Book: The Night Shift
Author: Alex Finlay
Pages: 321
Read on: Kindle
Read in: ~4 hours
Plot Summary: It's New Year's Eve of 1999 when four teenagers working late are attacked at a Blockbuster video store in New Jersey. Only one survives. Police quickly identify a suspect, the boyfriend of one of the victims, who flees and is never seen again.
Fifteen years later, four more teenagers are attacked at an ice cream store in the same town, and again only one makes it out alive.
In the aftermath of the latest crime, three lives intersect: the lone survivor of the Blockbuster massacre, who is forced to relive the horrors of her tragedy; the brother of the fugitive accused, who is convinced the police have the wrong suspect; and FBI agent Sarah Keller, who must delve into the secrets of both nights to uncover the truth about the Night Shift Murders.
Things I Liked:
1. The Night Shift has been generating a lot of buzz on Bookstagram and so, when the premise seemed interesting, I picked it up. A series of murders committed in 1999 and a similar series of murders committed in 2015- is it the same perp? Is it a copy cat killer? Or is it just a weird coincidence? The premise of this book had me at hello!
2. The book is really well-written and fast-paced. There is not a single moment or chapter that is boring or not-needed or just-a-filler in this book. Really appreciate tautness and terseness in crime fiction books. You stay with the core narrative and only delve into sub-plots that are connected to the core narrative. That's what makes a thriller exciting and gripping and The Night Shift is just that.
3. This book is full of great characters. The story is told through the perspective of Ella Monroe- the sole survivor of the 1999 Blockbuster killings, Chris- the younger brother of the main accused in the 1999 killings, and via FBI Special Agent Sarah Keller, who has been assigned to help the local PD with the case.
We get to learn a little bit more about victims of 1999 because Ella knew them well and we see the days leading to the crime through her eyes. We also get to know- Jesse Duvall- the sole survivor of the 2015 killings. Her grit, toughness and intelligence are unnerving and makes you wonder if there is more to her being at the ice cream shop that night than meets the eye.
Agent Sarah Keller is also very likeable. She is tough, smart and fair with great instincts. We do see a bit of her personal life, but not in any great quantity that might get in the way of the story. There is also an Indian American cop, who is a rookie and is really sweet.
4. There are plenty of red herrings and twists and turns and revelations- both about the killings of 1999 and 2015. Don't want to give anything away here and spoil the book for you, but certain twists and reveals are just really nicely done and make so much sense!
5. The killer is not very obvious to guess. I mean, you sort of get around to forming a solid theory, but guessing the exact killer will not be easy. The author has some breadcrumbs laid out but he doesn't make anything very obvious, which I really appreciate!
Rating: 4/5
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