The Sun Down Motel

The Sun Down Motel

Adult mystery
"As she sat in her car, twenty-year-old Viv Delaney's hands
shook as she listened to the story. She thought about what it must be
like to lie naked as the half-frozen rain pelted your helpless skin.
How horribly cold that would be. How it was always girls who ended up
stripped and dead like roadkill. How it didn't matter how afraid or
careful you were--it could always be you.
Especially here. It could always be you."
Who can forget the shower scene from the original Psycho or
Redrum written in blood toward Stephen King's The Shining? Both
horror narratives, however, derive their power to chill not from
special effects, but from their raw glimpses into the evil and madness
that can lurk in the human soul. They also occur in hotels that are
not mere settings for the action, but as much characters as the humans
who inhabit them. Simone St. James' The Sun Down Motel is a worthy
addition.
In 1982 Viv Delaney, the black sheep of her family, had left her
home in Illinois to thumb to New York City to start a new life. Only
her second ride had taken her off course to the small town of Fells.
She approaches the Sun Down Motel, hoping that a night's stay won't
eat up too much of her dwindling savings. The owner makes her an
offer she can't refuse--the night shift working the hotel desk.
Only Sun Down isn't a run of the mill Motel 6. It is inhabited
by the dead as well as the living, sometimes more of the former than
the latter. One in particular can make locked doors slam open and all
the lights, including the neon ones that illuminate the motel's
signage, go out.
All is not well in the land of the living. Three women have
gone missing and then been found brutally slain, one dumped off on the
construction site of guess where. The deceased seemingly have nothing
in common. The police have written them off as separate incidents.
When Viv tries to persuade an officer, Alma, that the murders could be
the work of a single sociopath, perhaps a traveling salesman, she's
instructed to get substantial evidence.
Fast forward to 2017. Carly Kirk has come to Sun Down on
purpose. She's grown up with a mother who refused to talk about Viv.
Now, with her parents dead, Carly has set out to discover all she can
about the aunt who vanished mysteriously before she was even born.
When she learns that the night shift desk job at Sun Down is again
open she applies and is hired.
This may not be the smartest move she can make. What if there
had been one skilled serial killer? What if he's still practicing his
avocation? What if he'd have no problem with silencing someone who
gets too close to the truth?
If you've enjoyed stays at the Bates Motel or the Overlook you
will really want to check into The Sun Down Motel.
This time you don't have to take my word for it. My younger
daughter, Katie, is my número uno reading buddy. She has this to say:
"It was super interesting and I love how spooky they made the hotel
feel and how on edge they put you once the lights go out."
As for me, I plan to check out St. James' six previous works.
Fellow mystery fans--I think we have a winner.
On a purrrsonal note, somehow it doesn't feel like we're about to
plunge into the 4th of July weekend. For me minus the parade and
especially the fireworks it's really fizzling out. We will have a
cookout at the in-laws'. Most of the weekend I plan to work on the
annotated bibliography I am going to create for all the people who
want to read more on race/racism literature and don't know where to go
to find it. And, yes, I am dorky enough to consider writing an
annotated bibliography fun. (Jules)
I haz been in my home six months now. I like it here. (Tobago)
A great big shout out goes out to you, our readers. Have a safe and
happy 4th. Remember to social distance and wear masks in enclosed
spaces and crowded places. We may get days off but COVID-19 doesn't.
Keep hydrated and eat healthy foods. And make sure your cats have
cool drinking water and cool places to retreat from the heat.
Tobago and Jules Hathaway



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