The Sun Down Motel book review

The Sun Down Motel by Simone St. James
Published by Berkley on February 18, 2020
Pages: 327
Goodreads

The secrets lurking in a rundown roadside motel ensnare a young woman, just as they did her aunt thirty-five years before, in this new atmospheric suspense novel from the national bestselling and award-winning author of The Broken Girls.
Upstate NY, 1982. Every small town like Fell, New York, has a place like the Sun Down Motel. Some customers are from out of town, passing through on their way to someplace better. Some are locals, trying to hide their secrets. Viv Delaney works as the night clerk to pay for her move to New York City. But something isn't right at the Sun Down, and before long she's determined to uncover all of the secrets hidden…

I had seen this book recommended by quite a few people and when I found it in my local Waterstones, I knew I had to have it. The Sun Down Motel has a really interesting concept, with a great mix of mundane, mystery and creepy paranormal. Set within two separate timelines, this book held my attention all the way through and although I guessed the ending I thoroughly enjoyed the journey.

Characters in The Sun Down Motel

As mentioned, The Sun Down Motel plays out over two different timelines, with two different distinct groups of characters. We follow the story of Viv as she becomes a night clerk for the motel at the edge of a small town until her disappearance and supposed death, and then see her niece follow the same path whilst searching for answers 30 years later.

I think the way that the characters from each time period almost mirror each other, with their lives overlapping 35 years later. Seeing the impact that Viv’s disappearance and death had on Carly and her life even from a young age made her choices seem so much more realistic and made a lot of sense. Watching her move into this small town and finally work out who she was following the death of her mother was one of my favourite parts of the book. Her tenacity and determination really drove the story forward and kept even the most mundane aspects interesting.

On the other timeline we also had Viv, I really loved her and her story, it was probably my preferred reading. It was interesting seeing her also find her place in the small town and push herself outside of her comfort zone. In fact I would have been happy if the entire book had been told from her perspective.

Bad bits in The Sun Down Motel

One thing I really struggled with when it came to the two different storylines was that it was sometimes a little bit repetitive. They both follow similar timelines and motivations in the end and it sometimes felt as though I was just reading the same story but modernising aspects. I will also say that although the paranormal parts run all the way through it sometimes felt disjointed to the main plot line of The Sun Down Motel.

Good bits

For me I thought the storytelling was refreshing and completely different than anything I had ever read before. The Sun Down Motel kept my attention all the way through and had so many things that I never thought I would enjoy but did. I loved the setting and the different paranormal things that happened throughout the plot. It was a great combination of mystery, horror and coming of age and I really enjoyed the switch between them all. Definitely a good read for me.

What now?

I will definitely be picking up other books from Simone St James. I think her writing style is something I could get into and she seems to write books that I would like. However there are so many books on my TBR at the moment that I want to do some more research before diving in.

Have you read any of St James’ books? Which ones would you suggest? Let me know in the comments!