Tomorrow died on the last morning of May. There were those who saw it happen, who watched the shadow fall, who felt the chop of the guillotine as the world lost its head.
But the dark is only the beginning
Apocalyptic fiction is one of my favorite sub-genres. It can scare me more than the best horror when done right and Daniel Barnett does it right with Nightfall. I love how he handles the situation. The Sun is simply gone. Puff, darkness. The light just goes away.
We have two main POVs. One is John Hawthorne who vibes danger and violence, and Mariah, a bartender and love interest for John. We also witness other people’s reactions to this event throughout the story. It is difficult to talk about the characters without going into spoilers so just leave it at that.
Daniel Barnett seems to be an excellent observer because people’s reactions to this phenomenon are very realistic. In such stories, if you are a seasoned reader, you may notice the familiar patterns and tropes which make you lose interest in time but Nightfall didn’t make me feel that way. I felt like I was stepping into a truly unique journey.
Daniel Barnett’s writing is spotless. His words paint vivid and grisly imagery throughout his 140-page long book. The story gets dark and it gets dark very quickly. And when this darkness is combined with Barnett’s vivid descriptions and his very real environment, it becomes impossible not to get nervous while reading. Everything feels very real. Nightfall is a dark, gripping nightmare that completely engulfs you. Easily relatable characters, a clear purpose, an incredibly creepy atmosphere, and an ending that leaves the reader wanting more while satisfying them at the end.
My one and only criticism can be that story jumps confused me a bit towards the middle and I re-read a chapter to understand what happened, but it might be my fault, too. As I mentioned, one has expectations about how things going to progress. Thankfully, Nightfall is different.
The books in the series are fairly short. If other installments are as gripping as Nightfall, they’ll be books that can be finished in one or two sittings. I feel like I can already say that Nightmareland Chronicles will be one of my favorite series. I can’t wait to read Lullaby, the second book in the series, and see where it leads.
What about you? Have you read Nightfall, are you planning on reading them? Let’s chat!
Peek-A-Book 