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Erica Robyn Reads

a horror book review blog

[Book Review] Night Shift by Robin Triggs

December 26, 2019      Erica Robyn      12 Comments

Night Shift by Robin Triggs Book cover photo

Night Shift by Robin Triggs is an intense and claustrophobic tale about extreme cold, murder, and a plot to take down Australis. But who is the culprit?

Full disclosure: I was given a free copy of this book from the publisher in exchange for an honest review. This did not affect my rating in any way. 

Let’s dive in!

My Thoughts on Night Shift by Robin Triggs

In the first few pages of the book, we see a note requesting the recipient to do with the following account what is deemed appropriate. Right off the bat, and of course also keeping the cover of the book in mind, you know that something went very, very wrong…

As the account begins, we meet the new Chief of Security, Anders Nordvelt. Nordvelt has arrived at Australis to replace the last Chief who left the base after some health issues; headaches, sleepwalking, and other such things. Nordvelt, who clearly has ties to The Company, is seen as an outsider from the very beginning; the crew that has already been there for months doesn’t trust him. They also don’t believe that they need him and everyone know that there is something fishy with the promotion in the first place as Nordvelt is quite young.

One afternoon, the crew goes out to a ridge to celebrate the final sunset before the area is plunged into darkness for the next six months. While out on this excursion, Nordvelt sees the crew drinking and smoking which The Company would not approve of. Before this becomes much of an issue, the first of the slew of major events occurs and of course, suspicion lands on Nordvelt first.

From there, we’re off on a fast-paced and suspenseful ride where finding out what happened next was equally exciting and frightening.

This is a book that I had a very hard time putting down! The writing was wonderful and I will definitely be keeping an eye out for more of Mr Triggs work!

The world building was light, but as readers I felt that we were given just enough information to understand what the situation was. The descriptions of the base and the conditions were also just right; it let you imagine the space and scenery overall, but also let you fill in the blanks in your own mind. Same held true with each of the characters and their descriptions.

I also really appreciated that there was some sci-fi elements, but that they weren’t too intense. This allowed me to stay focused on the mystery elements rather than getting too tied up in the smaller details.

I really enjoyed learning more and more about The Company, the state of the world, and little tid-bits about each character and their roles as the story progressed. All of these layers made the tale even more engaging than the overall plot already was.

Toward the end of the book, I loved how well all the puzzle pieces fell into place. This was a situation that I did not see coming in the slightest, but once it was laid out, it made total sense. I cannot wait to reread this one from the beginning now that I know what had really been going in.

My Favorite Passages from Night Shift

Our torches were powerful but the blizzard smothered all. 

The wind blew across the courtyard like the exhalation of giants. 

A novel is a puzzle: you set out all the pieces, lay them in order and try to link them together only to find out that they’ve transmogrified whilst your attention was elsewhere.

My Final thoughts on Night Shift

I absolutely relished my time reading this one; each second was so entertaining. I thought the plot was super interesting, the writing style was wonderful, the cast was great… Zero complaints from me!

This is another that I would LOVE to see as a film. Perhaps staring Timothée Chalamet.

If you’re a fan of tales that will keep you guessing while also feeling a bit claustrophobic, this is a great pick for you!

And stay tuned, book number two is in the works! The expected publication date is July 23rd 2020 by Flame Tree Press. I CANNOT WAIT!


Snag a copy through Bookshop to help support local indie bookshops:

Thanks for reading!

Reader Interactions

Comments

  1. Priscilla Bettis says

    December 26, 2019 at 11:41 am

    I think it’s a skillful author who can convey a sense of claustrophobia to the reader. Thanks for posting your review!

    Reply
    • Erica Robyn says

      December 26, 2019 at 12:04 pm

      Definitely!! This one totally got me!

      Reply
  2. Greg says

    December 26, 2019 at 5:25 pm

    Sounds awesome, I love books set in the Antarctic or remote locations like that, where it feels very claustrophobic and closed- in. Perfect for suspense! I’m definitely getting this one! Plus the SF elements appeal to me also. 🙂

    Reply
    • Erica Robyn says

      December 27, 2019 at 8:32 am

      Same!! 😀 I would love to see what you think!

      Reply
  3. chucklesthescot says

    December 27, 2019 at 8:13 am

    I’m still kind of in two minds about this book-bickering characters/the MC hated by others is a trope I’m not a big fan of! I do like that kind of setting though.

    Reply
    • Erica Robyn says

      December 27, 2019 at 8:33 am

      Yeah that was definitely tough… I struggle with characters that are so set in their ways of thinking that they can’t see outside their little boxes.

      Reply
  4. Olivia Roach says

    December 27, 2019 at 4:39 pm

    I am a huge fan of a lot of worldbuilding but I do agree that sometimes some stories just lend better to having less world building than others, and this one sounds like one of those kind of books. I am glad you could love it so much!

    Reply
    • Erica Robyn says

      December 28, 2019 at 2:44 pm

      😀

      Reply
  5. Jenea's Book Obsession says

    December 30, 2019 at 2:15 pm

    The setting sounds fantastic and I do like the it is a fast paced read too. Great review!

    Reply
    • Erica Robyn says

      January 1, 2020 at 1:10 pm

      <3

      Reply

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