When the Stars Go Dark, Paula McLain
When the Stars Go Dark, Paula McLain
21 Rating(s)
List: $25.00 | Sale: $17.50
Club: $12.50

When the Stars Go Dark

Bestseller

Author: Paula McLain

Narrator: Marin Ireland

Unabridged: 11 hr 29 min

Format: Digital Audiobook Download

Published: 04/13/2021

Synopsis

NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER • GOOD MORNING AMERICA BUZZ PICK • “A total departure for the author of The Paris Wife, McLain’s emotionally intense and exceptionally well-written thriller entwines its fictional crime with real cases.”—People (Book of the Week)

NAMED ONE OF THE BEST BOOKS OF THE YEAR BY MARIE CLAIRE • “The kind of heart-pounding conclusion that thriller fans crave . . . In the end, a book full of darkness lands with a message of hope.”—The New York Times Book Review

“This mystery will keep you guessing, and stay with you long after you finish. Dive in.”—Daily Skimm

Anna Hart is a seasoned missing persons detective in San Francisco with far too much knowledge of the darkest side of human nature. When tragedy strikes her personal life, Anna, desperate and numb, flees to the Northern California village of Mendocino to grieve. She lived there as a child with her beloved foster parents, and now she believes it might be the only place left for her. Yet the day she arrives, she learns that a local teenage girl has gone missing.

The crime feels frighteningly reminiscent of the most crucial time in Anna’s childhood, when the unsolved murder of a young girl touched Mendocino and changed the community forever. As past and present collide, Anna realizes that she has been led to this moment. The most difficult lessons of her life have given her insight into how victims come into contact with violent predators. As Anna becomes obsessed with saving the missing girl, she must accept that true courage means getting out of her own way and learning to let others in.

Weaving together actual cases of missing persons, trauma theory, and a hint of the metaphysical, this propulsive and deeply affecting novel tells a story of fate, necessary redemption, and what it takes, when the worst happens, to reclaim our lives—and our faith in one another.

About Paula McLain

Paula McLain, author of the bestselling novel The Paris Wife, received her MFA in poetry from the University of Michigan in 1996. Her other books include two volumes of poems, Less of Her and Stumble, Gorgeous, and the novel A Ticket to Ride. She teaches in the MFA Program in Poetry at New England College, and lives with her family in Cleveland.

Reviews

Goodreads review by Regina on July 30, 2021

I’m going to do something I never do… ... which is to suggest you read the publisher’s synopsis before starting When the Stars Go Dark. I’ve read it multiple times since finishing the novel and am marveling at how well it gives readers a glimpse at the plot and tone without giving anything away. But......more

Goodreads review by Lisa of Troy on December 13, 2023

Anna Hart is a police detective reeling from a personal tragedy when she goes back to her hometown to heal. When she arrives, she is confronted by a missing teen which brings up memories of the past. Will Anna be able to find the missing teen? What happened all those years ago? As someone who has see......more

Goodreads review by JanB on June 12, 2021

4.5 stars “Every 73 seconds someone in America becomes the victim of sexual assault. Every nine minutes one of those victims is a child. 82% of victims under the age of eighteen are female. The effects of sexual violence can be long lasting and profound.” The story opens in 1993, the year the real- li......more

Goodreads review by Nilufer on October 10, 2021

I haven’t read so lyrical words written in full of intensity in such a powerful, moving, thought provoking tone! I literally find myself trapped inside the mind of heroine and I didn’t want to leave there even it hurt me a lot! Inner poet of Ms. McLane created a tormented but a decent fighter, remar......more

Goodreads review by Will on April 06, 2022

A town like this feels so safe and apart from the outside world. You start to wonder if it’s dangerous.” “The fairy tale of it, you mean?” “Right. False security. You stop looking over your shoulder, because the picture feels real. Nothing bad can happen when there’s a moat around the whole town,......more

Quotes

“This genre-bending novel [is an] absolutely incredible literary thriller about the human journey.”—Good Morning America

“Fueled by pure high anxiety . . . When the Stars Go Dark is an atmospheric and intricately plotted suspense novel.”—The Washington Post

“The twisty plot keeps the pages flying, and Paula McLain’s lyrical and poetic prose reveals insight after insight about the human heart, making this riveting read not only an engrossing psychological thriller, but crime fiction of the highest order.”—Lisa Scottoline, author of Someone Knows

“When the Stars Go Dark is a beautifully written, sharply observed literary thriller with an extraordinary, unforgettable heroine. An unflinching look at the long shadow cast by trauma and the resilience it takes to survive, this is a novel of both great sadness and great beauty.”—Kristin Hannah, author of The Four Winds

“Paula McLain has created a vulnerable, intelligent, unforgettable protagonist whose interior life is as interesting as the mysteries she has to solve. When the Stars Go Dark is my favorite kind of book. I’ll recommend it far and wide.”—Liz Moore, author of Long Bright River

“Lyrical and beautiful . . . a riveting deep dive into trauma, survival, and obsession. With her deeply flawed and utterly compelling heroine, elegant prose, and layered, twisting story, Paula McLain has penned an extraordinary novel of literary suspense, as gripping as it is unique and unforgettable.”—Lisa Unger, author of Confessions on the 7:45

“With this breathtaking novel, Paula McLain proves she can do anything. Exquisitely written, immersive, and atmospheric, When the Stars Go Dark is a tour de force of literary suspense.”—Christina Baker Kline, author of The Exiles

“Paula McLain, already established as the master of the historical novel, now explodes into crime fiction with a richly satisfying, tremendously moving mystery—haunting, poignant, lyrical, urgent.”—Chris Pavone, author of The Paris Diversion

“Fantastically propulsive and deeply atmospheric, this novel grabs you from the very first page. Paula McLain has proven to be a masterful storyteller no matter the genre.”—Aimee Molloy, author of The Perfect Mother

“This melancholy but gripping tale uses backstory and flashbacks to propel the mystery forward. Part suspense, part self-discovery tale, this first attempt at crime fiction from historical fiction author McLain (The Paris Wife) is hard to resist. Fans of the author’s other works will not be disappointed.”—Library Journal

“[A] stunning crime novel . . . McLain matches poetic prose with deep characterizations as she shines a light on the kindness in her characters’ souls. Fans of literary suspense won’t be able to put this one down.”—Publishers Weekly (starred review)

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