Haunting Masterpiece of Gothic Horror and Despair!

Amy Lukavics's Nightingale is an absolutely chilling and deeply disturbing descent into gothic horror, perfectly blending psychological torment with a pervasive sense of dread. As a reader who adores atmospheric horror that lingers long after the final page, I was utterly captivated by this book, and it earned every one of its five stars.

The book's greatest strengths lie in its incredibly immersive atmosphere and its unflinching portrayal of its protagonist's harrowing experience. Lukavics crafts a suffocatingly oppressive setting, making you feel the isolation, the despair, and the creeping madness alongside the main character. The prose is exquisite – dark, lyrical, and incredibly effective at building a pervasive sense of unease. The protagonist's journey is a masterclass in psychological unraveling, making her plight incredibly visceral and heartbreaking. The horrors are not just external; they are deeply internal, making the story far more terrifying and impactful. Lukavics doesn't shy away from the brutal realities of the setting and the period, adding layers of historical grimness to the supernatural elements.

What truly elevates Nightingale is its profound emotional depth beneath the horror. It explores themes of abuse, trauma, resilience, and the desperate fight for sanity in the face of overwhelming darkness. The narrative is relentless in its tension, with every page tightening the screws, leading to a truly devastating and unforgettable climax. This isn't just a scary story; it's a tragic and powerful character study.

Overall, Nightingale is a tour de force of gothic horror. It's a beautifully written, profoundly unsettling, and utterly compelling read that will stay with you long after you've finished. It's a must-read for fans of psychological horror, historical settings, and stories that aren't afraid to delve into the darkest corners of the human experience. I cannot recommend it highly enough!

I did not finish this book, just unable to get into the plot or enjoy the characters enough.I do wish that the summary had a mention or hint to the sci fi genre of the book.

I feel like the synopsis and marketing for this story were a little off. It definitely should have been listed as a sci-fi story. I even went back and checked and did not see anything referencing to aliens. Unfortunately, I just couldn’t immerse myself into the story as I was unable to relate with the main character due to….aliens lol

I wasn’t able to finish this book. Because of this, it is my policy not to review the book on my site or on Goodreads/Amazon. I also didn’t mark it DNF.

I couldn’t get into this book. I tried multiple times and it just didn’t grab my attention. I skimmed through hoping something would grab me but nothing ever did.

Eh? Fun sci-fi suspense novel. It's got no real mystery to it because you'll quickly put the pieces together, but it sure has a lot of body horror and gore. Also, f/f pairing!

I don't know if I can actually review this book because I read an ARC that was just short of 300 pages compared to the final version's 352 pages. I'm well aware that plenty about books can change between the ARCs folks like me get and the hardcovers/ebooks put up for sale, but there's usually not so much change that the page count gets upped by 50. Anything I have to say may have been rendered moot by the significant amount of added content. This isn't a dilemma I've faced before.

<i>*This book was given to me by NetGalley in return for an honest review*</i>

Disturbing and immersive, had no idea how much I would enjoy this historical horror.

3 stars

Wanted a horror, got more of a sci fi. It was an ok book just not what I was expecting.

(Sorry for the late review, I’m finally getting around to writing reviews for books I read forever ago!)

Monster type horror has been really hit or miss for me, and Lukavics has been mostly miss. Bypassing this book in favor of others as they seem not to my preferences.

:At seventeen, June Hardie is everything a young woman in 1951 shouldn’t be—independent, rebellious, a dreamer.:

-If you love horror, or rather YA horror this is the book for you! Love the authors writing, It's beautiful and creepy, keeps you on your toes! I don't like giving too much away in my reviews, But this book will keep you going back and forth and really make you double guess whats going on!

I received a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

I just couldn’t bring myself to finish this book and I rarely DNF titles. The synopsis seemed interesting , but the writing and characters were not for me, and I found the plot to be poorly structured and too out there for my tastes.

June is an aspiring writer, though her parents are determined to make her the perfect wife. It's the 1950s and women could never have a successful writing career, they can only become housewives, or that is what June's fiance believes. June has been working on a gruesome story about aliens and has decided that she is going to apply for a college level writing program, leaving out that she is a women, to see if she has what it takes to be a writer. However, along the way, June is sent to a mental hospital, for reasons the reader has yet to learn. Is June really losing her mind, or are she and the other patients being held for devious purposes?

Unreliable narrators are always a struggle for me. I had some issues with the fact that mental health and illness are used as a device to create momentum for the plot. I think if you like some of the old school Twilight Zone vibes, you may find yourself liking this book. I don't think that this book brought anything new to the table, especially after reading books by Robin Talley. While Talley doesn't tend to incorporate horror elements into her historical fiction, these books do have similar vibes.

Amy Lukavics is one of my favorite horror writers. All of Lukavics's books are a little odd (in the best way), but NIGHTINGALE takes the cake for weirdness (again, in the best way). Set in 1951, June is everything society doesn't like in young women: outspoken, bold, independent, and a writer. When her dreams and desires come to an ultimate clash against her parents's wishes, she is sent to an asylum. There, she finds horror, mystery, and a sinister plot.

What I love most about NIGHTINGALE is the setting. Historical horror can be such a specific type of horror, and Lukavics expertly combines the horror of 1950s society sexism with psychological (and maybe even a touch of speculative) horror. This book is so immersive and creepy that you'll want to read with the lights fully on. I can't talk too much about the plot without giving away spoilers, but I will say it manages to combine some of the most unexpected elements into a way that makes complete sense.

If you enjoyed AHS: Asylum but wished it was queerer, NIGHTINGALE is the perfect read for you.

I love Amy Lukavics, her books are always very refreshing and enjoyable. Nightingale was no exception, I immediately got the creepy factor which didn't escalate as much as I expected to compared to her other books. But nevertheless, this book did satisfy the scare factor.

This book was okay but not great. It was as slow read, not because of complexity but because of how long it took me to push through this. We have two childhood friends who rekindle their friendship (and grows into much more) now that they are in their twenties. Instead of a nice, cotton candy romance we are left with an astrological focus with romance as a side plot.

I purchased this title for our library based on my reading of this galley. (Review is short because it's been a substantial period of time since I read this book, but I wanted to give feedback and thanks.)

June Hardie does not feel like she fits in in her mid-twentieth century life. She has no interest in cooking and cleaning, all the things her mother pushes her to do. She loves writing, but her family will not allow such a frivolous activity, and she is placed in an asylum until she agrees to follow "cultural norms."
This is where the book lost me. I was very interested to see where it was going, but it was so confusing! June is such an unreliable narrator, I had a hard time burying into her story.
I had really high hopes for this one, but was just....lost.

I must not have read the synopsis of this very carefully, it isn't a book I would normally pick up. While I am sure the horrific conditions of mental institutions was detailed well, I found it all very unsettling.

une Hardie is struggling to fit in. Too bad that her family starts to push for her to be more like other women in the time (1951) and the story weaves back and forth to a time before June was sent to an asylum to what takes place when she gets there.

I rooted for June, but thought most of the story was kind of a bore. Probably because going back and forth in the story didn't do a thing for me. Probably because I watched American Horror Story: Asylum an kept comparing that to this while reading. I also compared it a bit to Victor LaValle's "The Devil in Silver" since I thought his book just like this one had a pacing problem. Also, I chose this book for the horror elements, but this didn't really have a lot of that in this book. I like to read horror that scares me, this one was just okay. Also we get the unreliable narrator piece in this one and I just get tired of authors relying on that all of the time in these type of books.

The writing was okay, I just didn't really like the whole book within a book thing that was going on. I also thought the flow could be improved. Maybe going back and forth to tell the story was when things started to not read as well. Maybe if we just read everything leading up to why June was sent away, and then just focus on her at the asylum, it would have worked better.

It was interesting to set this in 1951. You do feel for June who wants to write, and doesn't just want to marry and have children. And you can see (sadly) why her parents reacted badly to this. But at times I didn't get June, when she gets mad at her mother telling her to have clean clothes? I mean, yes, you need to be clean.

I have read every single Amy Lukavics book, seriously not exaggerating. She is amazing with horror and suspense. This one absolutely gave me chills it was so good.