That Night

By: Cecily Wolfe

Narrated by: Sharmila Devar

Length: 6 hrs and 41 mins

Publisher's Summary

Drug overdoses don't happen to girls with good grades and athletic talent, with longtime friends and a devoted boyfriend. Or do they?

When high school seniors Cassidy and Sarah, along with Kayla's boyfriend Paul, discover their best friend Kayla unconscious at a party, the idea that they have lost her to a heroin overdose is unbelievable. She didn't use drugs, except the pain medicine prescribed for a soccer injury, and she had no reason to accept any from a stranger. The month that follows her death is filled with anxiety, sadness, frustration, and questions. Answers won't bring Kayla back, however, so as Cass and Sarah struggle with the insensitive but predictable behavior of parents, classmates, and teachers, Paul falls into a depression that leads him down a dangerous path. With Kayla's younger sister Mia in mind, the three of them work towards forging ahead without the girl who has held them together since elementary school.

©2017 Cecily Wolfe (P)2019 Cecily Wolfe

YA Genius on real life issues

I had first read this book a year ago and I rated it five stars then and I was honestly worried about its translation into an audiobook because the narration is so vital for its success. Consider this a success. The character came even more alive than before. The feelings could be felt through the multiple voices voices by one person.


She delivered a story with truth, honesty and the reality that is now, then and the future. What I wasn’t prepared for was the depth in which I journeyed too. I expected a story of what had happened and why it happened. Bada bing Bada Boom. This was not that.

Wolfe opened up to a world of many different healings. I was left with the feeling of wanting to pick up the phone and call my best friend and remind her how important she is to me.

Kayla’s death was sudden. While we faced her death and were left with the open question of why, we saw the aftermath. The lives of those Kayla had left behind. The aftermath of how coping isn’t the same for everyone. How people can be cruel, they can be kind and they can be broken.

We follow Kayla’s best friends Cassidy and Sarah, Paul the boyfriend, Mia the younger sister and Danny the house it happened at, the closest. But neatly tucked away you a get a glimpse of the soccer team, her parents, other kids parents, coaches and school officials. A lot happens within That Night besides the main premise of the novel.

It’s a very complex story but it the most positive way. I think that because of how real the situation is, the complexity is all to understanding.

That night

I enjoyed this story but feel like it left me with more questions than answers at the end

Teen Overdose Heartache

The heartbreak of losing a teen to drug overdose is real. This story is real. And it digs deep into the thoughts and feelings of the friends who were left behind. The ache. The questions. The sorrow. I highly recommend this book for anyone looking for that kind of read. The narrator wasn't overly emotional, but I felt that she did a good job conveying the numbness that the characters were feeling.

Not much happens beyond the "incident"

That Night is a story that follows the friends and family (more the friends and their families I guess I should say) of Kay, who overdoses at a party. Everybody is shocked because Kay was a successful, popular student who did sports and extra curriculars. The book revolves around the idea that Kay was too good to have died in such a fashion but no social standing or even bright minded person is above influence. In my humble opinion, influences (good or bad) are overcome by resilience and maybe even a learned attitude towards such incites, but we are born to be influenced. It is how we treat these provocations/pressures that form our futures. Kay fell victim to peer pressure, not because she wasn't who everybody believed she was or could be, but because she is a child and our children face these challenges far too often, drugs are prevalent in today's society and everybody is vulnerable, regardless of who they are. This is definitely a story where not much happens beyond the "incident" and the character building didn't leave me empathetic to their pain. We don't get much on the characters beyond how they are dealing with Kay's untimely death, we don't get a huge amount of background beyond how close they all were as friends. I would have liked to learn more about them, individually and got to know them as people and not just the victim's friends. I completely understand that the author wanted the emotional toll taken on the characters to be at the forefront and that an approach of this nature doesn't leave much room for anything else as our emotions can be all-consuming, especially in times of grief and confusion. I liked, but didn't love the story... I just wanted more in the aspect of character and world building to engage with. I will say, as I listened to the audiobook, my empathy and/or connection with these characters and their setting may have been affected by the narration. Not to say the narration was done badly, but tone, tact, emotion, etc. are often lost when a story of this emotional approach is not read and interpreted at a personal level. My overall thought is neutral on the side of positive, if you enjoy emotional dramas that are just that and overtly uneventful, you will find this one provides what was promised. If you need action, this is not for you
[Thank you LibraryThing, the publisher, and the author for the free audiobook]

That Night

Touching listen. A good take on a relevant subject in todays climate of rampant overdoses. The narration was pleasant and enjoyable🙂

So much filler and moved too slow for me...

*Slight Spoiler* That Night by Cecily Wolfe sounded really gripping from reading the summary. Unfortunately, the book missed its mark with me. I found myself over halfway through the book wondering when anything was really going to happen. I mean, besides the obvious heroin overdose at the beginning. I found that the rest of the story, except for the final chapter, could have been shortened down tremendously, as it seemed that not really much happened each day. Yes, they found the dealer, yes, there was sadness and the three main characters coped with their feelings all differently, but it just couldn't hold my attention for almost 7 hours.

Sharmila Devar did a good job narrating this story. While some reviews stated that she didn't have much emotion in her narration, I feel that was pretty accurate for how the characters were acting. There wasn't much in the way of major outbursts where a lot of emotion was needed. I would imagine that I would be fairly numb and unemotional too, once the initial crying and shock of it all had subsided. So, while she didn't read with tons of emotion, I feel that it fit the story just fine. I was voluntarily provided this free review copy audiobook by the author, narrator, or publisher for an honest review.

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left a lot of unanswered questions

I love the idea of this story, but there was a lot left unsaid. I think the girls took their best friend dying from drug use too unreal. I've been through this myself and it just felt very distant. Also, there is a lot of filler. Maybe the narrator ruined it for me, but I found myself speeding the story and I've listened to over 200 books and I've never done that before. I want to love this story but it fell short for me.

Unexpected read

This was a very unexpected read and I ended up really enjoying it. Great look at real life issues.

Excellent YA

Excellent story, really captures many real life issues and emotions. I enjoyed the characters. The narrator does an excellent job bringing the characters to life!

Real and raw

That Night is a story that most people wouldn't talk about. I think that all teens should know more about drugs and not just sex. This will help them to understand that it could happen... to anyone. This is a real and raw story that makes you think this could happen to my kid if they aren't careful. Kayla’s death was a huge impact on the people (some she wasn't even that close too) around her. You're own life has impact on others. Remember that!

Thought Provoking and Emotional!

This audiobook book is so thought provoking and Emotional. This book deals with the aftermath of overdose and the ones left behind. This book also has a very important message that it’s not just addicts that can overdose on drugs.
It’s so beautiful how the narrator brought this story to life and so well written by the author! I highly recommend this listen!

You just don't know

Samantha Devar did a great job doing the narration.

This is a most listen for all, a thought provoking story. This story is about loved ones coping with the afterwards of a overdose. Done in a wonderful way. Emotional, but perfect.

Important Messages

This is an important story to tell--about how it's not just drug addicts who end up dying due to overdoses--but for me, it just didn't engage me in the way that I'd hoped. It ended up being a DNF about listening to about half of the audio. Although the writing was great and it's clear the author is skilled, I found it a bit flat, a little repetitive, and it just didn't really hold my attention. I think this is just a personal preference kind of thing though. However, I did find the alternating points of view a little disorientating as we seemed to flit from one POV character to the next, and I kept getting a bit lost and never quite knowing who the POV character in any given scene was.

That Night

This is a story that I believe all teenagers should read or listen to. It is thought-provoking and emotional. This book focuses more on the loved ones left to cope and wonder why after someone overdoses. I feel this is a realistic representation of what happens in real life. I really loved the author's notes at the end of the story. I would highly recommend this book to anyone. Sharmila Devar did a great job bringing this story to life. I received this audiobook at my request and have voluntarily left this unbiased review.

Could Happen to Someone You Know

This is the 3rd book I have listened to by this author. This is about a tragedy that happens far to often. I think by writing about real experiences could help people dealing with issues could learn from this. This book just made me stop and think for a bit. I have enjoyed this author. I have never read books like hers.

WOW

This book is a very hard hitting story about the emotional fallout of a friend's overdose. The author handles this delicate subject, that needs awareness raising, with real sensitivity. The narration is a treat to listen to.