Book Review | The Sun Down Motel by Simone St. James

The Sun Down Motel

by Simone St. James

Berkley

Publication Date : February 18, 2019

Pages : 336

Synopsis From Publisher:

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…

The Overlook Hotel and The Bates Motel are probably the most infamous hotel/motel in literary  history. The characters who had the unfortunate luck of working and/or living in The Overlook Hotel and The Bates Motel did not fair very well. The same can be said of the characters employed at The Sun Down Motel. 

The Sun Down Motel was built in the 70’s in anticipation of an amusement park which would boost Fell, New York’s economy ensuring the motel would be packed with customers. The amusement park never came to be, making the motel unneeded. Neglected and essentially abandoned by the owners who rarely checked up on the place; The Sun Down became the kind of motel in which shady dealings occurred. 

Thirty-five years ago, 20 year old Vivian Delaney vanished from The Sun Down Motel during her night shift working the check in desk. Located in rural upstate New York, The Sun Down Motel has a dark history, full of tragedy and unexplained deaths. 

Skip ahead to 2017 Vivian’s niece Carly, born after Vivian’s disappearance has decided to find out what happened to her aunt. Carly follows her aunt’s foot steps, working where she worked and living where she lived. Will Carly’s investigation lead her to the same fate which befell her aunt thirty-five years earlier?

The motel is as much a character of the story as Vivian and Carly. So much of their stories are linked to the motel. Located on the outskirts of Fell, isolated from the town, the local residents tend to steer clear of The Sun Down. The motel is detached from the town and forgotten by most of the residents of Fell. Many times in the story Carly and Vivian are alone. When they are not alone their only company is a motel guest who is also a stranger. These feelings of exile are tangible and allow readers to fully understand the remoteness and sometimes loneliness Vivian and Carly are experiencing; allowing readers to feel fully immersed in the story. 

I know some readers may be put off by the supernatural element. However readers should not be put off at all. The mystic element is extremely realistic and is not overly done. Although there are some mystic aspects at it’s core The Sun Down Motel is a mystery story. However the paranormal portions of the story are vivid and immersive. Readers will feel the chills Vivian feels when she smells cigarette smoke despite being a non-smoker and being alone in the hotel office. 

The Sun Down Motel alternates between 1982 and 2017. Since Carly is mirroring Vivian’s life in Fell, sometimes it was difficult to tell who was narrating. St. James does offer some assistance with this by referencing things which could only be a part of life during certain time periods.

Last year St. James released The Broken Girls, which I absolutely loved. Many of the elements I loved in The Broken Girls can be found in The Sun Down Motel. A disappearance, a haunted building, and young women determined to uncover the truth no matter the danger. I believe St. James has found a recipe for a gripping and riveting crime novel. 

*Thanks to Berkley for my free review copy of The Sun Down Motel*

Murder and Moore Rating: 

4.5 out of 5 Stars