theliteraryapothecary's review
adventurous
challenging
dark
mysterious
tense
fast-paced
5.0
Updating with full review
Book 1 in the Nightmareland Chronicles
Initial rating - 4.5 stars. Daniel Barnett sets such an incredible scene in this first book of a 12 book series. The emotions our characters are going through - I can't help but feel the same emotions, as if I'm experiencing this traumatic and life changing (world changing? world ending?) experience with them. There is something about John that is …. different. I've got so many questions!
CAWPILE breakdown:
Characters: 9 - They were written so well. As I've already said, I felt ALL of the emotions our characters were feeling, like I was right there with them. John is SO mysterious! I need answers about him. …
Atmosphere/Setting: 10 - Absolutely incedible. I could imagine the setting - the small town - perfectly, with no question. I felt the atmosphere throughout this novella. Not a single minute went by that I didn't see and feel things happening.
Writing Style: 9 -Barnett's writing is SO quote worthy - I filled many pages in my quote journal with clips from this book. I had so many questions, some were answered, some left for later books. The novellas was the perfect format for this story. And Barnett has perfected the novella form.
Plot: 8 - From all the madness, I was able to discern the plot of the sudden end of the sun and John needs to find Mariah - everyone in town goes crazy, literally.
Intrigue: 10 - I mean this book is the definition of intrigue. SO MANY QUESTIONS!!
Logic/Relationships: 7.5 - Nothing made sense, and yet, everything made sense. Relationships are loose in this novellas, yet not? You know who belongs where and with who, but do they?
Enjoyment: 10 - All I can say is that I'm so glad I have the rest of the books that have been published in this series. I don't often binge a series one right after another, but this is one that I will absolutely be binging until the last released book. I NEED QUESTIONS ANSWERED!
CAWPILE Total = 63.5/7 = 9.07 = 5 stars!
Initial rating - 4.5 stars. Daniel Barnett sets such an incredible scene in this first book of a 12 book series. The emotions our characters are going through - I can't help but feel the same emotions, as if I'm experiencing this traumatic and life changing (world changing? world ending?) experience with them. There is something about John that is …. different. I've got so many questions!
CAWPILE breakdown:
Characters: 9 - They were written so well. As I've already said, I felt ALL of the emotions our characters were feeling, like I was right there with them. John is SO mysterious! I need answers about him. …
Atmosphere/Setting: 10 - Absolutely incedible. I could imagine the setting - the small town - perfectly, with no question. I felt the atmosphere throughout this novella. Not a single minute went by that I didn't see and feel things happening.
Writing Style: 9 -Barnett's writing is SO quote worthy - I filled many pages in my quote journal with clips from this book. I had so many questions, some were answered, some left for later books. The novellas was the perfect format for this story. And Barnett has perfected the novella form.
Plot: 8 - From all the madness, I was able to discern the plot of the sudden end of the sun and John needs to find Mariah - everyone in town goes crazy, literally.
Intrigue: 10 - I mean this book is the definition of intrigue. SO MANY QUESTIONS!!
Logic/Relationships: 7.5 - Nothing made sense, and yet, everything made sense. Relationships are loose in this novellas, yet not? You know who belongs where and with who, but do they?
Enjoyment: 10 - All I can say is that I'm so glad I have the rest of the books that have been published in this series. I don't often binge a series one right after another, but this is one that I will absolutely be binging until the last released book. I NEED QUESTIONS ANSWERED!
CAWPILE Total = 63.5/7 = 9.07 = 5 stars!
kjonker's review
adventurous
dark
emotional
mysterious
sad
tense
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
I drank this book up!!
Needless to say I cannot wait to read Lullaby, the next in this series.
You're pretty much dropped right in the middle of the story here; right at the moment of chaos and wondering "what in the world is happening"? We don't get any character build up or backstory. We're just thrown right into the mix of things with these complicated and complex characters. Slowly - OH, SO SLOWLY, more about these characters gets revealed, but after reading book 1, Nightfall, I'm still left with so many questions!
Let me say that the writing is vividly beautiful. I was quickly drawn into this story by how the author paints a picture with words. Sometimes I had to reread a sentence or paragraph just because I loved the prose and the perspective the author used.
The main character, John Hawthorne is complicated and tortured and mysterious. He's very stoic and rarely gives us a glimpse inside to really know who he is. Is he our hero? Well, I guess I'll have to read on to find out.
Needless to say I cannot wait to read Lullaby, the next in this series.
You're pretty much dropped right in the middle of the story here; right at the moment of chaos and wondering "what in the world is happening"? We don't get any character build up or backstory. We're just thrown right into the mix of things with these complicated and complex characters. Slowly - OH, SO SLOWLY, more about these characters gets revealed, but after reading book 1, Nightfall, I'm still left with so many questions!
Let me say that the writing is vividly beautiful. I was quickly drawn into this story by how the author paints a picture with words. Sometimes I had to reread a sentence or paragraph just because I loved the prose and the perspective the author used.
The main character, John Hawthorne is complicated and tortured and mysterious. He's very stoic and rarely gives us a glimpse inside to really know who he is. Is he our hero? Well, I guess I'll have to read on to find out.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Child death, Sexual violence, and Suicide
fantasyfairy's review
dark
mysterious
sad
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Loveable characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
kirstycarson1's review
dark
mysterious
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.5
sleepyboi2988's review
5.0
It's not often a book makes me speechless and especially in so few pages, but this one…hooooooooooo buddy! I don't have a clue what's going on, but dammit, I cannot wait to find out.
Simply put, this book is amazingly written, super fresh with the horror and suspense and leaves you almost desperate for more. With such a low page count it's astounding what all the author has done here, honestly.
Simply put, this book is amazingly written, super fresh with the horror and suspense and leaves you almost desperate for more. With such a low page count it's astounding what all the author has done here, honestly.
bookish_satty's review against another edition
dark
mysterious
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
4.0
A great start to a new series. Loved the tension filled plot a lot.
Too many unanswered questions which hopefully be answered in the next instalments.
John as a character is awesome and I'm excited to see where his journey takes him.
The author succeeded in capturing the eerie feeling of a post apocalyptic world. Loved the imagery of a world without the sun! Can't imagine what I'll do in such a situation.
I'm so eager to know the actual reason behind this phenomenon but I think I'll have to wait till the second arc books are released to know that.
Definitely recommend for horror readers.
Too many unanswered questions which hopefully be answered in the next instalments.
John as a character is awesome and I'm excited to see where his journey takes him.
The author succeeded in capturing the eerie feeling of a post apocalyptic world. Loved the imagery of a world without the sun! Can't imagine what I'll do in such a situation.
I'm so eager to know the actual reason behind this phenomenon but I think I'll have to wait till the second arc books are released to know that.
Definitely recommend for horror readers.
words_on_paper_official's review
3.0
So this was a 3.5 ⭐️ read for me.
It’s hard to rate book 1 in this 6 part series. I will definitely rate the this as a whole but for now it’s where I stand.
It’s hard to rate book 1 in this 6 part series. I will definitely rate the this as a whole but for now it’s where I stand.
johnlynchbooks's review
5.0
What happens when the lights go out and don’t come back on? What happens to the mind when the world as you know it, ceases to operate the way that it always has? Nightfall, volume one of a post apocalyptic journey by Daniel Barnett offers a glimpse.
The story follows John Hawthorne on a morning which begins as usual, but quickly becomes anything but. In an instant, light fades to black, day to night. Nobody knows why, it’s unclear if the sun just gave out, or if something has caused this. John Hawthorne is a man who does what he must. It’s clear he’s got skeletons in his closet, what they are, we don’t know yet but I’m excited to learn what makes him tick. Very early on it’s clear that Hawthorne is the type of character who knows no boundaries in a terrible situation and this makes him interesting to follow. As you can imagine, hell breaks loose when the lights go out, when the world stops operating as it always has, people begin to go mad, making this a nightmare hellscape for Hawthorne to traverse.
I’d also like to note volume one stops at what feels like a natural point in the story. One reason I don’t typically read multi-book stories is I find the endings don’t wrap up the way I’d like. That wasn’t the case here.
Nightmareland volume one is an excellent opening to this apocalyptic road trip. It did what the first volume of any book should, set up some pieces, grab your attention and get you ready to continue the journey. I’m excited to see where Barnett takes us in future installments.
The story follows John Hawthorne on a morning which begins as usual, but quickly becomes anything but. In an instant, light fades to black, day to night. Nobody knows why, it’s unclear if the sun just gave out, or if something has caused this. John Hawthorne is a man who does what he must. It’s clear he’s got skeletons in his closet, what they are, we don’t know yet but I’m excited to learn what makes him tick. Very early on it’s clear that Hawthorne is the type of character who knows no boundaries in a terrible situation and this makes him interesting to follow. As you can imagine, hell breaks loose when the lights go out, when the world stops operating as it always has, people begin to go mad, making this a nightmare hellscape for Hawthorne to traverse.
I’d also like to note volume one stops at what feels like a natural point in the story. One reason I don’t typically read multi-book stories is I find the endings don’t wrap up the way I’d like. That wasn’t the case here.
Nightmareland volume one is an excellent opening to this apocalyptic road trip. It did what the first volume of any book should, set up some pieces, grab your attention and get you ready to continue the journey. I’m excited to see where Barnett takes us in future installments.
storyphoria's review
5.0
This series seemed to consume the horror community on Book Twitter about a year or so back, so I had grabbed it on my Kindle while the hype was hot. Late to the game, I finally cracked into this series and damn I wish I hadn't waited so long. This one is good, real good.
If I had to sum Nightfall up in just one paragraph I’d say this:
It’s lyrical, poetic, and grim without celebrating it’s bleak outlook. It’s wonderfully atmospheric and hints at a desolate world forming rapidly with the falling darkness, starting very local in scope but hinting at the widespread terror spreading across the Earth. All of this wrapped in an air of growing tension around the fact that as dark and brutal as this first book gets, we’re just getting started.
If I had to sum Nightfall up in just one paragraph I’d say this:
It’s lyrical, poetic, and grim without celebrating it’s bleak outlook. It’s wonderfully atmospheric and hints at a desolate world forming rapidly with the falling darkness, starting very local in scope but hinting at the widespread terror spreading across the Earth. All of this wrapped in an air of growing tension around the fact that as dark and brutal as this first book gets, we’re just getting started.
ghostthereader's review
adventurous
dark
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? N/A
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0