(Also posted on my GR account!)

1.5 stars rounded up

Why some psychological thriller genre don't work on me:
(1) characters are too stupid to be alive
(2) forced-twist
(3) I don't feel any attachment to any of the character
(4) bad writing
(5) an extension of number 2: it isn't unreliable narrator anymore, it's downright lying

I'll let you all guess which one(s) from the above reflecting Date Night.

I truly want to like it, it's got all the tropes I love: missing (probably dead, anyway) person, mystery surrounded the said missing person, false accusation, broken trust between the people, etc. But somehow, all these didn't work?

For starter, I quite like the beginning up until Sasha went missing. It was still your run-of-the-mill mystery, and I was ready to forgive Vicky, but then there were too many people involved and Vicky was... annoying at best and too stupid to live at worst. By then, I just skimread it to find the mystery. Or whatever.

In the end, there was a hysterical Vicky, a 'bad guy' exposition and narration, and a twist that was just... awful. Skip.

Great read that kept my attention, read it in one sitting. I kept thinking I had it figured out, but never got it right! Is Sean cheating on Libby. Is Libby losing her mind? Is Natalie involved? And what happened to the babysitter?? Date Night is a fantastic mystery that will kewpie you guessing.

This book thinks really highly of itself but fell flat for me.

What starts out as "omg is my husband having an affair"...stays that way and I never was thrilled with anything.
The characters keep making choices that no one in real life would make and the police are dumb and don't really seem to care about the murder at all.
Not at all the thrilling story, I was promised, just dull and predictable.

This is a great psychological thriller which had me hooked throughout.
Libby finds a note on her car telling her that her husband is having an affair, so confronts him about it.
Sean denies having an affair and makes out that Libby is imagining the texts and calls that he suddenly tries to hide.
They decide to go out for a meal and family friend Sasha, agrees to babysit for them.
When they get home Sasha is not there and their daughter has been left on her own.
The story is told before the night and afterwards, and we also learn some things about who is arrested fairly early on.
I really felt for Libby as she struggled to cope with her husband’s lies.
The book leads up to a big reveal and we find out what really happened but then it literally just ends.
I felt a bit deflated by the ending but the rest of the book was fantastic.
4.5 stars as it ended very abruptly.
Thanks to Bookouture and NetGalley for the opportunity to read this book.

Wow, what a story! Let me explain a bit more.

First of all, the prologue had the bile rising in my throat. I thought : is she really doing this!? It kept turning in my head because I could not connect it to the rest of the book, but I was relieved when it was explained (much) later. The author did a good job in putting an image in my head, made me put two and two together and come up with 5. ;)

The author guides us through the book by giving us snippets of information from before and after the arrest revealing the story little by little. Every time I thought I had figured something out, she made me realize I was on the wrong path once again. I love it!

What seemed like an innocent date night turned into a nightmare. Who can you trust? It looks like a lot of people have something to hide ...

It took me a very long time to figure out what the final disclosure was going to be. I never saw it coming until a few pages before the author puts us out of our misery, the penny dropped. Genius!

A great book containing a story that seems rather straightforward but sooo is not. 5 stars.

Thank you, Samantha Hayes and Bookouture (via Netgalley)

Hello Bookies!

Here's another review brought to you by the lovely people of NetGalley. I was able to read Date Night by Samantha Hayes ahead of time, and I was definitely shocked to say the least. 

Date Night follows the life of Libby Randell and her seemingly perfect married life. She has a wonderful husband, Sean, and a beautiful little girl, Alice, and things just seem to be going swimmingly in their lives. Well, until Libby gets a note that says "Sean is having an affair," leaving her going through everything in their lives to see where everything went wrong. After confronting Sean about the note, they decide to go on a date night to settle things and work on their relationship. But, soon, they're in more over their heads than just a hint of infidelity. 

Date Night was an interesting ride from start to finish. Going back and forth between the past and the present, readers find out the tragic outcome of what happened to Sasha, the Randell's babysitter, after she goes missing during their date night. You go through the mental torment that Libby faces throughout the investigation, and you feel like you're going crazy along with her. At times, there were moments where the reading was slow, and I felt like I was dragging to get by to the next exciting moment. But, when the moments came, was it a surprise! The ending twist left my mouth agape as I stared at my kindle trying to recoup from what had just happened. The ending was what really made the book great for me.

Between some slow places in the novel and a roller coaster of emotions, Date Night is definitely something people should check out. It wasn't my favorite of the year, but it's on my list of top books. Thank you, NetGalley and Bookouture, for allowing me to read this novel for an honest review!

3.5/5

Date Night comes out August 20th, 2019 via Bookouture publishing. Check it out!

I loved the description of Date Night, and the beginning of book started out really fast paced, but then halfway through started to slow down and become a little repetitive. Just ok for me. Thank you NetGalley for the advanced copy.

This starts as the picture perfect family and how this quicky descends from there, all starting with a note on a car. As a reader you quickly get sucked in to wanting to know what has happened and who is really telling the truth. This book does this quite cleverly as the truth really isn't as you know it or have been told it. I didn;t guess the last twist at the end and that is always a big plus within a book, although I guessed the culprit ahead of the big reveal. Overall, a good read.

I started this book with high hopes as the plot seemed to be quite plausable and exciting. However, I was rather disappointed.

Although I read this book to the end there were times when I was tempted to give in. The plot to start with drew me in and I kept thinking I would be able to follow developments. Unfortunately it seemed to get stuck on the relationship between the husband and the wife. A murder had been committed and the lack of detail around this and the loose police involvement seemed to lose it's way. The focus on what felt like the framing of the wife rather than on more detail around the husband and his past life left me feeling that I was missing something. There didn't appear to be any build up to the ending. It all seemed rather rushed in the last chapter..

I felt overall that the book had potential but it lacked focus and excitement. I didn't draw me in enought to spend time guessing or trying to work out the plot.

This was your standard British “gripping thriller” fare. Kind of outlandish with characters making choices no real human being would, but also very easy to read and kept you wondering. I didn’t see the (far fetched) twists coming at the end but I do feel like the author placed several red herrings throughout the book that were never really resolved

Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for an ARC in exchange for an honest review

Wow i was not expecting that ending, really enjoyed this book, had me guessing the whole way through with you Sean was having an affair with. Thoroughly recommend this book and great style of writing.

Libby suspects that her husband Sean is having an affair and they plan a night out to try to fix things. when they get home their daughter is left all alone and Sasha, the babysitter is just gone...

The book started off great, I was into it from the beginning, it starts with Libby being arrested for Sasha's murder and the book keeps alternating between " then" and " now" which was good, not too confusing. I kinda got turned off in the middle of the book it seemed like the story was changing, the flashback didn't make any sense to me so I went back to the beginning to make sure I hadn't missed anything that was frustrating after that I lost interest and I felt like the story was just dragging on.
The ending was pretty good, I'm usually good at predicting books but I didn't see this one coming at all, I wish the epilogue at the end would have told us what happened to everyone after but still a good ending,

Thank you NetGalley for a free copy of this book in exchange for a review

"Date Night" by Samantha Hayes should come with Big warning signs especially if you are like me and starts to read a new book before you go to sleep!!!!!! I was hooked from the very first few pages and had to read more. Before I knew it...........
The birds were singing and the sun was coming up! So glad I was not working the next day!!!!

What a brilliant Book and with a cracking ending as well.......Didn't see that happening!!!

Libby and Sean have a good marriage, they have a four year old daughter called Alice. They are happy and both have good jobs between them, Libby runs her own business, Sean works long hours as a partner in a local veterinary practise.

One morning whilst Libby goes to her car, she finds a small note telling her that Sean, her husband is having an affair. OMG!!!!

What will Libby do? Does she confront Sean and show him the note?

Libby and Sean go on a Date night, which is planned and their responsible babysitter Sasha is babysitting their daughter.
Returning early from a disastrous date night. something is wrong! the moment the wheels crunch the gravel drive of their home.
When they step inside of their house, the TV is on with a half-eaten meal waits on the table. Sasha's belongings are still there.
They look for Sasha, only to find their little girl is alone in the house and our babysitter,
Sasha, is missing…...........

Days later, Libby is arrested for Sasha’s murder and torn away from my perfect little family,

Where is Sasha? why do the Police think Libby killed her?

Did Libby Kill Sasha? Is Libby Innocent?

Who is Sean having an affair with? Is he having an affair?

I highly recommend Samantha Hayes books

Excellent Book 5 Fat Star read.

Big Thank you to NetGalley and Bookouture for my e-copy in exchange for an honest review.

Libby and Sean have arranged a much-needed, rare date night, complete with a trusted baby sister, Sasha, for little Anna and reservations at their favorite restaurant. Things don't go as smoothly as Libby had hoped and they arrive home hours earlier than planned. But when they get inside, the baby sitter is gone. Anna is upstairs asleep, but Sasha is nowhere to be found. A police investigation commences and suspicions are rampant. What happened and who is responsible? Who knows more than they are saying?

Highly recommended! Juicy and riveting to the surprising conclusion!

Recently finished reading this entertaining book. The story goes back and forth in time with the description of the date night a few weeks earlier that goes horribly wrong and the present where Libby is currently arrested on suspicion of the murder of her babysitter: Sasha. The plot kept me guessing until the very end and I didn't see the twist coming. Overall 4 stars for this book.
Thank you, NetGalley and the publisher for this ARC in exchange for an honest review.

"Date Night" by Samantha Hayes is a book that will suck you in from the start.

A romantic date night that supposed to improve the relationship between Libby and Sean has hit a rock bottom. However, the worst part was waiting for them at home... Although "waiting" is not the correct word. At the end of the night, the couple reports their babysitter missing.

Sasha's disappearance is not the only issue she is dealing with, recently Libby received a note that informs her of Sean's infidelity, and discovered a hidden secret present prepared by her husband for someone else. Due to her recent meltdown, Libby's business starts to struggle as well. And to top all her recent problems - she becomes a person of interest in Sasha's disappearance.

"Date Night" is an absolute page-turner. I was on the edge on my seat while reading the novel. Warning - do not believe everything you read... But do not disregard the warning signs. Sometimes, the person one trusts the most is the person they should beware of.

Million thanks to the NetGalley and Bookouture for an advanced free copy of the book, and Samantha Hayes for an incredible story.

After being blown away by The Liar's Wife last year, I couldn't help myself and requested a copy of Date Night as soon as it was available. I mean, the blurb alone sounds absolutely fantastic: a missing girl, a murder, lots of secrets and a possibly innocent and wrongly accused main character... How could I resist that? And I'm glad I didn't, because Date Night turned out to be a highly entertaining read. This is a psychological thriller created to mess with your mind and this story will make you doubt every single fact you thought you learned as you keep turning the pages. The strength of this story is in the complex and well crafted plot, designed to mislead you and hide certain facts from you to keep you guessing. And while it's true that the whole unreliable narrator technique is getting a bit old, I found the idea of having a possibly innocent main character wrongly accused very refreshing and definitely fascinating.

Date Night starts like most domestic psychological thrillers, with the typical family of two successful working parents and their children and this balance being disrupted by a turn of events. In this case in the form of a ominous note left for the wife, Libby. What you first think is a simple cheating husband or 'someone with a grudge' scenario soon turns out to be a whole lot more complicated as their babysitter Sasha goes missing... And a few weeks later somehow the police thinks that Libby killed her. Date Night switches between the (recent) past and present, making full use of the unreliable narrator technique while slowly revealing more facts about what really happened that night and exactly what secrets are in play. And trust me, there will be a LOT of those. Oh yes, Date Night is basically a web full of lies and secrets you will find yourself trapped in, trying to untangle the truth while you wonder if Libby is really innocent, and who could have been behind Sasha's disappearance otherwise. And while it's true I guessed part of the final twists right, there were other aspects I wasn't able to guess at all.

There is one thing that made me enjoy this story slightly less though: the characters. I know it's common for unreliable characters to be unlikeable as well, and sadly in this case I wasn't able to connect to the main characters at all. I found especially Libby's behavior in general to be very frustrating, and while her flawed character worked well to hide those twists and keep the suspense up, not being able to connect to her made me care less about her possibly being wrongly accused. I wasn't a fan of the other main characters either... But with an intricate and well developed plot, excellent writing and lots of secrets and twists to discover, I had a great time reading Date Night anyway. Fans of the genre will enjoy this one!

Libby and Sean are married and parents to 4-year-old Alice. Libby finds a note under her windshield wiper that tells her Sean is having an affair. Lots of arguing occurs as Libby is very jealous and insecure. Sean decides to take Libby out for date night to a nice restaurant to try and get back on track. They ask Sasha to babysit as she is their usual babysitter if Marion, Sean's mum, cannot babysit. While at the restaurant, more arguing occurs as Sean seems to be getting a lot of texts and finally a phone call all of which he does not take. When they get home, Sasha is gone. From there, the story takes on a lot of twists and turns with an ending I never imagined. I really liked this book and I love the way the author developed the personalities of the characters as the story progressed. Thank you to NetGalley and Bookouture for the ARC of this fantastic page turner. I highly recommend this book to anyone who loves a good thriller with lots of surprises.

Libby finds a note on her car SEAN IS HAVING AN AFFAIR. Libby and Sean and since Libby found the note there has been tension between them. Sean arranges a date night, a meal out at their local gastro pub. It does not go well, when they return home their daughter is fast asleep I her bed but the babysitter Sasha is missing. Nothing will ever be the same again. I was hooked from the first page and read this book in one sitting. More twists and turns than a corkscrew. Plenty of suspects, I was gripped by this read and spent most of it sat on the edge of my seat and tapping my kindle faster and. I could not put this book down I HAD TO KNOW!!!!! As for the ending I was stunned it was definitely not what I was expecting. A fantastic and must read. An easy five stars and so Highly Recommended.
I would like to thank the author, Bookouture and Netgalley for the ARC in return for giving an honest review.

Date Night follows married couple Libby and Sean. After a disastrous night out in attempts to squash some insecurities Libby has, the couple returns home to find their babysitter missing and their daughter alone. The story continues along going back and forth between Libby being arrested for suspicion of murder to before date night. Lots of great twists and turns along the way and a very big twist at the end that I honestly didn't see coming.