When the Lights Go Out: A Thrilling Suspense Novel from the author of Local Woman Missing

I wanted to throw this book against the wall when I finished it. I loved Mary Kubica's early books, but the last two have been total duds.

This was a very slow going book and I truly felt like the ending was the author saying gotcha or just kidding! I was starting to get a headache trying to figure out what was real and what wasn’t and then that ending came along. Let’s just say that it made my rating very clear to me after that.

I am a fairly easy to please reader. Give me either a quick, fast-paced read, interesting characters and a great twist or a slower setup that pays off with a knock-your-socks-off ending. With the exception of the slower part, this was none of the above... I have loved all of Mary's previous books and don't want to ruin it for anyone so I will stop now..... I hate leaving a poor review, BUT I was very disappointed.Thank you Netgalley for the ARC!! #Netgalley #WhentheLightsGoOut

The writing style and "voice" irritated me so much that I lost interest in whatever plot there was. It's the same gossipy, gushy female voice you hear Elizabeth Gilbert use in "Eat Pray Love." Name every single feeling you have, don't let the reader guess ("I'm lonely." "I'm sad." "I want to have a baby so bad."). If the author meant to depict a typical narcissist, then she got it right. But I was looking for a thriller, not a memoir-like tale about being infertile with some psychological twists thrown in.

Last Kubica I will read - bought this at Target today, anticipating a thrilling all-nighter, and now cannot wait to slog through to the end. The writing style has much to be desired; where was the copy editor? Overuses the phrase "carriage home" and the word "home" to a very annoying extent, and also "mom" - geez. Descriptions of Eden's infertility problems border on the gross, as does Jessie's internal monologues about her mother's cremation. Plot does not seem to exist. This one was obviously penned posthaste, just like Joy Fielding and Mary Higgins Clark's last few. Ugh. Target will be giving me a refund this weekend.

My Review of “When the Lights Go Out” by Mary Kubica, Park Row Books , September 4, 2018

Bravo to Mary Kubica, Author of “When the Lights Go Out” for for her vivid descriptions, and her riveting, captivating, intense, and suspenseful writing. This is a page-turner chock full of surprises, that questions everyone and everything. The theme in this story is insomnia. Does anyone really know what happens when one is sleep deprived? How do you determine reality vs. illusion? The Genres for this novel are Mystery, Suspense, Thriller, and Fiction. The timeline for the story is in the present , and goes to the past when it pertains to the characters or events in the story.

The author describes her colorful and dysfunction cast of characters as complex and complicated. Jessie Sloane has taken care of her terminally ill mother, and is now ready to move on with her life. Unfortunately, that is not easily the case, as Jessie stumbles upon one problem after the other. Her Social Security number is that of a dead person. Jessie discovers that her mother had deep dark secrets, and a picture of a man surfaces that her mother had hidden. Who exactly is Jessie Sloane? As Jessie encounters another sleepless night she fights for the recognition of reality and her imagination.

The author also goes back twenty years and explores how Jessie’s mother might hold the key to unlock many of the answers. Be warned, the ending is not at all what it seems to be. All the clues lead you to a place where it is indeed difficult to foresee the conclusion. I was totally taken by surprise. No peeking now, be sure to read the book!! I highly recommend this novel to those readers who appreciate a tense, roller coaster of a ride thriller, with suspense and surprises. I received an ARC from NetGalley for my honest review.
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This book had so much potential. And then the past 10% of the book happened... Never has an ending of a book gotten me angrier. It was a cop out on the author's part.

What a waste of my time! There is a huge twist at the end that completely ruins the book, at least for me. I didn't like the characters at all. The story could have been better if the author hadn't added the twist at the end and kept it going the way most of the readers thought it was going to go.

An avid fan, from her smashing debut, THE GOOD GIRL (acquired for film), PRETTY BABY, DON’T YOU CRY, EVERY LAST LIE to her latest, psychological thriller—WHEN THE LIGHTS GO OUT. Everything this bestselling author (a favorite), Mary Kubica writes is solid gold.

A slow-burning twisty psychological suspense. A heart-pounding, a tale of one woman's desperate search for answers. From an array of emotions —grief, disbelief, anger, fear, and confusion. WHEN THE LIGHTS GO OUT is yet another superb addition to her "collection of girls". (cover crush). As I have mentioned previously, she deserves her own Chicago billboard. Hope you enjoy as much as I did. I was drawn into this tale on many levels.

In her fifth novel, a woman is forced to question her own identity in this riveting and emotionally charged psychological suspense thriller. Totally Unpredictable. THAT ENDING! Talk about "the twist!" Cleverly crafted, an ending you do not see coming.

Q&A with the Author My first interview with one of my very favorite authors! I am thrilled for everyone to dive into her new book WHEN THE LIGHTS GO OUT. (see my blog)

Set in Chicago and Wisconsin, WTLGO is written from two women’s perspectives (mother and daughter) as well as dual timelines and locations. I enjoy this style, allowing the reader to experience the character’s emotions first-hand. The author gets into their heads.

From the past: Eden is a young wife obsessed with having a baby. They are in love. She is desperate. She has hidden secrets. She wants those secrets to remain buried. Time is running out. Jessie is her grown daughter in a desperate search of her true identity. She is sitting with her mom in a hospital room. Her mom Eden is dying of terminal cancer. Her mom sleeps next to her in a drug-induced daze that keeps her both pain-free and fast asleep.

Jessie suffers from severe insomnia. What she would give to sleep like her mom. With the lack of sleep, brings emotional instability. Crying and laughing for no reason. Behaving erratically. Losing concept of time. Seeing things. Hallucinating. She is unable to take sleeping pills, and she does not want to miss a thing. Her mom is so close to the end. There are still unanswered questions. She is running out of time. She continues to run into dead ends.

It has always been just she and her mother. They are close. There are things Jessie wants to know. Who is her father? Her mom never wanted to discuss. The author takes us back to 1996 where we meet Eden and Aaron. Egg Harbor, WI. (a beautiful idyllic area). A young couple deeply in love. They purchased a lovely cottage overlooking the bay. Their dreams. A garden, and high hopes for a family.

Aaron wants a family, and at 28 and 29, they decide they are ready. However, soon their dreams turn into a nightmare. Miscarriages. Invitro. Their relationship is strained. Draining their finances for a chance at having a baby. Aaron is busy working at a restaurant, and he wants Eden to stay home (since she soon would be pregnant). They soon grow apart. However, staying at home brings more time for Eden to dwell on her situation and obsess. She stalks other mothers and daughters. If only she could be a mother. Plus her neighbor (Miranda and Jack) have kids, and she is pregnant again. She does not even want to be a mother.

How could fate be so cruel? Soon her marriage is destroyed due to the obsession to conceive. She thinks of kidnapping a child. She is selfish. Aaron thinks they should stop the madness. Now at the end of her life, she only has a daughter. A secret life. A mysterious photo and journal. A lone wolf. She was diagnosed with cancer when Jessie was fifteen. Jessie has taken care of her.

Jessie's mom always wanted her to find herself. However, what did this mean? Soon she discovers she may not be the person she thought she was. When she goes to apply for a community college, her social security number belongs to a person who is deceased.

From past to present, now her mom is gone, and she is left with insomnia and unanswered questions. She is losing her mind. Determined to find her true identity. Surely there are clues somewhere. Eleven days with hardly any sleep, she feels like she may go mad. What is her mom hiding and who is the mysterious man in the photo? Will she be able to find the answers she desperately needs?

INTENSE! A page-turner you cannot put down— until you learn the mystery behind Jessie and Eden. (I loved Aaron and Jessie). Jessie is experiencing acute, chronic insomnia. I enjoyed this topic and her character, especially the mystery behind her mother’s past and how this impacted her daughter Jessie. I was drawn to her storyline for many personal reasons and recently tore through my mom’s house after her death (cancer) — searching for clues about her secrets and my own identity. Plus. I have experienced insomnia my entire life. It is horrible. I also loved the cottages. I have lived in some quaint historic cottages over the years and carriage homes. They have so many stories.

Kubica explores many highly-charged female themes. From marriage, motherhood, in vitro, stolen identity, abduction, obsession, grief, cancer, death, insomnia, financial, moral ambiguity, and of course dark secrets of the past. Throughout all her books, the author is in tune with these powerful and provocative issues of women, and the human mind. Attracting women of all ages to the ever-growing intriguing domestic suspense genre. Each of her books is unique. The characters have an urgent need to belong —allowing society to dictate their version of happiness.

All her books are plot-driven as well as character-driven, and WHEN THE LIGHTS GO OUT is another perfect example. As well as addictively suspenseful and tautly written. Among her signature qualities, is the uncanny ability to write "hypnotic" thrillers about women placed in stressful situations and their intensely inner turmoil.

When reviewing my favorite books over the years, Mary Kubica and Karin Slaughter are the only two authors landing on my Top Books of the year for five consecutive years! (started my blog in 2014). Check out my List:

I loved WTLGO on so many levels! I realize the ending is quite controversial; however, in this genre, it would be quite dull if everything was tied up in a neat bow. I liked it! Highly Recommend. I would have to agree with Kirkus Reviews. “Kubica is a helluva storyteller."

A special thank you to Park Row Books and #NetGalley for an advanced reading copy. Also purchased the hardcover and audiobook. JDCMustReadBooks. Thank you, Mary, for a great interview! Cannot wait to see what is next.

WHEN THE LIGHTS GO OUT

I was so excited to see this book waiting for me at the library. And then - Wow -- I was really disappointed.

Told in alternating voices of Eden and Jessie, we realize Eden wants a baby badly. She will even go to extreme lengths to have/get/attain one. Who is Eden? For that matter, who is Jessie? To me, they were two of the most pathetic characters I have ever run across. Always Debbie Downers, always getting hurt, always ill, always having bad luck, always being, well, just always yuck, dull, and pitiful. They could not walk across a room without breaking into a sweat, twisting an ankle, becoming nauseous, getting a headache. Hmmm -

This book didn't make much sense. Jessie tries to find out who her father is and who she is. Where did she come from? Who are her parents? Why doesn't she have a birth certificate or soc number. Eden tries to have a baby. By the end of the book, I could have cared less if Eden did get pregnant and/or if Jessie found out who her father was and who she was.

The book jumped back and forth between characters and time. But always always always there was depression, anxiety, and by the end of the book the constant agony and downers were almost comical.

I do not recommend this book if you are looking for a good thriller -- simply because it is NOT a thriller. There are no twists, no turns, no surprises. It was not mesmerizing, haunting, or intense. It was dull, repetitive, and not the reading experience I was hoping to find from Mary Kubica.