Review: THE DATE by Louise Jensen

Today's the release date of Louise Jensen's latest psychological thriller, and let me tell you, this is a page-turner! I was lucky enough to receive an ARC of this novel, and I loved it so much.


The Date by Louise Jensen

Something bad has happened to Alison Taylor. 

Her Saturday night started normally. Recently separated from her husband, Ali has been persuaded by her friends to go on a date with a new man. She is ready, she is nervous, she is excited. She is about to take a step into her new future. 

By Sunday morning, Ali’s life is unrecognisable. She wakes, and she knows that something is wrong. She is home, she is alone, she is hurt and she has no memory of what happened to her. 

Worse still, when she looks in the mirror, Ali doesn’t recognise the face staring back at her. She can’t recognise her friends and family. And she can’t recognise the person who is trying to destroy her… 


My rating: 4 of 5 stars

This was the first book by Louise Jensen I’ve read, and I was impressed. The Date is a tightly-woven thriller that cleverly entwines the actions of one woman’s past with her current life when she wakes after a vicious attack with no memory of the event. In many ways, it reminded me of SJ Watson’s Before I Go To Sleep (which I absolutely loved), but Louise Jensen’s latest book definitely holds its own and is a stunning read.

As a main character, Ali was likeable—but complex. Each chapter carefully revealed new layers to her that made her not only believable but relatable too. I struggled a little to relate to a couple of the secondary characters (particularly Jules and James), but this didn’t really affect my reading experience much.

I love books that include medical disorders and illnesses, and this one—where the main character suffers from prosopagnosia or “face blindness”—did not disappoint. While this condition is shown to only be one part of Ali it does provide a powerful premise and keep the tension up as Ali (and the reader) can’t recognise her attacker.

At times, I found the flashbacks to be a little long, but I can see what an important part of the story they were—in many ways this is almost a duel narrative of sorts between Ali and her younger self as we see how the events of her past shape her future.

I loved the ending. I’m a huge sucker for twists (and I knew one would be coming) but I did not foresee this exact twist.

Huge thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for providing me with an ARC. I’ll definitely be picking up Louise Jensen’s other books.