Member Reviews
This is an apocalyptic horror, and it is very action packed and fast paced. I had fun with this one! We follow a couple of different points of view. I really liked that. The chapters are also pretty short which made this book a very quick read. I want to see a movie version of this for sure.
Full review on YouTube
3-3.5 Writing was well done and story was interesting, but not enough actually happened by the end. I was left wanting to know more about what happened to the characters and creatures.
Pretty good thriller, suspenseful and interesting. The characters were so so but the focus really is on the non stop action that really just starts up and basically never lets up.
Two people find themselves trapped in a car in a beach at the end of the world after a one night stand.
The story is seriously one of the craziest go-go-go amounts of chaos that I have seen in a book in awhile. The 'mystery' happens and its basically action after action that all feels so suspenseful and honestly almost exhausting in its pace.
The characters are interesting but a little heavy handed in their past tragedies while we are dealing with so much in the current time. But if you want to feel a little dread and stay awake all night this is probably a great book for you.
************Spoiler alert but necessary for a lot of people including myself: the dog dies :( *****
Thanks to Netgalley for a copy of this audiobook!
I LOVE cosmic beach horror and this was an absolutely delightful portrayal of it, though I did struggle on occasion with the characters and some plot points that felt a little too convenient. That said, I had so much fun with this and would love a sequel or companion novella in the future!
Mike and Beth meet on the night of a meteor shower, sharing a bottle of champagne and a need for human connection. When they wake up the next morning, they discover the world has changed as a result of that meteor shower. When they go in search of safety and end up stranded on a deserted Oregon highway, they must face the nightmares firsthand.
This had me hooked from the beginning, and each moment I kept wanting to know what would happen next. I really hope there will be a sequel so we can see what happens next! Jake, Mike’s dog, was hands-down my favorite character. I could see this book being turned into a movie. An excellent debut!
Many thanks to NetGalley for providing me an audio ARC of this book.
Full review posted in Library Journal, It's a cosmic horror that has plenty of action that's excruciating for the characters and the readers, drawing out the tension as tight and cutting as a garotte wire.
Beth is enjoying the beach as she house and dog sits for a client. She could never afford to live on this stretch of the Oregon coast so she's enjoying it while she can. Then she catches a glimpse of the 40-something man next door.....a bit of flirting...a few glances.....and they are enjoying a one-night-stand together. But, that night, something happens that turns it into so much more than a fling between strangers....
What looked like a meteor shower or maybe a comet passing through the sky the night before was so much more. Soon Mike, Beth and a dog named Jake are fighting for their lives against all sorts of completely terrifying monsters.
I love sci-fi horror! Movies, books, audio....I don't care what format....just love scary sci-fi tales. I had lots of different reactions to this story. The strongest was probably my constant inner monologue of: nothing had better happen to the dog, they had better protect the dog, how is jake, etc So, I have to admit that my favorite character in the book was, of course, the dog. I admit it. Not sorry. (and no, I will not tell you if the dog made it through to the end ok). My second was reaction was complete sympathy and horror for the plight of the main characters. I can't imagine being stranded in a car on the beach inside a car......with a complete shit show going on all around. And that reaction led me to thinking that this story would make an excellent movie!
I started out reading an ebook arc of this story, but then switched to the audiobook. For some reason I find horror stories more frightening if I'm listening to them. The audio book is almost 9 hours long and is narrated by John Pirhalla and Sophie Amoss. I was unfamiliar with both narrators but will definitely be looking for other audio books narrated by both! Both did a wonderful job of bringing these characters to life.
I hope KC Jones writes more of the same. I really enjoyed this story. The characters are quirky, interesting and relatable. The dog is awesome. And the situation was crazy creepy! Very entertaining. I enjoyed it!
**I voluntarily read an ebook arc from Macmillan/Tor-Forge and an audiobook from Macmillan Audio. All opinions expressed are entirely my own. I apologize to my readers and the publishers for the lateness of this review. I just made a 1500 mile move for a new job and it put me behind on writing and reviews. Things are returning to normal now, and reviews will return to always timely.**
This book was archived before I had time to read it, so I am not able to give accurate feedback. Thank you for the opportunity, sorry I was unable to get to it in time.
*received for free from netgalley for honest review* this is not a book i normally would read, i admit it really drew me in at first but... then got a bit, eh. maybe it's just because i loathe movies like this and tolerate books like this, but i did not enjoy this as much as i could have if i liked the genre more lol
A quick moving book that grasps at the readers attention. When a one night stand turns into a life or death invasion, two lonely people are stuck together. Both are haunted and are now being hunted.
TW: Suicide, drinking, death of parent, animal death
*****SPOILERS*****
About the book: It was just another day at the beach. And then the world ended.
Mike and Beth didn’t know each other existed before the night of the meteor shower. A melancholy film producer and a house sitter barely scraping by, chance made them neighbors, a bottle of champagne brought them together, and a shared need for human connection sparked something more.
After a drunken and desperate one-night-stand, the two strangers awake to discover a surprise astronomical event has left widespread destruction in its wake. But the cosmic lightshow was only a part of something much bigger, and far more terrifying. When a set of lost car keys leaves them stranded on an empty stretch of Oregon coast, when their emergency calls go unanswered and inhuman screams echo from the dunes, when the rising tide reaches for the car and unspeakable horrors close in around them, these two self-destructive souls must find in each other the strength to overcome past pain and the fight to survive a nightmare of apocalyptic scale.
Release Date: May 31st, 2022
Genre: Horror
Pages: 256
Rating:
What I Liked:
1. I love a end of times book
What I Didn't Like:
1. Boring
2. Felt very repetitive
Overall Thoughts: This book started out so promising and I loved how snarky Beth was in the beginning when she first met Mike. Once Mike started his sections I hated how whiny Beth sounded. It was like she was a different person all together.
When the action started happening they just stayed in one location and yell at one another while random people came upon them. It was boring. I was bored.
Killing the dog sucked. Why do they always kill off the dog!
The concept of the "aliens" was interesting but the whole back and force "Its your fault you lost the keys" was exhausting.
Final Thoughts: This wasn't it for me. It was just okay. I wish there was more interesting action. I felt like the girl losing her father was totally fine losing him and it was BEATEN over our heads that she had to be a tough girl.
Recommend For:
• Aliens
• Inner struggle stories
• Survival stories
• Atmospheric books
Thanks to Netgalley and the publishers for this advanced copy of the book. All thoughts and opinions are my own. (less)
Thanks to NetGalley for the audiobook ARC!
Black Tide is gritty, dark, and interesting. The story moves along quickly, and definitely keeps the interest. Would definitely recommend for fans of dark fiction.
Black Tide was a cosmic horror novel and the premise was good! I enjoyed this audiobook. But overall, this book was just ok. I didn’t hate it but I didn’t love it either. I just didn’t really care for the characters safety throughout. I didn’t connect with the characters and I think that was the biggest downfall for me. I don’t want to say much because I truly think the less you know the better. Giving it a three stars because I did enjoy the premise.
Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for an advance copy in exchange for my honest review.
BLACK TIDE by KC Jones @pnwscribe
Thank you to the author, @netgalley and @macmillanusa for the audiobook ARC.
In this science fiction horror, Beth is trying to turn a new leaf which lands her somewhere in the pacific northwest (woot!) house-and-dog-sitting to make some dough. She quickly becomes entwined with the next door neighbor Mike and while they are out for what is meant to be a picnic on the beach, things start to go awry. Putrid bowling ball like objects, giant jelly-fish like clouds and shrieking invisible entities are suddenly all over the place. They are being hunted, and Beth, Mike and Jake the dog band together to try to get out alive.
Beth and Mike are both broken, messy miserable characters barely scraping by and desperately negative about their own situations before this horrific alien situation even arises. Mike is at rock bottom when we meet him and Beth is trying to pull herself out of the depths. Both of them intrigued me at times and frustrated me at others and the realistic messiness of these characters especially considering the circumstances really worked for me.
The pace, mysterious nature of the main event and horrific creatures felt akin to THE MIST by Stephen King and is similarly somewhat vague as to the origins of the otherworldly presence of these cosmic monsters. But Black Tide takes place in the PNW and has less male ego so I have to say I am a bigger fan.
I liked how this book started out RUNNING and did not take long to get to the meat of the thrills and chills. I liked the flawed characters and the constant, fast-paced anxiety of the book. I actually liked the narrator's voice and demeanor for Beth better than Mike, but otherwise enjoyed the tone and pace of the narration.
I was not expecting there to be as much of a romance aspect to this but it did provide some banter even if I found some of it to be contrived or awkward (the doctor Mike bit was overplayed and generally...no thank you). At times the awkwardness was definitely part of the story I will grant but sometimes it just didn't work for me.
Read/listen to this one if you like cosmic horror, fast-paced page turners, multi POV stories, creature features, forced proximity romance or you like PNW references like "the aroma of Tacoma had nothing on those bowling balls!".
This book surprised me. It was billed as Cujo meets A Quiet Place so naturally I was intrigued. However, I wasn’t sure about it in the beginning as I was bored fairly quickly. Once the action picked up I was hooked. I would say it has more science fiction mixed with horror elements. It was creepy and atmospheric. I listened to the audio and the narrators did a great job with it.
Thank you to Netgalley and Macmillan Audio for this arc in exchange for my honest review.
I really enjoyed the setup for this one that romanticized a one night stand on the beach at the end of the world. However, once the story got started, I lost my connection to the narrative. I don't tend to love cosmic horror so this was mostly not to my tastes. I feel like a story like this relies on the readers attachment to the characters and unfortunately in this instance I did not establish enough of a relationship with the characters and so I did not worry for their safety. If you love cosmic horror then you might enjoy this one more than I did.
Disclaimer: I received a copy of this book from the publisher.
Thank you Netgalley and Macmillan Audio for this advance listener copy in exchange for my honest review.
Loved it! There's no other way to describe my feelings about this story! I've been reading a lot of sci-fi horror and this dystopian story was a great addition to this genre. This book was hard to put down and was a thrill ride from the first page on.
Beth is house sitting a house that happens to be next door to the home of a washed up film producer. After introducing herself and spending a drunken evening together, they awake to find out that the "meteor shower" that had occured the previous night, was more ominous than they had originally thought. After taking off down the Oregon coast to try to find out what's going on, they discover a dystopian landscape and some pretty terrifying monsters.
This was different than anything else I've read any time recently. Mike and Beth were very relatable people who had made some very human mistakes in life. I rooted for them. I found myself on the edge of my seat any time they were in peril, throw in Natalia, the young child they meet later in the story and you have a very well rounded, suspenseful, creepy, end of the world, alien invasion story. It reminded me of A Quiet Place. Great book. The audio was fantastic. Five solid stars for this one!
ok so this book's description sounded really good, but for me it was just so hard to hold on it the storyline, the characters were blah I just couldn't get into it and so mad about that.
I still hope may of you give this book a try bc I have seen sooo many more positive reviews that not, so it could just be me. Would not want to discourage anyone bc personal issues.
Thank you to the publishers and NetGalley for allowing me to have a free advance copy of this audiobook, these are my own honest views and opinions.
This was a decent book. The audio narrators were good but I definitely preferred the male’s voice to the female’s voice. It was easier to follow for some reason. This book is good as an audiobook or a physical copy. Although, I think it might be better as a novella.
It was very at atmospheric…I mean it had to be, it’s about the end of humanity. The author did a great job of setting the stage for this apocalypse / dystopian novel.
The creatures sounded terrible and the 2 MCs were constantly getting themselves into terrible situations. So it definitely kept things interesting.
Luke was my favorite character. Luke is a dog btw…a dog who is in distress for the majority of the story so beware of animal neglect TW.
It was a bit slow at times but overall was a solid read. I think it would make a cool movie.
3 stars. I'm speaking generally so as not to spoil.
The story started out reeling me in. I liked the female character and her dialogue (her history). Then it happens, I start wondering if I missed a chapter. The story slows down, and angles are brought in that take up too much story time. I find myself checking to see how much is left. The ending was okay. It was drawn out, then sped up, and finally ended.
I was not crazy about the narration, nothing that I can put my finger on.
Overall, this is okay; however, not memorable.
Thank you NetGalley and Macmillan Audio for accepting my request to read and review Black Tide.