The Other Side of Night

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The most richly accomplished of the brothers’ pairings to date—and given Connelly’s high standards, that’s saying a lot. This was such a weird book to try and review. I went into it expecting a mystery/thriller, but it was very light in suspense and heavy in philosophy to me. Probably for this reason, I found this book difficult to get through. For approximately two-thirds of the story it is a literary love story with just enough police procedural elements to keep the mystery fans interested. And the last third is a stretch of the imagination.

Conservatives, Free Market (2 March 2020). "The government needs to be much firmer in its response to COVID-19" . Retrieved 13 October 2020. Overall the pacing could have been a lot better. It could have had more straightforward storytelling rather than so much exposition and so little action. Yet my brain really appreciated the last 20%, to the point that I raised my rating. A brilliant meta-thriller with huge ideas and even greater heart' - Steve Cavanagh, author of The AccompliceFollowing the deaths of his close friends, Ben became an adoptive father to their orphaned son Elliot. But Harriet suspects that Ben knows more about these deaths than he's willing to say . . . At the beginning of the novel, David Asha states, “Life is memory” (p. x). Do you agree? How is it true in the context of the novel? Then we start reading Harriet Kealty’s story from third person narration accompanied by transcripts of court records, diaries, video records from 11 years later. And we realize the writer of the story: David Asha is presumed dead after his wife lost his battle against cancer. He’s just seen at the edge of the cliff and later he vanished into thin air. They never found his body. So we think he is alive from the beginning to write this story but something tremendously tragic happened to his son Elliot he left behind. Harri is then led to David Asha, whose wife left that mysterious inscription, and finds out that his wife Beth has recently died of cancer....or did she?

Following the deaths of his close friends, Ben became an adoptive father to their orphaned son Elliot. But Harriet suspects that Ben knows more about these deaths than he’s willing to say . . . What can I say about The Other Side of Night that won't be a spoiler? Ingenious, constantly surprising, and deeply moving. Put yourself in the hands of a master storyteller, and strap in for a mind-bending ride. -- Joseph Finder, New York Times bestselling author of House on Fire A: Scientists make the impossible happen. The computer I’m typing on, the phone beside me, the medicine that keeps a loved one alive, the plane passing overhead, all exist because a scientist set out to solve a problem. They share qualities with detectives because both try to get to the truth. The scientist uses truth to improve our understanding of the world, something that might have practical significance as per the examples above. The detective uses the truth to deliver justice. Both are extremely powerful motivators. There’s a purity to scientific inquiry and an inherent impurity to judicial inquiry, and both fascinate me, and I think make for interesting reading. The pace isn’t particularly fast, but as the questions turn to answers, this UNIQUE and perplexing reading experience will begin to make sense and it is all wrapped up in a SURPRISING and SATISFYING conclusion. 🎁

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A: When I sat down with my very first editor, she asked me which authors I’d most closely associate myself with, and I said David Mitchell and Michael Crichton. I love Mitchell’s big themes, emotional engagement, and compelling world building, and Crichton’s intelligence and foresight. For various reasons over the years I found myself in an action thriller niche, and THE OTHER SIDE OF NIGHT was a conscious attempt at the kind of novel I’d always wanted to write, a thought-provoking, emotionally engaging novel that leaves readers feeling they’ve experienced something new and different. I hope it will be the first of many such stories. What starts as a simple investigation becomes something entirely different in this moving story that will open hearts and minds as it answers the question: what would you do for one more moment with someone that you love? The Other Side of Nightbegins with a man named David Asha writing about his biggest regret: his sudden separation from his son, Elliot. In his grief, David tells a story. Harriet Kealty is a key to this story. In an impulsive moment during her job as a police officer, she makes a mistake and loses her job in disgrace. She didn't do what she's been accused of doing and she wants to clear her name. During this time she meets Ben Elmys and knows he's the one after just two dates. Her heart is broken when he breaks up with her on the third date. Is it Harri that is the problem? Is her thinking so far off that she can't make any right decisions?

In The Other Side of Night, Adam Hamdy explores what people are willing to sacrifice for love, and the subsequent regret felt about the choices that are made. The narrative alternates between Hari, a former police officer under investigation, who finds herself investigating her former boyfriend, Ben Elmys. There is also the story of David Asha, an author suspected of suicide, who left his young son behind, Elliot. A: My first degree is in law, my second is in philosophy. The philosopher in me can explain why something is morally wrong, and the lawyer in me can figure out how you just might be able to get away with it. I’m fascinated by life’s big questions and did my second degree to find out how the world’s leading thinkers set about answering them. I hope THE OTHER SIDE OF NIGHT encourages people to think. I don’t claim the book holds any answers, but in my experience it’s the questions that matter, not the answer, which will usually be different for everyone. Asking questions keeps alive a sense of wonder and engagement with the world that makes life more interesting. At least for me.

Summary

The plot is complicated, but it involves a disgraced police officer, an eleven-year-old boy, an author, and a mysterious man. All of whom are connected in ways one couldn’t imagine. To start, the publisher has asked to keep things on the hush-hush side in terms of plot, but to set the stage at least...We begin by meeting David Asha, who is reeling from the loss of his son Elliot. He warns the tale he is about to tell will sound like fiction, but is entirely true. After this initial intro, we meet Harriet "Harri" Kealty, a former police officer who has had to leave the profession after a tragic mistake during her time on the force. This blow leaves her without purpose, but things seem to take a turn for the better when she meets Ben Elmys, a stranger with a poetic soul who sparks her attention immediately. They begin a courtship, but Harri is devastated when Ben breaks it off and is left puzzling as to what she did wrong. A big-hearted, big-brain, novel that you'll finish in three days and think about for the rest of the year. Wonderful. -- Stuart Turton Overall, this is an excellent blend of themes, it’s a go with the flow read for a better experience and oddly, I find I can buy into what I’ve just read because it is so well written.

A real brain bender of a book, I'm still trying to wrap my head around the extraordinary ending. Just mesmerising- bravo Mr Hamdy! -- Victoria SelmanThe Other Side of Night is a mesmerizing tale of love, loss, and the human condition, certain to transport readers while simultaneously transforming their imaginations. It will captivate and challenge perception while raising the question, what is reality vs grand illusion? It's guaranteed to be amongst the classics you'll read time and time again' -- Eric Bishop Q: Did you explore other scientific methods for Ben to help the Ashas? Why did you land on the cave as the location for where the big moment happens? Overall, The Other Side of Night is an intriguing and thought-provoking story. The writing is brilliant and it is recommended that you go in blind to really enjoy the book. It may feel confusing and too philosophical at times but the engaging tale about eternal love and choices and consequences will keep you hooked till the end.