The Night Shift ⭑⭑⭑
Genre: Thriller
First Publication: March 1, 2022
Print: 368 pages
Audio: 8 hours 34 minutes
Confetti Rating: 3 stars
REVIEW:
The Night Shift is a totally fine thriller with short bingeable chapters that you can read in day if you’re so inclined. There’s a mass murder of teen girls in 1999, then lather, rinse, repeat, another one 15 years later. The compelling question of course is if the two incidents are related.
The thing that really bothers me though is the hook author Finlay used that the publisher is somewhat falsely exploiting. From the blurb: “It’s New Year’s Eve 1999. Y2K is expected to end in chaos: planes falling from the sky, elevators plunging to earth, world markets collapsing. A digital apocalypse. None of that happens. But at a Blockbuster Video in Linden, New Jersey…”
If you know me and my reading tastes and all, you’ll get that this sounded like a trifecta for my seasonal, nostalgic, pop culture-loving heart. New Year’s Eve! The ‘90s! Blockbuster Video! Yeah, but really not so much. All those things are there, yet the majority of the story takes place in the latter timeline. Even worse, the short dips back into the previous one failed to deliver the Y2K-era vibes that were promised.
Saying the publisher tried to put lipstick on a pig would be way too harsh, because The Night Shift can still be an enjoyable read if your expectations are managed. There’s a badass pregnant FBI agent on the case who reminded me of a cross between Jodie Foster in “Silence of the Lambs” and Frances McDormand in “Fargo.” There are red herrings aplenty that made the ending a surprise for me. Plus I also must mention that my tepid take on the book is fairly uncommon - the majority of my reviewer friends have loved it.
If you want to read a suspenseful novel, you could do a lot worse. But if you want to remember what it was like to make it a Blockbuster night, keep browsing the library shelves for a real gem just like you did at your local video store back in the ‘90s. Who knows, maybe someone just dropped the most popular new release in the return slot.
My thanks to the author and Minotaur Books for the review copy. The Night Shift is now available.
PUBLISHER SYNOPSIS:
It’s New Year’s Eve 1999. Y2K is expected to end in chaos: planes falling from the sky, elevators plunging to earth, world markets collapsing. A digital apocalypse. None of that happens. But at a Blockbuster Video in Linden, New Jersey, four teenage girls working the night shift are attacked. Only one survives. Police quickly identify a suspect who flees and is never seen again.
Fifteen years later, in the same town, four teenage employees working late at an ice cream store are attacked, and again only one makes it out alive.
Both surviving victims recall the killer speaking only a few final words... “Goodnight, pretty girl.”
In the aftermath, three lives intersect: the survivor of the Blockbuster massacre who’s forced to relive her tragedy; the brother of the original suspect, who’s convinced the police have it wrong; and the FBI agent, who’s determined to solve both cases. On a collision course toward the truth, all three lives will forever be changed, and not everyone will make it out alive.
Twisty, poignant, and redemptive, The Night Shift is a story about the legacy of trauma and how the broken can come out on the other side, and it solidifies Alex Finlay as one of the new leading voices in the world of thrillers.