I always enjoy this authors books! The Night Birds was a captivating, creepy, horror that kept me on my toes the entire time. I loved the plot and was invested in the characters!

Thank you to NetGalley and St. Martin’s Press as well as the author for this ARC in exchange for my unbiased review.
#NetGalley @NetGalley #St.Martin’sPress @St.Martin’sPress #ChristopherGolden @ChristopherGolden #Horror #Fiction #BookReview

Title: The Night Birds
Author: Christopher Golden
Format: eBook
Publisher: St. Martin’s Press
Publication Date: May 6, 2025
Themes: Paranormal, found family, Witchy horror
Trigger Warnings: animal death/cruelty, hurricanes, infant endangerment, talk of infant sacrifice, witchcraft, gore, witchcraft

Christopher Golden is an autobuy author for me. I have loved every novel of his that I’ve read.
This one is the story of Charlie Book and Ruby Cahill. Book lives and works on a small boat called Christabel, a 19th century freighter directly off the coast of Galveston, Texas. One night, after having dinner with his team, all of whom work for the Texas Parks and Wildlife Department, he returns to the Christabel to ride out a huge hurricane. On his way, he’s waylaid by his ex, the one who got away, Ruby Cahill. Ruby needs to stay with him and she’s with a stranger named Mae and who claims to be Ruby’s sisters’ partner and who has Ruby’s niece, a newborn named Aiden. What follows is a harrowing and atmospheric tale of witches and betrayal.

This one was a wild ride. Book and Ruby are an unlikely pair and this makes them endearing. However, the atmosphere of this novel was the true treat. The dread and tension are so thick in this book that I felt the occasional need to literally gasp for air as if I’d been holding my breath. One of the reviews I read on Goodreads recommends reading this book in the dark, in the rain, and with candles lit. I really wish I had done exactly that. The visual imagery is amazing. If there was a novel that can be described as cinematic, it’s this one. It’s a rich treat for every sense and I do hope a movie is made from this novel. Maybe Book could be played by Pierce Brosnan or Sam Neil. Thoughts?

All in all, I loved this book. Wait until it’s dark and raining, light a candle, and read this novel!

Rating: 2.5/5 Stars
Pub Date: 5/6
•
I totally requested this book because of this stunning cover without even reading the synopsis and I was super excited to dive into this story. Right from the start I was pretty on board (haha pun totally intended) with the storyline, definitely thought this was going to be a ghost story of sorts but I was pleasantly surprised with the turn to witches within this story. I think where this one fell a bit flat for me was with the characters and how the story shifted to different POVs. Let me explain, there was a shifting in the POVs in the story to identify characters that would be of some importance in the story later on, but until their stories merge I didn't really care about them much and honestly didn't care about them much when their paths crossed with the main characters. I think personally in general the characters fell a bit flat and felt a little too one dimensional.
•
I think I would have liked this one better if it was like a sunken ship that actually really was haunted and then we got a good atmospheric scary ghost story out of this. I think the witch thing, while it made a good spin to the story, I think it just fell flat for me. It was also a little too much of a slow burn for me but... it was still very creepy and atmospheric. Huge thank you to NetGalley, Christopher Golden and St. Martin's Press for the eARC in exchange for the honest review.
•
Do you tend to request or buy books based on the cover? Favorite book cover so far this year?
•
Book review • 2025 book release • thriller • horror • sunken ship • witches • gorgeous book cover • books books books • honest book reviews • netgalley • netgalley review • advanced readers copy

A really interesting concept, but a little against my personal tastes (I guess I'm not fond of any of the women's storylines in this novel). It held my interest, and was a pretty quick read.

Thanks to the publisher, author, and NetGalley for a readers copy of this book. My reviews never contain spoilers and are freely given.
Christopher Golden is one of my top 5 favorite authors, and for good reason-he never disappoints.
What would you do if a stranger, baby in tow, showed up at your door and asked you to protect them? That’s the question Ruby must deal with when her deceased sister’s partner is on her doorstep. Ruby takes them to the safest and least likely place she can think of. Her ex lives on a partially sunken ship that has mangroves growing up through it. They should be safe, but who is when they are being pursued by witches who want the infant as a sacrifice?
I had been hoping for a Golden title with witches, and he delivered! Kudos to the author. Don’t miss this one.

This was a solid thriller, but I wasn't as connected with the story or characters as I wanted to be. I really enjoyed the writing style, though, and would be interested in reading more from this author!

Book (Charlie Book) is a scientist currently studying and living aboard the half sunken in water and land of the old cargo ship named the CHRISTABEL. Over the last century Mangrove trees have grown up and around plus through many parts of the ship where this site has become known as "The Floating Forest". Book and his scientist team have been working on one day getting the approval to make this part of a national park location where tourists and children have the opportunity to explore this unusual phenomenon that had crashed in a brutal storm off the gulf coast of Galveston many years ago.

Now another gulf storm is brewing and Book is going to stay the night on the Christabel even though his friends tried to talk him out of it. When he arrives at the dock a figure runs out from the dark calling his name and that would be Ruby, the love of his life who he never thought he would see again and she's not alone, a woman holding a young baby is with her and they're begging Book for help. They need a place to hide out for a few days where no-one can find them because they are being chased and not by the police but a coven of witches! Since Book is a scientist and he doesn't believe in the supernatural and witches but since Ruby is asking for his help, he would never refuse her anything.

Before long Book hears strange sounds coming from the mangrove trees on the land plus large seabirds are landing on the ship,knocking on windows, crashing into the doors and they won't be chased away. Soon shadowy figures call out to Mae and Ruby demanding they give the baby to them for their human sacrifice. Book can't believe the things he's seeing and hearing but he will protect his passengers no matter what happens but he truly never expected to witness supernatural events happening right in front of this eyes and realizes this will soon be a matter of life and death and he doesn't plan to die.


I am a fan of 'Christopher Golden's' and whenever I see his name on a book I just have to read it. All of his horror novels are uniquely different in their dark and eerie storylines and they never fail to terrify or horrify his readers. I found this book very creepy and spooky in the atmospheric storytelling taking place on an old abandoned half sunken ship in the middle of the night while a brutal storm is pounding down on the sea around them and a tiny, helpless baby crying into the night for his mother and not knowing that pain, torture and death will be only steps away away for all of them unless Book, Ruby and Mae can survive this night while keeping this child safe. I never knew where this story and storm would lead and how many victims would be sacrificed before the night was over. I loved that there were many colorful characters involved in the book and they brought so much tension and creepiness to the story. I just enjoyed this book so much and got attached to several of the characters and hated when the book came to an end wishing it could just keep continuing on and on. The novel started slow while continuously building until some unexpected twists and turns where I just couldn't stop reading. I am ready for the next horror book from this fabulous writer and will be impatiently waiting along with other C. G. fans! I highly recommend "THE NIGHT BIRDS" to all horror lovers who enjoy claustrophobic atmosphere along with menacing, dark characters, bloody violence, supernatural occurrences, witches, shape shifting, death,a little humor to lighten the heaviness of the impending horrors taking place and a little.slice of a love story gone very, very wrong!


I want to thank the publisher 'ST. MARTIN'S PRESS' and NETGALLEY for the opportunity to read to this wonderful horror novel and any thoughts or opinions expressed are unbiased and mine alone!

I have given a rating of 4 1/2 HORRIFYING SPOOKFEST 🌟🌟🌟🌟🌠 STARS!!

my first ever one star review. i want to start this out by saying that this book had a promising start, which is ultimately why i didn’t DNF it. however once we hit about 50 percent (when the actual action started up) i lost interest.

i went into this book without knowing anything about it except the setting which sounded right up my alley. the setting was the only part about this story that i enjoyed. the plot ended up being about witches and a fight for survival, which COULD have worked, but it was repetitive and uninspired. let’s keep in mind that witch stories aren’t my personal favorite anyways. i could’ve gotten past that, but the authors need to keep reminding the reader of the same information throughout the book sealed the deal for me. i’m not dumb! i can remember what you said 2 chapters ago babes!

the characters and their histories felt flat and underdeveloped as well. i just didn’t know/feel enough for them to care.

i wish i would’ve liked this one more but it wasn’t for me. that being said, i understood that the witch aspect wasn’t for me early on & this book could’ve still gotten a three or more star from me if the characters or plot were better written.

thank you to netgalley and st. martins press for access to the ARC in exchange for my honest review!

This was one of my highly anticipated horror reads for the year. Did it disappoint? Sort of. Despite the highly engaging plot and eerie atmosphere, I found myself bored sometimes. I couldn't adequately focus on it. Why? I asked myself. The answer was clear; it was characters. I don't know why but they felt so very superficial to me. If not for the plot, I'd have dnfed this book. I wanted to badly like this one, so that was a bummer.

I loved that this was set in Texas, since I live there! It is always fun to see the accuracy/discrepancies that occur with this story.
I think that I might not have been the target audience for this book, which is okay, it was still an interesting story to follow, but was not the favorite thing that I have read.

I kept waiting for the real scary story here but this one wasnt it for me. The reviews were good but it was just ok for me.

This story is…odd. I had a hard time getting into it. Even during the action,bit was slow, there is a lot of discussion, retrospective on relationships. I was just skimming the text toward the end. #TheNightBirds #NetGalley

Christopher Golden knows how to create atmosphere and deliver real scares. I've enjoyed every one of his previous novels, and The Night Birds was no exception. There's a lot going on in this one: a hurricane on the Gulf, a haunted freighter deep in a mangrove forest, and a really fun (and dark af) plot involving witches, trauma, and child sacrifice. The Floating Forest setting was a masterful choice for the bulk of the novel. It was unique, super creepy, and set the perfect eerily beautiful tone for a story about an ancient evil coven of witches. The cast of characters were all well-developed and likeable. I especially enjoyed the emotional tension between Charlie and Ruby. The pacing was a little uneven, especially in the second half. The magical elements at the novel's culmination felt a touch underdeveloped. The witches backstory was extremely compelling and had so much potential that I don't feel was taken advantage of fully. Still, I very much enjoyed this story and found it chilling and fun. It would make a great movie tbh. Not my favorite of Golden's novels, but I am glad I read it. 3.5 stars rounded up to 4 stars.

I wanted to like this book more than I did. The plot meandered and the characterization was pretty wobbly. The setting was incredibly interesting and the premise is worth reading, though.

I would call this horror-lite. Good burd witch story but you don't havr enough time to get connected to the characters before (Louisa) is possessed by Stratim and I was never truely sure who's side Mia was on. She lied about Bella's death and that's when I stopped trusting her. I wish Ruby and Book had ended up together in the end.

Christopher Golden's The Night Birds plunges readers into a tense supernatural thriller set against the backdrop of a brewing Gulf storm. Charlie Book, working for the Texas Parks and Wildlife Department, makes his home on the Christabel, a 19th-century freighter off Galveston, now a "Floating Forest" thanks to a massive mangrove growth. He plans to weather the approaching storm aboard his unusual dwelling.

But his quiet vigil is shattered by the unexpected arrival of Ruby Cahill, his former love whose relationship ended in heartbreak. She's not alone; with her are a mysterious woman named Mae and her infant child. Mae claims she's fleeing a coven of witches who had "hideous plans" for the helpless infant, and she desperately asks Book to hide them on the Christabel.

Despite his disbelief and desire to avoid the "lunacy," Book can't refuse Ruby, given their unspoken pain and unresolved past. He brings them to the ruined ship, but even as the wind and rain worsen, shadowed figures lurk in Galveston. The "night birds are flying," relentlessly scouring the coastline for their prey, making it clear that Mae's claims, however wild, are terrifyingly real. The Night Birds delivers a gripping blend of supernatural suspense, rekindled emotions, and a desperate fight for survival against an ancient, malevolent force.

I just finished The Night Birds by Christopher Golden and here are my musings…

Ruby never expected her night to include a dead sister, a nephew she didn’t know she had, a frightened woman who claims to be a witch running from an ancient evil.. She definitely didn’t expect the one place she would run to would be to the man who broke her heart… But evil is lurking and they want the baby and they will stop at nothing to get him…

OK if you don’t know Christopher Golden… Are you really a horror reader? It is a horror thriller, I know it seems to be labeled as a thriller but it has some excellent horror tones to it and I said what I said.

First off the setting is dark dark dark!!! It was so ominous I loved it. Charlie took Ruby and her charges to a secret location.. A half sunk freighter… Genius right? Trouble is they are running from a cult with dark magic and it freaked me the heck OUT!

The witches need the baby to sacrifice him and the mother (Ruby’s sister) and the girlfriend are doing everything they can to protect him. It was a ride and a half. It was fast paced, it was mildly terrifying and I couldn’t put it down.

Now It isn’t character driven which I know can be an issue for some readers but it didn’t detract from the story because all the magic is in the ambience… It’s all in the details.. Imagine if a book was a dark misty moor… This would be it. It has all the elements you need for a really great horror thriller that keeps the story moving.

The ending was the bee's knees…. I highly recommend this book!

4.5 stars

Thank you to @stmartinspress and @netgalley for my gifted copy

I really enjoyed this gripping, atmospheric horror novel! Thank you so, so much to the author, publisher, and Netgalley for allowing me to read this title!

Blurb:
Charlie Book and Ruby Cahill have history. After their love ended in heartbreak years ago, they never expected to see each other again.

Now, as part of his work for the Texas Parks and Wildlife Department, Book lives aboard the Christabel, a 19th century freighter half-sunken off the shore of Galveston. Over many years, a massive forest of mangrove trees has grown up through the deck of the ship, creating a startlingly beautiful enigma Book calls the Floating Forest. As a powerful storm churns through the Gulf, he intends to sleep on board as usual.

But when he arrives at the dock, he’s stunned to find Ruby there waiting for him. And she’s not alone. With her are a mysterious woman and her infant child, asking Book to hide them safely aboard the Christabel while they're on the run. Only it isn’t the police who are after them, it’s a coven of witches the woman, Mae, has fled, stealing away the helpless infant for whom the coven had hideous plans…or so Mae claims.

It’s lunacy and Book wants nothing to do with it. But after the way he and Ruby ended things, and the unspoken pain between them, he can’t refuse. Yet even as he brings them out to the ruined ship and its floating forest, there are shadowed figures looming back in Galveston, waiting out the storm. And despite the worsening wind and rain, the night birds are flying, scouring the coastline for their prey.

When Ruby Cahill unexpectedly shows up at the dock with a frightened woman, an infant, and a desperate plea for help, Charlie Book—her former love and a researcher living aboard a half-sunken 19th-century freighter off Galveston—finds himself pulled into a dangerous mystery. Ruby begs him to hide them on the Christabel, a hauntingly beautiful ship overtaken by mangroves and wildlife, claiming they’re fleeing a coven of witches with sinister plans for the child. Though skeptical, Charlie can’t turn her away, especially with their painful past still lingering. As a storm brews and eerie figures stalk the coastline, the line between myth and reality begins to blur in this suspenseful tale of love, redemption, and supernatural danger.

I went into this book not knowing what to expect, and I was completely hooked. While I don’t usually gravitate toward horror or thrillers, this story grabbed my attention from the very first page. The supernatural elements added a chilling layer of suspense, and the looming hurricane, paired with the eerie coastal setting, created an atmosphere that was both haunting and immersive. The first half of the book was fast-paced and packed with tension, perfectly setting the stage for a gripping second half—I couldn’t turn the pages fast enough.

The characters were richly developed, though I found myself hesitant to get too attached (it is a horror novel, after all). Christopher Golden’s writing is vivid and cinematic, making every scene feel alive with dread. The use of multiple points of view added depth and momentum, enhancing both the plot and character arcs. If you're looking for a smart, atmospheric horror read that keeps you guessing, I highly recommend this one! Please be aware that this is a dark read as it is a horror novel. (TWs: Miscarriage, Animal harm, Mention of Suicide, Natural Disasters)

Rating: 3.5/5
Spice: 0.5/5

Tropes:
Possession
Sacrifice
Dark Setting
Secret Location
Supernatural Beings
Cults

Thank you so much NetGalley, St. Martin's Press, and Christopher Golden for this gifted eARC. All thoughts are my own.

I just love Christopher Golden. One of my favorite things is the settings he chooses -- All Hallows is a Massachusetts family neighborhood in the 80s, Road of Bones is Siberia, and Night Birds is a half-sunken freighter in a storm. This was such a brilliant choice, and he used it well.
The story centers around a baby who will be sacrificed unless protected, and the suspense started from the beginning and stayed strong. There wasn't much character development, but I knew enough about them to care.
This was so dark and I loved it so much.