This was one okay, but I didn't love it. I didn't like how everything didn't come together until the absolute very end, and I wanted more intel into the motives of the killer. I liked his previous work better - for whatever reason this one fell a little flat, and I honestly felt like there was way too much going on. A popcorn thriller for sure, but I seem to be in the minority here.

I was hooked by the premise of Alex Finlay's new suspense novel - The Night Shift.
New Years Eve 1999. Four teenaged employees of a video game store are attacked. Three die and one miraculously survives. The suspected killer disappears. Fifteen years later four teenaged employees of an ice cream parlor in the same town are attacked and again, one survives. Has the killer returned? Is it a copy cat?

The Night Shift is told from multiple points of view. That device really, really works for The Night Shift.

We've got Ella, the survivor from 1999. Now a therapist, the FBI and local police bring her into the case. After all, she knows what its like to be the only one survived. The FBI agents are a seemingly mismatched pair, but I really enjoyed them both. Keller is nine months pregnant and Singh is a newbie. Also involved is Chris Ford, a public defense attorney with his own secrets. And that brings us to the latest survivor. She's hard to read, initially vulnerable, then aggressive and she knows more about the old case than expected. Why?

I enjoy multiple points of view in a book. The reader becomes privy to information that the other characters don't have. And that is multiplied with past and present chapters as well. And I was pretty sure I would solve the crime before the final pages. Finlay expertly leads the reader down the garden path and provides lots of red herrings along the way. He also ends many chapters on a suspenseful note, ensuring I needed to just read 'one more chapter' before turning out the lights. Now, about figuring out the whodunit - Finlay is a master of the 'twist'. He caught me off guard many times and with each twist the narrative changed. I love being kept on my toes. And no, I didn't solve it before the last pages.

A page-turner! This was a first read of Finlay for me and it won't be the last. I'd like to see Agent Keller again as well. Fans of Harlan Coben and Linwood Barclay would enjoy Alex Finlay.

What a well paced and fun, page-turning thriller. This is another hit from Alex Finlay. The Night Shift is a dual timeline story, told through multiple POVs from 1999 to the present. The same small town in New Jersey has been the scene of two brutal mass murders. The first was New Year’s Eve 1999 at the local Blockbuster store, where the young high school aged employees and their manager are all brutally killed at closing time. One of the girls is left for dead but survives to become a therapist who is then called to help the lone survivor of the second murder scene, this time at the local ice cream place.
The interaction between the characters and their motivations was a fascinating story. The unraveling of the cases was well written and felt realistic.
For thriller fans, especially if you want some nostalgic recent history references, this book is for you. As I have been reading it, I’ve been listening to music from that decade. Quite the experience. You could easily make a playlist to accompany the reading experience.
Highly recommend!
#TheNightShift #NetGalley #StMartinsPress #Minotaur

I loved everything about this book. I went into this blind, and the first chapter captured my attention right away. That first chapter was very nostalgic, and I miss the good ole days of Blockbuster!

Things I loved:
Multiple viewpoints
Lots of twists and turns
I didn’t guess the ending
Fast paced
All questions answered and tied up nicely
A year later epilogue

Thank you so much Minotaur and Netgalley for my early copy!! I really hope this becomes a movie!

Super fun thriller with memorable characters and plot. I enjoyed trying to guess the ending throughout all the twists and turns.

https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/57693427

It’s New Year’s Eve and the last evening of the 20th century. Four teenage girls are still working at the local Blockbuster (throwback!). All but one of the girls, including their supervisor at the time are brutally murdered and the only suspect disappears shortly after the murders. Fast forward 15 years, Ella, the lone survivor of the Blockbuster murders, is brought in to help the lone survivor of a murder that is eerily similar to the one Ella’s survived. Are the two murders related? Could the original killer be back after all these years?

Told from multiple perspectives: Ella, the lone survivor of the Blockbuster murders; Agent Keller, a 8 1/2 pregnant FBI agent working to determine a link between the two cases; and Chris, a public defender working on the Ice Cream shop case who might just have a secret that ties him to both cases. I generally enjoy multiple narrators and The Night Shift is no exception. I always feel that they add an extra bit of suspense to the story.

Overall, this is a solid thriller. There are one or two things that are a bit unrealistic but nothing to extreme. I haven’t read Alex Finlay’s debut Every Last Fear, but it’s been on my shelf and now I think I need to push it up on my TBR.


The Night Shift is out now! Huge thank you to Minotaur Books for my advanced copy in exchange for my honest opinion. If you liked this review please let me know either by commenting below or by visiting my instagram @speakingof_books.

New Year's Eve, 1999. At the Blockbuster in Linden, New Jersey, four teenage girls and their manager are brutally attacked. Only one girl survives, Ella. The police rapidly hone in on a suspect, who escapes and is never seen again. Fifteen years later in Linden, it seems to happen again. Four teenage girls at a Linden ice cream store are attacked. Again, there is only survivor. As Linden struggles to recover from this new tragedy, Ella--now a therapist--is requested at the scene to counsel the new survivor, Jessica ("Jesse"). But as Ella gets to knows Jesse, she's drawn into a dark web of lies and deceit.

I've never read an Alex Finlay book before, and this one was a really pleasant surprise! I read each half over two days thanks to the short, quick chapters. It spans two time periods: 1999, when the first killings happened and then nearly present-day, when the ice cream store murders happen. These killings are linked by Ella, the earliest lone survivor, who now becomes a counselor to Jesse, the girl who survives the ice cream store killings. We also hear from FBI Agent Sarah Keller, called in to investigate the 1999 Blockbuster case, and from Chris, a young man who has ties to both time periods.

Honestly, this book captivated me. The multiple points of view helped it fly by and while I had some suspicions about who might be responsible, the book kept me guessing. There are lots of twists. Both the then and now storylines are interesting, especially since you have some teen drama thrown in, and Ella looking back on what was happening in 1999. Having multiple characters tie between the two time periods (Linden is a small town) really helped make everything work. Honestly, this would have been a 5-star read for, except the ending was a little abrupt and made me sad. Still, I really loved this fast-paced and intriguing thriller.

This is a thriller that will hit all the right buttons. I loved it from the anti-hero survivor to the weird Blockbuster and ice cream parlor murder scenes. I loved it from the brother of the main suspect putting himself in all the wrong places to the very pregnant badassery of the federal agent assigned to the case.

Thanks to NetGalley for the advanced read!

This book opens with a shocking crime at a Blockbuster on New Year's Eve 1999. I'm not sure there's a Millennial reader on the planet who could resist that kind of open...but this book doesn't just start with your attention, it holds it the entire way through as you follow the detective working through a potentially related current day case.

I had previously read the last "Every Last Fear" and loved it, so my expectations for this book were extremely high, but they were all exceeded. I could not put this book down. I found myself excited to take my lunch break every day so I could jump back in. I can't come up with a single critical thing I could possibly say about this book. If you're looking for a highly addicting new author, this is it!

The Night Shift is a totally fine thriller with short bingeable chapters that you can read in day if you’re so inclined. There’s a mass murder of teen girls in 1999, then lather, rinse, repeat, another one 15 years later. The compelling question of course is if the two incidents are related.

The thing that really bothers me though is the hook author Finlay used that the publisher is somewhat falsely exploiting. From the blurb: “It’s New Year’s Eve 1999. Y2K is expected to end in chaos: planes falling from the sky, elevators plunging to earth, world markets collapsing. A digital apocalypse. None of that happens. But at a Blockbuster Video in Linden, New Jersey…”

If you know me and my reading tastes and all, you’ll get that this sounded like a trifecta for my seasonal, nostalgic, pop culture-loving heart. New Year’s Eve! The ‘90s! Blockbuster Video! Yeah, but really not so much. All those things are there, yet the majority of the story takes place in the latter timeline. Even worse, the short dips back into the previous one failed to deliver the Y2K-era vibes that were promised.

Saying the publisher tried to put lipstick on a pig would be way too harsh, because The Night Shift can still be an enjoyable read if your expectations are managed. There’s a badass pregnant FBI agent on the case who reminded me of a cross between Jodie Foster in Silence of the Lambs and Frances McDormand in Fargo. There are red herrings aplenty that made the ending a surprise for me. Plus I also must mention that my tepid take on the book is fairly uncommon - the majority of my reviewer friends have loved it.

If you want to read a suspenseful novel, you could do a lot worse. But if you want to remember what it was like to make it a Blockbuster night, keep browsing the library shelves for a real gem just like you did at your local video store back in the ‘90s. Who knows, maybe someone just dropped the most popular new release in the return slot.

✨Book Review✨

The Night Shift by Alex Finlay
Pub Date: 3/1/2022
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️/5

This who-dunnit mystery takes place on dual timelines (1999, and 2015). On New Year’s Eve 1999, all of the night workers at a Blockbuster are brutally murdered, but one survives. Fifteen years later, an eerily similar crime happens at a local ice cream shop. One survived. Same town, both nights shifts. To make it even more creepy, the killer whispers the same thing in both survivors ears. Is it a copycat, or is the killer still alive and back for more?

I could NOT put this one down! I wanted to get one more book finished in February, and I had no problem with this one! It was fast-paced, and had short chapters that continuously ended on a cliffhanger. The 90s references were also appreciated! 🤣 I highly recommend everyone reads this, if you enjoy thrillers!

Thank you @alexfinlayauthor @stmartinspress @minotaur_books and @netgalley for this eARC!

Reading this book was like a blast from the past for me. I remember the days of Blockbuster Videos and rewinding the video tapes before we returned them (we were nice). All of it felt so authentic, right down to the terror of what would happen during Y2K - when the year 2000 was going to roll around.

On New Year's Eve, in 1999 in the small town of Linden, NJ, four teenage girls are closing the Blockbuster store they work at. Then just before closing, a man came to the store and killed three of the girls. The 4th girl survived

There was a lot of fallout from the murders. Vince Whittaker, a boyfriend of one of the girls, was arrested but escaped from custody and disappears. Then the mother also runs off, presumably with a lover. This left the youngest brother, Chris, alone with his violent, criminal father. Chris never gives up hope that his older brother is okay. He survives life with his violent, abusive dad, becomes an attorney, and works as a public defender. His job choice was inspired by how his brother's life and his family was devastated by a false accusation.

Then 15 years later, the past repeats itself. Four high school girls who work at an ice cream shop are attacked right at closing time, and once again, there is one survivor. Ella, the survivor from the Blockbuster attack is now a therapist, and is called to try to help the survivor from the ice cream shop. The repeat attack so similar to the first one brings in the FBI. I really enjoyed the two detectives. The lead detective, Sarah Keller, was hugely pregnant with twins. Her partner was adorable.

This was a fascinating story, that I stayed up way too late to finish. Just when I thought I could predict where the story was going, it would twist off in another direction.

I received a copy of this book from publisher St. Martin's Press/Minotaur Books via NetGalley without any obligation to write a positive review. These are my honest opinions of the book.

4.25 Stars!

Thank you to Netgalley and Minotaur Books for this ARC!

The Night Shift follows three perspectives - Chris, Ella, and Keller - as we weave through the stories of two possibly connected murders, one in 1999 and the other in 2015.

This is the first book I have read by Alex Finlay, and overall I found this a very fun read. I was excited to know what happened, enjoyed the prologue's 90s atmosphere, and ended up reading the entire book in one sitting.

Although I did guess the murderer, I did not see some of the twists in the middle which was surprising. I couldn't, however, get past the fact that the lead detective was 8.5 months pregnant and still on duty (this is just not plausible) and did feel the last scene was a little rushed.

Overall, I would recommend this for anyone who wants a clever, fast-paced thriller with a hint of 90s atmosphere!

So something did happen on New Years Eve 1999...
The crew of employees at a Blockbuster video store get murdered, leaving only one survivor, Ella.
Now fifteen years later almost the exact same thing happens at a Dairy Creamer ice cream store where again there's only one survivor. Ella, now a therapist, is called on to try to get the uncommunicative, surviving girl to tell what happened.
After the Y2K murders the suspect was released for lack of evidence and then he disappeared. So the question is, are these two killing sprees connected? Has the suspect come back to kill again? You might be surprised to find out.
This one is told from the POV's of Ella, Keller, an FBI investigator and Chris, the suspect's brother who is now a public defender. The story weaves a twisty plot with many moving parts that were fun to decipher and while solving the mystery. There are a few red herrings thrown in to heighten the mystery but I did figure out who the killer was early on. Even so, I found this one to be well crafted, well written and highly entertaining so I happily recommend this highly anticipated thriller..

Let’s party like it’s 1999! In “The Night Shift” by Alex Finley, four people are murdered on New Year’s Eve, 1999. The only survivor, Ella, is still living with the pain. Fifteen years later, the workers at an ice cream shop are also murdered. FBI Agent Keller is on the new case and finds many similarities between the two. There are many characters in this story and each chapter has a different perspective. This is a fast paced thriller that you won’t want to put down! I guessed the killer half way through, but it didn’t take away from my enjoyment of the story. There were definite twists and turns that kept me reading!
I want to thank the author, Minotaur Books and NetGalley for a complimentary copy of this book. The opinions expressed in this review are entirely my own.

New Year’s Eve 1999 there are 5 teenagers working in a Blockbuster... before they can close up for the night they are attacked by someone with a knife who isn’t interested in leaving any witnesses. Only one person manages to survive, Ella. Now it’s been 15 years since that tragic night where the killer was never found. There was a suspect Vince the local bad boy who disappeared after being questioned by the police. Ella’s life has never quite been the same since the incident but she’s a psychiatrist now which is how she ends up pulled into a massacre very similar to the one she managed to survive. Four girls were attacked in an ice cream shop but only one survived. Ella is uniquely qualified to help with this girl Jesse after her ordeal. Even though it’s bringing up bad memories and Jesse is an unusual girl.

Due to the nature of the prior crime an FBI Agent Keller is assigned to see if the old case might be connected with the new one. Chris, the brother of the suspect in the Blockbuster case never believed his brother was guilty. After what happened he was sent away to live with another family and his name was changed. He’s now a public defender. Even all this time later he’s still wondering what happened to his brother. Despite the clear conflict of interest Chris gets himself on the defense team when a suspect in the ice cream shop murders is discovered.

The question becomes are the two very similar murders in this same town connected? Were the police right about who did the killing all those years ago? Or is this just a copycat killer? Will Ella and Chris ever know the truth so that they might move on from the past?

I liked this even though unlike most books there’s not really any suspense to it. But it does stay interesting following Ella, Chris and Agent Keller as they all try to get to the truth. The revelation about Jesse isn’t all that surprising. Though why anybody let an 8 months pregnant FBI agent wander about in potentially dangerous situations I can’t even understand. I get that she was technically looking into a cold case so it shouldn’t be that dangerous but be potential was there. And she makes some seriously idiotic decisions at the end. There is a bit of suspense towards the end where secrets start spilling out. And it wasn’t easy to guess who the killer was. This would have been 5 stars but the whole thing with Keller at the end was unbelievably ridiculous. Did she really just want to kill her babies? Otherwise it was really good.

I had absolutely no idea what to expect going into this, but I enjoyed this book so much! What an incredibly intense, suspenseful, mysterious novel full of twists, turns, and unexpected revelations. Five stars for this mind blowing read. See y'all on another page!

Thanks to Netgalley for the e-Arc of this book! I really liked the different twists and turns this book took, although there were definitely some parts that felt like they could have been left out or sped up. I also enjoyed the multiple character perspective and short chapters.

Holy moly what a ride! I started this at 8 PM on Monday and finished it at 12:30 AM. I could not stop reading! From the start I was hooked and needed to continue to see how it all played out.

I had the killer figured out early in the book, but there were still a couple of parts that had my jaw drop and I loved it! The twists and turns kept coming, but at a good pace that didn’t feel overwhelming or ridiculous.

I will say that having one of the characters be 38 weeks pregnant with TWINS drove me absolutely batty. It’s twins. She would have delivered by then, and she sure as shit wouldn’t be living her day to day life normally with only the occasional need to pee more often 🙄 Where was her aching feet, her exhaustion, her not being able to get up and down easily, her waddling, her hating life because she’s ALMOST NINE MONTHS PREGNANT WITH TWINS?! I could 100% tell a man wrote this and I was annoyed that no one else on his team was like, ehhh…none of this works. She could have not been pregnant at all and still been a badass. Ok. Rant over.

Besides that aspect of the book, I freakin loved this. I also tore through Every Last Fear so I will be picking up Alex Finlay’s books from here on out.

Thank you so much to @stmartinspress and @netgalley for the arc in exchange for my honest review!

Wow this book! What a while ride and boy did, I enjoy it! It was creepy, scary, and yet hopeful all at the same time. I can't wait for Finlay's next book and I need it now. Go pick this one up NOW! Thank me later.