"Gonna be a long night (Gonna be a long night)
It's gonna be alright, on the nightshift
You found another home
I know you're not alone, on the nightshift" - The Commodores

I could not get the Commodores out of my head while reading this book due to the title. They were not alone that night at the Blockbuster on New Year’s Eve 1999. Those working (you guessed it) the night shift were attacked and killed. Only one girl survived.

Fifteen years later in the same town in New Jersey, four teenagers working (you know what shift) the night shift are attacked and only one survives. Sounds like a pattern, doesn't it?

Both survivors recall being whispered the same thing. “Goodnight, pretty girl.” Cuz that's the last thing one wants to hear before everything goes dark.

The killer left many in his wake: the victims, the survivors, the family members, the shocked community, etc. In this book some intersect – the survivor of the blockbuster massacre, the brother of the original suspect who knows his brother was innocent, and a very pregnant FBI Agent (enter Fargo vibes) who vows to solve both cases.

Buckle me in! I love a good mystery and I love a (if it is done correctly) cold case/new case tie in. I had on my super sleuth hat trying to work the case along with Keller. Will you figure it out? Will you have an inkling?

I enjoyed this mystery and thought it was well done, well thought out and well written. It kept me on my toes, and I had my suspicions throughout. I enjoyed how the author showed how the original Blockbuster survival was plagued by that night. Can you just get over something like that?

How do you react when someone you loved is dubbed a killer, but you know the investigators have it wrong? What affect does that have on you?

Enjoyable twists and a reveal which may not surprise some but either way, this book didn't disappoint me.

Thank you to St. Martin’s Press and NetGalley who provided me with a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review. All the thoughts and opinions are my own.

Thank you Netgalley for this terrific read!

I loved this thriller! I loved the entire setup and the connections between decade apart murders. It's always fun to see these stories in different perspectives so the characters really made it for me.

I definitely recommend this as a fast-paced read that will keep you on your toes!

*4.5 Stars On My Instagram Account*

The Night Shift by Alex Finlay has one of the best set ups for a thriller. New Years Eve 1999 four teen girls working the night shift at Blockbuster are attacked and only one survives. Same town, 15 years later, but now an ice cream shop, same attack with only one survivor. The one thing both girls remember is the killer saying, " Goodnight, Pretty Girls."

The author has written more than a solid mystery. There is so much honesty in his writing about predators grooming victims, the lasting effects of trauma and unresolved teenage friendships. I did figure out the killer but there was so much more to this story than who did it. The writing was emotional at times and kept me reading all day.

I received a free copy of this book from the publisher via #Netgalley for a fair and honest review. All opinions are my own.

The Night Shift is a fast-paced thriller about two mass murders decades apart. In 1999, four Blockbuster employees are stabbed to death at closing leaving only one survivor. Twenty years later, an almost identical crime happens at the local ice cream shop and Ella, the sole survivor of the Blockbuster attack, is brought in to talk to the sole survivor of this recent attack. Both times the victims were young and stabbed to death but that’s where the similarities appear to end. Written from multiple perspectives including that of the FBI agent assigned to the case as well as Ella and Chris, a a criminal defense lawyer with a troublesome history. This book kept me guessing to the end with several twists and turns I didn’t see coming.

THANK YOU NETGALLEY & PUBLISHER FOR MY ARC COPY!
I loved this thriller! I binged this book in one day.
The characters are well connected in various professions, so you see many views in the case. Great balance throughout the book.

New Years Eve. 1999. Most of the world is stepping out and watching the ball drop into the new year. Five teens are working a night shift at the local blockbuster, where only one will survive. Fifteen years later, a similar killing occurs at a local ice cream shop and only one teen survives. Similar right?

My only disappointment was the epilogue, as it was quite uninformative on the status update with the characters in the book. I didn't get the full closure I was anticipating at the very end.

"The sheep spends its life worried about the wolf, only to be eaten by the farmer."

Well, dang. The Night Shift was one heck of a ride! I finished this in under 24 hours and loved every minute. There are some farfetched parts, but it was highly entertaining and I really enjoyed it!

On New Year's Eve of 1999, there were four girls working the night shift at a Blockbuster video store when they are brutally attacked and only one survived. The suspect ran and was never found. Fifteen years later four teens are attacked at a local ice cream store while working the late shift. Again, there is only one survivor. The two cases are eerily similar, especially with both surviving victims remembering that the killer whispered "Goodnight, pretty girl" to them both. We are then thrust into the investigation and tangled web of characters and secrets.

The Night Shift is told from three main POVs: Chris, a lawyer, Sarah Keller, a FBI agent working on ice cream shop murders, and Ella, who was the final girl from the Blockbuster murders. I really enjoyed the different perspectives of these characters and they were used to give us extra insight into the story.

This thriller was riveting and fast-paced. My predictions were spot on for the most part, but I really enjoyed the ride. I look forward to Alex Finlay's next release!

I was very impressed with the author’s last novel, Every Last Fear, so I was excited to read this book and I’m happy to say it’s even better than the last one. Much like his last book this author manages to make even the hard things work well. Usually I find multiple POVs annoying because inevitably one character or plot is more interesting but the author manages to write all the characters here so well that I was caught up in all of them. I’m horrible at remembering names when characters are first introduced and thankfully the author also sets the scene so well with each character that it was easy to keep track of who was who when the narration changed. The writing is very tight with no wasted words and a quick moving pace that was perfect. I was quickly caught up in the story and could not put it down. In his last book I thought the plot twists were incredibly obvious and broadcast too much but that’s not at all the case here. There’s a lot going on and it’s a book that you will not want to end. The characters hold your attention as does the plot. It’s a tragic backstory but incredibly well written. I can’t wait to read the author’s next book! I received a complimentary copy of this book. Opinions expressed in this review are completely my own.

I have very mixed feelings about this book. I want to feel like I loved it’s a great story. It has great characters. And it’s a fun nostalgia trip to the late 90s/early 2000s.

But…but, but, but. If you’ve read Final Girls by Riley Sager you’re probably going to recognize a lot about how this one is going to turn out very early on. I pegged the villain the moment the character was introduced, and I’m not a person who is particularly good at busting the solve early in the narrative.

So, maybe don’t write a book about final girls that takes VERY heavy influence in how things shake out from a popular book that is literally called Final Girls?

It’s not identical, of course, but let’s just say there’s some extremely notable similarity, particularly when it comes to the killer. They’re not playing the same role, but their thoughts and actions were close enough that it made the solve kind of a bummer for me. I was hoping I was wrong about my guess the whole way, because aside from this it’s a great story.

Finlay wrote some excellent characters, sets a scene and creates atmosphere far better than most thriller writers, and creates an ending that is at least satisfying if not exactly original.

This was probably a 4 or 5 star book for me if not for the Final Girls issue. If you haven’t read that or you don’t mind the repetitive solve, you’ll probably love this. And I certainly didn’t dislike it or not enjoy reading it because of this. But fair warning, you’ve likely seen this proverbial movie before.

I'm a sucker for a great opening line - one that entices me to buckle up and settle in for the long haul confident I'm in for an all-nighter. The Night Shift's first sentence - The night was expected to bring tragedy - grabbed my attention and yes, compelled me to read this one in mostly one sitting. Finlay's signature short, bare-bones chapters with mini-cliffhangers ensured that I kept burning through pages and even though I repeatedly said "just one more chapter" and I'll retire for the night, I found it impossible not to read on.

December 31, 1999 - Y2K and the world held its breath . . . and lo and behold nothing happened. The next day dawned bright and people went on with their daily routines. Except for the people of Linden, New Jersey where the overnight savage slaughter of four teenagers ending their night shift at the local Blockbuster paints the town blood red, leaving three dead and one lone traumatized survivor. Fast forward fifteen years and four teenage girls are ending their night shift at the local ice cream shop in the same town when someone enters and brutally attacks them with a knife . . . and yet again, one lucky girl survives. Are the two tragedies related?

The Night Shift is a multi-layered, complex thriller delivered in two timelines. Three well-developed characters with unknown connections narrate the story. The original survivor Ella is now a therapist counseling troubled teens although she herself carries dark, debilitating secrets, the second survivor Jesse is a mysterious, complicated teenager with an uncanny ability to scope out hidden details and truths, and FBI Agent Sarah Keller who is heavily laden with twins due within two weeks but allows nothing to stop her mission to find the missing link between past and present. And then there's Public Defender Chris Ford who stands for the lost and weary regardless of innocence or guilt - he too carries a potentially life altering secret.

As the investigation proceeds, the paths of these characters and their past and present lives begin colliding, spurning plot twists and turns that wreak damage and destroy lives with the velocity of a tornado as new shocking revelations pursue the light of day. Finlay's ability to toss several viable red herrings into the mix is sure to keep readers second guessing. His expertise in inserting jaw dropping scenes into the mix keeps readers on the edge of their seats, hearts pulsating to the rhythm of the expeditious pace. Excellent character development is crucial in The Night Shift as readers are slowly brought up to date on past events and the manner in which past tragedies affect current lives. I like that Finlay doesn't waste words on fluff or filler. Like a well fought court case, he presents his story in concise, short but highly effective chapters through characters he manipulates to build empathy from readers.

The Night Shift is an intense, soul searching thriller that delivers as promised - a fantastic, entertaining follow up to Finlay's previous novel Every Last Fear. Fans of mystery, suspense and thrillers will devour this book. And whether or not your sleuth skills lead you to discover the killer's identity prior to the reveal, you won't be disappointed in the epic ending.

Alex does it again! What a superb thriller that captures you slowly.... but then kicks you in the butt when it comes around full circle. Page-turning and heart-racing goodness!

A huge thank you to NetGalley, Alex Finlay and Minotaur Books for providing me with an eARC of this publication which allows me to provide you with an unbiased review.

This was such an engrossing story! From the very beginning I felt as the detectives did that perhaps it's an open and shut case. But where is the suspect from the first crime?

The chapters flip between characters and timelines and there was very little left unexposed to the reader! My favorite thrillers are ones that go faster as the story goes! You can feel everything converging on something... some detail that links other details together. This is exactly that thriller!

My only issue was a couple coincidences that irked me. And as often as it happens in stories, I'm not a fan of detectives or cops going against protocol for the story to work.

But all in all a solid thriller and I'm crazy eager to read Finlay's first and next novels!

The Night Shift (published 3/1/22) follows the aftermath of two separate attacks on four teenager girls that leaves one survivor, spaced 15 years apart. The similarities between both attacks are too obvious to ignore. Could the original suspect who ran away be the same for this new massacre?

Each chapter is told in a different POV: the survivor of the first attack, the brother of the original suspect, and the FBI agent who is determined to solve both cases. With each chapter comes a new connection between both cases and the victims involved.

While the story started off a bit slow for me, and I found it hard to follow all the characters at times, I really enjoyed this book! I didn’t see any of the twists and connections coming which is a win for me. The writing made it easy to fly through the chapters. Thank goodness, because as I got towards the middle, I just needed to know how it ended!

This book was a fast paced page turner. Several different peoples lives are all colliding in to one when two different crimes that happened many years apart start to come back to the possibility of the same person who could have committed them. The chapters were small and they switched off between people and that really pushed the story a long at a quick pace. I can understand why I'm seeing this book everywhere and everyone is talking about it!

⏰️ BOOK / REVIEW ⏰️

One of my most anticipated #bookreleases of 2022 knocked it out of the park! Oh @alexfinlayauthor - #thenightshift was pure GENIUS! I am a 80's baby and we grew up going to #blockbuster. In fact, it was one of my favorite things to do on the weekend ... oh, the good old days 🤩 This pubbed 3/1/22 by @minotaur_books - thanks for my #eArc from @netgalley ❤

In all seriousness, I freaking loved this book. This popcorns from past to present in such an incredible, easy way. I normally choose a time period I like more in this type of book, but I could not decide if I preferred past or present (probably because of the nostalgia). I feel like this needs to be turned into a series because I fell in love with Keller's character. And the ending of this one was so unique - I was definitely shocked by the killer! 🔪🔪🔪🔪.5

Reading Between the Wines book review #20/135 for 2022:
Rating: 4.5 🍷 🍷 🍷 🍷 ½ (rounded up to 5)
Book 🎧: The Night Shift
Author: Alex Finlay
Genre: General Fiction (Adult) | Mystery & Thrillers
RELEASED on March 1, 2022!!! Available now!

Sipping thoughts: Alex Finlay is becoming an author whose books I will buy sight unseen. I really loved this plot and was SO mad at myself for not figuring out the killer. Finlay’s writing is written to where you are just engulfed in the story that the whodunnit becomes secondary. His twists are not ones that are so unreasonable but ones that make you think, oh yeah, why didn’t I see that coming!
As you read this book, you will enjoy trying to figure out how teenage employees being attacked and killed 15 years after what looks like a copy-cat case tie into each other. I would highly suggest you grab this book sooner than later and add it to you 2022 reads.

Cheers and thank you to @StMartinsPress, @MinotaurBooks and @NetGalley for an advanced copy of @TheNightShift

#TheNightShift #AlexFinlay #StMartinsPress #MinotaurBooks #NetGalley #advancedreadercopy #ARC #Kindle #Booksofinstagram #readersofinstagram #bookstagram #nicoles_bookcellar #bookworm #bookdragon #booknerd #booklover #bookstagrammer #bookaholic #bookreview #bookreviewer #IHaveNoShelfControl #ReadingBetweenTheWines #fiction #thriller #suspense #mystery #MysteryAndThrillers #GeneralFictionAdult

A massacre on New Years Eve 1999 at a Blockbuster Video store results in the death of 3 people with one lone survivor, The police focus on a local teen who they believe went on the run after being released from jail due to insufficient evidence . Fast forward 15 years later to a massacre at a local ice cream shop, again there is one lone survivor, could it be the same killer the suspect come back or is it a copycat.
If you love fast-pasted, edge of your seat thrillers this is your book. I want to thank Netgalley and the publisher for approving me for this book, I could not put it down and finished it in one day. The characters are great, the story flows along with twists and turns, definitely a must read.

Wow what a book. Definitely needed a good thriller and this one did a great job! This one was super fast paced and had short chapters which was awesome and I enjoyed. There were multiple POVs which was alright I am not a huge fan of too many of them but this one was okay for it and flowed smoothly. I had a feeling who might have killed who in this one and I was right, just had my suspicions! You definitely learn a lot in this one through each character and def a great police procedural type book many thriller lovers will love.

Goodnight Pretty Girl!

New Years Eve 1999
Y2K was an usual friday night at the Block Buster Video Store in Linden, New Jersey. Steve the manager closed that night at 10 PM. He usually closed at 2 AM. The night shift included 4 mischievous teenage girls. They were Juniors and Seniors in high school. Ella was the new girl on the shift. The last thing Steve heard were screams. Four teenage girls are attacked. Only one survives who was Ella!

Then 15 years later at the Dairy Creamery which is an ice cream shop in Linden, New Jersey, four girls were attacked again and only one survives.

I loved Every Last Fear, by this author and this one is just as good!
While I was reading it, I had so many questions. I felt like I was a detective trying to find out who the killer was. I kept following all of the clues. I felt like I was working on a puzzle and putting together the pieces.

I loved the fact that Sarah Keller and her husband who were in Every Last Fear were in this one too.
The chapters were short and I love short chapters. I also loved the writing style. The characters were done very well. There are some likable characters and some unlikable characters too.
This one also was one of those final girl thrillers.
The plot was very intense and I could not put it down.
This was an addictive thriller.

I want to thank Netgalley, Minotaur Books for the copy of this book in exchange for an honest review

Thank you to NetGalley for an advanced copy of The Night Shift.

I was very excited to read The Night Shift because I had heard such amazing things about it. Alternating between present day and 1999, we learn how a night that ends in tragic murder affects this small town a decade later.

Unfortunately, this book didn't work for me for a few reasons. There are too many characters and the chapters (the shortest chapters ever) are told in alternating view points. The writing is . . . not great. It's very awkward and choppy. I'd like to say the ending was a surprise, but even most of it was predictable.

I will say, it was a fast read, but I'm not sure that was a good thing. Very disappointing.

Its NYE 1999, and four Blockbuster employees are brutally murdered while one was left for dead but ultimately survived. A suspect was arrested but released and disappeared. 15 years later and a similar crime occurs to young teens at an ice cream parlor. One girl survives and she is asking to speak to the survivor from the Blockbuster murders.

This was a fun, fast paced read! The chapters were short and alternated between the views of different characters but I found each perspective to be interesting. If i had one complaint, it would be that the FBI agent Keller was a bit OTT being 8 months pregnant with TWINS and running around like a badass Cop.

Thank you to Netgalley and the publishers for providing me with a free e-arc in exchange for an honest review.