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3.98 AVERAGE
3.98 AVERAGE
dark
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Five stars even though I figured out the ending with a hundred some odd pages to go. Once again Simone St. James delivers a creeptacular part ghost story part murder mystery that kept me glued to the pages.
Two women, one in 1982 one in 2017 (aunt and niece) hunting the same serial killer...or at least the same belief of a serial killer. Four women turn up dead between 1978-1982 in the small town of Fell, New York. The cops see no connection between the murders.
Enter Vivian Delaney. 1982. She was on her way to NYC to become an actress, but she got derailed along the way and winds up in Fell. Utterly alone with barely a dime to her name, Vivian accepts a job as the overnight clerk at the Sun Down Motel. She meets all kinds of folks who only come out at night from a local pot dealer, the town drunk, and a pair of cheating spouses. It isn’t long before strange things start happening in the wee hours at the Sun Down ... things that would make any sane person run and never look back.
But I’m not sure we can call Vivian sane. She continues her time at the Sun Down and becomes obsessed with the town’s unsolved dead girls. Can she piece together the clues the police missed and bring a killer to justice? We may never know as Viv goes missing on November 29, 1982. She leaves no trail, and a body is never found.
On a parallel timeline, in 2017 we meet Viv’s niece, Carly, who lands in Fell determined to find out what happened to her Aunt Viv. Carly manages to score an apartment—the exact same one that Viv lived in, complete with a roommate equally interested in unsolved crime. She meets a few others along the way, all with secrets of their own. Of course, Carly also assumes the role of overnight clerk at the Sun Down, certain the old place will bring her answers. Almost nothing has changed about the Sun Down, including its old haunts. It isn’t long before Carly is hot on the same trail as Viv. Will the trail hit a dead end, or can Carly solve the decades old mystery?
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
Two women, one in 1982 one in 2017 (aunt and niece) hunting the same serial killer...or at least the same belief of a serial killer. Four women turn up dead between 1978-1982 in the small town of Fell, New York. The cops see no connection between the murders.
Enter Vivian Delaney. 1982. She was on her way to NYC to become an actress, but she got derailed along the way and winds up in Fell. Utterly alone with barely a dime to her name, Vivian accepts a job as the overnight clerk at the Sun Down Motel. She meets all kinds of folks who only come out at night from a local pot dealer, the town drunk, and a pair of cheating spouses. It isn’t long before strange things start happening in the wee hours at the Sun Down ... things that would make any sane person run and never look back.
But I’m not sure we can call Vivian sane. She continues her time at the Sun Down and becomes obsessed with the town’s unsolved dead girls. Can she piece together the clues the police missed and bring a killer to justice? We may never know as Viv goes missing on November 29, 1982. She leaves no trail, and a body is never found.
On a parallel timeline, in 2017 we meet Viv’s niece, Carly, who lands in Fell determined to find out what happened to her Aunt Viv. Carly manages to score an apartment—the exact same one that Viv lived in, complete with a roommate equally interested in unsolved crime. She meets a few others along the way, all with secrets of their own. Of course, Carly also assumes the role of overnight clerk at the Sun Down, certain the old place will bring her answers. Almost nothing has changed about the Sun Down, including its old haunts. It isn’t long before Carly is hot on the same trail as Viv. Will the trail hit a dead end, or can Carly solve the decades old mystery?
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
This book had me feeling like I was a detective putting all the pieces together! From the start it had me absolutely HOOKED. Normally I'm never a fan of jumping back and forth between different time periods/timelines, BUT in this instance I was won over. Everything came into a clear picture chapter after chapter. Most of the characters had layers to them and never fell flat for me. You know how you watch a scary movie and want to yell at the character to not open the door? That was me the entire time! It took me a little bit longer then I would of wanted, but between life and work that was the outcome. I would highly recommend this to someone getting introduced to Simone!
dark
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
I went into this book completely blind and I’m so glad I did. This is genuinely one of my new favorite books. I can’t imagine anyone saying this was boring. It was such a well written story and every single chapter kept my attention until the very end. This was excellent on audio as well, I had to download both versions so I could continue to read while I was driving or unable to physically read the book — that’s how hooked I was!!
adventurous
dark
emotional
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
I think this book did a really good job of utilizing it’s dual perspectives to create tension and fear, and I really liked the mystery. That being said, I was dissatisfied with how the mystery was wrapped up, and how the book as a whole ended. 3.5/5
LOVED THIS SO MUCH! Was my first book by this author- will definitely be looking into others.
adventurous
challenging
dark
mysterious
reflective
tense
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No