Nightfall

September 7, 2015
Halpern and Kujawinski (coauthors of the Dormia series) have created an intriguing but implausible world for this dark story. After 14 years of Day, Night descends on the island of Bliss. Meanwhile, the receding tide exposes a statue bearing the ominous words, "The houses must be without stain." As is traditional when Night approaches, the islanders prepare to flee to the Desert Lands (where, somehow, Day and Night alternate in three-day shifts) until Bliss's sun returns. When adolescent Marin and her twin brother, Kana, leave the ships to look for her best friend, Line, they become stranded on the island to face the Night: the cold, the dark, strange animals that hide by Day, and the terrifying original inhabitants of Bliss. The extremity of the world and premise requires significant suspension of disbelief (including how "years" are measured on such a planet and why anyone would settle somewhere they must abandon for 14-year spans with other options available). But the authors' lovely wordsmithing, especially in the descriptions of falling night and the rituals of departure, compensate for these and other implausibilities. Ages 12âup. Agent: Tina Bennett, William Morris Endeavor.

July 15, 2015
Three 14-year-olds struggle to survive as they find themselves accidentally left behind when their town migrates away from the 14-year-long Night that is descending upon their island. Marin and her twin brother, Kana, come from a traditional family, but their friend Line is an orphan who cares for his little brother on his own. The townspeople follow strict rituals as they prepare to leave: they scour their homes clean and follow a rigid formula for arranging the furniture. But amid the preparations for departure, Line disappears, so Marin and Kana race inland to find him-returning, of course, too late. Soon the three realize that they are far from alone on the island, and the new inhabitants seem determined to find and kill them. A mysterious voice tries to guide them to a hidden boat, but Line has badly hurt his arm and is suffering both fever and possible gangrene, while Kana experiences an odd transformation. Halpern and Kujawinski invent a fascinating world that comes to life, full of intriguing monsters. The beginning half of the book shines as readers slowly discover the other inhabitants of the island, but the long escape sequence, with the three teens struggling against Line's increasing illness and the monsters looming ever closer, is also effective. The teens' desperate journey to find their way off the island will keep readers turning pages. (Paranormal adventure. 12-18)

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August 1, 2015

Gr 6 Up-In the bucolic village of Bliss, residents are hurriedly packing and cleaning their houses for their seasonal migration to another island. In this case, seasonal is every 14 years, and a first-time event for fraternal twins, Marin and her brother, Kana. Soon to be picked up in boats by furriers, the families are urgently trying to beat the receding tide that denotes the beginning of a long freeze that human inhabitants would not survive. Hints that less hospitable creatures take over the town in the off-season make it imperative that everyone board the boats, but when Marin loses her sunstone necklace in the woods, her boyfriend, Line, naively runs off to find it. Fatefully, all three are left behind as darkness and cold temperatures descend in this cycle of night. Marin's dark complexion differs dramatically from her pale-skinned twin, and Kana's eyesight, which once blinded him in sunlight, now becomes an asset in the darkness. Upon finding Line, the trio searches for a boat they believe is hidden on the island, their only hope of escape. Suspense builds as Line is injured, creatures emerge from the shadows, and Kana holds a dark secret about his birth from the two of them. Magical realism combine with elements of a medieval survival story, as the teens ward off gangrene with herbal poultices and fight off witchlike creatures. VERDICT A mildly satisfying, stand-alone read for middle school horror lovers.-Vicki Reutter, State University of New York at Cortland

Copyright 2015 School Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.

September 15, 2015
Grades 7-10 In this exciting horror thriller, Marin, 14, her blind twin brother, Kana, and their parents live on an island that has 14 years of constant sun, or Day, followed by 14 years of continuous darkness Night. Residents must sail to the Desert Lands to live for 14 years until Day returns and they can go back. Before departing, the townspeople perform odd rituals like sprinkling lime around their houses and removing the doors' locks. Marin questions why they do this, but no adult will explain. After Kana and his orphaned friend Line are accidentally left behind, they discover they are not alone: terrifying creatures inhabit the town during Night and kill anyone they find. As Kana and Line desperately struggle to survive and find a way off the island, secrets they are keeping from each other threaten to tear them apart. This fast-paced story relies more on psychological suspense than graphic horror as it effectively alternates between Marin's, Kana's, and Line's perspectives and emphasizes self-reliance and the unbreakable bonds between family and friends.(Reprinted with permission of Booklist, copyright 2015, American Library Association.)