This was the first book I’ve read by the author. Since the events unfold so quickly, it never gets boring and the horror keeps you alert. You can relate yourself with the characters they’re not off-putting. You definitely need to check out this upcoming new book by NYT bestselling author Christopher Golden, featuring supernatural, horror, and thriller themes!

This is an ARC review. I appreciate receiving this copy from NetGalley and the publisher in return for an honest review.

I have loved Christopher Golden's previous work especially Road of Bones so I was so intrigued to get into his latest work 'The Night Birds' - this has such a creepy gorgeous cover that really pulled me into the story. I think the overall plot was great - working aboard the Christabel ship with a witchcraft subplot intertwined through the story.

Unfortunately for me I didn't enjoy the character developments, I felt like I just didn't care enough about them and therefore the things happening in this one had no reaction for me.

Charlie Book is living on a half-sunken freighter, studying the mangrove forest that has grown up around it. A powerful storm is approaching when his ex, Ruby, arrives unexpectedly. She brings a mysterious woman and a baby, claiming they are in danger. Book offers them shelter for the night, unaware that something terrifying is hunting them.

This book stands out for its emotional core. The genuine horror is intensified by the characters' stakes in faith, family, and sacrifice. The haunting monster stays with you, leading to a cathartic showdown over the Gulf. The vivid imagery makes it a worthwhile read. This book offers a fun interpretation of witches and effectively integrates old lore into the story. I thought the multiple characters would confuse me, but it was easy to follow along. The character Book stands out as the highlight for me. He is thrust into an insane situation and must fight not only for his own survival but also for the survival of his ex-girlfriend and the others with him. There are some very disturbing scenes, especially those focusing on the side characters who are trying to assist Book. Overall, a fantastic story by Mr Golden.

Thank you to Titan Books for my ARC.

I enjoyed reading The Night Birds by Christopher Golden. I haven’t read one of his books before so I was looking forward to reading this book. The description and cover of the book pulled me and I was intrigued to learn more.

The Night Birds begins with Book and his 3 co workers, Luisa, Gerald and Alan, all working abroad the Christabel, a ship with an extraordinary eco system of its own. The story is told on one night, with a storm hitting Galveston. Book finds himself about to ride out the storm on the Christabel when Ruby, his ex girlfriend shows up with a girl called Mae in tow and a baby.

The book was well laid out and descriptive, given me the clear visual of how the Christabel was laid out and how it looked aboard the ship. I enjoyed the plot and the relationship between Book and Ruby and how this played out throughout the book. I’ve never read a book quite like the Night Birds so I enjoyed it being laid out over one night with the different character dynamics in between.

For me, this book is a 3.5 because whilst I enjoyed the book, the writing style and the way that characters were created, I didn’t find myself on the edge of my seat and was able to put the book down and come back to it, I was also able to guess some of the plot during the book and would’ve liked a bit more at the end as to what happened to the characters.

Overall, I did enjoy the Night Birds and would recommend. Thank you to Christopher Golden, Titan Books and Net Galley for this arc!

(I received this book from the editor and NetGalley in exchange for an honest review)

After really liking Road of Bones, and struggling with the characters in The House of Last Resort, I was lured to The Night Birds by the amazing cover, ready for a horrific stay by the water.
And I was kind of disappointed. I do not know if I will be able to pinpoint what it is exactly that didn’t work for me, but it definitely didn’t. On the one hand, I did not care for the characters nor their past traumas; on the other, the whole witchcraft thing was kind of convoluted. The author’s prose is very agile and the rhythm diabolical, but I just could not get aboard.

This is an engrossing tale of terror set for the most part on an ancient, derelict freighter that has been colonised by mangroves. It all takes place over one terrifying night in southern Texas as a vicious storm rolls in from the Gulf of Mexico. A small group of friends and colleagues go their separate ways that evening, hoping to batten down the hatches and wait out the weather. But instead of finding safety, they find themselves not only fighting against the elements, but also something altogether more evil. A super atmospheric novel in a unique setting, with some moments of genuine tension and menace. Recommended.

This was a taut, fast paced, survive the night, thrill ride. I read an eARC of this book on NetGalley so thank you to the author and the publisher.

This is the second book I’ve read and enjoyed by this author and I will certainly be looking out for more. This really was a book that’s hard to put down. It’s pacy, all taking place over one night. It manages to set the scene very quickly and then launch straight into the action. I loved that, I was pretty impressed with how much setting and atmosphere was achieved in so few pages. We have a semi-sunken ship in Galveston, Texas that’s being embraced by a growing mangrove forest and is being used by scientific researchers. One of them insists on sleeping on the ship despite a raging storm, and it only being reachable by boat. On the way over he’s approached by his ex-girlfriend with a woman and baby in tow, requesting sanctuary for the night. We quickly learn about the terrors they’ve been running from.

And we do reach terror at speed. This book is visceral, it’s tense, it’s creepy. The looming threat seems to be harnessing nature itself to get what it wants and our nature loving main character finds himself unmoored.

I was wildly entertained by this book. I loved the growing menace, the desperate need to survive, the overwhelming odds and the inclusion of nature and folklore. The ship setting was fantastic and worked so well for both protection and isolation. There’s not a huge amount of character building here but I still felt I was really rooting for them because of what they were trying to do. This is plot driven but it does exactly what it needs to.

Highly recommend.

Charlie Book and Ruby Cahill have history. After their love ended in heartbreak, they never expected to see each other again, but when terror enters Ruby’s life, Charlie Book is the only safe harbor she can believe in. In his work for the Texas Parks and Wildlife Department, Book has been living aboard and studying the Christabel, a 19th century freighter that lies half-sunken in Gulf waters, just 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, full of birds, crabs, and snakes. Though a powerful storm churns through the Gulf, Book intends to sleep on board as usual.
But when he arrives at the dock, preparing to motor out to the Christabel, he’s stunned to find Ruby there waiting for him. And Ruby’s not alone. With her are a mysterious, terrified woman named Johanna and an infant child. They need 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 the coven of witches Johanna has fled, stealing away the helpless infant for whom they had hideous plans…or so Johanna claims. It’s lunacy. 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, back in Galveston there are shadowed figures out in the storm, sniffing the air like bloodhounds. And despite the worsening wind and rain, the night birds are flying, scouring the coastline as if searching for their prey.