Review | The Night Will Find Us by Matthew Lyons

It’s summer break and Chloe, Parker, and their four friends are off to a camping trip in the Pine Barrens. The Barrens is a dense, magnificent forest deep in New Jersey and the group is looking forward to a night of drinking and socialising. But an argument sparks between the two of them, escalating into a tragedy and splintering the group. As darkness falls, the friends have to survive the night and each other. But there is something else in the forest with them. Something ancient and vengeful. And it will do anything to keep them from leaving.

It was like a whispering in the trees, or perhaps beyond the trees – small and sharp, like silver fishhook pulled through her soul, dragging her ever forward despite the pain and exhaustion, growing louder with every step. 

The Night Will Find Us is a superb debut! When I first heard about this book I was immediately intrigued because survival horror is a subgenre that highly appeals to me. There is something incredibly unnerving when humans are pitted against nature. The premise of six teenagers on a camping trip also hints at a potential slasher fest. But to my delight, this book is so much more than that. It’s a survival story that ventures into body horror with a huge dose of the supernatural, along with terror of the unknown.

The book is anchored by Chloe and her cousin, Parker, though we get point of views from other characters as well. I thought Chloe is an appealing protagonist and it was easy to root for her. Parker is a complex character living in the grey area. While his actions are shocking, I couldn’t help but sympathise with him. The other characters – Nate, Nicky, Josh, and Adam – are less developed but they all have their moments to shine. Adam, in particular, goes through a horrifying change and his interactions with the other characters provide the most entertaining, goriest set pieces in the book. While the characters’ behaviour did get on my nerve at times, they understandably act like teenagers and their friendships – and conflicts – feel real. I knew not to get attached, yet I still wanted them to make it out alive.

The setting of Pine Barrens is a huge part of why the story works as well as it does. The description of the forest is atmospheric, gritty, and eerie. The book does a great job of making me feel as if I was there. It helps that the location is a real place, because I ended up Googling Pine Barrens and the images are stuck in my head! It was easy to imagine the characters trapped, isolated, fighting to survive and live another day. I don’t want to say much about what they are facing because I think it’s best to go in without knowing what’s at stake. Suffice to say, history plays a part and it’s a troubled one.

If there’s one thing I wish the book had expanded on is the source of the horrors. I really enjoyed learning about it but I was still left with some questions by the end. I found Parker’s storyline really interesting but I didn’t feel his quest was resolved to my satisfaction. But these are minor complaints and totally my own personal preference.

Overall, The Night Will Find Us is an exciting, gruesome addition to the survival horror subgenre. It’s a perfect reading choice for this spooky season!

I received an advanced reader’s copy from Turner Publishing for review purposes. The Night Will Find Us is out today!

About the author: Matthew Lyons

Photo by Michael Liao