Not a bad storyline but some of the characters I just couldn't form a connection with so I had to finish this in several sittings though mainly out of stubbornness rather than interest.

Ramsey Campbell has been a favorite writer of mine for many years and I was thrilled to read this vampire novel. Thirteen Days by Sunset Beach is well written, but then this is the way with this author's work. I have been to Greece and love the isolated island setting and the mythology that underpins the vacationers' stay. Equally well done are the family, both their individual situations and as well the group dynamics, the characters very much the type of real people most of us know or have encountered. It's a story I could see visually and easily grasped the psychology behind how what was going on was dealt with. The mythology is unique, as far as I can tell, and it all hangs together, with enough thrills and chills and scares that build. Campbell is a master story-teller, so all this is expected and I was so happy to find an unusual vampire tale in which to sink my teeth!

There can be no doubt that Ramsay Campbell is a Grand Master of the horror world, and I am thrilled that he is still producing new stories. While this one isn’t the best example of the author at the top of his game, it’s still an atmospheric slow-burn that delivers drama and some nice chills. Certainly, the story could have benefited from a few more slashes of the editorial pen—dialogue went on for far too long in some places, particularly in areas where Campbell’s narrative would have been better served with description. Too many conversations read like info dumps, even when they weren’t. But overall, this story of a family’s doomed vacation was a good read, and should get reader’s new to his work to seek out more.

An extended family heads to an isolated Greek island for a two-week vacation, and there encounters horrors. Eventually. Most of the book consists of them hanging out and having the same conversations over and over again, while this poor reader tried (and often failed) to distinguish the characters from one another.

Ack! In other words, this book was a bit of a slog. Most of the cast has no actual personality, the one or two characters that do have personalities are distinctly one-note, and the plot is glacial. There is a difference between a slow, creeping sense of horror and just being slow.

Oh, but when those flashes of horror drop, they drop HARD, and they drop DEEP. That's what was so frustrating: most of the book just bored me to tears, but on the two or three occasions where something actually HAPPENED, it felt like I was suddenly jarred into reading a completely different book. That book, I adored.

This book, not so much.

Campbell’s new novel is a strange journey that doesn’t quite fit within his normal genre and this may cause some dissatisfaction with this novel as it does not fit into the regular tropes. This is a bit of a shame, because within the pages of this story is a rather interesting story about going on holiday with your family and a dark history that embeds itself in the Greek island.

The novel is a very slow burn that deals with issues from family relationships, terminal disease, dark forces and the long term marriage of the protagonist. This is where Campbell shows that he is an extremely talented story writer where he is able to look at the relationships within a family unit and dissect their places within the family. I am pretty sure that the horror within the piece is a family holiday and not the island itself. The characters are so well written that you can identify with each member. As they fall from the page into your subconscious, they become fully realised that this is the trick of the book. A extreme look at a family that is so caught up in their own problems that they really do not notice what is going on around them.

The Greek island has a dark history and the reader is put through the paces as the legend and locals are slowly revealed. As it is so fantastical, the family members outside of one don’t really come to any realisation of what it is nor are they aware that they are victims themselves. This gives the novel and realistic style from a psychological stance, that even when things make sense in hindsight, they don’t really come into view whilst in the eye of the storm.

The novel looks at the family mechanics and how children tend to treat their parents who are in retirement age like children whilst threating their own children in the same vein. This is what really makes this novel tick. It really is an extraordinary novel that keeps the reader involved and entice. The mystery slowly reveals itself and I am sure there are plenty of readers out there that are able to solve it long before the main character does. The story doesn’t hinge on this but more on one character’s emotional strength and dealing with the love of his life terminal illness.

There are some really tender and wonderful moments in the book with the matriarch getting along with her teenage grandchildren and the bond that they developed and the younger grandchild, William and how he is able to put it together long before the adults can. This gives an interesting perspective that even though the dark forces are for evil, good did prevail from the situation.

As this is marketed as a horror genre, mainly because of Masterson’s reputation, some readers will be highly disappointed because this doesn’t have big climatic action sequences nor does it have downright horror but it does simmer on the back burner. We live in an age where everything is in your face and this is a novel that doesn’t play with these rules but instead is a gentle novel that reveals itself in a carefree style .

Personally, this is a thoroughly involving read that kept me entice and though it doesn’t quite fit into any one genre, it is for the better. This is a deeply moving, philosophical book that asks questions and gives very little answers. It does deal with a form of dread that is diluted but is more involved with the family dynamics. It is a winner but there will be a lot of naysayers that will be disappointed due to the storytelling but one that is richer because of it.

Thankyou to NetGalley, Flame Tree Press and the author, Ramsey Campbell, for the opportunity to read a digital copy of Thirteen Days by Sunset Beach in exchange for an honest and unbiased opinion.
I am a huge fan of the horror genre and Ramsey Campbell novels. I jumped at the chance to review this offering for these reasons.
Unfortunately, a book I initially thought was going to be something special, wasn't. I thought the storyline was very slow and I really couldn't connect with any of the characters. Not a book for me.

3 Stars!



Ramsey Campbell has been a favorite of mine for years. His novels tend to take a little bit of work to get through but then linger in the reader’s mind for days after the final page is read. Thirteen Days by Sunset Beach promised to be another such book and I was eager to dive in the dark waters of Cambell’s imagination for another dark adventure.



The island of Vasilema in Greece seemed like the perfect place for a family vacation. The island had been recently developed into a tourist destination and was still off the beaten path for most people. Ray and Sandra did not know of the island’s secret past. They did not know that the sun did not shine as brightly there as it did in the rest of the country. They knew that the locals were known to be an eccentric bunch with strange customs and saw that as part of the charm. What they did not know was the secret behind these strange customs. They know nothing of the darkness that lies at the heart of the island.



The family first begins to feel as if there is something out of the ordinary going on when they all begin to have similar dreams. They then begin to notice how the islanders seem to follow their every move. More shocking discoveries soon follow as members of the family venture underground in local ruins as well as in a cave near the sea. When it becomes clear that something is sneaking into the family’s rooms during the night and physically altering them, there is no doubt that there is much more to the island than the paradise of the first glance. What is not clear, however, is if this sinister force wants their deaths or if it is has something more sinister in mind.



I had not read the blurb on this book when I started it but instead chose to trust Ramsey Campbell to take me on an entertaining journey. The story does get off to a bit of a slow start as Campbell takes a quiet stroll into the story and grounds it firmly in the real world. The family begins its journey to the island with trials and tribulations that are all too familiar to real world travelers. Campbell uses these minor annoyances to help transition from the everyday to the supernatural threat that is soon to pursue the family. Fans of his work will recognize the slow build up that Campbell is a master of and anticipate the terror that lies in wait around the next corner. The beginning of the story takes a little work to get through but Campbell always has something waiting that makes the journey well worth the time.



While the action in the book never really increases, the novel continues to build the tension throughout and keeps the reader on the edge of his seat. The silent terror in the novel becomes a tangible presence in the story as the reader waits for the story to explode. The payoff of the plot, however, is much quieter than expected. Instead of a cataclysmic event, the terror of the island is one that will stay with the family forever and stay in the mind of the reader long after the final word is read. While fans of quiet horror will appreciate the true horror of the story, the book is probably not for everyone as it is a very subtle payoff. This is not the best Campbell novel that I have read but Thirteen Days by Sunset Beach was worth the time and effort that it takes to unravel the story. This story takes a lot of thinking by the reader to fully appreciate and fans of Campbell and psychological horror are sure to appreciate the intricate story that lies in these pages.



I would like to thank Flame Tree Press and NetGalley for this review copy. Thirteen Days by Sunset Beach is available now.

In my limited experience with the work of Ramsey Campbell I've come to learn that there are some aspects to be expected. All present and accounted for in Thirteen Days by Sunset Beach. One, a great deal of the "scares" will be cerebral, often open to interpretation, and they'll land on a personal level or not at all. Two, they are very character driven with nuances of individual characters hiding secrets to be discovered. And speaking of nuance, three, Campbell's dialog is as nuanced, cerebral, and deceptive as anything else, sometimes feeling as though it is purposely leading you the wrong way in a maze.

In a nutshell, that is Thirteen Days by Sunset Beach. A very deliberately paced yarn concerning the experiences of a family on island vacation. A simmering read, slow burn, if you will. The cast is entertaining and distinctive from one another and carry the story. The dialog, solid. There's an unnerving feeling throughout the book, while the particular scares hide in the shadows, for the most part. Peaking out here and there, just enough to let your mind wander. 

I did enjoy Thirteen Days, as I find myself hypnotized by Campbell's dialog and narrative misdirection. But I would imagine that some will not. Or not as much, at least. The deliberately slow pace will lose some readers, as will the lack of immense gore and splatter. If crafty writing moves you as much or more than gratuitous viscera then give this one a go.

I never like to read book reviews for a book I'm reading until after I have finished the book and have formed my own opinions. When I finished Thirteen Days and looked at the reviews other people had given it, I could understand why so many people were split on this book. It seems people either loved it or hated it. I get it. This was a very unique take on a problem with vampires. An extremely slow burn with mounting tension that sometimes felt like it lead to nowhere. The climax of the story was not a huge all out fight with the villain, but was more like a dog leaving the fight with it's tail between it's legs. The family was really frustratingly blind to what was going on and some of the characters were just down right assholes. To some people, all of that was a real turn off. Like I said, I get it. But for me, I found I actually really enjoyed this book.

First, let me talk a bit about the plot. There is this Greek island that has been infested with an ancient, blood-sucking evil for centuries. The people who live there are desperate to spare their families and town from this horrible evil. What can they do to keep their towns alive? They aren't strong enough to fight it. So what do you do when this dark evil wants to feed on your family? You feed it someone else. The island creates a tourist attraction and becomes a hot new spot for vacationers from all over the world. And the cattle come willingly right on in to the feeding frenzy. I thought that whole set up was just epic win all over. In all these vampire stories, it always feels the same...you have the vampires arrive and then the town fights against them and tries to kill them. Thirteen Days felt like a nice twist on the vampire angle.

So let's talk about the main group of characters, the family. OMFG they were so frustrating. And annoying. There was tension, and arguing and patronizing tones. The teens were kinda bored and the adults just barely tolerated each other. Some characters you just flat out don't like because of what a jerk they are. But see, that's just it... This family, with all their flaws, felt real. It felt like a real group family vacation. There will be tension. There will be that one ass in the family that nobody really likes but everyone just tries to tolerate. There will be things you disagree with and kids and adults not seeing eye to eye. Yes. Many times I wanted to close my book and just slap some of these characters in the face with it. Repeatedly. But families are drama. And this was well written. Also, there was a point for all the tension between the family. With all the internal struggling with each other, it blinded them to all the odd things going on around them. If they hadn't been so caught up in their own drama, maybe they would have noticed what was happening on this island a lot sooner. I thought that was a pretty great commentary on being too wrapped up in your own head with your own problems and not seeing the bigger picture around you, and what kind of price that could cost you.

Next, the slow burn and the climax. So, like I was just saying, the characters were so wrapped up in their bickering that they didn't realize there was something pretty sinister going on through the whole vacation. For about 11 days you just see the family milling about, going from one touristy thing to another, enjoying the sites and the odd culture customs. Sometimes there would be a supernaturally tense moment that would happen and the family just doesn't even realize it or acknowledge it and then the tension would pass. Up and down, up and down, over and over. It was very frustrating that there were clear signs of vampires and the family is just like totally ignorant of it. Again, I wanted to slap more people with my book. But then I would think of my own family. How would they react if this was our vacation. Aside from me yelling "VAMPIRE!!!", flailing my arms and pointing at everything, I realized the rest of my family would be that stupid oblivious and would try to find the benign explanation of whatever was going on, just like the characters in the book. So again, while very frustrating, it felt super realistic. The same can be said for the climax. There really wasn't much of one. Yes, we do eventually see the head evil guy on the island, but don't expect a huge showdown between good and evil or anything else like that. There is no massive death and destruction, no Rambo vs. the vampire moments to be had. It's just a normal family who is on vacation, shit gets weird, and they just want to go home. And then they do. Like I said earlier on, this is not your average vampire story. If you are looking and waiting for Buffy or Van Helsing, you will be disappointed. I really think that is why some of the people who have read this book were so upset with it. It is not a typical vampire story.

Was Thirteen Days frustrating in some ways? Yes. Yes it was. But I was entertained and enjoyed it. I liked that it was a different sort of vampire story and just featured average people who didn't want to fight, they just wanted to survive.

I hate giving bad reviews, but this was so so so bad. Barely anything happens in the story and the ending is very disappointing. The hardest part for me though was the dialogue. Now, I know the characters are in Greece and there is supposed to be a language barrier between them and the locals but the language between the family was confusing as well - very static with weird transitions. I struggled to finish this but I received a free copy so I felt compelled to finish it so I could give it an honest review.

A family goes to an island for a vacation but something is amiss with this place. The grandfather Ray is protective of this wife Sandra because she is ill but doesn't want the rest of the family to know. They encounter people that are strange and people make weird remarks to them.

It has been a long time since I read Ramsey Campbell and I am not sure why - on the evidence of 'Thirteen Days by Sunset Beach' Campbell is still a master of chilling horror. 'Thirteen Days...', originally published a couple of years back but now available in ebook, is one of the creepiest stories I have read in a long time, full of foreboding and hair on the back of the neck tension.

Three generations of a family, mildly dysfunctional in that uptight, restrained way peculiar to the English middle-class, holiday together on a Greek island. Unknown to the rest of her family, except her husband Ray, grandmother Sandra is dying and this is likely to be the last time the whole family shares time together. But, from the start, there are signs that the holiday may not be in the ideal location - the island appears to have more cloud than expected and the nearby resort town of Sunset Beach appears strangely quiet during daylight hours, the few people around unnaturally pale for the Mediterranean. Then several of the family experience shared nightmares of nocturnal visitors…

Ramsey Campbell’s prose is descriptive without being florid, the sort of writing you linger over, until you realise the pace is increasing, the feeling of unease is mounting, and there is something there, in the dark… His characters are well-drawn particularly the older couple, Ray and Sandra, and every family has a Julian, the most uptight of the lot, who clearly does not want to be there and whose, seemingly unconscious, bullying of his stepdaughter is painful.

I can’t say that ‘Thirteen Days…’ is a return to form, as I have missed so much, but it certainly made me want to revisit ‘The Doll Who Ate His Mother’ and ‘The Face That Must Die’ and then explore the more recent books that I have neglected.

Via NetGalley, a copy of this ebook was provided to me by Flame Tree Press for the purposes of reading and providing an honest review of the book. While it was provided to me at no cost, I am under no obligation to give a positive review.

When I had the opportunity to read and review a Ramsey Campbell offering I wasn't familiar with, I jumped at it. Campbell is a legend in the horror world and one of the authors I first cut my teeth on when branching into the genre. I had a lot of excitement heading into this book, so there were definitely a lot of high expectations.

The premise of the story is that Ray and Sandra, along with their assorted children and grandchildren, go to the Greek island of Vasilema for a two-week vacation. Along the way, they encounter some oddities: no mirrors in their guest rooms, several family members having similar dreams, guests in a neighboring beach studiously avoiding the sun even when it's mostly overcast, odd treatment and whisperings by the locals, and the appearance of bite marks on Sandra and two of her grandchildren. Will they find out the root cause of the problems? What oddities are going on in Vasilema? Will the family drama associated with the vacation and challenges be ironed out?

I really had high hopes for this book since I am such a fan of Campbell. I'm more of a fan of fast-paced, in your face action, but I also don't mind a slow burn of horror as long as the payoff is well worth the wait. Unfortunately, this book comes off more as a family drama with a slight sub-genre of horror. While there's definitely a local twist to the horror specific to Vasilema, the type of evil was figured out way too early in the book. I kept waiting for the horror to really ramp up, but it never did. I also found myself hoping Ray and Sandra's insufferable son-in-law Julian would be taken by the evil, hit by a bus, choke on a fish bone, something, anything. I found myself disliking him far more than I liked any of the other characters. And when it's only a secondary character evoking that much emotion, it doesn't bode well for the story.

Finally, the biggest disappointment was in the climax, when they finally encounter the root of the evil of Vasilema. In a nutshell it felt, well, anti-climactic. I expected more of a battle than what ensued, especially after the slow burn, but the payoff wasn't there.

Overall, the writing was very good, as Campbell is very polished as an author. It just didn't meet what I expected for a Campbell novel or even a horror piece in general.

Rating: 3 stars (out of 5)

Ramsey Campbell is a juggernaut in horror fiction. He ranks among the top horror authors of all time. He's as popular in America as he is across the pond. I have several of his books that I need to read this year or next, but for now, let's talk about THIRTEEN DAYS BY SUNSET BEACH.

It’s Ray’s and Sandra’s first family holiday in Greece, on the newly developed island of Vasilema. There are over-sized beach umbrellas and the saint's day is celebrated with a weird nocturnal ritual. There are no mirrors, which is very strange.

For me, this book had potential, but it never really took flight. It started off pretty slow and never really gained any steam for my liking. THIRTEEN DAYS BY SUNSET BEACH is a real slow-burner. Slowly, and I mean very slowly, but all is revealed in the end. I got to the point on numerous occasions where I was going to stop reading this one altogether, but every single time, something caught my eye and kept my interest for a while. So, about forty percent of the way in I started skimming–this helped my reading experience tremendously. The writing isn't bad, it's the pacing that I had issues with. THIRTEEN DAYS BY SUNSET BEACH would have made a great novella.

Like I said before, Ramsey Campbell's writing is great. The ending is worth sticking around for. The characters are solid, but I wasn't invested in any of them. I wasn't fully submerged in the story until the ending.

Even though this book wasn't for me, you might dig it. You guys should give THIRTEEN DAYS BY SUNSET BEACH a chance. Who knows... you might like it.

It’s Ray’s and Sandra’s first family holiday in Greece, on the island of Vasilema. The skies are cloudier than anywhere else in Greece, and they’re intrigued by local eccentricities—the lack of mirrors, the outsize beach umbrellas, the saint’s day celebrated with an odd nocturnal ritual. Why are there islanders who seem to follow the family wherever they go? Why do Sandra and the teenage grandchildren have strangely similar dreams? Has Sandra been granted a wish she didn’t know she made? Before their holiday is over, some of the family may learn too much about the secret that keeps the island alive.

I really enjoyed this book and highly recommend it to those who like a more subtle approach to horror.
The setting itself is eerie and atmospheric, but gloriously Greek, I could really picture the scene.
The pace of the plot was quite slow to start with but once I got into it, I couldn’t put it down, I had an inkling of what the islanders were hinting at and the creeping horror was subtle and threatening.
I liked the character of Ray, really felt for him throughout it all, I liked little William too and his innocent understanding of what was actually going on.
I hated Julian, he was so picky with all the children and life itself even, but for me, it only added to the stories authenticity.
I’d love to read more about the characters and what happened after Sunset Beach and if I could’ve changed anything about the actual novel, I would’ve added more detail about the events which were ongoing in Vasilema but this is one of the best subtle horrors I’ve read for some time.

Quiet horror is one of my favorite sub-genres and with that in mind I was looking forward to this release from one of the masters. Admittedly, my expectations for this were high and I'm sorry to report that THIRTEEN DAYS BY SUNSET BEACH didn't meet them.

A man, Ray, takes his wife and extended family on vacation to an island in Greece. It's the first time that the entire family has vacationed together and everyone has been looking forward to it. It's not long, however, before they begin to notice strange things. Why are there no mirrors in their hotel rooms? Why are different members of the family having similar dreams each night? Even more intriguing, why are those same family members displaying bite marks on their bodies? You'll have to read this to find out!

First off, I did like the writing style and quality, and I enjoyed the foreshadowing. (At times, I think the foreshadowing was the only thing that kept me reading.) What brought me down quite a bit was the pacing and some of the characters. I didn't feel much for any of them, other than Ray, the elderly protagonist and Jules, whom I couldn't stand. (Really, I couldn't stand him-a more annoying, fussy, controlling man you couldn't find anywhere.) I hated him enough that I considered quitting this book more than once. Between him and the pacing, I came *this* close. But every time I said to myself "This is it! I'm done!" something happened that kept me going.

Overall, I'm sorry to say that this book didn't work well for me. The writing quality is there though, which is why I'm going with 3 out of 5 stars. What doesn't work for me might work exceedingly well for you, so if the synopsis sounds good, go ahead and give it a shot. Ramsey Campbell is a master of the horror genre after all!

*Thanks to Flame Tree Press via NetGalley for the e-ARC of this book in exchange for my honest feedback. This is it!

I can't say that I enjoyed this one. It moves too slow and it's boring. A huge let down considering who the author is. Not the book for me.

It's a case of fine idea, not so fine execution for Ramsey Campbell's latest novel. One of the initial releases on the new Flame Tree Press imprint, it's a meandering supernatural tale of a community that literally relies on tourism to survive.
Plot wise, it follows a family, who while vacating on a Greek island, learn that the eccentricities of the locals may be rooted in a dark secret. While never directly mentioned, Campbell quickly throws enough hints to suggest we are dealing with a vampire story. Unfortunately, it takes the characters - who all sound the same - forever to come even contemplate that conclusion.
The result is a slow-paced book that's rather 'vamp light' for its majority. It's not terrible but it's not one of Campbell's stronger efforts.

Review: THIRTEEN DAYS BY SUNSET BEACH by Ramsey Campbell

A wonderful new novel from a modern horror master, THIRTEEN DAYS BY SUNSET BEACH is a masterpiece of characterization, and deeply emotional. The horror is subtly approached, filtered through the viewpoint of senior citizen Ray, a man who knows full well real-life horror is approaching all too soon. So he sets high hopes on this extended family vacation on the Greek Isles.

Ray, his wife Sandra, adult offspring Doug and Natalie, their partners, and three grandchildren gather on the should-be sun-drenched island of Vasilema, expecting the usual Greek vacation: sight-seeing, tourist-catering restaurants, guided tours, and so forth. Instead, they find cloudy skies, no mirrors, strange disturbing nightmares, and evasive, secretive, locals.

I loved the wry humour and the subtlety of the horror. Mr. Campbell can stage a story with several characters of importance plus a wide cast of background characters, and make them all vibrant. I found in myself much empathy for Ray, Sandra, their son Doug and his wife Pris, and the three grandchildren, ages16, 15, and 5. Not so much for prissy daughter Natalie and second husband Julian. Julian is really a prize (a booby prize). A controlling Narcissist stacked on a deeply unconscious inferiority complex, he finds his purpose in playing Emperor of the Universe, controlling every one's lives and snarking when others inevitably fail to match his impossible standards. Mr. Campbell plays out Julian against the perfect background of his father-in-law Ray and brother-in-law Doug, both men of sterling integrity, high intellect, and good sense. A substantial portion of my delight in this special novel stemmed from watching this combination play out.

Is there anyone out there who enjoys the horror genre that hasn't heard of Ramsey Campbell? Well, there's good reason for the answer "no": it's because of books like this! No one weaves a spell of terror quite like Campbell does, and this is a perfect example. Just imagine the chills of learning your family members are all having the same or similar dreams... wouldn't that, alone, be enough to creep you out? This theme plays out in a most insidious way. And if there's one complaint I have about this book, it's that it ends too soon. Write on, Ramsey! Definitely worth reading, even at the expense of loss of sleep.