The River at Night

The River at Night is Erica Ferencik's (fantastic!) debut novel.

We all have them - long term friends that you try to get together with at least once a year. That's what Wini, Pia, Rachel and Sandra try to do, picking a new vacation destination every year. It's white-water rafting this year in the remote wilds of Maine. A place where no one lives. Or do they? And when they have an accident on the river..... Great premise!

The four are all very different personalities. Friends yes, but personalities do clash - especially in stressful situations. Ferencik nails the interactions between the four - their depictions are realistic, the friendship rings true and the personalities remind me of some people I've known. The friendship between the show more four is tested as the book progresses, as is each woman.

Great plotting - a hint of Deliverance for those that remember that movie. (No worries, not as graphic) Lots of action. I kayak, but I don't think I'll ever go white water rafting. And I no idea what was going to happen next. I can't tell you how much I appreciate being kept in the dark, wondering where an author is going to take the story.

I chose to listen to The River at Night. The narrator was Joy Osmanski. Her interpretation of the novel was excellent. Each woman was easily identifiable - with their own tone, cadence and attitude. I absolutely believed the interactions between the four. And the other characters (not going to spoil it by saying who) had a dark and sinister voice that gave me chills. Osmanski conveyed the sense of danger and desperation really well - and had me listening to just one more chapter before turning in. This is a book I know I enjoyed more by listening. I felt caught up in the story, included in the conversations and decisions. Although I was mentally voting (and shouting) 'no' for many of their choices!

The River at Night was such an addicting tale! Absolutely recommended. I'll be watching for Ferencik's next book! show less

The River at Night reads like a slasher movie, think Deliverance and Texas Chainsaw Massacre! Just like in most slasher movies you will be yelling at the characters for making STUPID decisions. Four women who have NEVER been white water rafting decide to go on a three day trip going down a long, dangerous and isolated river that only a few have been down. Would anyone in their right mind actually do this?? Putting that aside this book is actually really great. If you love suspenseful books than you will definitely enjoy this one!

I received this book for free from a Goodreads Giveaway. Thank you Gallery and Scout Press!

As I have mentioned before, I have some serious guilty pleasures (though I don’t REALLY believe in guilty pleasures when it comes to reading) when it comes to the books that I stack up on my nightstand. One of those guilty pleasures is wilderness survival horror/thriller. I am not an outdoorsy person by any stretch of the imagination beyond the occasional hike or walk, and so I love stories that involve people getting messed up by wilderness. Seriously, I think that I’m so scared of nature that I love seeing fictional people finding terror in the woods, or on the open ocean, or in the mountains, or whatever. This is the girl who freaked out about the Nutty Putty Cave Incident, made her entire book club listen to a long rant about show more it, and then watched “The Descent” a few times in a row as personal therapy, because she LOVES that movie due to the wilderness survival theme. So yeah. When I found a book that kind of sounds like “The Descent” exists, but takes out the cave, replaces it with a river, and replaces monsters with tangible real life horrors… Oh, I was so there.

“The River At Night” even seems like “The Descent” in it’s premise, at least a little bit. A group of ladyfriends go on a trip that involves adrenaline pumping extreme sports, with one of them recovering from a serious loss in her life while the others don’t really know how to approach her about it. Winifred is our protagonist, and she is still reeling from her divorce and the death of her brother Marcus. Her friends Pia, Sandra, and Rachel have always been her travel companions, on out-there and intense adventures (thanks to Pia, a true free spirit with no fear), and while Wini has reservations, the thought of white water rafting in the Maine Wilderness sounds… fun? I will be the first to admit that these four women are all pretty two dimensional caricatures, with the self involved adrenaline junkie (Pia), the tightly wound recovering addict (Rachel), the quiet sweetheart with a troubled home life (Sandra), and the wounded but determined wallflower (Wini). And I will also be the first to admit that some of the situations they found themselves in were a bit convenient, and cliche, and a little bit farfetched.

But guess what? I didn’t care because DAMN was “The River At Night” a fun as hell read!!!! “The River At Night” has just the right amount of suspense, as well as the right amount of relationship tension, that I had a hard time putting it down once I was completely absorbed by it. I had thoughts on where things were going to go, plot wise, but I was kept guessing for a lot of the big reveals. Ferencik did a really good job of building up the tension and setting the scene, and I felt like I could very easily and plainly see the Maine Wilderness as I made my way through the story.

I also really did like Wini as a protagonist. She is, of course, the character we get to know the best, and I felt like I understood her motivations in every choice that she made. I felt for her and I really did connect to the undercurrent of pain that she was fighting against, be it the end of her marriage or the loss of her brother, who was mute, and never really fit in outside of when he was with her. Her guilt in both of these losses was never overdone, but it was always present, like a very sad elephant in the room. It was pretty refreshing that Wini and her friends were all women who were encroaching upon middle age, an age range that we don’t really get to see much when it comes to women in books such as these. The way that they interacted with each other was pretty believable in terms of how sometimes friendships can be rife with tension, especially friendships that have gone on for so long and have seen so much. I believed every single action and choice that each of the characters made, and while I liked some more than others (Rachel was just the absolute worst and Pia was also pretty insufferable) I think that each of them added a unique piece to the whole of the story.

On top of that there were very sweet moments involving Wini and a character who is introduced a little more than halfway through the story. I don’t want to give any of it away, but just know that I thought that it was very touching for a book that had a slew of moments where I thought I was going to fall of my seat because of the ratcheted up tension. It was nice to see some legitimate moments of tenderness, even if some of the circumstances were a bit hard to swallow, realism wise. I absolutely found myself a bit teary eyed at a few of these moments, especially when Wini was thinking about Marcus and how she felt she failed him.

Realistic or not, “The River At Night” was an unsettling and adrenaline pumping survival thriller that captured my attention for a full evening. Thriller fans, MAKE NOTE. This will be a great book for the upcoming summer months to take along on a vacation. show less

Girls Gone Wild Whitewater Rafting - 4.5 stars ...

I love outdoor adventure/survival stories so when I saw this one featured whitewater rafting in Maine I couldn't pass it up.

Four friends- Pia, Rachel, Sandra & Wini, all in their mid 30s, are fed up with their current lives and just need a break to have some serious girl fun. Pia, the daring, adventerous ringleader thinks they should all go on a 5-day whitewater rafting trip down a very secluded river with no public access that's owned by a friend of her father's; and where she leads they follow.

When an accident happens on their second day on the water though, their 'girls getaway' takes a very different turn. But that's only the beginning of their nightmare, someone out there doesn't show more want them to get-a-way at all...

I got so engrossed in this story and the outdoor, off-the-grid setting, I read right through to 91% before I even came up for air! So I would say it was definitely a page turner with just the right amount of suspense and action. There was a bit of girl drama though as the girls emotions were frayed and put to the test. I'm usually never a fan of drama, real or fictional, but this wasn't over the top and I felt like most was actually inherent to the story.

There was also a little bit of humor in the story and I found myself laughing at a few parts, especially the witty snipes that occurred during and after the sex scene on the first night camping at the river. That was hilarious! I think most people have been there before and can appreciate the similarities. I don't want to spoil the scene so I'm not going to go into any details, you'll have just read it.

I thought the ending especially with the 'mother' left a little room for maybe a possible sequel. If there ever is a second book, I would definitely like to read it. I also thought the story would make a great movie and would love to see it in the theater.

*I received this ARC from NetGalley & Gallery Books in exchange for an honest review. Thank you! show less

Four women friends go on a whitewater-rafting adventure trip, but an accident leaves them lost in the Maine backwoods, where they run into unexpected dangers.

This was a quick page-turner of a survival story that I enjoyed. The four main characters were neither idealized nor one-dimensional, but seemed like real people, and their friendships were nuanced and realistic. The narrator, Winifred, seemed especially relatable; she's in a midlife slump, wondering what her purpose is and mourning some losses, when she's thrust into this life-or-death situation. Some reviewers noted that the characters made stupid decisions, but other than their initial decision to go on the trip in the first place (and if they hadn't gone, there wouldn't have show more been a story), I don't agree. In fact, their choices seemed like ones I would make under the same circumstances, and although a couple of the plot elements strained belief, on the whole I thought this was an engaging and exciting thriller. It reminded me quite a lot of a similar story I "discovered" last year: Lost Canyon by Nina Revoyr. show less

A high stakes drama set against the harsh beauty of the Maine wilderness, charting the journey of four friends as they fight to survive the aftermath of a white water rafting accident, The River at Night is a nonstop and unforgettable thriller by a stunning new voice in fiction.

Winifred Allen needs a vacation.

Stifled by a soul-crushing job, devastated by the death of her beloved brother, and lonely after the end of a fifteen-year marriage, Wini is feeling vulnerable. So when her three best friends insist on a high-octane getaway for their annual girls’ trip, she signs on, despite her misgivings.

What starts out as an invigorating hiking and rafting excursion in the remote Allagash Wilderness soon becomes an all-too-real nightmare: A show more freak accident leaves the women stranded, separating them from their raft and everything they need to survive. When night descends, a fire on the mountainside lures them to a ramshackle camp that appears to be their lifeline. But as Wini and her friends grasp the true intent of their supposed saviors, long buried secrets emerge and lifelong allegiances are put to the test. To survive, Wini must reach beyond the world she knows to harness an inner strength she never knew she possessed.

This IMMEDIATELY caught my interest from page one and didn't wane at any point. The characters are very believable and I often found myself pondering what I would do in their situation. There was never a point where I felt like I had this book figured out, it kept me in suspense until the end! show less

The River At Night by Erica Ferencik is a suspense thriller about four middle aged women who get together once a year on a “girls” vacation. This year they are going on a whitewater river raft trip to the beautiful, yet dangerous wilderness of Maine. This was planned by the ringleader of the group, Pia, who is looking forward to the adventure. The other three women, Win, Rachel and Sandra, are less enthusiastic but they follow along. Their river guide is a college student named Rory, who has only travelled the river five times, but seems a little over-confident.

At first the group are entranced by their river experience but all too soon they experience a freak accident that leaves the women stranded, separating them from their raft show more and everything they need to survive. Unfortunately, their troubles have just begun as they huddle together in the night, they catch a glimpse of a fire. As they stumble into the strange camp their nightmare is just starting.

While I thoroughly enjoyed the portions of the book that dealt with wilderness survival, I found the “man against man” part rather over the top and unbelievable. This is a problem that I have with most thrillers, in their desire to stir the audience and keep us in suspense, the plot lines tend to get pretty wild and crazy. The River At Night is certainly a page-turner with plenty of tension and suspense and more than a touch of creepiness which made this a good escape read but I would have like the adventure to have been a little more realistic. show less