The Weight of Night

A Novel of Suspense

By: Christine Carbo

Narrated by: Sarah Mollo-Christensen, R.C. Bray

Length: 13 hrs and 42 mins

Publisher's summary

In a land sculpted by glaciers, the forest is on fire. Thick smoke chokes the mountain air and casts a twilight glow over the imposing mountains and vistas of Montana's Glacier National Park. When firefighters are called in to dig fuel line breaks near the small town bordering the park, a crew member is shocked to unearth a shallow grave containing human remains.

Park police officer Monty Harris is summoned to the site to conduct an excavation. But with a 2,500-degree incendiary monster threatening to barrel through the town and no forensic detective on hand, Monty must work outside protocol. So he seeks help from Gretchen Larson, the county's lead crime scene investigator and someone on whom Monty feels he can rely.

The two are working against the clock to determine the true identity of the victim when a teenager suddenly disappears from one of the campgrounds in Glacier. Could the cases somehow be connected? As chances for recovery of the missing boy grow slimmer and the FBI finds only dead ends, Gretchen and Monty desperately race to fit all the pieces together in time.

The Weight of Night is Christine Carbo's latest book in a series that "paints a moving picture of complex, flawed people fighting to make their way in a wilderness where little is black or white" (Publishers Weekly). This gripping thriller is a tribute to the power of family, set against one of America's most majestic and unforgiving landscapes.

©2017 Christine Carbo (P)2017 Blackstone Audio, Inc.

Another Good Installment To The Series

I have listened to Christine Carbo's first two novels, The Wild Inside and Mortal Fall, and loved them so I looked forward to a third with great anticipation. I have not been disappointed. Carbo seems to get better with each book and The Weight of Night is my favorite of the series so far.

Like the previous two books, The Weight of Night takes place in and around Glacier National Park in Montana. It's fire season and the forest fires are raging out of control. Amidst the conflagration, firefighters unearth a shallow grave containing human remains. Monty Harris, a Park Police Officer, and Gretchen Larson, a crime scene investigator, are called in to excavate the remains and discover who they belong to and how they got there. In the midst of all this a boy vacationing in Glacier Park with his family goes missing and Monty and Gretchen have to work fast to find him.

Monty and Gretchen are characters from the previous two books, and in this third one we learn a lot more about Gretchen and her interesting and tragic past.

Carbo is a wonderful writer. Her descriptive prose is just beautiful and gets better with every book. I've seen her compared to C.J.Box and Nevada Barr, but those comparisons are flawed. Yes, she sets her novels in a National Park in the West, but that's where the similarities end. Carbo is a much more talented writer than either of them. Her prose is disciplined and beautiful. Her development of and insights into her characters is more profound and illuminating. While I love her skill at crafting mystery plots and maintaining suspense, I would listen her work even if she didn't write thrillers.

R. C. Bray and Sarah Mollo-Christensen were really good with the delivery of the story

RC BRAY IS AWESOME

RC BRAY does a GREAT job. Too bad the producers and editors missed the authors errors or were not allowed to correct them.
BUT, the female narrator was HORRIBLE.
Throughout her portion of the narration, she drove me completely crazy with her fake Nordic accent and the female FBI agents voice. Combined with her pauseing just before the last word of every paragraph, and adding it after an extremely long pause. She did this THROUGHOUT the book, at least a few hundred times. I'll never buy another book with her name on it.
As for the story... it's a big NOPE.
I'm returning it. I'll go ahead and tell you, it was the butler, in the pantry, with the candle stick.

OK, But Predictable

It's a decent story that you've heard before: a dead body has someone reviewing old case files and it turns out there's a serial killer in town. The team on the case (a National Park ranger and the head of the county's CSI team) both have damaged pasts that they are forced to address. A boy is missing who could be another victim. The killer is someone that no one would expect. Oh, and because the ranger is a man and the CSI lady is a woman there is some unspoken sexual tension that never gets addressed. (Maybe in the next book.)

This is the 3rd book in a series focused in and around Glacier National Park. In the first 2 books, Glacier was an organic part of the story. But this one feels like it could be set in any small town in America. Yes, there is a forest fire that sets the story in motion and is in the background, but that's about it.

Still, you want to know whodunit, right? And you want to know how they're going to be defeated. So I hung in there and then, in the ultimate showdown between good and evil - the author cuts the scene! Seriously, one minute the CSI lady is in extreme jeopardy up against the killer and the next minute she's walking out of a building having defeated him. I actually re-listened to that segment because I was sure my mind had wandered and I missed something. Nope, it just skips over the most important scene in any murder mystery. (I'm writing it here in the review and I still can't believe the author did that.)

It's a good story, but not great or very original. (Nevada Barr still sets the bar for National Park mysteries.) It took me a while to get used to the female narrator's Norwegian accent, but after I did I enjoyed her sections as much as those narrated by R. C. Bray.

Superb narration

All of the books in this series have been wonderful -- well written and engrossing. This third one is especially fine. It has many layers of meaning which is unusual for a mystery, but the literary quality never gets in the way of a great story.

The two narrators are among the best I have heard. They are amazing at producing different identities for their characters, and their mastery of accents is impressive.

I highly recommend this one.

Highly Recommended

I often rate books I listen to, but rarely write a review. I just had to write a review now however because I literally just finished listening to all 4 of Christine Carbo’s books on audible and I am now left with that listless sad feeling inside, the feeling that you have to wait until the author publishes another book before you can get swept away yet again.
I loved each of her books- the characters and their relationships and the way each character gets developed with each book.. for that reason, it would be best to read them in order.
They each kept me guessing until (or close to) the big reveals and I love the way she writes about Glacier National Park- I love her allusions and references to nature and to wildlife - and the roles they play.
Before picking up her first book, I had been frustrated because I just couldn’t find a book I could sink into.. these books definitely met the mark. I went through all 4 of them in about 10 days!
Sigh- now I’m back to seeking my next good read.

Best One Yet

This is the third book by Christine Carbo and I think it's her best. The introduction of Gretchen with her unique history provided a fascinating , dramatic and original storyline . I also think the two narrators were excellent . I really hope Ms Carbo gets the serious recognition her literary skills deserve . Can't wait for her fourth .

The Weight of the Night

This book is so bad, on every level. Shallow story, poorly developed characters but the performance, is the absolute worst. The actor with the obvious fake Russian accent that fades in and out, it’s like listening Melania tell the story. It would be funny if they weren’t serious. I know it’s free but it’s time you’ll never get back and you’ll regret it. Hard pass.

Accents

It was a good story with interesting twists. The Scandinavian accent of the woman was off-putting. Prefer a single narrator.

great

great story. a home town favorite. I do love a good Christine Carbo novel. keep up the good work.

A lot of feels

I forgot how navel-gazey these things are. And Carbo seems to be taking a page from Tana French’s playbook by featuring a minor character from a previous book. So far each book has had a different lead, but continues with other characters so you get to know them all. Some too much though. Gretchen’s situation is awful, but damn do we get drenched with that deluge over and over and over. It needed some trimming. The title refers to her situation and her extreme sleep disorder. At least Monty kept his agony over his ex-wife to a minimum. Not sure I’ll continue since I don’t love the excessive feels and introspection, but the setting continues to be interesting and the solutions plausible.

The Weight of Night

This was a audio free listen and to be honest it wasn’t that bad p
.

Enjoyed

New to this author and enjoyed the style and the story. Recommended and have bought the next book.

A good read

A good read with familiar well drawn characters. Nice one in series and glad one issue resolved.

Fantastic

This is my third straight in a row and I am finding the stories and narration wonderfully engaging.
I’m off to check to see if there is another.
Really unusual that it is the park and the police who remain the constant but the main characters slip in and out of each book, very clever.

Brilliant

I am enjoying this series of slow burning suspense that keeps you gripped from start to finish.

Great read.

Another good captivating book. Well written with good two good narrators.
Quite a twist to the story.

Another great listen from Carbo.

Love this series, sad I’m nearly done! Characters are great and the stories keep me hooked. R.C. Bray is a wonder as usual and Sarah Mollo-Christensen was really lovely to listen to. She brought something fresh to the book. Can’t wait to start the last one!

A thrilling read

I enjoyed listening to this, the third book in the series. The main story weaves effortlessly with the continuation of the character’s lives. Super narration between the two main characters. Highly recommended.

A very enjoyable listen

The second I’ve listened in this series. The narration is very well done where the Norwegian accent is superb. A very interesting dual narrative that helps build the suspense as the story progresses. Highly recommend

Very enjoyable

Another in the series which I’ve found most enjoyable. It’s good to hear a bit more about the various characters.