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vj_thompson's review
adventurous
dark
emotional
mysterious
sad
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
4.75
I would totally read a spin-off series where Carly solves missing persons cases. Overall loved the writing and the story. There were so many good moments, and I was on the edge of my seat reading this book. Will be reading more of Simone St. James’s novels.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death, Murder, Infidelity, Stalking, Violence, Addiction, and Blood
Moderate: Mental illness, Rape, Child death, Drug use, Sexual assault, and Alcohol
Minor: Cancer, Bullying, Eating disorder, Sexism, Death of parent, Homophobia, and Racism
cepramas's review
dark
reflective
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
3.5
Content Warnings
Graphic: Murder and Violence
Moderate: Child death
cyndi1966's review
adventurous
dark
emotional
mysterious
reflective
sad
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Blood, Death, Violence, Death of parent, Terminal illness, Murder, Physical abuse, Rape, and Stalking
Moderate: Infidelity and Child death
Minor: Cancer
sylvestra's review
adventurous
dark
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
3.25
Content Warnings
Graphic: Murder and Rape
Moderate: Death of parent, Child death, and Cancer
killmoore_'s review
dark
mysterious
sad
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
This was so fun.
A haunted motel. A thrilling mystery. Ambitious and intelligent MC who very much kept the vibe of "young girl" alive - there were so many points that were beyond frustrating, but it felt intentional because it was exactly what an early 20 something would do in that situation. Intelligence gets you nowhere without the life experience to back it up.
The ending was a bit meh in comparison to rest of the book, but it does end wrapped up in a nice little package, complete with a budding romance bow that normally isn't my cup of tea, but in this situation it was nice.
Overall, I truly enjoyed The Sun Down Motel, and would love to see a movie or mini series adaptation - just don't cast Cory Michael Smith as Hess please, because that's who I kept imagining and I just can't with it.
A haunted motel. A thrilling mystery. Ambitious and intelligent MC who very much kept the vibe of "young girl" alive - there were so many points that were beyond frustrating, but it felt intentional because it was exactly what an early 20 something would do in that situation. Intelligence gets you nowhere without the life experience to back it up.
The ending was a bit meh in comparison to rest of the book, but it does end wrapped up in a nice little package, complete with a budding romance bow that normally isn't my cup of tea, but in this situation it was nice.
Overall, I truly enjoyed The Sun Down Motel, and would love to see a movie or mini series adaptation - just don't cast Cory Michael Smith as Hess please, because that's who I kept imagining and I just can't with it.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Death of parent, Infidelity, Injury/Injury detail, Body horror, Cancer, Death, Sexual assault, Murder, Grief, Rape, Stalking, Blood, Child death, Cursing, and Violence
skeptic_hecate's review
dark
emotional
mysterious
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
3.75
I couldn't put it down, at least until almost the end. The Viv parts of the book were thrilling and told from the perspective of a very interesting, deeply caring, missunderstood and likable protagonist. Ther Varly chapters were not so great.
Carly reads like a run of the mill "pick me girl", with extra "not like other girls" sprinkled on top. Where Viv used her brains and worked hard, Carly got deus ex machinas in the form of Heather and Nick. The entire character of Nick read too much like a romance book, which is a genre I am not fond of. I found myself wanting to skip Carly's chapters just so I could read more about Viv.
All in all, a decent read, I would read more of the author. I heard this book in audiobook format, and the avllet girl accent of the voice of Carly only made me loathe that character even more. I do however recommend it as a fast and exciting read to get out of a reading slump.
Carly reads like a run of the mill "pick me girl", with extra "not like other girls" sprinkled on top. Where Viv used her brains and worked hard, Carly got deus ex machinas in the form of Heather and Nick. The entire character of Nick read too much like a romance book, which is a genre I am not fond of. I found myself wanting to skip Carly's chapters just so I could read more about Viv.
All in all, a decent read, I would read more of the author. I heard this book in audiobook format, and the avllet girl accent of the voice of Carly only made me loathe that character even more. I do however recommend it as a fast and exciting read to get out of a reading slump.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Violence, Murder, and Child death
Moderate: Gun violence and Sexual harassment
steffi_23's review against another edition
dark
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
3.5
I did enjoy the story but there were several moments in the writing that made me go … was that really necessary. Yes a lot of the story is set in the 80s but some remarks were unnecessary
Content Warnings
Moderate: Homophobia, Sexual assault, Murder, Misogyny, Sexism, Racism, Rape, and Stalking
Minor: Child death and Death of parent
katiemack's review against another edition
dark
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
3.0
This is fine but fairly predictable. The spooky elements are mildly interesting and fit the brief, but what I really want is more characterization--the characters feel more surface-level than I anticipated, and there are some side characters that didn't really need to be included. It is a decently fun mystery, though, and I don't regret reading it.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death, Murder, and Violence
Moderate: Child death, Sexual assault, and Rape
Minor: Cancer and Death of parent
mariakureads's review against another edition
dark
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5
Ok. A book this good shouldn't have taken me as long as it did but trying to read this at night in a home that makes weird sounds and then randomly nothing but silence creeped me enough to just read this during the day which thanks to work took longer than what even I wanted.
The duo POV from the two MCs took me a bit to get their names and timelines straight since one timeline is in the 80's and another in 2017 but once I had it sorted out, it was interesting to have both voices alternating chapters. One giving the reader the buildup and world building and the other working backwards to get where the other is leading.
St. James did an amazing job of keeping me in my toes. I really thought I had it figured out but the surprise twist was something I didn't see coming and I love that element of surprise. Honestly a fantastic read.
The duo POV from the two MCs took me a bit to get their names and timelines straight since one timeline is in the 80's and another in 2017 but once I had it sorted out, it was interesting to have both voices alternating chapters. One giving the reader the buildup and world building and the other working backwards to get where the other is leading.
St. James did an amazing job of keeping me in my toes. I really thought I had it figured out but the surprise twist was something I didn't see coming and I love that element of surprise. Honestly a fantastic read.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Murder, Death, and Violence
Minor: Child death, Infidelity, Sexual assault, and Rape
boba_n_books's review against another edition
dark
emotional
mysterious
sad
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5
Told in a dual timeline, we follow Viv in 1982 and her niece, Carly, in 2017 as their lives follow a disturbingly similar path in the town of Fell and at the Sun Down Motel. Viv disappeared back in 1982 and has not been found since. No one else seems to care what happened to Viv, so Carly decides to go to the Sun Down and figure it out for herself. Back in 1982, Viv is trying to figure out why the Sun Down is haunted and what its ghosts are trying to tell her.
I was held in suspense the entire time wondering what happened to Viv and how it's related to Carly in 2017, and the ending does not disappoint. I flew this creepy, paranormal novel! This is the perfect story to get you in the mood for spooky season.
I was held in suspense the entire time wondering what happened to Viv and how it's related to Carly in 2017, and the ending does not disappoint. I flew this creepy, paranormal novel! This is the perfect story to get you in the mood for spooky season.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Murder, Death, and Violence
Moderate: Child death, Rape, and Sexual assault
Minor: Cursing, Death of parent, and Cancer