Alex Finlay's new novel AND a creepy final girl storyline? SIGN ME UP. This was exactly the book I was hoping for and MORE! I loved this novel, all the unique and well-developed characters and the twisty revelations as they unfolded before me, my jaw dropping to the floor!
It's New Year's Eve 1999 (an amazing time to be alive!) and the story starts there with the brutal murder of four people at a Blockbuster Video. YES the nostalgia is good in this one! Four people are dead but one lone "final girl" remains and survives the hideous murder.
15 years later, another brutal slaying occurs in the same town but this time at an ice cream shop. Again, one lone girl survives.
There are a lot of characters to keep track of and quite a few perspectives but it's not hard to keep up and helps with the unveiling of the plot as it unpeels like an onion. This story was completely immersive and kept my interest the whole time. I couldn't put this book down! Everything comes together as we find out more in the story. I did find the author's portrayal of women to be a little...inaccurate and some of the pieces fall just too perfectly together in this puzzle of a story. But it's a great, quick, high octane read and I loved almost every minute!
Thank you to the author, Netgalley and St. Martin's Press for the ARC!

My thanks to Net Galley and the publisher for allowing me to review this book.

In 1999 3 employees and their manager are found murdered in a Blockbuster. About 15 years later a similar crime occurred at an ice cream parlor. Are they connected?

Good thriller. Chapters a bit choppy but decent read, good characters, quick to get thru.

The market is deluged with thrillers and suspense, and it takes a lot to make a thriller stand out. Finlay's newest novel stands head and shoulders above the pack. We get to spend time in several unique points of view that let us inhabit the characters' worlds fully while the plot barrels towards its conclusion.

**Thanks to the publisher and NetGalley for the opportunity to provide an honest review in exchange for an Advanced Reader's Copy.**

The Night Shift capitalizes on the Final Girls trend, opening with the Blockbuster killings, where 3 teen girls and their young manager are brutally killed after closing one cold winter night. A 4th girl narrowly escapes death, crawling out of the store to collapse in the snow. 15 years later, an eerily similar slaughter happens at an ice cream store, leaving 3 dead teen girls and a 4th unconscious. Ella, the lone survivor from Blockbuster, now a therapist, is called in to help the lone survivor.

This book will definitely appeal to fans of James Patterson, with its choppy, short sentences and somewhat cliffhanger endings.

Glaringly, though, the author does not seem to have much knowledge of police, FBI agents, women, pregnant women, teens, and teen girls--most characters do not progress much beyond tropey caricatures. Even Bob, the shining light of Every Last Fear, was reduced to a dopey house husband (nothing wrong with being a house husband, this is an issue with Bob's characterization). Ignoring the fact that most women do not make it to 38 weeks pregnant with twins, there is just no way Keller was running around doing all those things with little to no after effects. I guess good for him for avoiding her giving birth in the middle of the denouement?

3 stars because I couldn't put the book down for the last 1/3 of it...though I'm not sure if it's because I was invested in what was going on with the book or wanting to see what ridiculous thing the author was going to do next.

HELLO YOU BEAUTIFUL TWISTY THRILLER!!!

I seriously cannot wait until march 2022 when you all can read this one - it’s my favorite thriller of the year oh my gosh! plan a day, don’t answer your phone, and read this all in one go because you will NOT be able to put it down!!!!

december 31, 1999. a mass murder of young teens at a blockbuster store with one survivor. 20 years later, ella still doesn’t know how or why she survived that attack, but she’s fielding way more questions than it’s worth when another attack of the same caliber happens at a local ice cream shop. one survivor with no idea why she’s still alive.

and you can all see where this is going, right? was the killer from 1999 really caught or was it all just another ruse in the larger game to play?

this one had me flipping pages faster than ever before - I just HAD to know if all of my predicted twists turned out the way I guessed. I may be a thriller sleuth (and guessed some of the twists right away), but I found out that I didn’t even care. they played out in such complex orders that I was silently screaming at 2am :’)

every last fear wasn’t it for me so I’m so happy I was gifted this new one to give it another go. faith = restored.

thank you to netgalley and minotaur books for the advanced copy in exchange for an honest review. you guys don’t want to miss this one - coming march ‘22

wine pairing: bordeaux red blend
rating: 4.5 stars

This book highly met my expectations! After reading “Every Last Fear” I have been on the lookout for Alex Finlay putting out a new suspenseful thrilling read! “The Night Shift” brought me back to my younger years with the nostalgia of throwing in Blockbuster for the win and turning the clocks back to 1999! We start off with a brutal murder of four of the employees at Blockbuster and one survivor!! Suspect arrested… but then released… and then disappears. Now take it fifteen years later and another murder happens this time at an ice cream parlor and….. all but one survivor murdered so is this a repeat of the past?! What’s the connection? Is the killer back that was released and disappeared fifteen years ago?! The POV is between Ella the survivor from Blockbuster, agent Kellar the FBI agent trying to solve two crimes at once, and the Public Defender Chris that has more ties than meets the eye to all of this past and present! Intense, gripping, and suspense is just a few things to find in this I didn’t want to put it down until the end read!!! Thank you Netgalley and Minotaur Books/ St. Martin’s Press for the chance to review and yet again read another on the edge of your seat read from Alex Finlay!!!!!

New Year’s Eve, 1999 - 4 teenagers working at a Blockbuster are murdered, with one other survivor, and the suspect flees and is never seen again. Now 15 years later, another similar massacre at an ice cream parlor in the same neighborhood occurs, again with a lone survivor. Are they connected? The Night Shift is a thrilling, topsy-turvy ride from start to finish, with intersecting plot lines from both events, great characters, and so much suspense that you’ll be flying through the pages. The author artfully weaves it all together in this rollicking, tense book. Solid 5 stars. I received an ARC of this book from the publisher through NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

Ho-oh-oh-oh-ly cow! What a good book!

The ripple/domino effect of a just one choice, one action impact the lives of so many in this fantastically constructed and well told story.

Finlay does it again!

Thank you to the publisher for gifting me a copy. It is my pleasure to write an honest review.

Told from many points of view - the original crime and the present day crime. The victims, their families and law enforcement all converge to tell a story of abusive relationships, love, trauma, obsession, regrets and long held secrets.

Ella, Chris, Mr. Steadman - all connected by the first crime.

Ella, Jesse, Sarah, Atticus - all connected by chance and the second crime.

Suspenseful, well written story that explores how a single event ripples across lives, bringing victims, villains and heros to an unexpected resolution.

Thank you to the publisher and Netgalley for the opportunity to read and review this book. This is my first time reading Finlay and it will not be the last! He sure can write a suspenseful book! Everything I thought I knew along the way turned out to be wrong. I will definitely be recommending this to everyone. Also, great cover!

WHOA, THAT WAS GOOD!

I just finished this book and I am sitting here in actual awe of how incredible it was. The last few chapters had my heart racing so fast. I don't think I've ever experienced that from a book before.

The book starts out on New Year's Even 1999 in a Blockbuster so right off the bat as a 90s kid, you know I'm already hooked. Then there's a murder 😱 and all of a sudden we're in 2015 and there's an eerily similar murder 😱

Crazy coincidence? Same person? You're going to want to find out.

This book had so so many twists and turns and just when I thought I figured it all out... I got hit with a surprise that had me literally shouting "WHAT!?" outloud.

Thank you so much to #netgalley #stmartinspress and #minotaur books for an ARC of #thenightshift

This book will be released on March 1, 2022 but add it to your lists now, because it's going to BIG!

I started The Night Shift late afternoon and finished it around 330am. Could not put it down.

On Dec 31, 1999, four teenagers were attacked at a Blockbuster at closing time with only one survivor. No one was ever caught. Fast forward 15 years and an almost identical scene occured, again with only one survivor. Was there a copycat or did the same person commit both crimes? FBI special agent Sarah Keller is called in as a favor to help the local small town police help find the killer and maybe solve a cold case.

Keller, who by the way, is eight and a half months pregnant and it's quickly apparent she's a certified badass. Keller is the only person in this story who doesn't seem to be hiding a secret. The surviving victims are predictably broken, having lived through multiple traumas. Finlay shows you their scars and imperfections but also how strong they are.

For me, the subject matter was tough to stomach. He tempers those feelings by having three strong women, in different stages in their young lives, as the driving force behind The Night Shift.

I figured out the perpetrator fairly early on but in no way did it detract from the story because he throws in some bombshells I had not foreseen. The Night Shift is a story of immense tragedy but also of redemption and hope. The Night Shift is a book that'll stay with me for a long time

Thank you to Alex Finlay, St. Martin's Press, and NetGalley for the privilege of reading an advance copy of The Night Shift.

At first i didn’t think i was going to get along with this book. It’s a multiple POV book and i didn’t find myself connecting with or caring for 2/3rds of the POVs but i stuck it out and I’m so happy i did because this seriously delivered.

The payoff of this book is exquisite. And rarely has a thriller flat-out thrilled me so much! I could not guess what was going to happen next, all of my predictions were wrong- which i love with a thriller- and i yelled at this book at least four times. I loved it.

Thank you to St Martin's Press, Minotaur Books, Netgalley, and the author for an advanced e-reader copy of the book in exchange for an honest review.

This was...not what I was expecting. I don't usually read thrillers but this was really good. The first third of the book I struggled to get through because I found it a bit slow but it was definitely worth it. The characters were amazing; I don't normally enjoy multi-POV but each character POV was incredible, especially Keller. A few moments even had me tearing up which I was not expecting and I wish a few characters had different outcomes but I think it was well done as it was.
Loved the twists, definitely did not see it coming and had me second-guessing the whole way through!

You will be unable to put this down! Do not start this book late at night if you value your sleep. Once you start it you must devour it. This book is in my top 10 for the year. It was amazingly written, the characters were phenomenal and relate-able. The story line was full or terror and suspense. This is one of those books where your sad when you reach the last page and it’s over.
It’s fast paced and there not one full moment. Twist and turns galore, this book is the whole package read it!

This was a good read for the most part. It was suspenseful with a mystery to work out. The problem for me was that there were too many characters with similar roles and trying to remember if they were characters from 1999 or the present became became a little difficult. I didn’t guess the ending and it was twisty but not much of a surprise either.
Overall, it wasn’t really for me, but I’m sure there are other readers who will enjoy it.

I really like Every Last Fear and was excited to read The Night Shift by Finlay. I didn't care for it as much though; I would have liked more character development. I was surprised by a few twists, though. One thing that really bothered me was FBI agent Sarah Keller, 8 1/2 months pregnant with twins, out there doing the stuff she was doing. I myself had twins and could barely make it through the grocery store at 8 1/2 months pregnant. I do like Keller as a character, but the pregnancy situation was not realistic.
Overall, a fairly good mystery.

4.5 Don’t work the night shift in Linden stars

Picture the very late 1990s, just about to turn 2000, and a Blockbuster store in a small town. There are four teenage girls working the night shift along with their manager. A killer strikes, and all but one of them are killed. There’s a suspect immediately arrested, but he’s released for lack of evidence and then disappears. The lone survivor, Ella, turns to counseling to process her experience.

Flash forward 15 years and the same crime occurs again, this time at an ice cream parlor. Has the original killer returned? Or has a copycat criminal struck the same town of Linden? The survivor of this attack, Jesse, connects with Ella.

The FBI is called in and I love the character of Sarah Keller (she was also in Every Last Fear). She’s very pregnant with twins, but she doesn’t let that slow her down! The local police don’t really want to cooperate with her, but she keeps at the case, trying her luck at solving the Blockbuster murders from years ago and checking for similarities to the new case.

Then there’s Chris, working as a public defender, and he’s got a very close connection to the case. I rooted for him and liked his character as well.

I had some suspicions about how this one would turn out but there were definitely some surprises for this reader! I really like Alex Finlay’s writing style and he’s created a believable thriller here. While not perfect, I recommend this one!

This is a thriller for sure . . . HOLY COW IN A TUTU . . . such breath-taking suspense!!

I enjoyed reading Alex Finlay's Every Last Fear, so I was excited to get my hands on a copy of his latest work.

In the opening scene of this story, we learn the details of a crime committed during a closing shift on New Year's Eve in 1999 and segue into a hauntingly similar situation playing out fifteen years later.

I really like the skillfully fleshed ensemble cast of characters and the intricate twists and turns of all their lives along with the investigation. I simply could not put this pulse pounder down . . . I put off work, food, and sleep to find out who knew what! During the last intense scenes, I was tearful and sweaty. I cannot think of the last time I had such a visceral response to a novel. To some folks, this experience may not sound like a good time, but to a book-lover, it's exciting, like riding the rails of a theme-park coaster.

I'd like to thank the author, NetGalley, and Minotaur Books for allowing me to read an advanced copy of The Night Shift for an honest review. Five Stars.

This was EXACTLY the book I needed. It came to me when I was entering a slump, and it picked me right up out of it. Well-written, groovy mystery, interesting characters… what more could one ask for? The only complaint I have is it was a bit predictable.