Should things be left in the past, or is it their fate to resurface?
For Lindsey, coming to the realisation that she may have forgotten crucial moments in the lead up to her ex-best friend’s death ten years prior is shocking. As she starts to think back on the time, and the events that occurred, the gaps in her memory contradict the information between what she’s been told and what she think she knows.
With the ten year anniversary of Edie’s death looming, Lindsey starts a personal investigation into the case. From accessing statements, police records, voice recordings, and her friends’ testimonies, she starts to find connections and leads which take her down a dangerous path and may lead to her own demise. Was it an accident? Was it suicide? Or was it actually murder?
With the death of Edie in her past, it’s fair to stay that the history will stay there. But with the appearance of old friends and new information, Lindsey finds herself being torn between the sickening realities of what happened all those years ago, and the hope of moving on in the future.
Set in Brooklyn in 2009, the hipster crowd is thriving, and Andrea Bartz has encapsulated what it meant to be a young adult battling university in New York. It’s sometimes hard to take the young characters seriously when they’re in their twenties, but this is perhaps what Bartz wants; a social commentary as opposed to immaculate characterisation. Their priorities differ from someone who works full-time or is in a different situation, but it seems to be their societal distinctiveness that ultimately leads them to trouble.
The Lost Night is both a mystery and a psychological exploration of mental health. It’s a story about how seemingly innocent young people can be carried away by self-obsessions, self-comparisons, and self-depreciation, and how these attitudes can lead to horrific consequences. All young people believe that, to the world, they are untouchable and invincible, and the novel’s ultimate message is that they’re not. The harsh realities end in a gripping realisation which is both unexpected and beautifully crafted by Bartz. It’s fun, idealistic, confusing, and frustrating but, then again, so is being a young adult.
Reviewed by Phoebe Christofi
Twitter: @ChristofiPhoebe
Distributed by: Simon and Schuster Australia
Released: March 2019
RRP: $29.99
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