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Mohrbooks Literary Agency
Sebastian Ritscher
Original language
English
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THE NIGHT OLIVIA FELL

Christina McDonald

Christina McDonald weaves a suspenseful and heartwrenching tale of hidden relationships, devastating lies, and the power of a mother's love. With flashbacks of Olivia's own resolve to uncover family secrets, this taut and emotional novel asks: how well do you know your children? And how well do they know you?
In the vein of Big Little Lies and Reconstructing Amelia comes an emotionally charged domestic suspense novel about a mother unraveling the truth behind how her daughter became brain dead. And pregnant.

A search for the truth. A lifetime of lies.

In the small hours of the morning, Abi Knight is startled awake by the phone call no mother ever wants to get: her teenage daughter Olivia has fallen off a bridge. Not only is Olivia brain dead, she's pregnant and must remain on life support to keep her baby alive. And then Abi sees the angry bruises circling Olivia's wrists.

When the police unexpectedly rule Olivia's fall an accident, Abi decides to find out what really happened that night. Heartbroken and grieving, she unravels the threads of her daughter's life. Was Olivia's fall an accident? Or something far more sinister?

Christina McDonald is an author, journalist, and copywriter, and has worked for companies such as The Sunday Times, Dublin, The Connacht Tribune, Galway, Expedia, USA TODAY, Travelex, and Pearson Publishing. Originally from Seattle, WA, she holds an MA in Journalism from the National University of Ireland Galway, and now lives in London, England.
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Book

Published 2019-02-05 by Gallery

Book

Published 2019-02-05 by Gallery

Comments

[A] complex, emotionally intense first novel.Fans of twisty domestic suspense novels will be rewarded.

The book was also featured in the following lists: Betches "What to Read This Winter Based on Books You Already Love" Bookbub Blog "Best Book Club Books of 2019" Goodreads "36 Big Mysteries & Thrillers of 2019" Bookbub Blog "14 Spine-Tingling Psychological Thrillers Hitting Shelves This Year" Parade.com "Debut Novels Everyone Will Be Reading in 2019" PopSugar "Terrifying New Thrillers and Mysteries" MarieClaire.com "The Best Women's Fiction of 2019 (So Far)" PopSugar "17 Books We're Adding to Our Must-Read Lists in February"

Even though what will happen is known early on, this book is a tearjerker, so have tissues at hand. A well-structured story of how lying corrupts from the start that will keep pages turning

The Night Olivia Fell by Christina McDonald is a stunning thriller that instantly grabbed me by the throat and wouldn't let go until the final, poignant sentence. McDonald artfully brings to the page the emotionally fraught, complex relationship between mother and daughter in this atmospheric, absorbing page-turner. The Night Olivia Fell cracked my heart into a million pieces and then slowly pieced it back together again.

Beautifully written and moving with characters I felt I knew, The Night Olivia Fell is a stunning debut that kept me guessing right until the final, heartbreaking twist.

In Christina McDonald's The Night Olivia Fell, Abi gets the call every mother fears: her daughter has fallen from a bridge and is brain dead...but was it an accident or a crime? McDonald reveals the answer in steady, page-turning increments, a gradual unfolding of truths and long-held secrets that culminates in a heart-wrenching resolution. A suspenseful debut that packs an emotional punch.

I was absolutely hooked, it was such an emotional read that I was broken by the end. Heartbreaking and thrilling at the same time.

Christina McDonald has crafted an emotionally-charged mystery that will leave readers equally gut-wretched and gripped. The Night Olivia Fell welcomes a talented new addition to the world of domestic suspense.

CrimeReads featured the book in a list of "February's Best Psychological Thrillers" "The Night Olivia Fell eases you into its world and then turns that world on its side again and again. The plot twists are remarkable for a debut." Read more...

Christina McDonald's The Night Olivia Fell takes a mother's worst nightmare to a whole new level. This is an intense, twisting, heartbreaking thriller that explores in painful detail the consequences of family secrets. The reader will be riveted until the final page...and may even feel a bit of hope when all is said and done. Don't miss this one!

UK: HarperCollins UK ; Croatian: Mozaik ; Czech: Dobrovsky ; Norwegian: Cappelen Damm ; Polish: Wydawnictwo NieZwykle ; Slovak: Slovensky ; Turkish: Ephesis ; Ukrainian: Vivat

McDonald ratchets up the suspense with every chapter, including plenty of gasp-worthy twists and turns as Abi and Olivia's story pushes towards its devastating conclusion. The suspense is supplemented by relationships of surprising depth and tenderness, providing balance and nuance to the story. A worthy debut from an up-and-coming domestic-suspense author; readers who enjoy mother-daughter stories in the genre should line up for this one.