That Night by Gillian McAllister is a book I’ve had on my physical TBR since my partner bought me as part of a selection of book presents leading up to Christmas. It’s my first McAllister book covers the story of a brother and sister who get involved with the wrong side of the law and their literal trials and tribulations as a result.
That Night by Gillian McAllister follows three siblings who cover up a crime one of them commits, leading to unravelling secrets, guilt, and a tense quest for the truth.
That Night plot – 3.5/5
Despite the quite interesting premise, I really struggled to engage with That Night at all. It starts off with the crime happening at the beginning (not a spoiler as it’s literally right at the start of the book) and then proceeds to jump back and forth between our main characters’ thoughts, lives and the trials they then have to face as a result of the crime.
I found myself very confused as to what the point of the book was. I wasn’t interested enough in the characters to care if they get off or not and I didn’t find myself that drawn into the whole process either.
The most interesting part for me was a moment at the very end of the book where the tone changes a little bit and it’s brought to a fairly resounding conclusion. But the rest of the story I just found completely engaging unfortunately. It was slow and lacked any real pace – especially for a “thriller”.
That Night characters – 3.5/5
If the plot was slow but then I found myself obsessed and in love with the characters, it may not have been such a forgettable book but unfortunately, that’s not the case.
We follow mainly the sister in this whole thing as she deals with her personal life and the fear of being included in the actions of her siblings. However, at no point did I find myself growing an attachment to her or even feeling sorry for her. I’m not sure if this was because of my own cold-heartedness or simply because she wasn’t likeable enough.
Additionally neither of her siblings fell into the enjoyable category either and thus were incredible forgettable.
That Night final rating – 3.5/5
I wanted to like That Night because my partner bought it for me and because I’ve heard another of McAllister’s books is very good, but I just found myself completely forgetting this book almost straight after I finished it. Very uninteresting characters, a plot that gives away too much early on and then has nothing to build on and pacing that had me falling out of interest, results in a thriller that I certainly wasn’t thrilled by. I know McAllister has said that this was an early release for her and was certainly slower paced, but for me, That Night is hugely passable with many better books in the thriller genre, and I’m sure even better books by McAllister herself.
It’s a shame when a book doesn’t quite live up to positive expectations. This one seems to have missed the opportunity of making the most of the interesting premise. Great review!
Indeed! Thanks Molly 🙂