The Long Night

The Long Night is a departure for Jessica Scott. While it is still a military novel and has a romantic relationship, it is not a romance. This is a book about good and evil and what men are willing to do during war to safely return to their loved ones. It is not an easy book to read. The subtitle is a novel of suspense, but it isn’t like any suspense I’ve ever read. The story is haunting and hallucinatory. You never quite know what is real and what is brought on by sleep deprivation and the horrors of war. Scott is a master storyteller and her incredible skills are fully on display in this novel. The story is gripping and haunting and will linger long after you’ve turned off your device.

This book is not for everyone. If you aren’t a fan of war or understanding what choices must be made in the heart of batter, this is not something you should pick up. If you are a fan of those things, I highly recommend this read. You will be confused at times and your heart will ache for Sam, but in the end you will be glad you took the journey with him.

Copy received from the author in exchange for an honest review.

I really can’t remember the last time I read a book that wasn’t classified in some way or another as a romance – I’m actually not sure that I ever have. But… Jessica Scott is one of my favorite authors (I have many and the order of the list may change from time to time but she is always on it) and I really wanted to read this book.

I’ve been on her ARC list for quite some time but she warned me that I might not want to read this one because it’s not a romance and because it’s very dark. I am so glad I ignored her warning. The reason that I’ve loved her military themed romances is pretty much the same reason why I loved this story – it’s real, even if it’s fiction.

I know good authors have a “voice” – that something that makes their writing recognizable – but it never hit home as much for me as it did when I read this story. It’s so unlike her romance books and yet it is like them. Confusing I know. I think I would have suspected that she was the author even if she had used a different pen name.

I like Jessica Scott’s romance stories because they depict things that seem very believable to me. I usually don’t care if the romance stories I read are really believable or not; I read romance as an escape from everyday life. But when I discovered her romance books I embraced them for how “real” the stories seemed. I don’t know if it’s true or not but I credit the realism to the fact that she has been, and still is, a soldier.

Sorry for the talk about romance books when I’m writing a review for something described as “A Novel of Suspense.” I mention all of the romance things because I want other readers of her romance stories to not hesitate to read this one.

Yes, this is a dark story. If the real horror of being in a war zone is only half as bad as what happens in this book it’s nearly unimaginable. Especially to someone like me who has no military background or persons close to them who have served in the last 30+ years. However dark this one is, it is a very gripping and compelling read. It’s one of those stories that I didn’t want to put down and yet I had to at times in order to process it a bit before I could read more.

I think this book invoked every emotion there is for me. Parts of the story were shocking and at the end I had tears running down my face. But amidst all of the darkness I found a few passages that made me smile.

The Long Night may not be a romance but I would call it a love story. Jessica Scott remains firmly rooted in my list of favorite authors. Thank you for writing such a compelling story that convinced me to try something different and venture out of my reading comfort zone.

I received an ARC of this book from the author in exchange for my honest review.

***Reviewed for Xtreme-Delusions***

The story tells of the gripping reality of war. Sam Brown doesn't feel that faith is something he can have. How can there be a higher power that allows the atrocities Sam has seen, and done. Sam makes a promise to his fiancé (who's name is not so coincidentally, Faith) and his unborn child - that he will return to them no matter what. As he returns to war after his visit home, he really is feeling less and less like he can keep that promise. The death and loss surrounds him on a constant basis. This story kept me on the edge of my seat the entire time, unsure on how this would really turn out. The story is wonderfully told.

Jessica Scott ventures out of her usual "romance" genre, but no matter what your preferred genre is, a good story is a good story. And this is definitely just that.