When my mother named me Ophelia, she thought she was being literary. She didn’t realize she was being tragic. On the surface, Annie Powers’s life in a wealthy Floridian suburb is happy and idyllic. Her husband, Gray, loves her fiercely; together, they dote on their beautiful young daughter, Victory. But the bubble surrounding Annie is pricked when she senses that the demons of her past have resurfaced and, to her horror, are now creeping up on her. These are demons she can’t fully recall because of a highly dissociative state that allowed her to forget the tragic and violent episodes of her earlier life as Ophelia March and to start over, under the loving and protective eye of Gray, as Annie Powers. Disturbing events—the appearance of a familiar dark figure on the beach, the mysterious murder of her psychologist—trigger strange and confusing memories for Annie, who realizes she has to quickly piece them together before her past comes to claim her future and her daughter.
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"BLACK OUT is Lisa Unger's third novel and her first standalone as her first two were tied to the Ridley Jones series. I enjoyed the other two book a bit more but this one did not retract much. I think it was more that I enjoyed her characters in BEAUTIFUL LIES and SLIVER OF TRUTH. I am already planning on reading her new release due out later his year, DIE FOR YOU."
— Mike (4 out of 5 stars)
" There was something unsatisfying about the end of this. I like the detective character, I liked his wife and the side story about them - and then, boom, they're not real. I felt weird about that, unsettled, and like it was a little bit of a cop-out. The story was fast-paced and interesting, I liked the main character, but I ended up feeling like the solution, the whole organization to help victims, the in-laws conspiring to save Annie/Ophelia from herself... it felt more contrived and elaborate than it needed to be. I wanted it to turn out differently, I guess, I wanted a more believable resolution, and I was also annoyed that the detective wasn't "real" and that colored my perception of the rest of the book, for some reason that felt really important to me. There were some beautiful passages - the part about the ghost orchid was breathtakingly gorgeous, the writing was spectacular there - and I liked the jumping from past to present, from one character to another, I felt it added to the supenseful, tense feeling. Basically, a very good book with one real flaw that I think might be just in my own mind, because why should it matter so much? "
— Melanie, 2/6/2014" Convoluted but really good. A peek into a traumatized mind. "
— Debbie, 2/4/2014" This book kept me on the edge of my seat! The author writes in the present time but also recalls her past at the same time. Great writing. "
— Kimberly, 1/24/2014" This was pretty good as psychological thrillers go. It kept me guessing - what was real and what was imagined? "
— Kdevoli, 1/22/2014" Definitely grabs on and won't let go, as they say. I did not expect to love this book this much...thought it would be another trite thriller...it's sort of 'Shutter Island-esque.' I highly recommend. "
— Melissa, 1/21/2014" Great Hurricane/ Tropical Storm Staying Home All day book "
— Lori, 1/20/2014" Lisa Unger is one of my favorite authors. I found this book to be disturbing and thought about it long after I finished it. It made me question what things people will do to survive horrible situations. I would recommend this to others. "
— Scoobyyatto, 1/8/2014" I always enjoy her suspense books. "
— Kristine, 12/15/2013" Very enjoyable psychological thriller! Good mystery and enough to keep you guessing! "
— Shannon, 12/14/2013" Quick, easy read. You spend the whole time questioning what is real & what's not. "
— Molly, 12/1/2013" very good read, but by the end of it, I still wasn't sure what had really happened. "
— Barbi, 11/29/2013" A bit confusing but a fun read. "
— Shila, 11/24/2013" An excellent psychological novel, filled with excitement, terror and suspense. Scary what can happen when a child doesn't get what it needs from its parents and where and to whom they might go to get the attention they want and need. I liked Annie and Victory and Gray. "
— Loretta, 9/27/2013" This book was slow to get started, but once it did I enjoyed the challenge of figuring out what was going on. It's an intricate book with a complex plot; even one aspect that I originally thought was sloppy writing turned out to have a well-thought-out purpose in the end. "
— Tara, 8/3/2013" Liked the way Unger uses three distinct time periods to tell this story - wrapping it together in the end and the epilogue. I found the main character sustained my interest and the question of whether events were real or imaginings added to the intrigue. "
— Dianne, 7/15/2013" It was okay but I went with 3 stars instead of two. I thought the beginning dragged a little too long and it had maybe just one two many plot twists at the end. "
— M., 5/10/2013" This story was good enough but the way it was told could have been better. For me it was quite hard to keep up with in some areas and even at the end I am not sure what actually did happen to Annie and what was part of her imagination. "
— Bronwyn, 1/17/2013" This wasn't bad for an easy and quick read - a thriller that had some interesting plot twists. I was a little disappointed with the ending as it leaves the reader wondering if some of the events in the story really happened or were only imagined by the main character. "
— Susan, 9/23/2012" I read my first LisaUnger book as a free Friday book on my nook. I was hooked! Love the way she writes her novels. You never know what twist or turn will come up next. Black Out is not exception. This book is really hard to put down. "
— Jennifer, 9/14/2012" Wow- intensely psychological. I'm still not entirely sure what was real and what wasn't. I may have to re-read it, but in the same way that I had to re-watch "The Sixth Sense". "
— Sarah, 9/11/2012" I'm on a mystery kick, and I have definitely taken to Lisa Unger. "
— Michele, 9/8/2012" Kind of silly, but not badly written. "
— Jennifer, 4/1/2012" This will be a fantastic movie...hope someone has optioned the rights! "
— Juliann, 3/5/2012" A psychological thriller. Didn't want to put it down. Will look for her other books "
— Kris, 2/7/2012" This book was extremely mysterious and yet fast-paced at the same time. I liked how psychological it was. It made me think about myself...I also liked that the setting moved around (from past to present) and that there were multiple narrators. "
— Chelly, 10/29/2011" What a book! So many twists and turns and who do you believe? I enjoyed this book a lot. "
— Christine, 9/4/2011" Very good psych- thriller. Kept me guessing til the end...is this real or all in her head? Third book of Unger's I've read and they keep getting better. Glad I found her through my favorite author, Karin Slaughter. "
— Stacey, 7/5/2011" A bit confusing but a fun read. "
— Shila, 5/30/2011" Very interesting book so far ... hard to put down. <br/> <br/>This was a very different type of book ... the main character is telling the story and talks about her past and present life. I would like to see another book with this character and a continuation of her story. "
— Janet, 5/6/2011" I just couldn't get into this book...after the first few chapters I realized I wasn't enjoying the journey so I skimmed the rest just to see how it ended. "
— Kim, 4/24/2011" Would rate it a 2.5 and probably not recommend the book. It was all a bit confusing. "
— Suzanne, 4/10/2011" Humm?? It has taken a bit to get into this one. "
— April, 3/29/2011" Very good - not quite as good as Beautiful Lies and Sliver of Truth "
— Freeda, 3/27/2011" I enjoyed this book. It was a bit confussing at first since it is written in first person point of view and takes place in different moments in time but once you get past that you will find a very good read. "
— Jason, 2/24/2011" After sticking this book out through its confusing state, Im feeling let down with the ending. I wonder if the author was just tired of writing it by that time, and the last two chapters could have been left out completely. "
— Christina, 2/11/2011" Não é um livro grande, mas é - sem sombra de dúvida - um grande livro! <br/>( A Cortina da Memória ) "
— Babete, 2/8/2011" This was an awesome suspense novel. "
— Wendy, 1/21/2011" this one was not as good as the 1st one I read but ok "
— MaryAnn, 1/1/2011Lisa Unger is the author of more than a dozen novels published in twenty-six languages, with millions of readers worldwide. In 2019, she received two Edgar Award nominations, amd her work has been voted “Best of the Year” or top picks by Today, People, Entertainment Weekly, Amazon.com, and many others. She has written for the New York Times, Wall Street Journal, NPR, and Travel+Leisure magazine.
Ann Marie Lee is a seven-time winner of the AudioFile Earphones Award for narration. She is a Los Angeles–based actress with television credits that include ER, Law & Order: Criminal Intent, and Nip/Tuck. Her stage performances for Broadway National Tours and regional theater include Peter Pan, As You Like It, Heartbreak House, and The Cherry Orchard.