aphonusbalonus's review against another edition
4.0
This book is nightmarish. I don’t use that term lightly. I’m someone who can typically stomach a lot of horror, but this book has thoroughly left me shaken. Simmons finds just the right mixture of all things terrifying and revolting that I often had to put the book down and wait a few minutes to calm down before picking it up again. The story itself is slow moving but in such a way that works for the tone, and makes the events at the very end so much more impactful and satisfying. All the characters and the settings they inhabit are intricately woven with such a palpable love and nostalgia.
pbanditp's review against another edition
4.0
I feel like I just stepped out of Elm Haven. The setting in this book is fantastic. I know the town and the surrounding area of this sleepy little town and I could follow these kids around as they rode their bikes or ran around town. The school, Old Central, gave me the creeps just at the mention of it.
The kids are my friends. I didn’t want to read the book after a few chapters because I was afraid of what bad things were going to happen to my friends. Then I didn’t want to put the book down because I had to know how these 11-12 year old kids were going to survive and save the town.
The action lasts right to the end but I didn’t want to finish reading the book. I am going to miss these kids
July 2021 reread. The magic wasn’t duplicated. Some books you can read multiple times and come away loving it even more but that didn’t happen for Summer of Night. Reliving the scenes didn’t have the same tense nostalgic feel and while I will still recommend the book to others, I will probably not read it again.
The slow start was too much for many in my book club and they couldn’t finish it but some finished it three days
The kids are my friends. I didn’t want to read the book after a few chapters because I was afraid of what bad things were going to happen to my friends. Then I didn’t want to put the book down because I had to know how these 11-12 year old kids were going to survive and save the town.
The action lasts right to the end but I didn’t want to finish reading the book. I am going to miss these kids
July 2021 reread. The magic wasn’t duplicated. Some books you can read multiple times and come away loving it even more but that didn’t happen for Summer of Night. Reliving the scenes didn’t have the same tense nostalgic feel and while I will still recommend the book to others, I will probably not read it again.
The slow start was too much for many in my book club and they couldn’t finish it but some finished it three days
lunarelle's review against another edition
3.0
I started out really interested in the book. Many people have compared this to Stephen King's IT, which is one of my favorite books of all time, but frankly, I think that King is the better author. Not to take anything away from this book - it wasn't bad, but I had to force myself to finish it, because I was getting bored by the end of it. 3.5 stars.
wistfulspirit's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
dark
hopeful
mysterious
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
4.5
persimmon_lover's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
emotional
inspiring
mysterious
sad
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.25
Spoiler
I really enjoyed this book a lot, but it did have several flaws. I feel like the "mystery" was not explored in as much detail as it warranted, and also that the pacing was off at times. Not a lot of time was given to the "villain" characters and I think that could have added a lot if done properly. The early part of the story is a bit confusing, as you start getting a feel for the characters, which feel a bit indistinguishable at first (that definitely changes later on). Obviously it is a supernatural horror book so realism is very relative, but I did feel at times like things in the story were just too improbable, the characters often seemed way too smart for 12 year olds, even putting aside the obvious "genius" character.
The themes of the book were very well encoded in the plot and very rich. By the end, the characters each feel unique and you really care about them. I get scared by books easily and found myself very very frightened and shocked throughout the book. I also appreciated that the horror sort of comes in and out, and that a lot of the time things feel "normal" only to be sucked back into scary. The mystery unfolds very slowly and keeps you guessing all the way up to the end, as you learn more and more. Not all of it is perfectly written, but in general the literary style is great for this type of book, and there are a lot of very vivid and appropriate images and metaphors. The book spoke to me at this point in my life. Not perfect, but great.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Animal death, Child death, Car accident, Torture, Vomit, Body horror, and Blood
Minor: Rape
k8treadway's review against another edition
3.0
REALLY good until the end, which was kind of a flop.
thedocument's review against another edition
4.0
The platonic ideal of the 'Kids on Bikes' genre - nostalgia, mystery, monsters, a rag-tag group of pre-teens. My only complaint is that the mystery itself could have been more interesting. Still wildly entertaining and spooky.
curtiswastaken's review against another edition
5.0
Immediately an all-time favorite, and it's astonishing that this hasn't been adapted into a movie yet. It's very cinematic throughout, lots of great horror set pieces and unlike a lot of horror novels and movies, it sticks the landing.