A review by outsmartyourshelf
The Night Shift by Alex Finlay

dark emotional 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? N/A
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

4.0

The killing of three teenagers, leaving a fourth as the lone survivor, at an ice cream store in New Jersey is eerily reminiscent of killings fifteen years earlier. In 1999, four teenagers were killed in a Blockbuster video store in the same town, with a fifth left injured but alive. The killer was assumed to be the boyfriend of one of the girls, with the rest as collateral damage, but the boyfriend went on the run & hasn't been seen since. The survivor of the first attacks, Elle, is now a therapist & is asked to talk to the survivor of the latest killings. Has the perpetrator returned to the town?

This is a gripping read which weaves a narrative from the aftermath of two brutal attacks on (mainly) young women fifteen years apart. I thought the three main characters that the narrative originates from - Elle, a survivor of the first attacks, Chris, brother of the man believed to have carried out the first attacks, & Sarah, an FBI agent who is 8 months pregnant with twins - are easy to empathise with, although everyone is carrying their own secrets. I was almost disappointed that it turned out to be the person I thought it was at the start - everything else was so well worked out, that it seemed a bit too easy. Overall though, it was a really great read.

My thanks to NetGalley & publishers, Head of Zeus - Aries, for the opportunity to read an ARC. I am voluntarily giving an honest review.
Expand filter menu Content Warnings