They Come At Night by Nick Clausen – A Book Review

I was contacted again by Nick to read another one of his books and review it. It’s always a pleasure to read his work, he’s a very imaginative author and I am grateful for each opportunity. So just wanted to say thank you for letting me read and review your work!

This sounded right up my alley so I was more than happy to check it out. It’s only a novella so it was a quick read which was great because I was feeling a little overwhelmed with all the reading I need to do but it was nice to have something small that I could read. So let’s get into why this is a great horror novella.

Four teenagers. A cottage by the beach. A scary secret kept by the locals.
And those who come at night …

The story follows four teens on a weekend getaway. The setting is your typical horror setting if this were a movie I would totally have expected some crazed serial killer to come out of nowhere. This wasn’t a movie and frankly the thing that comes at night is a bit scarier than anything in the movies. Honestly I wasn’t even paying attention to the cover so I was expecting some kind of vampire bad guy.

What actually came was better. Far far better.

The trace of a twisted spine and two parallel rows of ribs were protruding from the sand. The tiny white bones were pointing upwards.

Nick Clausen – They Come At Night

The whole book is told from the perspective of one character, save for the prologue and he’s a good guy but he’s also a teenager. Free from parents on a weekend. I enjoyed that it was realistic, kids especially when they don’t consider themselves in any kind of danger are easily forgetful. When I expected them to freak out, they just shrugged and were like whatever. It’s something that made me enjoy the book because that’s just how it would be. Why would you think anything of whatever it is that is happening until it really starts happening?

The author does a great job of introducing little bits, to keep you wondering what they would encounter next. At first I thought I knew what was coming but then I was wrong. I did figure out the very end but it was like a few sentences before it was revealed so really Nick does a great job of keeping the suspense and mystery going on this one.

A slight breeze made the terrace door close with a soft creak. We turned around and uttered a collective gasp.

Nick Clausen – They Come At Night

Imagery is one of those things that I’m always unsure how I want it. Too wordy and I’m skipping over it because I don’t need to know the shade of a wall or leaves but not wordy enough and I’m not sure what’s happening. Maybe I’m just too picky nevertheless this book is written really well. The sense of the area is described well without being too much. You have an understanding of where the characters are in relation to everything else.

The twist is well played too, it’s foreshadowed in a way but you don’t really think about that moment again until it’s mentioned. The climax of the book is done well too. It doesn’t drag on but isn’t too short to feel like something is missing. The whole book is paced well in my opinion and that’s so important.

I looked over at the four scratches on the wet window and couldn’t help but shiver.

Nick Clausen – They Come At Night

All in all this is a great book. I didn’t have any glaring issues with it or things that bothered me about it. I would highly recommend this book to anyone that likes horror and/or young adult. It’s not a long read but it’s worth it regardless.

Take a look at Nick’s website here if you are interested in his other work. He has a ton written and more are being translated to English! You can follow him on Twitter as well! If you want to read another review I did for one of his books, you can find my review of Dreamland here.

Buy They Come At Night on Amazon!