Sleep Tight

J.H. Markert

Horror

The sole survivor of a serial killer might hold the key to stopping a new spree of murders in this propulsive thriller in the vein of The Black Phone and The Whisper Man.

Dark and twisting at every turn, fans of Catriona Ward will love this chilling new tale from the deviously inventive horror author that Peter Farris calls the “clear heir to Stephen King.”

Beware the one who got away . . .

Father Silence once terrorized the rural town of Twisted Tree, disguising himself as a priest to prey on the most vulnerable members of society. When the police finally found his “House of Horrors,” they uncovered nineteen bodies and one survivor–a boy now locked away in a hospital for the criminally insane.

Nearly two decades later, Father Silence is finally put to death, but by the next morning, the detective who made the original arrest is found dead. A new serial killer is taking credit for the murder and calling himself the Outcast.

The detective’s daughter, Tess Claibourne, is a detective herself, haunted by childhood trauma and horrified by the death of her father and the resurgence of Father Silence’s legacy.

When Tess’s daughter is kidnapped by the Outcast, Tess is forced to face her worst fears and long-buried memories. With no leads to follow, she travels back to Twisted Tree to visit the boy who survived and see what secrets might be buried in the tangled web of his broken mind.

With captivating prose and an old-school horror flair, Sleep Tight is a must-read, haunting tale from a true master of the genre.

-Excerpt taken from Goodreads.

Check Goodreads to see the book’s ratings.

My Opinion

“Are we born evil or made that way?”

(4.5 / 5) Where are my serial killer book lovers? You need this one! Years ago, Father Silence terrorized the town of Twisted Tree with many murders leaving only one survivor. After 20 years, he is finally executed. But that same night, murders happen in the same vein as Father Silence. He is calling himself Outcast and is killing all involved with the previous trial. Tess Claiborne is a detective following in the footsteps of her father who caught Father Silence. When her father is killed, her childhood trauma from the killings resurfaces and now her child has gone missing. She then travels to Twisted Tree to interview the one survivor who is now in a lockdown facility for his “broken” mind to get as much information as possible.

That introductory paragraph is a lot, I get it, but so much happens in this book. It is a really creepy, get-under-your-skin type story. It travels from the present with Outcast to the past with Father Silence so we get the juicy details of both investigations. While there is terror for the kidnapped kids in the moment, I couldn’t help but be fascinated by the stories of the past. I was putting together the pieces before it was fully obvious and let me tell you, I was yelling at these characters! I was hooked from page one and couldn’t put it down. Is it a bit far-fetched? Sure, but in the best way. It repeatedly hit with more and more details which sucked me in completely. And the psychological mind games? *chef’s kiss* I love that the story stayed “real” and didn’t throw any paranormal aspects in because there is nothing more scary than learning what a man will do! So if you love a horror that keeps you on the edge of your seat and makes your heart want to explode then this book is for you!

General content summary: 

F words= 19

C***= 2

Teen bodies found beaten

Execution of a murderer 

Animal mistreatment and deaths 

Murder of family members (details of bodies and more)

Kidnapped child 

Many corpses found of missing children and adults 

Pain pills addiction 

Child sexual and physical abuse (previous, few details, multiple)

Possible Dissociative identities disorder 

Satanic cults (animal sacrifices)

Self harm (multiple) and drinking blood 

Physical violence (knives, gun shots, choking, baseball bat)

Death (gun, multiple, few details, hammer)

Suicide (multiple, previous with gun, previous with rope, previous murder suicide, pills)

Infidelity 

Rape (previous, adult and teen, pregnancy)

Religion 

**Any quotes have been taken from the advance readers copy and may or may not be in the final, published copy.

Thank you to NetGalley and Crooked Lane for the copy!

The book releases September 10, 2024.

**As an Amazon associate I earn from qualifying purchases.