Two of my favorite topics for the podcasts I listen to are true crime and the supernatural. Usually, if a place has a history of death or terrible events, it tends to attract the supernatural. It’s not often that the supernatural and true crime get mixed, and author Simone St. James is a master of mixing the two. If you’re a fan of true crime and the supernatural, you should read her latest book: “The Sun Down Motel”.
PLOT
In 1983, Viv is a new employee at the Sun Down Motel located in the fictional town of Fell, New York. She experiences some of the supernatural events in the motel, and on top of that, believes a serial killer might be staying at the motel. Viv disappears that same year, which many assume she was a victim of the serial killer, but there’s no solid evidence to. In 2017, Carly, an avid true crime fan and Viv’s niece, moves to Fell to discover what happened in 1983. Carly takes the same job as her aunt at the Sun Down Motel and starts to experience the same supernatural activity as her aunt did. Will she discover what happened to her aunt all those years ago?
PROMPTS
For my 2021 Reading Challenges, I used “The Sun Down Motel” for the following prompts and challenges:
- The 52 Book Club Reading Challenge: a book published by Penguin
- Around the Year in 52 Books Reading Challenge: a book with a building in the title
- PopSugar 2021 Reading Challenge: a genre hybrid
- Oshkosh Public Library Winter Reading Challenge
THOUGHTS
Without posting spoilers, the ending did fall a little flat. I was hoping there would’ve been more of a confrontation involved, rather than a chase scene that happens off the pages. There was a nice little twist that occurred towards the end, but I think it could’ve been presented in a better way. Overall, “The Sun Down Motel” by Simone St. James is the perfect genre hybrid of true crime and the supernatural.
Great review. From the plot description, it kind of reminds me of Within These Walls, by Ania Ahlborn. I may give it a try, despite it sounding like a bit of a flat ending.