Sleep Tight

Sleep Tight by J H Markert

When a serial killer is put to death finally, things should have been over... But the trouble is just beginning. Murders are happening and missing children.... Detective Tess Clairborne has a vested interest in this case. Her father put the serial killer away and it seems to be her family being targeted by the horrors that have just begun.

Have you ever listened to a book and it just hits you? I love horror but it's been years since a really good horror hit my TBR and this one ticked all my creeper boxes.

The Outcast has committed murder and taken Tess' daughter. He is even leaving clues but why? I loved the characters. This book was a spider web of intrigue and bone chilling aftershocks! I didn't expect the ending and I held my own kids a little tighter when I was done.

4.5 stars

“true master of the genre” I think not. First of all, I wouldn't call this horror. It was more like a police procedural, thriller more than horror. But that's not my beef with it. This was just one of those “throw everything against the wall and see what sticks” kind of books. Every trope, every cliche was here for the taking, making the entire story ridiculous. Unnecessary POVs (why did we need to be inside the head of Danny?), and characters who weren't clearly defined. This book had pacing issues and could have done with a lot more editing.

And now for the spoilers and true ranting.

Addicted, burnt out cop with a cheating husband who blames herself because she's too invested in her work. She's a mostly absent mother because she works so much and the one time she does school drop off she doesn't take her directly to the door so of course she gets kidnapped. DID done badly with weird hints of supernaturalism in that living people are some of the personalities and maybe the personality and the living person are able to talk to each other through their minds??? Animal mask wearing crazed drug addicts form a cult and dig up a serial killer's body to resurrect with a human sacrifice. Crazy woman is actually mastermind of everything. Small time cops immediately get murdered because despite crazy mask wearing psychos running around with shotguns no one is wearing vests EXCEPT Danny who mentions the vest several times so that when he's finally shot and the chapter ends, moving on to Tess and Justin you're not at all concerned because you know he's wearing a vest. Also, Justin's phone is broken and left in a burning house, yet he gets Tessa's messages?

Thank you NetGalley and Crooked Lane Books for this ARC. 

This book has left me a bit torn. First off, I went in expecting a spooky horror book. Sure I knew it was a kidnapping but it had a creepy cult, serial killer, that cover? In the end it felt very police procedural. Now, don't get me wrong I love this but my expectations were off. And I feel like there was room for more horror, especially in the old mansion, the old distillery, the old orphanage, the old amusement park... But all of those places just didn't feel fleshed out. 

Which takes me to my other issues, there was a LOT going on. A lot of characters, a lot of storylines, a lot of rabbit holes. However once again none of them felt totally fleshed out. There were a lot of loose ends at the end I felt never got answered. 

This would be an absolutely brilliant TV series though. To flesh out the storylines, to expand on the spooky settings, and to bring some more horror into it. 

Overall though, it was fast-paced and I enjoyed it. Though it did take me a whole week to read it, which is slow for me. So clearly wasn't fully captivating me.

I think it was so close to great it annoys me more. It really has all the bones to be something amazing but it just wasn't quite there in my opinion. 

3.5/5.00