Date Night by Samantha Hayes
Genre: Psychological thriller, Domestic thriller, Suspense
Read: 22nd July 2021
Published: 20th August 2019
★★★ 3.5 stars
DESCRIPTION:
Returning early from a disastrous date night with my husband, I know something is wrong the moment the wheels crunch the gravel drive of our home. Inside, the TV is on and a half-eaten meal waits on the table. My heart stops when I find our little girl is alone in the house and our babysitter, Sasha, is missing…
Days later, when I’m arrested for Sasha’s murder and torn away from my perfect little family, I’ll wish I had told someone about the threatening note I received that morning.
I’ll hate myself for not finding out who the gift hidden inside my husband’s wardrobe was for.
I’ll scream from the rooftops that I’m innocent – but no one will listen.
I will realise I was completely wrong about everything that happened that night…
But will you believe me?
Twisted and absolutely unputdownable, Date Night exposes what goes on behind the closed doors of a happy home and the dangerous truths we ignore to protect the ones we love. Perfect reading for anyone totally gripped by The Wife Between Us, Friend Request or Gone Girl.
MY REVIEW:
Someone has a date with fate...
This is my fourth outing with Samantha Hayes and with that is the realisation that her thrillers are predominantly slow burners. That's not to say that's a bad thing because she still draws you in and leaves little tidbits dangling along the way so you don't lose interest. But sometimes it can be little drawn out and you find yourself thinking "Enough already! Give me something I can sink my teeth into!" instead of being tossed about wondering which way is up. And yet by the book's end you are still left somewhat dumbfounded.
Libby believes she has the perfect marriage with husband Sean and the perfect life with their 4 year old daughter Alice in their perfect little thatched cottage in the Cotswolds village of Great Lyne. Sean is partner in a successful veterinary practice which sees him working long hours whilst Libby has her own catering business. One morning as Libby gets ready to take Alice to her grandparent's while she prepares for an upcoming event, she finds a note on her windscreen with five words that leaves her reeling...
"Sean is having an affair"
From that moment on, Libby tries to put it to the back of her mind whilst constantly finding herself on the backfoot and second guessing herself and Sean's motives. She begins to find fault in everything he does, questioning him at every turn, leading them to a crossroads of mistrust. In an attempt to get their marriage back on track and resolve their trust issues, they decide on a date night with a delicious meal at a local pub. But if Sean was to reassure the anxious Libby of his faithfulness and loyalty to her, then the plan backfired when his phone keeps exploding with an array of text messages and unanswered phone calls. This, of course, sets Libby on edge as Sean refuses to say who it is that's so intent on contacting him. They end up arguing, ending their night out early and going home. But nothing prepares them for what they find when they walk through the door...
Sasha, their babysitter they left in charge of their sleeping daughter, was nowhere to be found and the living room in which she'd been ensconced with her text books she'd been studying was littered with items from Sasha's rucksack which appeared to have been upturned on the sofa and the floor. But what was even more unsettling was that Sasha's phone lay amidst the rubble. And being seventeen, Sasha would never leave her phone behind. So where was she then? And why leave in such a hurry? And to leave Alice, a four year old child she'd been entrusted to look after, alone in the house? What if she were to wake up and find no one there?
Libby and Sean decide that she must go out and search the village for Sasha whilst he stays behind with Alice in the hope the babysitter might return. When Libby returns and there is still no sign of Sasha, they know the time has come to call her parents who are understandably shocked. Then the police are called and an investigation begins.
Things begin to spiral out of control for Libby fast as she continues to believe that Sean is having an affair despite his claims to the contrary. They are constantly arguing to the point neither trusts the other and suddenly the once happily married couple are poles apart. The police, who miss nothing, see the cracks beginning to form and continue their questioning until one day when Libby, in the barn kitchen they had built out the back for her business prepping for that evening's event, is arrested on suspicion of Sasha's murder. She is lead away in a police car for questioning as they endeavour to get to the bottom of the mystery of Sasha's disappearance.
By this time, Libby is already close to breakdown. She begins making nonsensical comments whilst under questioning as she finds herself in the surreal world of memories playing out on a loop in her already scattered mind. The police confront her with the second note written to reiterate the first one she'd received...the one that had strangely disappeared. Why didn't she just toss this one out when she had the chance?
Under intense police questioning, Libby maintains her innocence. "I've done nothing wrong" she states over and over again. "I didn't kill her" she claims. Does that mean she knows she's dead? And if so, how? But is Libby telling the truth? Is Sean? Is anyone? And what really happened to Sasha?
Taking us on a twisted ride through domesticity, DATE NIGHT is filled to the brim with secrets, secrets and more secrets! There is definitely a lot of tension in this book which is what makes it so engaging, despite its slow burn and dip in pace in the middle. An interesting start to the story begins with Libby's arrest and from then on it is told in the BEFORE and NOW narratives of before and after the arrest, blending together seamlessly.
And then there is the jaw-dropping revelation that comes right at the end! I admit, while I was flummoxed throughout much of the story, the pieces did finally fall into place before all was revealed. You only had to pick up on some of the clues peppered throughout. It seems Sasha's disappearance wasn't the only mystery.
This is the second book by Samantha Hayes that has been something of a trigger for me with regards to my first marriage. The first was "The Liar's Wife" detailing the physical and emotional abuse and now this one with the Libby's former partner adamant that she had been having an affair...something my ex-husband accused me of constantly. It was harrowing to be accused of something you were not guilty of all the time and I found myself once again back there when reading Libby's account of life with David, albeit just a small part of the story. On another note, I have to say that it was refreshing to find a child in a story that is not a precocious brat but merely...a child.
DATE NIGHT is a slow burn ride that details a wealth of secrets, lies and manipulation that unfolds at a gradual pace to maintain a tension that is palpable throughout. It is perfect for fans of psychological and domestic thrillers who like them a little dark.
I would like to thank #SamanthaHayes, #Netgalley and #Bookouture for an ARC of #DateNight in exchange for an honest review.
MEET THE AUTHOR:
When not writing, Samantha loves to cook, go to the gym, see friends and drink nice wine. She is also studying for a degree in psychotherapy. She has three grown-up children and lives in Warwickshire.
Social Media links:
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