Some things are better left buried.
This book was sent to me in exchange for an honest review by the publisher, via Netgalley. My thanks to both Netgalley and SOURCEBOOKS Fire.
Name: That Night
Author: Cyn Balog
Rating: 4 Stars
Pages: 320
Publisher: SOURCEBOOKS Fire
Published: June 4th 2019
^Please note: This is a trigger warning for suicide
A year ago, Declan killed himself in his family's shed with a gun. And Hailey's life fell apart. Her love, her forever, gone. No explanation, no hint, no nothing. Declan was the light of her life, the happiest person she knew and then he was gone. After spending time in an institution and several reckless activities later, the one year anniversary of his death is coming up and something isn't right. When Hailey is given a box of Declan's things, including a mysterious photograph with "This ends now," written on it, the fog in Hailey's memory starts to clear. Growing suspicious about the circumstances of Declan's death, she turns to her best friend and Declan's stepbrother, Kane, who appears to know more than he's letting on. What is everyone hiding from her, and does she want to know?
Deciding that she does, Hailey's fog starts to lift and she finds herself uncovering the truth about Declan, his death and even herself.
MY DUDES. I love a good mystery book, a what happened, a whodunnit, I LOVE THEM. So when I read the blurb of this book on Netgalley, I was immediately like "I need to read this book." And I wasn't disappointed. Drawn in by the opening chapter, I found myself wanting to know more about Declan and why he did commit suicide. The character building in this book was a breath of fresh air. I have recently read a book with two dimensional characters and this book was quite literally the opposite. The characters in this book had so much depth and so much potential, and a lot of it was lived up too. I liked who I was supposed to like, I hated who I was supposed to hate, the lines got blurred, I loved everyone, I hated everyone. I loved it.
The story is split into flashbacks before Declan kills himself and the memories that Tina has before this event, and then the days following the one year anniversary where the fog is starting to lift. Declan is presented as a saint, but I loved the whole "Some saints don't get their atonement" conversation with Nina. Nina was a character I wish we got more of in this book as I think she had a lot of potential.
Reading this book, I found myself really buying what the author was selling for the most part. The only thing I didn't really like about this book was the lack of parental input. I would've wanted to see more of the relationships with the parents being developed further, whether that be Declan and Kane's parents or Hailey's own. I wanted to gather their input of the situation at hand and whether they suspected something further went into Declan's death than a simple, unexplained suicide.
Overall I would really recommend this book for fans of mystery, YA and contemporary books as I think it's a good read, it has a good plot and it's easy to follow.
As always hit me up on my socials:
Instagram: @conniedalt
Twitter: @connie_dalt
Email: conniedalton@hotmail.com
Goodreads: https://goodreads.com/sunstormsandthunderclouds
I prefer books that include adult perspective's because they feel more realistic. When everything has gone to hell in a handbasket, you stop trying to figure it out yourself and tell someone with more authority. I understand that teenagers are stubborn and independent, but they're also children that need help from time to time. I'm glad this one really worked for you and kept you guessing!
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