Midnight Is the Darkest Hour
Ashley Winstead
Beware of the dark. You might like what you find. Ruth Collier has always felt like an outsider, even as her father rains fire and brimstone from the church pulpit. more
400 pages, Hardcover
First published Sourcebooks
3.45
Rating
16788
Ratings
3543
Reviews
Ashley Winstead
6 books 3768 followers
Ashley Winstead is a chameleon writing across as many genres as she can get away with. Her books have been translated into more than a dozen languages, optioned for television, received starred reviews, been Library Read, Loan Star, and Amazon Editor picks, and covered everywhere from the New York Times to People magazine. She's a former academic who lives in Houston with her husband, three cats, and beloved wine fridge.Community reviews
Amazing. Spectacular. Review to come once I stop screaming and crying and throwing up. more
In the little town of Bottom Springs Louisiana, fear spreads among the God Fearing residents. A vampiric figure known as The Low Man, is killing sinners on moonless nights, or is it really a flesh and blood neighbour of Bottom Springs. Librarian, Ruth Cornier, daughter of the local fire and brimstone preacher, Pastor James Cormier, of the Holy Fire Baptist church, finds herself at the centre of this mystery when a battered skull is discovered in Starry Swamp, surrounded by mysterious carved symbols. Ruth has become involved with Everett, a boy from the wrong side of the tracks. Everett has a dark past, and Ruth’s daddy warns her to stay away from him, but it’s not going to happen, because these two have found in each other, their true soulmate. more
GET READY FOR OCTOBER BOOK LOVERS. 😮💨🖤👏🏼🧛🏼🙌🏼Ashley Winstead never misses 👏🏼🙌🏼 this book was SO creative, soooo atmospheric, so interesting and that ending. i’m still recovering. 😩MIDNIGHT IS THE DARKEST HOUR will be the best fall book you can add to your TBR when it’s out in October. i’m so grateful to Ashley for sending this my way early with the sweetest note and dedication (pics on my IG), she is the sweetest human. more
Welcome to Ashley Winstead's dark, sinister, complex, mind-bending, and bleak universe. It's an eerie small community with cultish, witchery, and demonic vibes, and it features a heart-wrenching love story between two outsiders: the preacher's daughter and the devil's son. This book draws reminiscences of M. Night Shyamalan's "The Village" mixed with the thrilling elements of "Bonnie & Clyde. "Pietism, blind faith, and narrow-mindedness permeate the core of Bottom Springs, where Pastor James Cornier's opinions hold more power than any law enforcement. more
With so many glowing five-star ratings, I had a huge case of FOMO. I had to get my hands on this book. And in this case…the audio. Ruth was raised the daughter of a preacher. A fiery man of the cloth who has the entire small southern town under his spell. more
Three words: Twilight Fan Fiction (and not the good kind). If the (now incredibly popular) author's name isn't enough to intrigue you to pick up this book, then your nostalgic love for all things Bella and Edward might. This narrative reads like the fever dream of an older, extremely delusional Twilight fan growing up in a small, dangerously pious town in the deep backwoods of the south. I just. I don't have the right words to describe how cringe-worthy this book is; I don't know how to properly, and without snark, describe how intensely I wanted to boot this book off of the highest cliff. more
4. 5 rounded up I’ve been wanting to read a book by this author for a while and she’s acquired a new fan, what a book. In Bottom Springs, South Louisiana, Pastor James Cornier holds these “God-fearing“ folks in the palm of his hand with his old school fire and brimstone preaching. His daughter Ruth, however, is a quiet outsider with a few friends but a closeness to fellow outsider Everett Duncan, the pair are united by secrets. When human remains are found in Starry Swamp it unleashes danger but also myths and legends especially of The Low Man. more
I have questions for whoever called this Verity. To me, this Southern gothic thriller feels more like Where the Crawdads Sing and The Last Carolina Girl. That's not to say all Southern books are the same. They're not. The South is a very vast and nuanced place. more
“Where the Crawdads Sing meets Twilight meets Thelma and Louise…” ~Clare Macintosh, New York Times bestselling authorPerfection. That’s what that quote is. Sheer perfection. And honestly, what more needs to be said about Ashley Winstead’s latest release, Midnight is the Darkest Hour… except, who the heck kidnapped Ashley Winstead. Seriously. more
Ashley Winstead is one of those drop everything you are doing and read type of authors. So as soon as I was approved for this one on NetGalley I moved everything aside and began reading. Ruth Coriner lives in the small Bible Belt town of Bottom Springs. As the daughter of the town's beloved Pastor, Ruth has always felt like an outsider. Especially since she prefers reading fiction to her Bible studies. more
ARC provided by the publisher via Netgalleyi really wanted to read my first ashley winstead because so many of my friends have absolutely loved in my dreams i hold a knife, but i really think i did myself a disservice making this the one i picked up. i don't want to be overly negative, because i do think this book is important for some people who grew up with abuse under the guise of religion, and they were able to find escapism and safety and happiness in literature, like twilight. and i just really don’t want to downplay the importance of that safe place for kids and teens, especially when you can just tell this story feels very personal to the author. but i think this was just so completely different than what i was anticipating, that it felt like a really big disappointment to me. this felt like a literary romance with some suspenseful elements, not a mystery thriller in the slightest. more
It didn’t grab my attention enough, so I didn’t finish it. . more
EXCERPT: 'Are you afraid now. ' he whispers. In the flickering light I can't read his face. But it doesn't matter. It's my heart on the scale, not his. more
Ever read a book that shocks you in all the right ways. Midnight Is the Darkest Hour was a riveting read which I enjoyed via audiobook. I was swept away by this southern gothic book that is knee deep in religious fervor, outcasts, love, myths, and the bayou. I had a hard time putting this book down as I wanted to know what was going to happen next. I was captivated by the bond between Ruth and Everett, two outcasts who I was rooting for the entire book. more
And the first book that I've read for May isn't even on my May TBR, but when Ashley Winstead sends you a copy of her latest book, MIDNIGHT IS THE DARKEST HOUR, releasing in October, you put everything down and read it. Thank you @ashleywindsteadbooks. MIDNIGHT IS THE DARKEST HOUR is very different than her previous thriller, THE LAST HOUSEWIFE, but both are so gripping, engaging, and incredibly powerful. Taking place in rural Louisiana, Ruth Cornier is a young 20-something year old living in her preacher father's shadow. The town of Bottom Springs all follows his teachings of fundamentalist Christianity (Holy Fire Baptist), but Ruth is trying to create a pathway for herself. more
Well this was different… I’ll start off by saying that I LOVED Winstead’s previous two novels, “In My Dreams I Hold A Knife” (which is one of my all time favorite books), and “The Last Housewife”. However, this book did not grab me or connect with me in the way her other books did. In fact, I felt as if this book was written for a younger audience (and maybe this book should be listed under YA. ) I never read the Twilight series, and this book had so many eyeroll references to Twilight that I don’t think I ever will read it after this book. 🙄This book is about Ruth Cornier growing up under a strict religious household. more
Umm. What in the middle grade, Twilight hell was this. more
i heard the writing is very similar with the crawdad’s sing with its atmosphere and the slow paced history. I love morally grey books i hope this one makes me wanna do an evil laugh at the end hehealso. CAN WE TALK ABOUT HOW GOOD THE COVER ART IS. more
This was very different from Winstead's past novels. I did enjoy it and it had me hooked honestly. It's all about morality I feel. Good and evil, heaven and hell. Is it truly black and white or morally gray. more
A genre bending read filled with religious zealots and people behaving badly that just didn't work for me despite my love for this author's previous work. Ruth Cornier is the pastor's daughter in a small Southern town where it's either fall in line or be an outcast. It's made for a lonely living, but she's found friendship in Everett, a town outcast that lights up her heart with their conversations of poetry and life outside of this town. However, when a slew of murders become revealed with all signs pointing to Everett, what is Ruth to do. I truly struggled with this read. more
Unfortunately, for me, the best part of MIDNIGHT IS THE DARKEST HOUR is the potential I saw in the synopsis. This one does not live upto any of it and instead it was more a grimace and bear it and hope there's some good around the corner kind of reading experience. Spoiler alert, there was not. But who am I to say. The feed is flooded with early praise so maybe I'm, once again, an outlier. more
This is the boringest book that ever boringed. God should have the monopoly on fear. Have you met me. There are many who should fear me: children, people who hate cats and men who hate women. Another group that should consider fearing me is boring books. more
4 ⭐️This was such a wild ride in the best way possible. My second novel by Winstead and by far my favorite. The writing was truly atmospheric, I feel like I could smell the forest, hear the mosquitoes, and taste the Louisiana air. I absolutely loved the Twilight references and thought the overall question or concept of morality/justice was asked in a really provocative and intriguing way. There was romance, mystery, really good twists and a killer ending. more
Thank you SO much to Ashley Winstead and Sourcebooks for my copy of this book. Ashley is one of my favorite authors and I am obsessed with her writing. This book was a southern gothic thriller about Bottoms Springs Louisiana. It is a stereotypical southern town, with religion at the center and no room for outsiders. Ruth has always felt like an outcast, while the town is enamored by the fire-and-brimstone teachings of her preacher father. more
LOVED. Still getting my thoughts together. Just WOW. 🌘🌘🌘🌘🌘__It’s no secret that MIDNIGHT IS THE DARKEST HOUR by ASHLEY WINSTEAD was my most anticipated book of 2023 and short version - I loved it. I intentionally stayed as far in the dark as possible about this book - initially hooked when ASHLEY WINSTEAD first described it as “Every Summer After with serial killers”. more
This was one of my most anticipated books and it didn't work for me😑 It read so cheesy and I felt like I was reading a fan fic of Twilight, which I wouldn't have complained about years ago. The only reason I didn't dnf was that I wanted it to work. more
**Midnight Is the Darkest Hour: A Gripping Tale of Revenge and Redemption**Ashley Winstead's "Midnight Is the Darkest Hour" is a captivating Southern Gothic thriller that weaves together themes of religious trauma, star-crossed lovers, and the pursuit of justice. Set in small town Louisiana, the story follows Ruth, a young woman haunted by a tragic past and determined to uncover the truth. **A Gothic Atmosphere**From the moment you start listening to "Midnight Is the Darkest Hour," you're immersed in a world of oppressive heat, dark secrets, and a simmering tension that permeates every scene. Winstead masterfully crafts a Gothic atmosphere that is both chilling and captivating, perfectly capturing the essence of the Southern Gothic genre. **Compelling Characters and an Engaging Plot**Ruth is a complex and compelling protagonist, a woman scarred by her past yet determined to find her voice and seek justice. more
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️(4/5, Thriller)I was hooked on this book by the second chapter. It differs from any thriller I’ve read and was a wild and unpredictable ride. This is by the author of In My Dreams I Hold a Knife (dark academia) and The Last Housewife (sex cult book). She also has written a few romances—talk about an author with range. This book makes it very clear that the author does not like being confined to one genre. more
still thinking about the ending of this book EDIT: upon further thought, this is 3. 5⭐️. more
Ugh, no. No thank you. I do not like this. It is so boring, yet so long, and so annoying. It will have you constantly asking “what year is it. more