Night Terror

Supernatural #9

by John Passarella

Alerted to strange happenings in Clayton Falls, Colorado, Bobby sends the boys to check it out. A speeding car with no driver, a homeless man pursued by a massive Gila monster, a little boy chased by uprooted trees — it all sounds like the stuff of nightmares. The boys fight to survive a series of terrifying nighttimes, realizing that sometimes the nightmares don’t go away — even when you’re awake...

A Supernatural novel that reveals a previously unseen adventure for the Winchester brothers, from the hit TV series!

Genres: Supernatural, Fantasy, Horror, Paranormal, Fiction, Urban Fantasy, Media Tie In

381 pages, Mass Market Paperback

First published January 1, 2011

About the author

Bram Stoker Award-Winning co-author of Wither (which has been moved to the J. G. Passarella profile. Also, I'm the author of Wither's Rain, Wither's Legacy, Kindred Spirit, Shimmer, Exit Strategy & Others (fiction collection), and the media tie-in novels: Supernatural: COLD FIRE (MAR 2016), Night Terror & Rite of Passage, Buffy the Vampire Slayer: Ghoul Trouble, Angel: Avatar & Monolith. Look for Grimm: The Chopping Block. My author website is Passarella.com
but I am also owner & web designer at AuthorPromo.com

Reviews

[Jim C · Rating 3 out of 5]

Actual rating is 3.5 stars.

This book is based on the television series and I believe it takes place during the sixth season. I do know it takes place after soulless Sam. In this one, the boys visit a town where nightmares are coming to life. If you are a fan of the show you can guess what happens next.

This was one of the better media tie-in novels from this universe. The author nailed the portrayals of the two main characters. We get to see the more sympathetic Sam compared to Dean while Dean is more the action guy of the two. I had no problem picturing the two actors in the roles of Sam and Dean from the book. As for the actual story there was nothing really new here and it does fit in with this universe. The story actually reminded me of the episode "Nightmares" from Buffy the Vampire Slayer. It is basically a monster of the week episode that I actually would have liked to see on the television. There was a scene at the end that really sold it for me and that is why I raised it the half star rating.

This book provided exactly what I wanted from it. I didn't have to think about it as I went on an entertaining adventure with established characters from an established universe. And it did it better than the majority of media tie-in novels. If you are looking for a new adventure from these characters this book definitely provides it.

[Trudi · Rating 3 out of 5]

For a tie-in novel, this one is pretty damn good. It turned out to be an excellent choice for my October reads. It's chock full of schlock, B-movie horror monsters and there are a few scenes that had me cringing and gagging The lady with a belly full of bugs who had them crawling up her throat and out of her mouth just about did me in. The attack of the rats scene was sublimely bloody and creepy.

The writers for Supernatural the TV show are masters when it comes to presenting a ghoulish, creepy Monster of the Week. Author Passarella takes that formula and runs with it, giving readers a real monster-mash of just about every monster you could think of -- including Nazi zombies!!! I heard a spoilery rumor recently that this season may feature Nazi zombies, which makes me wonder if this tie-in novel will actually get adapted. I think it would make an awesome episode (who doesn't want to see Nazi zombies??? I do! I do!)

The one drawback for the book is that there just wasn't enough Winchester brothers, and what there is felt a little forced and stale. Still a great bit of fun though!

October Country 2011 #1

[Ivy · Rating 5 out of 5]

A very enjoyable story. Nice to see Dean, Sam, and Bobby again. Would not want to live in this world though. Little too weird for my taste.

Would recommend for anyone who is a fan of Supernatural or fantasy novels.

[RealmsQueen · Rating 2 out of 5]

As a rabid Supernatural fan, it is pretty much required for me to like this book. And don't get me wrong, I did enjoy it, there were just a few things off that make it 'okay' rather than 'good' or 'great'.

First off it took a little while to get to the meat of the story and figure out exactly what was causing the kerfuffle this time around.

This I think is mostly because it didn't really follow the flow of the show or the other books.

See, normally when people are dying around them and they realize they're stumped as to what's going on, Sam and Dean are a little bit quicker on the uptake to contact Bobby, figure out what's what, and ...y'know...SAVE LIVES!

I swear half of the people who died in the books could have been saved if they got off their butt faster....

Aside from that, it was a good story. Interesting concept. Nightmares are coming to life in small town USA and of course Sam and Dean need to save the day.

Not as good as the other books, but worth adding to your collection if you're a fan.

[Dana · Rating 4 out of 5]

One of the best Supernatural tie-in novels I have read. Passarella actually nailed Dean and Sam's voices. And any author that can have me almost too horrified to keep reading while throwing around references to "Dead Snow" and steampunk is pretty awesome.

[Hazi · Rating 2 out of 5]

Not my favorite Supernatural tie-in. I can't put my finger on it but it was more like someone using Sam and Dean in a story than someone actually writing a Supernatural story.

[Addy · Rating 4 out of 5]

Supernatural may have been on TV for fifteen seasons, but if that was not enough content for you, there are novel tie-ins! I was so amused to see that such a book existed that I picked it up, and I can indeed report that it reads like an episode of the show.
Once I got past the fact that I was reading published Supernatural fanfiction, I quite enjoyed myself. The pacing was good, and followed the structure of the show, and the mystery of what was haunting the town of Clayton Falls, Colorado kept me engaged until the end (and kept me reading late into the night). The bonus of reading an episode in novel form was that the side characters got to be more fleshed out, so in addition to rooting for Sam and Dean, there were other characters that we met for this one story that I had a vested interest in their survival.
Another reason I personally enjoyed reading this book is that it was very Stephen King-esque, and we know that I am a massive King fan. This book felt very "Under the Dome" to me, which is one of my favorite King books due to the small town where everyone knows each other and the impact of a haunting/supernatural event feels more personal because of these connections. John Pasarella also channeled King in his disturbing imagery and descriptions of the nightmares these people experienced. There was one character in particular whose nightmare might become mine with the vivid picture that was invited into my brain. I do think the character I am thinking of, along with a number of other bit characters suffered from pretty terrible fates that almost felt exploitative and unnecessary, but it certainly did rachet up the tension in the final one hundred or so pages.
I quite enjoyed my read of this book. The Stephen King horror elements, and the elements of the Supernatural TV show both were strong. Sam and Dean had their banter, the times where Bobby made an appearance were written exactly in his voice. I think this is a compelling tie-in, and a worthy standalone horror novel.

[Matt Spaulding · Rating 5 out of 5]

Easily the best one of these books so far. Not only did it capture the spirit of the show well with a good story and plenty of good horror, but it does something the last few books failed miserably at: stands almost entirely on its own without utilizing too much material from the season of the show it takes place in. It's always been my opinion if you are going to have books that tie in to an ongoing series of movies or shows that those stories should stand mostly on their own so you don't have to remember too many details from something you might not have seen in a bit. This book does that wonderfully with only a smidgen of the season it's set in injected into the main plot. I can only hole the rest of the books going forward are so good.

[Varduhi Hovhannisyan · Rating 1 out of 5]

Ափսոս ավելի ցածր գնահատական չկա, գիրքը հնարավոր է որպես սովորական պատմություն միջին որակի գործ լինի, բայց սա SPN ֆանֆիկ անվանելը հանցագործություն է

[Brandi · Rating 2 out of 5]

Ugh. While I loved the premise of this book - something is causing people's nightmares to enter the waking world - I hated the way it was written. It kept jumping to new characters' perspectives so that it was impossible to gain any kind of reading momentum. I just didn't care what happened, because I didn't care about any of these characters you only knew for one short chapter - or if, when they did reappear much later in the book, I had no idea who they were because I'd met 20 other characters since they'd been introduced. As painful as this reading experience was, I'm sort of grateful, because now I legitimately can't wait to begin reading books for my dissertation again...

[Stepha]

Like the other Supernatural books, it mirrored the show very well. There were some parts that were a little creepy. Its a quick very enjoyable read. I look forward to more of the books.

[Julianna Wagar · Rating 3 out of 5]

This book was just no. If you like the TV show just stick to that cuz like no. I gave it 3 stars cuz I love Sam and Dean but like otherwise.....

[Kim Bergshoeff · Rating 3 out of 5]

A little light on the brotherly banter but the story was good.

[Leeann · Rating 4 out of 5]

Very great story. I love how its like a bonus episode of the show. I also love how both Sam and Dean are written really well to how they are in the show.

[Laurie · Rating 4 out of 5]

3.5

One of the better tie-in novels so far! Passarella's a good writer and definitely a good horror writer. This guy knows how to make up the creepiest things and to sell them on paper very well. I'll admit, some of the things were a bit over-the-top. (I mean, the guy with the spider really should have died earlier. And I'm pretty sure a human body doesn't get smashed to mush by a car that easily. Twice.) But everything considered, it was a great reading experience. In fact, the first night was so thrilling that near the end of it, I could practically feel some of Sam and Dean's exhaustion. It was a lot - in a good way.

Speaking of Sam and Dean, I thought the author handled their characters very well, as well as their dynamic. Wouldn't have minded Cas making an appearance though!! I also liked the more important side characters and wouldn't have minded if they had been fleshed out a little more. That being said, there are a too many side characters. I honestly couldn't remember who was who at some point. And I've read this book in less than a week, so it's not like it wasn't fresh in my memory. Especially towards the end, Passarella could have easily left out some of the parts from their perspectives. I think that was the only time during this book I got a little bored.

I also really liked the monster of the week, and the fact that it's something we don't see in the show. It added some mystery and urgency to the story as you try to put together the very few pieces the characters get while this thing is wreaking enormous havoc. This was definitely a hard case to crack for the Winchesters, which was nice because the show never has the time for that.

[Carol · Rating 3 out of 5]

If you’ve watched the TV series, Supernatural you’ll recognize the Winchester brothers Sam and Dean even though there isn’t much of them throughout the story and that brought the rating down for me. This is the author of many of the “Buffy” novels also so I thought how much “off” the TV show can it be? The characters were well written and very much like the TV show but as I said they were almost absent in body, I love Supernatural, the TV show and own all the DVD’s but if you are a fan that prefers horror over gore you might want to venture into this one with a spoon-full of caution.

[Heather · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.5 STARS

Full Review: http://heathersreadinghideaway.blogsp...

Quick Review: This was a lot of fun and I really enjoyed it. The characters felt like they should, the story seemed similar to one we'd see in the show, and I was really entertained. I did have some issues with the writing and the fact that I wasn't completely hooked. If I put the book down it took a lot of will power to pick it back up, even if I wasn't hating it. Overall though, a lot of fun.

[Alan · Rating 5 out of 5]

Definitely one of the best written books in the SN series. Passarella really nailed the brothers and the feel for a SN monster-of-the-week episode. I'm looking forward to reading his other entries in the series. However, the book had one fault. It was too long. While it's about a town plagued by all sorts of crazy goings on, it got to a point where there were chapters of the crazed events that never came into play in the story, that Sam and Dean never witnessed. These unnecessary additions made the book feel more like James Herbert disaster novel (The Fog, The Dark) and not as much a SN episode

[Hannah Marae · Rating 4 out of 5]

Okay, this is one of the good tie-ins! Thank god! xD
Sam was Sam. Dean was Dean. The monster was scary and the mystery well-paced. But, umm, it's actually really really creepy. It had me cringing more than once. The scope is, as usual, a little bigger than I usually expect from a monster-hunting Supernatural episode, but it tends to work well in the books. This is no exception. And it's absolutely worth the read!

Merged review:

Okay, this is one of the good tie-ins! Thank god! xD
Sam was Sam. Dean was Dean. The monster was scary and the mystery well-paced. But, umm, it's actually really really creepy. It had me cringing more than once. The scope is, as usual, a little bigger than I usually expect from a monster-hunting Supernatural episode, but it tends to work well in the books. This is no exception. And it's absolutely worth the read!

[David · Rating 4 out of 5]

Pudding!

[ceren · Rating 4 out of 5]

bir önceki kitap o kadar sıkıcıydı ki bu kitap rüya gibi geldi

[Megan Farve · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was the darkest book of the series so far. There was so much death and destruction. The storyline even gave me weird dreams (which is not surprising for a book about nightmares). It was a good read, but probably not a great one to read before bed!

[Horror DNA · Rating 3 out of 5]

Taking place during season six (of the TV show), between the episodes Frontierland and Mommy Dearest, Supernatural: Night Terror finds the Winchester brothers in Clayton Falls, Colorado, investigating a strange series of events. The town drunk claims a giant Gila Monster chased him into a dumpster, then mysteriously disappeared. A group of kids are hunted down by a headless horseman, then one is mowed down by a driverless car. Giant spiders hunt down human prey, a Nazi zombie invasion threatens, giant sinkholes appear out of nowhere and more. The boys certainly have their hands full with this one, and they need to hurry to find the cause because things are escalating by the hour.

You can read Steve's full review at Horror DNA by clicking here.

[Emily G · Rating 4 out of 5]

I really liked this book, the pace was good and I liked the story, plus the characterisations of Sam and Dean were fine, so what is the 'but' I hear you ask? Well, it is that the boys are firefighting until a good three quarters of the way through the book, which is when they actually seem to decide doing some research to find the monster responsible might be a good idea, so that they can put a stop to the night terrors coming real. Also, Bobby doesn't seem to give them much help or advice considering he put them onto this hunt. Lastly, way too many people know monsters are real at the end.

I hope I haven't put you off if you are considering reading this, as it is not a bad SPN novelisation by any stretch of the imagination!

[Christian · Rating 1 out of 5]

The one thing about cannon books is the writer has to return the main characters back to their original condition before the book started. So, you may ask yourself, why do we read cannon? My answer is that i want to see main character development that goes beyond the 40 or so minutes every week. Unfortunately, this book doesnt even try to develop anything. it masks the monster of the week with trival dreams had by many. so many in fact, one would never personally get involved with the story. Its a waste of time. The only person i felt passion for was Lucy whom i will never see again. Dean and Sam did nothing to develop their own journeys.

[Kristen · Rating 3 out of 5]

Well, if you've ever watched a monster-of-the-week episode and thought, gosh, these episodes go by too fast... I wish they could take like, TEN TIMES as long to solve one, then this is the book for you. It is very much like watching an episode played in slow motion. That said, it's a fairly good episode, the characterization is largely on point, and I admit I've willingly read a lot worse. In brief, not as good as seasons 4 or 5, but still better than the Leviathan season.

[Elo · Rating 3 out of 5]

It was ok but not much development or anything really personal for the characters, which is always one of the main attraction for me to read "canon" novels.

[Brian McCullar · Rating 4 out of 5]

I'm pushing forward with my journey through Supernatural's tie-in novels and Night Terror is EASILY among the best so far!

To start things out, this novel takes place during Season 6 after Sam gets his soul back but before the wall comes crumbling down, and has our boys investigating strange deaths in a town called Clayton Falls, but quickly find that the reports of the threats they're facing to be unusual, even by their standards. Giant Gila monsters, headless horsemen and a killer Camino without a driver, and all within the same night no less, and it leaves the boys scratching theirs heads over what might be responsible the entire book, which was a joy.

As time pushes on, more and more crazy things begin to happen all over town, including a giant red-kneed tarantula, massive sinkholes and, wait for it, Nazi zombies. Yup, before we meet the Thule too, which is fun. Naturally this has the boys continuing to scramble for what it might be, and even Bobby isn't able to dig up much based on the information they have. In fact, the Monster of the Week is discovered so late, that I can't even mention what it is without it being a big spoiler. What I can say, however, is that it's a very obscure and unique monster from Polish folklore, which I found to be a huge breath of fresh air, and that's one of my favorite things about these tie-in novels, many of them are able to pull from entirely unheard of, or less heard of, legends and bring them to life in a way that the show couldn't do, usually due to budget limitations.

The portrayal of the boys and other known characters is honestly very true to the show, and I found nearly all of their dialogue choices, mannerisms and behavior to be basically spot on. I found the idea of Sam struggling with that unknown evil version of himself to have been well realized here, and especially well executed due to the nightmarish themes of the book.

This book also might EASILY have the highest kill count for a standard monster the series has seen so far, books or TV show. It's honestly insane just how many people die in this book, before Sam and Dean are able to kill the thing causing all the problems, and it REALLY helped to fuel the high stakes at play. I mean, the boys were frantic and grief stricken by the time things were all said and done, which really helped to deliver a more emotional impact I feel.

I wish I could say more but, doing so would risk too many spoilers for this one, just know that, so far, it's probably the second best Supernatural tie-in novel, only behind Coyote's Kiss. I give it 4.5 out of 5 for Supernatural fans!

Wanna check out my other Supernatural book reviews? Check em out below!

Nevermore: https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...

Witch's Canyon: https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...

Bone Key: https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...

Heart of the Dragon: https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...

The Unholy Cause: https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...

War of the Sons: https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...

One Year Gone: https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...

Coyote's Kiss: https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...

Men of Letters Bestiary: https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...

[Crow NoYami · Rating 1 out of 5]

I want to start off by saying I don't like giving bad reviews, I don't. However this book was painful to get through. I ended up reading this book out loud and not only did I find the punctuation incorrect and lacking, (OMG use a comma normal people have to breathe) the EXTREME over usage of the words 'said' and 'asked' was irritating to say the least. I spent most of the book cringing (and not from the actual monsters) while reading. Even the acknowledgements didn't make sense, one minute he's thanking someone for answering Supernatural trivia for him (which does explain why he says Dean and Sam -constantly- and not Sam and Dean) but then goes on to say how much of a fan he is of the series and waits for it each week.

Overall the plot wasn't bad, however the monster of the week made me feel awkward as her 'feeding' seemed sexual with the way it was described which made it very uncomfortable while reading. Now perhaps the issue isn't the incorrect and over usage of some words but in fact due to me reading it out loud, if so I apologize as perhaps I wouldn't have noticed that every piece of dialogue had 'said' or 'asked' if I was reading it inside my head. I do have to say that the actual plotline was good, I did enjoy the idea of the monster that was created and some of the original characters who were added. It also did not focus on sex like the book previous in the Supernatural series.

I do have to say that I nearly cried when I noticed that the same author wrote the next in the series which I will start reading tomorrow, silently to see if it makes a difference. I hope it does. Also my sister who was the one I was reading it to would like me to add that she believed the story: "Sucked and was too long, and used said too much." she's 12 so take that how you will. My mother who was the one to introduce me to reading listened to me read the story for a few chapters and "wished it would be over soon."

It could be my own reading however that was the issue so I do look forward to seeing if the next book is any better. Like I said at the start of this review I don't like leaving bad reviews, as a writer (not published... yet) it makes me cringe and feel horrible. Bottom line, if you want this book to complete your Supernatural collection go ahead, I'll still have mine on my shelf. If you want to pick it up as a random read? Maybe start with something else if new to the Supernatural fandom... like Bobby Singer's Guide to Hunting, or even the first of the series Nevermore. Do I regret buying it? No it looks good with the rest of the series... I simply regret opening it.

[Cassandra · Rating 4 out of 5]

Why is it that these books kill way more people than the show, I'll never complain about carnage but wow these writers love killing people. I liked the way this author wrote Sam and Dean's characters as they seemed authentic so that was a plus. Add to the no "Mary Sue" in this book and I was stoked. The only thing that bothered me was how many times the monster of the week kept getting away from the boys, usually they see it, maybe miss it once, then gank it. Yet the author made them chase this one for chapters and it got kind of tedious at the end. Then add to it all the nasty and really horrifying ways the secondary characters kicked it and even I was thinking "this is a little gross". Also how did people not realize this "nightmare coming to life" scenario was real? Were people really this accepting of things like Nazi zombies and giant spiders just popping up and killing people that they were like "chemical warfare, hallucinations, okay". I'm sorry, but if I see a guy half trapped in cement with his upper half MELTED BY A FREAKING ACIDIC SPIDER BITE I'm getting the heck out of town and cancelling my mail. And yet again they get Dean five seconds away from getting laid and boom girl's killed by super Nazi zombie (I'm a Dean girl okay, any chance he can get to be remotely happy I will defend to death, even if the girl ate a salad instead of a burger). I know this whole review is me complaining again but I really love this show and when people write books about them I expect them to be at least as good as some of the novice fanfiction I see on AO3 man. It's seems like this author at least watches the show even if its only a few episodes. Now I'm done complaining! All in all a good characterization of the Winchesters without sacrificing the plot.