3.5 ghostly stars

I was so excited to get an early copy of this Simone St. James book! I really enjoy her supernatural books. This one was especially enticing as the author returns to the setting of Fell, New York, and the Sun Down Motel, where a favorite book of hers was set.

Three siblings – Dodie, Violet, and Vail – are called back to Fell when their youngest sibling, Ben, shows up at the house and asks them to come home. Of course, Ben disappeared without a trace 18 years ago, so we readers know we're in for another ghostly treat.

Dodie, Violet, and Vail did not love growing up in Fell, where odd things happen all the time. They especially did not like sleeping there as menacing spirits often visited them overnight.

Will returning to Fell finally reunite them with Ben, and will they get all the answers they seek? The showdown at the end was intriguing!

I loved the creepy atmosphere the author created here with a haunted house, ghosts, cemeteries, old toys, and mysterious events. I do wish that a few loose ends had been wrapped up at the end.

St. James has been a very hit or miss author for me (my favorite from her is still the first book i read by her - Sundown Motel), especially her recent books have been misses but i always continue to read her stuff hoping for another great one. <i>A Box Full of Darkness</i> is definitely her strongest book for me in several years, but it is a bit of a slower burn than her usual work so i’m not sure how well this will work for her fans.

I liked the alternating narrators - we follow 3 siblings as they return to their childhood home to investigate the disappearance of their younger brother from decades ago who still haunts the home. All 3 siblings have some type of connection to the supernatural, so it turns into a Sundown Motel type of mystery. This one definitely focuses more on the family drama aspects of the story which in turn felt like I wanted a little more exploration of the supernatural side of things (especially Vail’s UFO investigation which was barely in the book) but i still thought it was a strong book from her compared to her last few lukewarm releases.

Sooo creepy! I loved this one. This author knows how to write a ghost story. Loved the call back to the Sundown Motel. Creeped me out at times but held me on the edge of my seat the whole time!

2.5 stars rounded down

I want to say that I am a huge fan of St. James other novels and have read all of them! So to say I was disappointed in this one hurts.
I disliked the characters so much. They felt like teenagers, even though they were grown ups.
Unfortunately this book was a huge disappointment to me.

2.5 stars rounded

I wish I had better things to say about this book as I typically enjoy Simone St. James and her style of writing. Unfortunately, this lacked most of the techniques and plot forms that I usually find intriguing in her books.

I will start off saying that I did quite enjoy the idea of the book and how there were little Easter eggs for readers who have read her previous works. These were really fun and made me feel special for reading her other books.

However, the execution and the characters felt lackluster. One of my favourite things about reading a Simone St. James book is never being 100% sure if a book is supernatural or not. It tends to go that way no matter what, but I love the back and forth in the first half trying to decipher if it’s real, a ploy, or a true supernatural entity. This was not the case here as it was immediately apparent this was some sort of haunting and there was no spectacle. While that’s not inherently negative, it did lose intrigue for me and I was a little let down by her typical style not being here.

AS A CAVEAT, I’m not usually a supernatural horror or thriller reader, it’s not a genre I typically get invested in. Which is why her typical technique of making me question things is important to my love for her books. Please keep this in mind when reading this review, as I don’t want to sway readers from a beloved, and rightfully so, supernatural thriller writer!

This wasn’t bad by any means but the characters felt a bit underdeveloped for my taste, it was too slow burning that I felt bored up until the very end, and I just didn’t catch the spark that usually makes me fall in love with her stories.

Early review and first thoughts, I’ll be back to dust this off!

There’s never ever going to be anything that Simone St. James writes that I’m not going to love. It’s statistically impossible.

Violet, Vail, and Dodie are siblings – estranged since they left their childhood home in Fell, New York, the weirdest of creepy towns. Their six-year-old little brother Ben disappeared there during a routine game of hide-and-seek, never to be seen again. This damaged each of them in different ways, impacting their adult lives. Violet has the gift (curse?) of seeing the undead, Ben is sure that he’s had encounters with aliens; devoting his entire life chasing others encounters, and Dodie avoids personal relationships at all costs. When the siblings are called back to the house by the ghost of their brother, they go.

One of the things I want to touch on is the emphasis placed on the relationships between the siblings – at one time, they had only each other, victims of absentee parents who were affected by this fell town (Fell, New York) Ha! But the pain they endured with each other is exactly what kept them apart. Coming together again as adults felt so painful, tragic, and sad yet, oddly, hopeful to me.

The other thing is the absolute sense of doom and menace felt in every word; it was palpable and ominous. The house itself is a product of Fell, each a character within their own right. This story is insidiously scary, make no mistake! It is sinister at its root and the pervasive nature of the malevolence that affected the siblings in childhood, followed them into their adult lives affecting each from afar.

Thrilling, chilling, and heart wrenching!

My thanks to Berkley Publishing for this gifted DRC!

Another hit for St.James. I have read all her books so far and she keeps getting better. She is definitely a go to for suspense and thrillers.

I sure didn’t expect this story to be what it was, and it was fantastic. Simone St. James thrills her readers yet again, a 5 star read.

Simone St. James delivers another haunting triumph with A Box Full of Darkness, a paranormal thriller steeped in grief, mystery, and ghostly dread. When the Esmie siblings return to their childhood home in Fell, New York—summoned by the ghost of their long-missing brother—they’re forced to confront buried trauma and sinister forces that never left.

The novel blends supernatural horror with emotional depth, featuring eerie visions, unsettling disappearances, and a haunted house that feels alive. Violet, Vail, and Dodie are beautifully broken, each carrying scars from the past that shape their journey toward truth and healing.

With nods to The Sun Down Motel and The Broken Girls, this story is perfect for fans of slow-burn suspense, literary ghost tales, and fractured family dynamics. St. James proves once again that the scariest monsters are often the ones we carry inside.


Thank you to Berkley Publishing Group | Berkley and NetGalley for this much-anticipated ARC!

absolutely captivating read!5 star read! its blend of mystery, the supernatural, and shocking twists.
This book follows three siblings returning to their haunted childhood home to search for a brother who seemingly never existed is incredibly compelling. The detail that two siblings see shadows while another sees full-blown ghosts adds a fascinating layer to the supernatural element, hinting at different levels of perception or perhaps even different types of hauntings within the house. The revelation about Ben's missing birth records, lack of school history, and absence from family photos is a brilliant twist, completely upending the initial understanding of the story. It shifts the narrative from a simple search for a missing person to a much deeper, more psychological mystery. Did Ben ever exist? Was he part of the house ?This book keeps you on the edge of your seat, constantly re-evaluating what you thought you knew.

I am excited to read more of Simone’s books. Thank you, NetGalley

Look for my full review in an upcoming issue of Library Journal
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St. James is quickly making a name for herself alongside horror greats such as Stephen King and Dean Koontz. This latest novel follows the three remaining Esmie siblings who return to their childhood home in Fell searching for answers about their little brother's mysterious disappearance 20 years earlier. With alternating POV, readers are in for a tantalizing adventure to find the truth.

There are very few things I love more than a @simonestjames book, so when I got approved for her upcoming release, I knew I needed to dive in IMMEDIATELY.

St. James takes us back to Fell (the sun down motel) and If you thought sun down had a lot of ghosts, just wait until you peak inside the Esmie house. I will say, this book is definitely on the scary side, I had to put it down at night cause I was creeped out. I loved the different POVs of each of the siblings, and Ben’s story! If you love haunted houses you’ll definitely want to pick this one up in January!

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️💫/5

Thank you @berkleypub for the arc in exchange for my honest review. PUB DATE: 1/20/26

Simone St. James has done it again. A Box Full of Darkness follows 3 siblings that return home to relive their childhood nightmares. As each have to face their fears, they learn more about the house they grew up in and the secrets it holds. This page turner kept me up until I finished. Highly recommend it. Probably my favorite Simone St. James book so far!

I was really excited about this one but it just didn’t hit the mark for me. I do love a good Simone St. James book with some ghosts and spirits but this one was just a bit more unbelievable than the other ones.

It started off strong, had interesting characters, lots of suspense and tension, but the ending left me disappointed. The pacing of the story was kind of slow in my opinion, until towards the end when it felt rushed to tie up the loose ends. Unfortunately it didn’t feel as though those loose ends were all tied up. Maybe it’s that there were too many storylines happening at once… it made it difficult to wrap it up in a complete and satisfying way.

I enjoyed this book by Simone St. James. Great characters and a twist at the end. Unlike any others I have read. This one was fun!

discovered Simone St. James, quite by accident. My doctor mentioned she was reading a wonderfully twisty book that kept surprising her. That got me attention! I’ve now read all of her books, including her latest title A Box Full of Darkness. The characters were so clearly defined that I could see them. The house in Fell is such a dark, creepy place where anything could and did happen! It felt like I had my own room there. Thank you to the publisher and NetGalley for their excellent generosity! I began promoting this author since her first book….and continue to do so! I actually loaned my original book to a stranger and never got it back. I hope it’s been passed around and enthralled many readers!

I have been reading Simone St.James books for many years. A Box Full of Darkness did not disappoint. The twists and turns were unexpected. It had the right amount of thrill, mystery, and horror. I was totally invested in the ending and did not want to put it down. Can’t wait to see this in stores and to talk about it with fellow readers. Thank you for the ARC netgalley.

A Box Full of Darkness by Simone St. James

The Esmie siblings are a deeply flawed, self-absorbed family that is difficult to root for, at first. But, with a single phone call from Violet, Dodie and Vail, without question, drop everything in their lives to gather at the family home. The tale evolves with the brother and sisters banding together with unexpected courage to face otherworldly encounters, while still mourning their lost brother.

A plucky neighbor kid adds charm and light, while a sullen daughter comes to understand the mother she once held so much anger towards.

The gritty, matter-of-fact lines, "I'd like to get out of here. Preferably before this demon house eats us all alive," show an almost nonchalant acceptance of their bizarre collective reality.

If you enjoy creepy, spine-tingling suspense and messy-but-real characters, plus a satisfying ending, this is a must-read.

3.5

Simone St. James could not resist returning to Fell, N.Y. and neither could I, moving this book up to the top of my TBR pile, because I just couldn’t wait!

Fell, N.Y. has more than its share of Supernatural happenings and they do NOT all occur at the Sun Down Motel. Drownings and disappearances are pretty common occurrences in this small, run down town.

Violet, Vail, and Dodie Esmie grew up there, and although they didn’t know any different-they knew that they dreaded BEDTIME-and having to fall asleep.

Violet would see a menacing presence above her bed, “Sister” who terrorized her for years.

Vail, would have blinding lights pointed on him, with the directive to “WAKE UP”-Aliens?

And, Dodie would cower in her bed as rancid water would rise around her…

But yet, if their beloved little brother, Ben, their parents “later in life baby” would crawl into bed with them, the night terrors would stay away.

That is until the day that the four siblings played one of Ben’s favorite games with him- HIDE and SEEK, and Ben went to hide and was never found again.

Where did he disappear to?

Police scoured the property and surrounding woods but the mystery remained unsolved.

Eighteen years later, Violet gets a call from the landscape company who has maintained the abandoned property-a little boy has been spotted and he has asked his siblings to “Come Home”.

Will he lead them to the answers they have longed for?

This is a SLOW BURN GHOST story-and although the Supernatural cannot be completely explained-I did feel like the book ended without providing a few answers that it could have. It won’t share the shelf with a favorite of mine “The Sun Down Motel” for that reason, but it will provide you with the creeps!

Expected publication date: January 20, 2026

Thank You to Berkley for the gifted ARC provided through NetGalley. As always, these are my candid thoughts!

A Box Full of Darkness by Simone St. James

Simone St. James' books always bring to mind both the ghost stories my grandfather loved to tell us and rural legends. I live in the country and we have rural legends here, with a haunted bridge being just a few miles from our house. A Box Full of Darkness is full of dark places, dark rumors, and creepy events and takes place in the same locations as St. James' book, The Sun Down Motel, which I enjoyed. I read that book a few years ago and now plan to listen to the audiobook to refresh my memory of what happened at The Sun Down Motel. There is no need to read The Sun Down Motel before you read this book, though, both books are complete on their own.

Don't ever set foot in Fell, New York, something is not right there, a lot of somethings are not right. Three siblings, Violet, Vail, and Dodie, grew up there and it was not a pleasant upbringing. Their parents were very distant and standoffish to them although their mother perked up for a while once Ben arrived. The siblings doted on Ben completely, they adored their little brother and they filled in the holes left by two parents who really didn't care about their kids.

There were unexplained or suspiciously explained deaths in and around Fell and Ben is involved in one of those mysterious happenings. After that, the family really fell apart. Violet and Vail left Fell as soon as they could and Dodie made her exit later with nary a look back at Fell, other than a place of heartbreak, and no interest in their uncaring parents. Now Ben is back and all three siblings put their current lives aside for the boy they lost and will do anything to help.

The story is a slow burn while we get to know the house, the past events, Fell, and pasts of the adult siblings. This is one scary house, one scary neighborhood, with no one at ease in and around Fell. People get out of Fell as soon as they can but sometimes it's not easy to leave. I enjoyed the story but I have a lot of unanswered questions that could take another book to answer. No pressure Simone St. James but I'm already ready for another book! I was able to read this story with Jayme and DeAnn so be sure to check out their reviews.

Thank you to Elisha, Berkley Publishing Group | Berkley, and NetGalley for this ARC.