Assessment:
Plot: Full of drama, intrigue, and intense emotion, Dark Was the Night grips readers from the first page and doesn't let up until the hard-hitting conclusion.
Prose: The author is clearly a gifted writer, able to convey debilitating fear, create tension, and to elicit a visceral response from readers. There's a fine balance of detail, dialogue, and action as the chilling story unfolds.
Originality: This is a highly original work with memorable characters and a distinctive plot line.
Character/Execution: The author does an excellent job with characterization, particularly with Lucie, whose paranoia and fear dominate the book.
Blurb: Gripping and suspenseful, Dark Was the Night will keep readers on the edge of their seats.
Date Submitted: April 25, 2022
Lucie is a character you can't help but root for. Despite her nyctophobia, she possesses the will and fight that makes her a strong protagonist. “I need a plan, and I do not have much time to come up with one,” she declares early in the invasion. Themes of mental health and family secrets are woven seamlessly and skillfully into the heart-pounding plot. While brief, and told with direct clarity, the story builds with confident purpose to its climax—and to a truly shocking twist that will leave readers satisfied.
This absorbing novella, Rivera’s debut, is straight to the point, alive with vivid action and mounting suspense as Lucie hides, holds her breath, studies her adversaries, and faces terrors past and present. Scenes of Lucie staring down a hallucination and rousing herself to keep up the fight have power, and Rivera’s attention to everyday detail—like how Lucie’s slippers lack grip--create a sense of authenticity. Dark Was the Night stands as a perfect read for thriller fans eager to curl up with a book as the nights grow longer. The scariest place to feel threatened is your home, and Rivera plumbs that universal vulnerability while teasing out serious thrills and chills.
Takeaway: A focused, fast-paced home-invasion thriller offering suspense and a killer plot twist.
Great for fans of: Dean Koontz’s Intensity, Stephanie Perkins’s There's Someone Inside Your House.
Production grades
Cover: B
Design and typography: A
Illustrations: N/A
Editing: B+
Marketing copy: A
Dark Was the Night is an exceptional suspense that shines in its prose and stylistic elements, a story that will keep the reader guessing at every twist and turn. Not for the faint-hearted, the book is a fantastic read that keeps up the suspense while touching on difficult emotional topics as well.
Author Tania Rivera sure knows how to write a fast-paced read that captures your attention from start to finish! Let me jump right into this review by mentioning how fantastic the plot and premise of the story are. I enjoyed the interconnecting story of Lucy’s childhood trauma to a present-day event. It shows the complexities of PTSD and how it can follow you and haunt you in more ways than one.
Dark was the Night by Tania Lorena Rivera is a heart-stopping suspense novel. It is a sensational thriller that had me on the edge of my seat until I reached the explosive conclusion.
Rivera layers her story with hidden depths, expertly mining Lucie’s nyctophobia, and her long-buried memories that refuse to come to surface. She does a skillful job of gradually unraveling Lucie’s tortured past while deftly juggling the fast-paced narrative.
For all you locals, my book is now available in Encore Books & Records bookstore in Montreal.
It is under the 'Local Authors' section, which is a tiny section, but still.
Hope you guys check it out and take the time to check out the rest of the bookstore. They sell new and used books and records, and they also buy books all year long. They also possess a print and design studio for fine art prints.
Support a local shop in these trying times.
My book, Dark Was the Night, won a Silver Book Award from Literary Titan. So humbled and honored for this recognition!
