What are libraries for? Bringing books like Night Film into your life!
Book Description:
On a damp October night the body of beautiful Ashley Cordova is discovered in a Manhattan warehouse.
Though her death is ruled a suicide, investigative journalist Scott McGrath suspects otherwise.
The last time McGrath got too close to the Cordova dynasty, he lost his marriage and his career.
This time he could lose his mind.
My Thoughts:
Night Film is an intriguing mystery wrapped up in layers of darkness. Scott McGrath lost his career the first time he ‘went after’ Cordova but when the enigmatic film producer’s daughter, Ashley, turns up dead, McGrath decided it’s time to reinvestigate Cordova – after all, he’s got nothing left to lose, except his sanity.
At 600 pages, Night Film, is no quick read so it was essential that this book grabbed my attention early on, and it did – I found the plot extremely interesting. And I loved that Pessl incorporated screenshots from websites, magazines, newspapers, etc – this really helped bring the story to life and made it seem so real.
There’s this creepy horror vibe running through the entire book, and it’s this lure that makes this book worth the read – as things become more disturbing, you want to put the book down because you’re unnerved by what could potentially come, but at the same time, you can’t stop reading because you want to step into the darkness. I read most of this book at night time, and if you want that added level of unsettlement, I’d suggest you do the same. What, in the daylight, looks like an innocent young girl, looks like the face of death at 3AM! I love when books push the boundaries of reality, especially when, like in Night Film, it’s done in such a subtle way. This book plants the seed and it grows in your mind.
As McGrath begins his investigation into Cordova and the circumstances surrounding his daughter’s death, he has two unlikely allies working with him – a twenty something year old boy, Hopper, and a nineteen-year-old girl, Nora. This seems like such an unlikely team, but it worked really well – I particularly like the relationship between McGrath and Nora.
The ending to Night Film isn’t wrapped up in a neat bow, while you get a conclusion and it’s a believable one, it’s more one of those endings where it’s left up to you to make up your mind on what the truth really is. Where your mind comprehends reality ends and imagination begins, is the truth you will believe.
I absolutely recommend Night Film, but I will say, it’s a heavy read, not in terms of the content but you are very aware it’s 600 pages long, at times, it felt like I’d been reading for ages, but I was getting no closer to finishing it. When reading books of a longer length, I don’t often pay attention to the page numbers because I’m so caught up in the story but here, sometimes events moved quite slow and I wished the book was shorter. If you tend to avoid big books, you may struggle with this one but if it’s one you want to read, I’d recommend buddy reading it or reading it as part of a book club. However, if you do not fear the big book, go forth and discover the mystery of Night Film.
This book is available to buy from: Amazon UK / Book Depository
Keeper of Pages 
I’ve been interested in this book for a while. I always see such good review for it. I am a nervous long book reader – they intimidate me so I often avoid them – but I will probably still try this one at some point… just not yet, because I don’t need to buy it when I have a million other books to read still 🙂
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Definitely prioritise the books you already own (especially your Netgalleys 😆) but this one is definitely worth a read when the time’s right!
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I’ve been seeing this book for a while and plan on reading. I like the format of it with the images, newspaper articles etc. Sounds awesome because it makes you think.
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The format definitely enhances the read, I hope you love it when you get around to it 🙂
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Today marks the three and a half year anniversary of this story’s inclusion on my TBR. I get so amped up after reading the blurb that I request it from the library, but never seem to be in the mood when it becomes available. Someday…
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Hmmm, that’s tricky, you definitely have to be in the mood to read it, especially due to its length 🙂 Someday…
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Great review Janel! I’ve added this book to my oct tbr so many times and then don’t read it…maybe this year?! I do like the creepy vibe it seems to have
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Yes this year, 2018 is the year of “Ive been meaning to read this” 😉
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Yes, I need to read this one! Great review of it.
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Thanks and yes, read it! 😄
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Great review – definitely adding this one to my shopping list.
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Awesome! I hope you enjoy it 🙂
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I remember I enjoyed it but I honestly don’t remember anything about the plot, just that the book edition was fantastic lol
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Lol as long as you have good memories of it, that’s a positive 😃
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I am a huge fan of this book! It does have some slower parts, but the other parts definitely make up for it. I loved the bits of information (like the newspaper clippings and such) that went along with it. Did you know there is an app for it? You can scan certain images in the novel and it will pop up more information. It’s super neat!
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I did notice that, it’s sounds so cool, but I borrowed my copy from the library and literally just finished by the deadline I had to return it 🙁
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Understandable! I think this link has all of the bonus content from the app. Not sure if you’d still be interested, but just in case 😊😊
http://marishapessl.com/night-film-app/
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The stories still fresh in my mind so I will definitely check it out – thank you!!!
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