The Sun Down Motel | 
pickSt. James skillfully weaves together an eerie ghost-story atmosphere with suspense, crafting a haunting narrative that delves into secrets, vengeance, and the women who refuse to remain silent. The motel itself becomes a character in its own right, its eerie ambiance immersing me in the story. The combination of ghostly chills and gripping mystery kept me on the edge of my seat.
Full Review abookandadog.com/blog/the-sun-down-motel
Thank you so much @Readergrrl ! I ripped open your package first thing yesterday morning & it was the perfect way to kick off Halloween!
I appreciate your thoughtfulness in selecting things I would love: a book from my wishlist, things with ravens or crows, and a wax seal kit for scrapbooking! And the perfect snack to eat while I read and scrap!
Thank you again!!
And thank you for hosting @BookwormAHN ! I love this swap!
#mws #modernwitchswap
pickThe case and spookiness of this book was worth it. If you enjoy ghosts and cold cases, this is your read
so-soI listened to the audiobook via BorrowBox, it was ok, not my favourite of her books
3.75/5
pickSt. James has yet to fail me, even though I‘m used to physically reading her work. This was a fantastic listen and the narrators kept my interest. The story was intriguing from start to finish. A creepy, haunted motel is the starting point for a few mysteries in this sleepy town, and the mysteries are unraveled as we go back and forth between present day with Carly and the early 80‘s with Carly‘s aunt Viv, who mysteriously disappeared back then ⬇️
I usually read the physical books by Simone St. James but as I‘m trying to tackle my TBR pile, I decided to give this one a listen instead.
#ReadingBracket2025
Much thought was required here. It was a tough choice between The Book of Charlie and Demon Copperhead. And then another tough choice between The Sun Down Motel and The Book of Charlie, especially since there are such different books. But seeing as I wanted to call everyone I knew and shout from the rooftops to read The Sun Down Motel, it clearly deserves the 1/2 year top spot.
One down…
@dabbe #summerreadingbucketlist
#CoverStories #Direction
@Alwaysbeenaloverofbooks @Eggs
Simone St. James is a great author. I read a few books by her and like them. This one in on my tbr. I blame @TheBookHippie and #SundayBuddyRead because of that. She intoruced me to Simone books. Thank you Christine.
pickBravo Littens y'all were right about this book--I Loved it!! Never read anything like it and now I'm at a loss to start anything else 😂
21/80
#BlameItOnLitsy
#ReadingMyTBR #Reading2025 @DieAReader
I've had this #BlameItOnLitsy read on my TBR shelf for a couple of years now. So glad my IRL book club chose it for this month!
so-soIt was a pretty good mystery with an interesting back and forth between 1982/2017.
#HauntedShelf Book Recommendation
Team #DeadSerious @OriginalCyn620
pickJust the right amount of scary without me sleeping with the lights on. Part murder mystery part supernatural thriller. What‘s not to love? I must read more of hers.
“Come on in”, the building seemed to say with its blue and yellow neon cheeriness. “Get some sleep. Take it easy until the sun comes up again. And if you see someone sitting at the end of your bed, pay them no mind. That‘s just one of my secrets. And I‘m not going to tell.”
On the surface, walking into a room and seeing a ghost sounds terrifying, but if all it does is appear here and there, I guess that‘s not so bad! 🤷🏻♂️👻
Tackle the TBR 🤓📚
What are you reading?
#boleybooks #thesundownmotel #SimoneStJames #bookbeast #libby #bookbuds #bookchat
pickI enjoyed this one, even though it was slightly predictable. I love when a book has different perspectives and it‘s better when they‘re in different time periods! It was a great first read during my Scotland trip 🥰❤️
“Most of those old businesses are gone but the Sun Down is still there.”
“They say it‘s haunted,” Heather said.
“Really?” I asked in surprise.
“Well, sure,” Heather said. “Isn‘t every hotel haunted since The Shining? People have probably died there, I bet.”
While I certainly appreciate the Shining reference, I can‘t help but worry that Heather is being a little too casual about the possibility of the Sun Down being haunted! 😳👻
“The street I was on passed straight through town, as if a lot of people got to Fell and simply kept driving without making the turnoff into the rest of the town. The ‘WELCOME TO FELL‘ sign I‘d passed last night had been vandalized by a wit who had used spray paint to add the words ‘TURN BACK‘.”
Turn back? That‘s not a good sign! 😳
Litsy has spoken! When I recently showed off a picture of my “Bookshelf of Terror”, many of you suggested my next read should be “The Sun Down Motel”, so I‘m starting that now. Since I believe this is a ghost story, I even wore my spoooky Halloween tie to mark the occasion. 👻 Although if it turns out there aren‘t really any ghosts in this story, I may end up feeling silly…but only if it‘s possible to feel any more silly while wearing a Taz tie!
pickIt has been a long while since I‘ve been on this app, so it‘s fitting for my first review in 4 years (oops) to be one of my favorite recent reads. The Sun Down Motel was just the right mix of a spooky ghost story with a twist of unsolved murder mystery. This book had me on the edge of my seat while also had me scared to turn the page because it was so spooky. 5/5🌟
pickMy God was this book good...a haunted who done it. It wasn't scary, but it was creepy and I enjoyed every second I spent in this story
pickOh it was so good. Just so fun. Ending was honestly a little so-so. However, I enjoyed this classic take on a haunted motel story. Such a fun element to jump between stories as well. If you‘re craving a classic not-to-spooky ghost story, I highly recommend this one. #ghoststory #mystery #horror #horrorbook #motel
pickVery soft pick. I was drawn in by the ghosts and the mysterious disappearances, clearly everything would be linked somehow, and at the center of it all is a cursed motel. Unfortunately the dual timelines made for a lot of repetition as the 1982 sleuth and the 2017 sleuth both uncover the same clues. The story bogs down as the layers pile up and ultimately the whole thing collapses in a mush of mediocrity. Great premise; execution needs work. #aam
pickThis was a good mystery/ghost story. The mystery had a surprising “culprit,” and I didn‘t think the ghost story was particularly scary. But that‘s just me. I would recommend this book and wouldn‘t object to reading more books by Simone St. James, the October #AuthorAMonth .
pickI started this book over and over for the last couple years. Finally read it this month for #authoramonth and finished it with mere hours left in October. (I really wish October was a longer month, it‘s such a good one!) I‘m reading The Haunting of Maddy Clare as well, but won‘t get it finished today. Oh and they are both good! I love the atmosphere in her books!
pickPart paranormal thriller, part true crime mystery and I was invested from the start! A spooky, haunted motel, and a serial killer on the loose made this the perfect read for the season. This is my first Simone St. James and not the last. I fell a little behind on my #12bookchallenge this year, but I‘m hoping to get a few more completed! 4.5/5
This moves back and forth between the perspectives of two different people at two different points in time, 1982 and 2017. In 1982 the character just found some papers printed by a ditto machine. A ditto machine! I haven‘t heard that term in so long. I had completely forgotten about them. Listening to the book and hearing those words made my brain kind of go “boing!” How many people have read this book and not (cont) ⬇️
So much going on in this one it was hard for me to commit to either the mystery thriller aspect or the supernatural one. A so-so read for me.
@Soubhiville #AuthorAMonth #AAM
pickOMG, this book 😵 I was so tense and freaked out while reading this. Not my usual jam, but I REALLY enjoyed it. Such a satisfying book.
Many many words found for Team #BOOklovers!
#aam #scarathlon #bookspinbingo #OutStandingOctober
@TheAromaofBooks @Bookwormjillk @Andrew65
so-soSecond St. James book complete (another bucket list item crossed off!). I enjoyed this more than the first but overall, it felt very PG13 thriller to me — repetitive timelines, mystery that is easily/cleanly solved, hero has no scratches on her, etc. It was definitely a quick read, I just think her style probably isn‘t for me - but I get why she‘s well liked. #AuthorAMonth #Scarathlon #TeamWhoYaGonnaCall
pickOk. A book this good shouldn't have taken me as long as it did but trying to read this at night in a home that makes weird sounds and then randomly nothing but silence creeped me enough to just read this during the day which thanks to work took longer than what even I wanted.
St. James did an amazing job of keeping me in my toes!
#popsugarreadingchallenge #taylorswiftreadingchallenge
Love this seasonal #Two4Tuesday @TheSpineView
1. I love Reese‘s peanut butter cups
2. I don‘t like anything too scary but I do like a slow-paced psychological spooky book. Thrillers and something like the tagged are my favorites.
Thanks for the tag, @Eggs !
New month (my favorite month), new set of books. Starting these two today. The tagged for #authoramonth
When my current read gives me such a good quote featuring two of my favorite books, I need to gush about it.
Please know that this book is so good I've scared myself a few times already reading this at night!
pickI am really digging this unique blend of straightforward mystery and supernatural spooky elements St. James has going, in this book and The Broken Girls. Not sure any of her other works have quite the same mix (we know I don't do thrillers so I'm hesitant to explore her whole bibliography), but I would happily read another in this vein. 1/?
pickA bit predictable, but still a page turner! (12 months to read 12 books recommended by 12 friends)
⭐⭐⭐⭐/⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
The Litsy #TITLESANDTUNES June challenge is #GUILTYPLEASURE. Such a fun one to pick! My pairing with The Sun Down Motel is the song 80s Mercedes by Maren Morris. Pop country is 100% my guilty pleasure 🤫 and so are mainstream thrillers, so this set is a double whammy! I've still never read anything from St. James; reaallly hoping I can get through it this month. I have a week long vacation, so the conditions are looking primo! 🤞🏻👏🏻☀️🕶️
#TemptingTitles #WithAWeatherWord The one that got me obsessed with her in the first place. @Eggs @Alwaysbeenaloverofbooks
pickLoved this mystery/haunted story about Carly who goes to a creepy little town that has a creepy motel to try to find out what happened to her missing aunt. 1982/2017 timelines. Loved it👻
pickThis is my third by Simone St. James and I have given 4⭐️ to each one. They are on the border of mystery and supernatural and are compelling and quick reads. When you need a gripping, pacey, fun thriller mystery with good female leads try this author- I know I will continue to have her on my must read list!
pickIn parallel stories set in 1982 and 2017, Viv and her niece Carly investigate the murders of multiple women in the small town of Fell, NY, where the Sun Down Motel reveals traces of the dead. The twist is that in 2017, Viv has been missing for over 30 years, and it is up to Carly to retrace her steps. This was a sufficiently gripping read to rate as a pick, although the ending seemed a bit contrived and unnecessarily convoluted.
"The night it all ended, Vivian was alone."
A spooky read for this Friday the 13th!
#FirstLineFridays
@ShyBookOwl
pickSimon St. James is an auto-buy author for me now. I love her mystery/paranormal books. The setting for this books is great, a run down motel, and the story is intriguing.
pickI started this last night and finished it today because it was so much fun
pickBook 4
I listened to The Sun Down Motel, a ghost story/mystery, by Simone St. James. In hopes of uncovering what happened to her aunt, 20-year-old Carly travels to the small town from which her aunt disappeared 35 years earlier. She gets hired as a night clerk at the seedy motel at which her aunt had worked.
