Night Road: A Novel

4.5 4.5 out of 5 stars | 62,569 ratings

Price: 1.99

Last update: 01-05-2025


About this item

From Kristin Hannah, the #1 New York Times bestselling author of the smash-hit novels Firefly Lane, The Nightingale, and The Four Winds comes a novel about how one reckless night destroys the lives of three teenagers and their families.

For eighteen years, Jude Farraday has put her children's needs above her own, and it shows—her twins, Mia and Zach, are bright and happy teenagers. When Lexi Baill moves into their small, close-knit community, no one is more welcoming than Jude. Lexi, a former foster child with a dark past, quickly becomes Mia's best friend. Then Zach falls in love with Lexi and the three become inseparable.

Jude does everything to keep her kids out of harm's way. But senior year of high school tests them all. It's a dangerous, explosive season of drinking, driving, parties, and kids who want to let loose. And then on a hot summer's night, one bad decision is made. In the blink of an eye, the Farraday family will be torn apart and Lexi will lose everything. In the years that follow, each must face the consequences of that single night and find a way to forget…or the courage to forgive.

Vivid, universal, and emotionally complex,
Night Road raises profound questions about motherhood, identity, love, and forgiveness. It is a luminous, heartbreaking novel that captures both the exquisite pain of loss and the stunning power of hope. This is Kristin Hannah at her very best, telling an unforgettable story about the longing for family, the resilience of the human heart, and the courage it takes to forgive the people we love.

"You cannot read
Night Road and not be affected by the story and the characters. The total impact of the book will stay with you for days to come after it is finished." —The Huffington Post


Top reviews from the United States

  • Crystal Martinat
    5.0 out of 5 stars beautifully devastating
    Reviewed in the United States on December 1, 2024
    I ADORED this book! To me Kristin Hannah cannot write a bad book. Every twist and turn pulled at my heartstrings and twisted. I loved the characters and started to feel real connection to them and the life they held in the pages. It is a beautifully written story about grief, trauma, and continuing to live even when it’s the hardest thing to do. I loved this book, even when I was sobbing through half of it ????❤️
  • Patricia L. Wesch
    4.0 out of 5 stars Another winner!
    Reviewed in the United States on November 15, 2024
    Another good read from Kristen Hannah. It nice to read adults being adults with sensible endings. Very emotional and real.
  • Barbara K.
    5.0 out of 5 stars Kristin Hannah has done it again!
    Reviewed in the United States on November 10, 2024
    I usually don't write reviews, but instead just leave a numerical rating of my opinion of a book. I gave Night Road: A Novel by Kristin Hannah a 5, but I really wish I could give it a 10!

    Before reading the book, I had read overviews of the story and knew that some kind of tragedy was going to happen. I didn't realize it would involve the loss of a child and the profound ways that event would affect the family and friends of the child. I, too, have lost a child so this book has dredged up so many of the emotions and feelings of anger I experienced when my son, Michael, passed away in 2017. He was 37 at the time and is now forever 37.

    Michael had been out to a bar and had also had to much to drink. As he was walking home he stumbled maybe, was startled maybe, but he did fall and hit his head hard, so very hard, on a metal fence. He suffered an unsurvivable traumatic brain injury. He was in the Neuro ICU for 10 days before brain death was declared and two days later became an organ donor.
    Forgive me if that was too much information but it was meant to let you know in a few words how I am connected to this story.

    I most relate to the character of Jude Farraday as she was the mother who lost a child. I completely understood a lot of the feelings and overwhelming sadness and the many "if onlys" Jude experienced. Everyone's grief journey is different, very much like a roller coaster ride. Emotions are up and down, peaks and valleys for a long time. The grief never ends, but it eventually becomes a part of your life that is bearable though can still feel like a punch in the belly at the drop of a hat. I remember the feelings of wanting to be left alone, the wanting to just curl up into a ball in a dark hole, the wanting to sit and do nothing, the anger at God for taking my son when he should have taken me. Michael was just beginning his life and I was old and had had a life. It took me several years to become productive again.

    Unlike Jude in the book, I was the primary caregiver to my daughter's two children. I always say they saved my life. They gave me a reason to get up and function during the day. At night after making dinner for my husband and me, I would just sit on the couch and watch tv. My quilt making hobby pretty much stopped and all I did was watch tv and maybe occasionally read a book. Jude's journey through her grief was different from mine but yet very similar in some ways. It was cathartic to read her story. It never ceases to amaze me how exquisitely Kristin Hannah can tap into emotions and feelings so perfectly. I have never cried so much reading a book, so keep some tissues handy. This book, with all the feels, has a wonderful ending, which is actually a glorious beginning for the Farraday family in this heartfelt and touching novel.
  • Laura
    5.0 out of 5 stars emotional roller coaster
    Reviewed in the United States on January 2, 2025
    I loved this book. Themes of grief, motherhood, first love, friendship, and redemption.
    I was pretty angry in the middle and had to keep reading because surely things would get better right? I wasn’t sure I was going to make it through. Well finally in the last couple chapters and it had me crying and It had a beautiful ending which absolved all my previous anger.
  • rosa bohns
    5.0 out of 5 stars incredibly inspiring!
    Reviewed in the United States on November 6, 2024
    This is one of the best books I’ve read in a long time. A roller coaster of emotions for sure. An inspiration and a reminder that women, especially mothers are not perfect and don’t always know the right thing to say or do when it comes to their children. The story is also a lesson in forgiveness and doing right by those we love. It’s never too late to right a wrong. Thank you Kristin Hannah for this incredibly valuable lesson.
  • Sweeper
    4.0 out of 5 stars lovely story
    Reviewed in the United States on November 7, 2024
    The frantic rush toward the ending was a bit unsatisfying. Otherwise, beautifully written and rather mesmerizing. Well done. And thank you.
  • ayouker
    5.0 out of 5 stars Beautiful writing style, heart wrenching story
    Reviewed in the United States on December 26, 2024
    This is the first book I have read from Kristin Hannah and I was so impressed with her prose. The way she strung words together was simply beautiful. The story was also very captivating. The story telling allows you to emphasize with each character, even when they are at odds with each other. And the ending was believable and a perfect completion. Really great book. 5/5
  • Gail
    5.0 out of 5 stars “It’s Always Darkest before the Dawn”
    Reviewed in the United States on November 17, 2024
    Or should that quotation be “It’s always lightest just as the sun sets, just before the dark.” This novel begins with light, love, and laughter as a girl who has never known family receives megadoses of all three of these treasures as she finds herself in daily contact with a family that seems to have everything. The mother is the main character, and she not only has wealth, she also seems to be the perfect mom, dedicated to her home and family. So what can possibly go wrong? This mother’s story will keep you turning the pages, learning about the power of love, learning that “love is an act of will.”

  • Best Sellers in

     
     

    Eye of the Needle: A Novel

    4.5 4.5 out of 5 stars 26623
    13.99
     
     

    Patient Care: Death and Life in the Emergency Room

    4.4 4.4 out of 5 stars 373
    1.99
     
     

    Caste: The Origins of Our Discontents

    4.8 4.8 out of 5 stars 45955
    2.99
     
     

    Baskets and Beignets (Miss Fortune Mysteries Book 27)

    4.9 4.9 out of 5 stars 5942
    7.99
     
     

    The Summer I Destroyed You (The Summer Series Book 4)

    4.6 4.6 out of 5 stars 382
    4.99
     
     

    Downpour: A Grumpy Sunshine Romance (The Griffith Brothers Book 2)

    4.5 4.5 out of 5 stars 6046
    4.99
     
     

    Ivory Oath (Novikov Bratva Book 2)

    4.4 4.4 out of 5 stars 3363
    7.99
     
     

    You Like It Darker: Stories

    4.5 4.5 out of 5 stars 408
    14.99