The Night We Lost Him

I really wanted to like this book, but it was quite flat. I would’ve enjoyed it more if the story was just Liam and Cory’s relationship. All this extra bouncing around with his kids felt like an odd way to tell Liam’s story. It didn’t give us enough time to understand Liam and Cory, but their story was the center of it all.

It’s a quick read, so I couldn’t help but finish it. Predictable. I would have liked a little more time with the side characters- Sam, Tommy, Jack. The main characters were just frustrating. Why are they making these same decisions year after year?!

I've enjoyed previous books by Laura Dave such as The Last Thing He Told Me and Eight Hundred Grapes so I was excited to see another book from this author. I'd categorize this one somewhere between the two I mentioned — part mystery, part family-oriented drama.    Liam Noone's death is ruled accidental, but his daughter Nora is skeptical. Her stepbrother Sam shows up, and soon Nora finds herself pulled into uncovering her father's illusive past. The story narrates in and out from past to present as we learn about Liam's past.    Sadly I wasn't as into this story as I was with Laura Dave's previous books. It was enjoyable, but I think my reading tastes have changed in the couple of years since I've last read her work. I would have liked this to lean more on the side of thriller rather than romance/drama. Either way, the story itself was enjoyable, just not what I'd expected.    Thanks to NetGalley and Simon Element for providing a free digital ARC of the book to read and review!