In Nightfall

I was definitely interested in this book because of the book cover and the synopsis. The Lost Boys meets Buffy the Vampire Slayer? Yes! Here’s what I thought:+ I like the mysteriousness of the Oregon town, Nightfall. Something seems off to Theo but she doesn’t know what it is. I love the setting and I did like the addition of the paranormal podcasters which sets the tone for something spooky and amiss possibly going on in Nightfall.+ I like the Theo and Marco sibling connection. I got a good sense of their family bond and the recent challenges in their broken family. And I like how Theo fights for Marco when things start to hit the fan.+ The story moves quick and I thought it was an easy read.~ Some issues I had with the story was that I wanted more action, wanted more danger, and wanted more tension. The villains didn’t come off super dangerous until the end climactic scene. I like my vamps to be dangerous – I want to be scared, but I wasn’t.~ I didn’t get why Theo’s grandmother was so hostile and couldn’t help them out by telling them more about the town. If it’s to keep everything mysterious, it didn’t work, it just made me frustrated. She comes through in the end but honestly a little heads up on some of the things going in town would’ve been helpful to Theo and Marco.Tropes: small townWhy you should read it:*set in a small town, a gender-bent The Lost Boys (vampires)*quick, easy read, lots of mystery and in the end some vampire slayingWhy you might not want to read it:*for me, I just wanted more from the story- more action, more dangerMy Thoughts:This was an okay read for me but I love the cover and the nods to The Lost Boys and Buffy. I just wish it had more spooky vibes and more danger but overall it was entertaining.

I could not help hearing the Lost Boys Soundtrack while reading this book. I wonder why?????Theo and her brother, Marco have arrived in the seaside town Nightfall, Oregon with their father to spend the summer with the grandmother, Nonna. The town is often bleak and dreary but beautiful when the sun does shine. Tourist flock to it and the locals flock indoors when the sun goes down. Nonna is a secretive and interesting character and she warns them both to be home before nightfall and keeps putting strange smelling dolls in their belongings.Theo and Marco soon make friends with alluring and bizarre local teens and get invited out by them to bonfires and parties. Theo also meets two young men who have a podcast on the history of Nightfall. A history that is dark and dangerous.The description of the book was not fooling around when it mentioned The Lost Boys. You will get the vibes in a very strong fashion. Much stronger than the Buffy the Vampire Slayer ones. Just saying.This book was like a love letter to The Lost Boys. I for one who devoured that movie and watched it more times that I can shake a stick at (sorry, channeling my grandmother), I enjoyed taking a bite out of this book.This book was a lot of fun for me. I flew threw it and enjoyed it very much. Like other reviewers, I wanted things to happen a little faster but at the same time, I enjoyed the build up. The I-know-something-is-going-to-hit-the-fan-I-can't-wait feel that I got with the mounting tension once things in the book got real.Pure escapism reading which was nostalgic and fun. This book made my inner vampire loving teen self very happy.

Going into the book, with the description making comparisons to The Lost Boys and Buffy the Vampire Slayer, I knew that it was going to be about vampires. So I was a bit let down by how long it took for the vampire content to actually be blatantly put on the page. Yes, I as the reader could tell what was going on with the hints and subtext, but I was frustrated by it taking until 70% into the book for the main character to be in the know. So the beginning of the book felt very drawn out and then the end felt rushed.I did really enjoy the setting of the town of Nightfall. A small, rainy beachside town in Oregon with a weird history, odd traditions, and where it’s not safe to be out after dark. The plot of Theo, her dad, and brother having to come to the town for the summer and getting involved with the locals was definitely interesting in the beginning. But then it started to feel a bit repetitive. I really liked the grandmother character, Nonna. Her personality and her motivations that get introduced later on were some of the more compelling parts of the book.Overall this was a fine read. I just went into it with high expectations and ended up not being satisfied with the amount of vampire content in the book. Yes, the vampires are there all along. But I wanted more time with Theo being aware of what was going on.Thank you to the publisher for providing an advance copy via NetGalley. All opinions are my own.

I had to think for a bit what I actually thought about this one. On the one hand, Theo seriously aggravated me. Her refusal to believe in vampires until she actually saw it herself, and her consistent emotional outbursts made her a little annoying. But to be fair to Theo, if I was dropped into a small Oregon town right this minute, I would also have a very hard time accepting that vampires exist.The majority of the story is the "mystery" part where Theo is trying to figure out what is going on with her brother and these eerily beautiful people. No one will talk to her and the girls are really manipulative? Like, super gaslight-y and make Theo feel both ostracized and special as she interacts with them.My favorite part of the book is definitely the "Buffy" part. Seeing Theo go from "Vampires don't exist" to "LET'S SLAY SOME MONSTERS" was incredible. Theo really stands out as a character because of her strong bond with her family and her refusal to give up on any of them. It was nice to see.Overall, this story is more supernatural mystery than vampire slayer, but it's pretty good all the same!

This was an in immensely enjoyable read Although it was somewhat gory in places I nevertheless persevered even through the vampire stage right unto the end . Fir me this book was more about loyalty and friendship than bloodthirstiness and it seems we have a great new author on the scene. I recommend it.