The Blockbuster nostalgia alone!!! Y2K, I was 19 and thinking everything would shut down at midnight.
I digress.
This is a solid read, I couldn’t put it down. I was pleased to see Agent Keller from Finlays last book, I liked her character and also love when authors weave in characters from their other books.
I was pretty sure I knew the perpetrator early on, but a few red herrings made me second-guess myself. I did feel like there were a few things that were presented and I would have liked a little more background on. For instance I’d like to know a little more about Stevie since the book opens with him. I feel like he was thrown by the wayside and deserved more story.
I think even though the ending wrapped quickly, it was satisfying and most loose ends were tied.
Thank you so much to Minotaur and netgalley for my review copy. This in no way affected my opinion.

I just love when a book pulls me in from page one just as this book did. The book starts with the gruesome murder of four people with only one survivor. Years later a similar murder occurs. The book is told from multiple perspectives and all leads the reader to a fantastic end where all questions are answered. Excellent thriller that kept me guessing

The Night Shift by Alex Finlay was not as engaging as I had hoped, but it was still a nice read. I enjoyed what I did read.

The Night Shift definitely kept me on my toes. I was hooked right from the very beginning. I was hit with nostalgia imagining being in a Blockbuster again.

The story really had me captivated. Normally, i'm not extremely into thrillers or crime books, but I loved how this one played out. We did have a lot of characters to keep up with and many POVs that constantly changed. I would have liked character names at the top of the chapters, but it wasn't impossible to figure out which POV you were in.

As all good thrillers, you should suspect everyone and trust no one. This book had many unreliable characters so it made it fun trying to guess what really happened!

Would definitely recommend this to my thriller readers!

I really liked this book!

I'd definitely read more from this author! My favorite is probably the back and forth with the characters and hearing each perspective. I loved the thriller/detective/mystery aspect of it. I will recommend this book :)

Holy buckets! This book was amazing! I love a story told from different POVs. The Night Shift is a book about two murders that take place 15 years apart but have very similar MOs. From the beginning of the story I was glued to the book. It kept me guessing and had twists and turns throughout. Thank you to NetGalley and publisher for the advanced copy for my honest review. I am now a forever fan of Alex Finlay!

This was a book I couldn't put down. I'll give credit where credit is due - I was enraptured and I don't quite understand why. Hindsight is 20/20 because there are certain things that took place that I should've absolutely seen coming, like the big reveal, for example. If you're a sleuth and actually pick up on hints - this will be an easy one to solve.

But despite that! I think the story was an enjoyable one! I wouldn't qualify it as a thriller but I also won't discredit the double homicides that happen in the story. What I did enjoy was being able to follow along in the investigation. Sometimes those parts in a thriller could get bogged down or full of legal jargon most don't understand - but Alex Finlay did a great job making it easy to digest and understand.

This was a great read but I think I had higher expectations for it and was a bit let down with how it all went down.

Thanks to Minotaur Books for the opportunity to read this e-ARC!

I really loved this book! Maybe a 4.5, I would knock it down bc my guess was right about the biggest reveal from very early in the book. I loved the multiple POVs - Special Agent Keller, the very pregnant FBI agent, Ella Monroe, a therapist and survivor, and Chris Ford, a public defense attorney - which gives the reader many more conversations and reveals with these different characters who start the novel not knowing each other

If you want a super predictable and non-thrilling, thriller, than this is your book. 🤷🏼‍♀️

I really enjoyed the premise. Fifteen years ago three teenage girls and their manager were murdered on the night shift of Blockbuster. (Remember blockbuster, and if you don’t, you’re way too young!) There’s one survivor. Present day, there’s a repeat of the crime in the same town. But the alleged suspect fled town and hasn’t been heard from in 15 years.

The chapters are short. The characters are unique, but to me the story dragged. And don’t get me started on how little the author knows about pregnancy. I get it. He’s a dude, but COME ON! I was mostly angry at a lot of the uneducated comments about woman and pregnancy.

4 stars

Well, unlike actual Y2K, this book delivers on the thrills and excitement!

The central events of this novel involve two multiple murders of teens: one on New Year's Eve in 1999 at a Blockbuster and one in the novel's present day at a dessert shop. Early on, characters and readers are able to see connections between the two events emerging. All of the events are recounted by or lived through the perspectives of various characters, which keeps the pacing quick and the piecing of the big puzzle engaging. Between the survivors, their family members, law enforcement, attorneys, and general members of the community, folks have a lot to say about what's been happening, but now is the time to finally uncover the truth.

I really enjoyed Finlay's _Every Last Fear_ and have been eagerly anticipating this read. While there are some overly convenient circumstances at times, this is a fulfilling mystery and cast of characters overall, and I recommend this for folks who enjoy the genre and are looking for a speedy, engaging read.

The set up with multiple POVs kept the story flowing and the mind thinking. I only stopped reading for necessary breaks and stayed up past my bedtime. The story was riveting and fast paced with unpredictable (at least for me) twists.

💭What I thought would happen:

I was expecting a Sundown Motel, maybe dead sex worker kind of vibe? Not quite.

📖What actually happens:

15 years ago there was a brutal homicide at the local blockbuster with one survivor. Have I got your attention yet? The murderer was never officially convicted but disappeared shortly after being released…super sus.

Fast forward to the present when a similar group murder happens at the local ice cream shoppe. One survivor remains…and requests to speak to the only other survivor or a similar attack.

🗯Thoughts:

This is a book-ends books…the first and last 25% hold this book together with their captivating beginning and end. It kind of dulled out around the 30% mark but gave me just enough to continue being intrigued.

One huge issue I had: the FBI agent on the case was 8.5 months pregnant WITH TWINS…on a triple homicide case that may be linked to a different triple homicide case. C
Kudos to the male author who believes a full term pregnant woman can do it all because obviously they are super women but as my SIL just had twins she’d have to agree that would never ever ever happen.

Overall, the twists and turns in this book made my heart skip a beat. I was here for it! Any thriller lover will find some joy in this read.

I thoroughly enjoyed this fast moving thriller and you will too!
15 years ago 4 young employees at Blockbuster Video were attacked with only one survivor. The assailant is identified by police but flees. Now, years later, 4 employees are attacked again at a nearby ice store and again only one survives. These stories are connected in ways. you cannot even imagine!

The novel follows a very interesting FBI agent working to solve the crime while also introducing multiple characters that were impacted by the first crime. There are multiple point of views and complex and engaging characters. You will not guess the connections or solve the crimes until the end, guaranteed!

Alex Finlay is now a favorite writer! If you like your thrillers fast moving, your heroines strong and your crimes complex then grab #TheNIghtShift #StMartinsPress #MinotaurBooks #NetGalley

Night Shift brings back memories of Blockbuster Video with a creepy twist. It’s New Year’s Eve 1999 and only one employee survives. Now 15 years later a similar crime happens leaving one survivor with an eerily similar encounter with the murderer. All is not what it seems in Linden, New Jersey. This one had me on the edge of my seat right from the start. You wont even be able to guess what happens until the end. How all these lives are connected with these horrifying murders. It’s the first book I’ve read by Alex Finlay and it won’t be my last!

*ARC provided by NetGalley for an honest review.

Thank you #Netgalley for a copy of #TheNightShift! I was shocked to get accepted for it. First book for me by Alex Finlay and in this one he has a really digestible writing style. It even felt like he wrote certain parts to read like detectives/G-men would talk, clipped sentences and short descriptions. He includes lots of jargon that was interesting to look up, as well as geographical references that you'd have to be a local to understand. A couple sections read a bit underdeveloped though, with lots of telling sentences instead of description (she felt such and such, so she decided to this or that).

There were plenty of characters to suspect and, actually, too many to keep track of sometimes. Because of the two timelines, there were two sets of people and also others that overlapped both years. I know thrillers are supposed to move and keep you turning (which this one really did!), but I honestly could have used more character description and development because they were so interesting, and it would have helped the reader connect more with the huge cast.

Overall, loved this one and will recommend to pretty much anyone.

Thank you for the advanced copy

This was a good and quick read. The author has done it again. Didn’t figure it out until near the end as to who had done it.
It’s a story about a murder that happened New Years Eve 1999, 4 were killed one survived. 15 yrs later a similar crime 3 dead and 1 survivor. Who did it?

I’m officially a big fan of Alex Finlay.

The Night Shift drew me in and I could hardly put it down. I read it in less than a day because I kept sneaking peeks at it any chance I got.

There are three main character- Chris Ford, a public defender with a rough past; Ella Monroe, a “final girl” who is now a therapist; and Sarah Keller, a pregnant FBI agent on the hunt for a killer.

I don’t normally like detective novels, and I almost didn’t request this book when I read there was an FBI agent involved. But I was happily surprised; this is no police procedural.

My one and only complaint about The Night Shift is that Ella gave me edge-lord vibes at the beginning (Ella never needed to belong! I grew to like Ella but could’ve done without her apparently needing to bat men away while just wearing a sweatshirt in a bar.

This was a really enjoyable read and I would recommend it to anyone who enjoys a thriller or mystery.

Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for the free arc in exchange for a fair and honest review.

i think i went into this wanting a campy 90s murder thriller - think heathers meets clueless - but i came out with something very different
and it's not necessarily a bad thing!
the plot is engaging even if i didn't care too much about what was happening
the multiple perspectives was a bit confusing, especially since i wasn't totally invested in the characters
and the ending,,,, she was a flop
i was just left feeling a bit unsatisfied, both with the reveal and with the epilogue chapter

Thank you to NetGalley and St. Martin's Press for giving me the opportunity to read this in exchange for an honest review.

This is my first novel by Alex Finlay, and I must say I am thoroughly impressed. I absolutely loved the characters, loved the plot, loved the twists, turns, and misdirections. A fun thriller that provided plenty of surprises along the way.

I was very intrigued on how all of the characters were interconnected. As the story progresses, you get to see how the characters intersect and are intertwined. Though I was able to figure out whodunit before it was revealed, I found that it did not take away from the story because the characters themselves were so brilliantly written that even after the reveal, I was still very much riveted by the story.

Brilliantly done and incredibly enjoyable read! Kudos!

After a good bit of character building, this story took off and kept me on the edge of my seat! I couldn’t put it down! Loved it!