Author: Dianne Emley
Publisher: Alibi
Publication Date: September, 2014
Genre: Mystery / Thriller
Buy The Book: Amazon | Barnes & Noble
Description: In bestselling author Dianne Emley’s chilling new paranormal thriller, a beautiful woman’s romantic past comes back to haunt her in the form of an otherworldly visitor seeking justice.
Gorgeous and successful, Rory Langtry seemed to have it all. Daughter of a movie star and sister of a supermodel, Rory was engaged to sexy artist, Junior Lara. But her bright future went dark one terrible, bloody night that left her sister dead and the accused murderer—Junior—in an extended coma.
Now, five years later, Rory appears to have put the past behind her. She has a wonderful new fiancé and heads a successful cosmetics company. Yet dark secrets threaten. Across town, Junior lies close to death but before he departs he seeks to clear his name.
It starts with a feeling. It turns into a vision. Soon Rory is having sensations that only Junior could experience—from the horrifying to the erotic. Then she learns details about the awful night that only Junior could know, newfound knowledge with potentially fatal consequences. When another act of violence rocks her family, Rory plunges deeper into the unsolved mystery, led by an inexplicable visitor to a dangerous time and place where all will be revealed at last. But until then, Junior will not let her go.
My Thoughts: New to me author Dianne Emley offers up a very good, intense and suspenseful story with The Night Visitor, a story about a woman coming to terms with the tragedy that took the life of her twin sister, Anya and put her fiancé in a coma five years before. All evidence points to Junior as Anya’s murderer but Junior’s family believe Rory is the culprit. After a tragic act of violence puts Rory in harm’s way, we begin to learn about the events from five years ago through Junior’s eyes in flashbacks. Though Junior is in a coma and lingering on death’s door in this book, we get to know him through the flashbacks and I felt a strong empathy for him. I knew in my gut from the beginning he wasn’t the murderer, but I was fascinated at how he was psychically connected to his brother and then to Rory. I really liked Rory and her new fiancé, Tom. I admired how he handled the changes in Rory and his willingness to stand by her, showing his love and support though, at times, it appeared she was going to leave him and join Junior when he crossed over. A couple of scenes with Rory and Junior interacting had me in tears. They were beautifully written and so gut-wrenching emotional.
In addition to the paranormal mystery angle, I also enjoyed that this story explores the relationships between Rory and her mother and her sister. There are a lot of unresolved issues and hurt feelings that come out. The author writes these tense and very emotional scenes with a lot of grace without glossing over the incidents or sugar coating the pain Rory still feels. I struggled with feeling any empathy for Anya but we get to know her through flashbacks and I began to feel pity for her, though I did not agree with her choices or the way she treated people. I never warmed up to Rory’s mother. I thought she was vain and selfish. I thought Rory’s stepfather and stepbrother were arrogant.
This story moves at a fast pace and the author does a very good job of giving enough detail to keep the reader interested without overwhelming them. The dialogue was appropriate for the subject matter and flowed smoothly. I wish I had discovered this author’s work before.
My Final Verdict: Overall, The Night Visitor is a very good story that will appeal to fans of mysteries, thrillers and suspense novels. The paranormal element is an additional bonus that heightens the intensity of the story. I recommend this book if you enjoy stories that draw on all of your emotions.
Disclaimer: I received a complimentary copy of The Night Visitor from the publisher in exchange for an honest review.
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