AN INSTANT NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLERSomething hasn’t been right at the roadside Sun Down Motel for a very long time, and Carly Kirk is about to find out why in this chilling new novel from the New York Times bestselling and award-winning author of The Broken Girls.Upstate New York, 1982. Viv Delaney wants to move to New York City, and to help pay for it she takes a job as the night clerk at the … pay for it she takes a job as the night clerk at the Sun Down Motel in Fell, New York. But something isnʼt right at the motel, something haunting and scary.
Upstate New York, 2017. Carly Kirk has never been able to let go of the story of her aunt Viv, who mysteriously disappeared from the Sun Down before she was born. She decides to move to Fell and visit the motel, where she quickly learns that nothing has changed since 1982. And she soon finds herself ensnared in the same mysteries that claimed her aunt.
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4.5 stars. I had been recommended this book by so many people. I love ghosts and paranormal reads so I was super excited for this book. I wasn’t let down. I loved going back and forth between Vivian and Carly and I loved not knowing what was going to happen. Alma and Marni were amazing secondary characters and the mystery of what happened to Vivian felt like it was something that I needed to solve for myself! This book delivered on the mystery and the ghost story aspect. The only thing I wanted to see was more of how the outcome came to be. I can’t say more without giving the ending away, but that would have made it a full 5 star for me.
Spooky and haunting wrapped around an intriguing mystery. Great story!
Mystery. Serial killers. Ghosts.
If I could, I’d roll around in the pages of this book and purr. It’s my catnip.
Wow, I really enjoyed this mystery/thriller. This is a well written spooky thriller told from two different era:; Vivian, 1982, the aunt who disappeared that same year, and Carly, 2017, the niece in search of answers to her aunts disappearance. Will the answers surrounding Vivian’s disappearance be found at the haunted Sun Down Motel? Highly recommend reading this to find out.
This book was one of the best books I have read in a while. Could hardly put it down.
Simone St. James takes danger and fear to a new level with The Sun Down Motel, a place so chocked full of secrets, the rooms all but tremble at their door hinges. An excellent blend of mystery and the mysterious. Don’t miss this.
The Sun Down Motel is creepy, and chilling, and one of those books you just can’t put down. St. James weaves together the story of Viv and Carly masterfully. I can’t recommend this book enough!
WOW this book was awesome. I finished it at 2:30 am. As tired as I was I had to find out the ending and I’m so glad I did. The seamless transitions between the story unfolding in 1982 and the determination to uncover that story in 2017 kept me on the edge of my seat. This was my first read from author Simone St. James, it will not be my last.
Spooky, unsettling, and brilliantly written, The Sun Down Motel is mesmerizing from the first page. A breathlessly suspenseful supernatural mystery that will hook you early, and never let go.
I’m not into creepy, ghoulish stories, and hesitated and ignored this ARC that I received from #PenguinRandomHouse, for review. With the publishing date approaching, it was time to open it up and read! Wow, what an exciting experience it has been!
This story is set in two time periods 1982, when Viv Delaney leaves home, after another run in with her mother. She travels to Fell New York and finds a job as the night clerk in a rundown motel, with strange happenings. She starts looking around and disappears without a trace.
Fast forward to 2017, when 20 yr old Carly Kirk, grieving over her mother’s recent death, travels to Fell and takes a job at The Sundown Motel, on her aunt’s old night shift, looking for answers regarding her disappearance. Then the strange occurrences begin, as she gets more involved into the mystery of the place and its previous occupants.
If you’re into mystery and creepy things, you’ll love this well written novel. Strong, interesting characters and a well developed plot. Looks like I’ll be reading more of #SimoneStJames. My thanks to the author and publisher for this very enjoyable novel.
Read it in one sitting, up most of the night. Atmospheric, creepy, and compelling!
I thought that this book was really good! I have wanted to try Simone St. James’s writing for a while so I jumped at this book as soon as I saw it listed as a Book of the Month selection. I must say that I was really impressed by this author’s ability to tell a story. I read this book over just a few days but I really could have read it cover to cover if little things like my job and family hadn’t kept getting in the way. I was entertained from cover to cover and am so glad I decided to give this book a try.
This book is told over two timelines. Viv worked at the Sun Down Motel back in 1982 when she disappeared. Her niece has always wondered what happened to her aunt and ends up working at the same motel in 2017. I was equally entranced by both timelines. I liked that there were some similarities including the setting and some characters but I also appreciated the unique story that each timeline had to tell. I did like the way that everything came together in the end.
I loved the atmosphere in this book. I wouldn’t say that I was ever frightened but I did enjoy the fact that there was a creepy feel throughout much of the story. I liked the fact that the author wasn’t afraid to throw a bit of paranormal activity into the story which added to its appeal.
I really liked the characters in this book. Viv and Carly were both strong individuals that were determined to get the facts that they were looking for. I liked the friends that Carly made in Fell and thought that their knowledge of the history of the town added a lot to the story. Some of the other characters, like the former night officer, also made a huge impact in both timelines.
I would recommend this book to others. I found this book to be quite the page-turner and found it really hard to put the book aside until I learned what happened to both Viv and Carly. I can’t wait to read more of this talented author’s work.
It is only January of 2020 but this will certainly be in my list of top books of the year. I could not get enough of The Sun Down Motel. With each page, each character I met, each story that came together, I was pulled more and more into the story. The ghosts and the visitors to The Sun Down Motel were all intriguing and kept me turning page after page. I couldn’t wait to see how Simone St. James would pull the storylines together at the end of the book.
The dual timelines were written perfectly. They told their own stories while overlapping just enough to not lose the reader’s attention. I enjoyed how the characters were portrayed in 1982 and those that were still around in the present were kept similar. They kept their quirks, kept their attitudes, but showed how they grew up in the time that was between. The storylines were easy to follow, quick to read, and had twists and turns that kept me guessing at what would happen next.
The Sun Down Motel is a psychological thriller with a tad of paranormal sprinkled throughout the story. The spooky setting, the creepy customers, and the interesting people of Fells all made this book a must-read.
THE SUN DOWN MOTEL
By Simone St. James
Do you like creepy, scary and a little bit of supernatural thrown into your thrillers? Well this is the book for you.
It has been a long time where a book has actually scared me. Creeped me out, yes, I’ve had my share but to be an adult and afraid to walk in the dark in my own house is very telling because I am someone that will laugh at scary scenes in movies saying they were dumb and predictable. This was not predictable and it was difficult to try to figure out as I normally would.
It is told in 2 POV’S from two separate time periods. One when Vic Delaney worked as a night clerk at The Sun Down Motel in 1982. She was fleeing from her family trying to start anew and wasn’t planning to stay in the little town of Fell, New York. Strange things happen at The Sun Down Motel. Things that will scare you and that can’t be explained. There are young girls about Viv’s age disappearing and there just may be a serial killer on the loose. The customers that frequent the motel seem a little off and up to no good. Viv forgets about moving on to New York City and begins to put herself in danger when she starts to find out the secrets to the disappearances that have been occurring.
It’s 2017 and Carly Kirk, recently lost her mother to cancer and decides to take her half of inheritance and sets out to find out what happened to her Mother’s sister, Viv, who disappeared into thin air 35 years ago in Fell, New York. She was mad that her Aunt just fled the family and left her mom in pain all those years. She’s determined to find out what she can about Viv and where she is. She moves to Fell and in an attempt to mirror her Aunt Viv’s life, she also gets a job as a night clerk at The Sun Down Motel. She begins to do her own research and uncovers secrets to the past and just may open a plethora of creepy, scary, supernatural mysteries that may be the reason why her Aunt disappeared. Is Carly on the path to no return? Find out in this thriller.
Carly left college for a “few” days so she could head to Fell, New York, to see if she could find anything out about how her Aunt Viv died or where she might be.
Viv disappeared from The Sun Down Motel where she worked in 1982 and was never found.
When Carly arrived and checked out The Sun Down Motel, she couldn’t believe her aunt would even think of working there.
It was a creepy, out-of-the way place, but Carly surprised herself and took a job there on the same shift that her aunt worked.
Carly saw strange things and knew she should leave, but she stayed. She had to find out what happened at this motel and what happens now at THE SUN DOWN MOTEL.
We follow Carly as she investigates and as Viv’s story is told back in 1982.
Besides the creepy town and motel, we meet ghosts, creaky doors, weird guests, odd sounds, and no way to contact anyone not on the hotel grounds.
We learn about the hotel and the murders that took place in the town of Fell as well as the connection to The Sun Down Motel.
Each chapter got stranger and stranger as the motel seemed to come to life and have a life of its own.
If you enjoy tense, creepy, spooky story lines that include unsolved murders from years ago, THE SUN DOWN MOTEL will be your perfect read.
Be careful with the motel you choose, and especially do not stay at a motel that has anything remotely close to the name of this motel.
The entire book and the ending are twisty and brilliant. 5/5
This book was given to me by the publisher via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.
My first thought when I finished binge-reading this book was “Wow! Just wow!!” The author pulled me into this amazing story and I couldn’t stop. I devoured it!
This book has it all—murder, an age-old mystery, a creepy ghost story, and a little bit of romance Or maybe just an attraction, who knows what will happen when there are ghosts involved.
Simone’s stories are just getting better and better with each book she writes. I’m super excited to see what she has coming next. But in the mean time, I can’t recommend this book enough! It was a thrilling page-turner that I can’t get out of my mind. Pick it up! You will not be disappointed, I promise.
This book is absolutely unputdownable. It’s scary and intense and deeply deeply haunting. If you’re a fan of My Favorite Murder – this book will knock your socks off!!!
Linda’s Book Obsession Reviews “The Sun Down Motel” by Simone St. James, Berkley, February 2020
Simone St. James, Author of “The Sun Down Motel” has written a captivating, intense, intriguing, spooky, chilling thriller. The Genres for this Novel are Mystery, Suspense, Para-Normal, Thriller, and Fiction. There is a haunted, eerie, feeling, almost like that of “American Horror Story” in the episodes with the haunted hotel. There are twists and turns, danger, secrets, and murder. There are two timelines and two different main characters. The story takes place in the author’s present and goes back to the past 35 years to the same town, Fell, New York. The author describes her characters as complex, complicated, quirky, and flawed. Some characters are vengeful and many could be suspect of any crime.
A young woman is drawn to Fell, New York to The Sun Down Motel, the same place her aunt had been working and disappeared 35 years ago. Both women had been obsessed with certain activities and strange occurrences in both time periods at The Sun Down Motel.
I found myself glued to the story, and at the edge of my seat. There are a few “OMG” moments and a lot of tension and danger. I appreciate the vivid descriptions provided by the author. I would highly recommend this novel to those readers who enjoy suspenseful and thrilling stories.
Holy crap!! The Sun Down Motel is definitely going on my favorites list. It’s a solid 5+ stars. I totally think this should be made into a movie.
This was a story that took me back to my younger days. One summer I worked at a family-owned motel. I even worked the “grave yard” shift quite a few times. (Pun intended.) But thank goodness the place wasn’t haunted. The detailed description of this motel made me think of the one where I worked.back in the 60″s. I liked the way the story went back and forth from Viv to Carley and back to Viv. I didn’t feel it was that repetitive, just reviewing events. This is an eerie, spooky book, but one you may well enjoy. The violence is there, but not too graphic. The foul language fit the characters saying it. I didn’t find it too offensive (like I usually do) and it wasn’t that often. The ending is good. However, you want to scream at the author, “Aw, come on! Make them admit everything.!” This book is right up there with the Twilight Zone.
Thank you to Net Galley for the ARC for an honest review.