Thanks to Goodreads reviewer Pam Foster for these words that made me feel like I’ve done what I set out to do with The Longest Night:

The tensions in this book are amazing – slow-growing, flaring at appropriate moments in the plot, almost all character-driven and all moving relentlessly to a climax that was surprising, understandable, just perfect. The time (1959-1961), place (Idaho Falls) and event (nuclear accident) were so well written that they became a character in and of themselves.
But it was the development of Nat, her husband Paul, co-workers Master Sergeant Richards, his wife Jeannie and Esrom that made this one of the best books read this year. Real people, real emotions – couldn’t put the book down and so sorry to have it end.