but she did her own investigating in a way that I think anyone would have given the circumstance. It was very believable how she investigated what truly happened, and whether or not the situation was solved.
I will definitely be picking up more from Tracy Sierra, and I highly recommend this book, just read it with the light on.
"Nightwatching" follows a mother one blizzarding evening as she is home alone with her two young children. She is awoken to a noise and quickly realizes that they are not alone in the house. Now, she is determined to get herself and her children to safety.
I ran the gambit of emotions during this book. I was scared of the intruder and what might happen to the children, I was angry that the main character was seemingly dismissed by everyone, and I was inspired by her love for her children, no matter what.
The book dragged a little bit for me in the beginning because the author chose to go into a lot of detail about what was happening with the intruder. I think for a lot of people this was probably an appealing aspect because it increases the anxiety of whether or not they will make it out of the house unscathed. However, for me, I just wanted to move on. I wanted to see the fallout of whether they made it out or not. I was very pleased to see the story progress forward.
This book really solidified for me how little I like cops as a general rule. They always seem so quick to dismiss women, and that was definitely the case for the mother in this book. I also HATED her father-in-law. There are a lot of themes of misogyny in this book that fueled the fire.
The mother is not a trained cop or detective, but she did her own investigating in a way that I think anyone would have given the circumstance. It was very believable how she investigated what truly happened, and whether or not the situation was solved.
I will definitely be picking up more from Tracy Sierra, and I highly recommend this book, just read it with the light on.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death, Murder, Death of parent, Terminal illness, Toxic friendship, Stalking, Violence, Toxic relationship, and Misogyny
Moderate: Kidnapping and Gun violence
kimkowalski's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
reflective
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
5.0
Definitely not what I expected at all! Very different from other books I’ve read, highly recommend.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Death, Murder, Chronic illness, Death of parent, Grief, Stalking, Violence, Gaslighting, and Injury/Injury detail
Minor: Kidnapping, Body shaming, and Forced institutionalization
mrscorytee's review against another edition
dark
mysterious
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Violence, Gun violence, and Stalking
msbarnesela's review against another edition
dark
mysterious
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.0
The real horror in this book isn’t the monster. It’s the patriarchy. At the midpoint of the book, you think you’re dealing with an unreliable narrator (of the delusional variety), but you find out at the end that the only unreliable characters were the police.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Blood, Emotional abuse, Gaslighting, Sexism, Violence, and Misogyny
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