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Things have changed.
For John Hawthorne and his companions, finished at last with their long drive north, there’s a feeling that wasn’t there before, a warmth both familiar and hard to define.
For Gregory Fleck and the Flashlighters, spurred through nightmarish city streets and treacherous mountain passes in pursuit of revenge, the world has become a savage place – cold, hopeless, and brimming with horrors.
Things have changed.
And in the darkened wilderness of the Wyoming Range, as winter closes in around his brother’s cabin and old wounds threaten to reopen, John must choose between the family he has found and the blood that waits for him—sleeping and awake—in a blue house by the Atlantic Ocean.
Lily is the sixth and final volume in the first 'season' of the Nightmareland Chronicles, an ongoing serialized adventure horror epic following one man's journey to reach his estranged daughter in a world claimed by eternal night.
For John Hawthorne and his companions, finished at last with their long drive north, there’s a feeling that wasn’t there before, a warmth both familiar and hard to define.
For Gregory Fleck and the Flashlighters, spurred through nightmarish city streets and treacherous mountain passes in pursuit of revenge, the world has become a savage place – cold, hopeless, and brimming with horrors.
Things have changed.
And in the darkened wilderness of the Wyoming Range, as winter closes in around his brother’s cabin and old wounds threaten to reopen, John must choose between the family he has found and the blood that waits for him—sleeping and awake—in a blue house by the Atlantic Ocean.
Lily is the sixth and final volume in the first 'season' of the Nightmareland Chronicles, an ongoing serialized adventure horror epic following one man's journey to reach his estranged daughter in a world claimed by eternal night.
477 pages, Kindle Edition
Published January 18, 2022
4 people are currently reading
119 people want to read
About the author
Daniel Barnett
15 books257 followersDaniel Barnett lives in Portland, Oregon and is a lover of stories--especially ones where things go bump in the night. His work has appeared in Crowded Magazine, and his short story The Sadie Hawkins placed in the top 6 for the 2015 Aeon Award. When he isn't writing or reading, he's discussing fiction with others. Whether they want to or not.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 43 reviews
July 25, 2022
Being a moderator of the wonderful Horror Aficionados group here on Goodreads has been a lot of fun over the years; especially these last 6 months, for which we've been hosting group reads of the 6 books that comprise the Nightmareland Chronicles. This month we read this, the final, (for now), novel in the series. This is the one that blew my head off, like that scene from Scanners!
Here are the answers to most of the questions raised in volumes 1-5. Here, we learn more about John, his children, his brother and his father. All caught up in there, we learned about the family wolves and why there is a wolf featured on this awesome cover by Daniele Serra.
I'm not going to say anything further about the plot. This series does need to be read in order, and as far as I'm concerned? You should get going on that, ASAP!
*I received a paperback copy of Lily in exchange for my honest feedback. This is it!*
Here are the answers to most of the questions raised in volumes 1-5. Here, we learn more about John, his children, his brother and his father. All caught up in there, we learned about the family wolves and why there is a wolf featured on this awesome cover by Daniele Serra.
I'm not going to say anything further about the plot. This series does need to be read in order, and as far as I'm concerned? You should get going on that, ASAP!
*I received a paperback copy of Lily in exchange for my honest feedback. This is it!*
August 2, 2022
Lily was a fantastic final addition to the Nightmareland Chronicles! We have one more season to go and I am looking forward to the journey.
As John, Mariah and Marcos are heading to Wyoming, the Flashlighters are fast on their tails. As the journey takes both groups from Provo, Utah to the wilderness of Wyoming, each group faces nightmares and horrors that are creepy and unknown!
This book will gut you. If you’ve read the first five books in this series, be prepared to have this addition slam you over the head with tension, heartbreak and maybe a smidgen of hope at the end.
Daniel Barnett has done a fantastic job of writing this series and I'm so excited for the second season of this!
As John, Mariah and Marcos are heading to Wyoming, the Flashlighters are fast on their tails. As the journey takes both groups from Provo, Utah to the wilderness of Wyoming, each group faces nightmares and horrors that are creepy and unknown!
This book will gut you. If you’ve read the first five books in this series, be prepared to have this addition slam you over the head with tension, heartbreak and maybe a smidgen of hope at the end.
Daniel Barnett has done a fantastic job of writing this series and I'm so excited for the second season of this!
December 15, 2021
I was sent an ARC by the author for an honest review! This book was an amazing EMOTIONAL end to the first arc of Nightmareland Chronicles. It is rare that a series captures my imagination and works it’s way straight into my soul. What Barnett has achieved here is nothing short of brilliant. Lily has action, emotion, terror, and thrills to spare. Most of all though it has HEART! I am still floored by the reveals and consequences that pay out in the sixth volume of the series.
I have said it before and I will say it again. Daniel Barnett is a mad genius and the undiscovered star of the horror community.
Lily is a love song and a labor of love. I cannot recommend this book and entire series enough. Please do yourself a favor and pre-order the ENTIRE series.
I have said it before and I will say it again. Daniel Barnett is a mad genius and the undiscovered star of the horror community.
Lily is a love song and a labor of love. I cannot recommend this book and entire series enough. Please do yourself a favor and pre-order the ENTIRE series.
August 31, 2021
"All the best stories have hope, Marcos, and don't listen to anyone who tries to tell you otherwise."
LILY, the sixth and final book in the first season of the Nightmareland Chronicles, a series that follows one man's epic journey to reach his daughter after the world has been cast into eternal darkness (and horror).
Our small band of characters have finally reached their first goal: making it North to the home of John's brother, Marshall. What he finds there is so absolutely unexpected - for all involved.
"But who you are isn't always such a great distance from who you could become."
In addition, the Flashlighters intent on seeking revenge on John Hawthorne are also trekking North, experiencing savage nightmares that will forever leave their mark.
When I tell you I thought I knew what the book was going to hold, I couldn't have been any further from what took place. I experienced so many emotions: love, warmth, joy, understanding, fear, horror, sadness, tragedy.
"When you set yourself to violence, it is already done."
As winter starts moving in, John is faced with the heartbreaking decision of leaving those he loves behind in favor of the family he hasn't seen in many, many years. Will he choose to finally let go of his past and embrace a future where he can find happiness? Or will the blood he shares with his daughter call him to the little blue house by the Atlantic Ocean?
The best compliment I could ever give to the first season of the Nightmareland Chronicles is this: It is the ending that I hope Roland chose on his 20th time down the path to The Dark Tower.
LILY, the sixth and final book in the first season of the Nightmareland Chronicles, a series that follows one man's epic journey to reach his daughter after the world has been cast into eternal darkness (and horror).
Our small band of characters have finally reached their first goal: making it North to the home of John's brother, Marshall. What he finds there is so absolutely unexpected - for all involved.
"But who you are isn't always such a great distance from who you could become."
In addition, the Flashlighters intent on seeking revenge on John Hawthorne are also trekking North, experiencing savage nightmares that will forever leave their mark.
When I tell you I thought I knew what the book was going to hold, I couldn't have been any further from what took place. I experienced so many emotions: love, warmth, joy, understanding, fear, horror, sadness, tragedy.
"When you set yourself to violence, it is already done."
As winter starts moving in, John is faced with the heartbreaking decision of leaving those he loves behind in favor of the family he hasn't seen in many, many years. Will he choose to finally let go of his past and embrace a future where he can find happiness? Or will the blood he shares with his daughter call him to the little blue house by the Atlantic Ocean?
The best compliment I could ever give to the first season of the Nightmareland Chronicles is this: It is the ending that I hope Roland chose on his 20th time down the path to The Dark Tower.
December 25, 2021
Utterly brilliant, completely heartbreaking, totally masterful - this is the perfect end to the first series of the Nightmareland series, we get answers to questions, we have a battle for survival, we have many roads intersecting but above all else we have an end to something, a jumping off point for the next books in the series.
I messaged Daniel midway through the book and called him a son of a bitch, because he’d moved me in such a way with his words and his gripping story, I then read on and started to forgive Barnett, but then something happened and I’ll never forgive him, NEVER - for what he did to me both to my heart and mind!
Barnett is a master of words and this is him firing on all cylinders - with Lily he has the additional word count to play with, it’s a Tome compared to the other books and he wields his undeniable skill as a raconteur like an axe, again and again he hits us with his brilliance and leaves us the the bathroom door in the Shining - splintered and broken and in need of repair.
Take the journey, you’ll be broken and bruised but what’s the point of living if you don’t experience the pain with the pleasure… also beware of Mr Horns…. and be careful what you wish for!
I messaged Daniel midway through the book and called him a son of a bitch, because he’d moved me in such a way with his words and his gripping story, I then read on and started to forgive Barnett, but then something happened and I’ll never forgive him, NEVER - for what he did to me both to my heart and mind!
Barnett is a master of words and this is him firing on all cylinders - with Lily he has the additional word count to play with, it’s a Tome compared to the other books and he wields his undeniable skill as a raconteur like an axe, again and again he hits us with his brilliance and leaves us the the bathroom door in the Shining - splintered and broken and in need of repair.
Take the journey, you’ll be broken and bruised but what’s the point of living if you don’t experience the pain with the pleasure… also beware of Mr Horns…. and be careful what you wish for!
February 21, 2022
UHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH my heart. MY HEART!!!
Throwing away every flashlight I own.
And crying forever.
Daniel Barnett has taken us to the end of the first season in his serial novels known as the Nightmareland Chronicles. It has been quite the journey, too! In the sixth installment, LILY, we get a lot of closure but we are also left wondering what's next. If you read the acknowledgements then you will see that it is as good of a stopping place/pause/cliffhanger as we are going to get.
A lot of stuff goes down in Lily. A LOT. It's quite the chonker of a book. One thing Barnett does so well in this one (as he does in prior installments but this one is on another level) is really pulling the reader into the story. We are part of this team now. We have lived with these people and care about them, their past struggles, their current journey, etc. He does this through thoughtful conversations and deep internal thoughts.
As always, the setting around our main characters also plays out like a character itself, giving us a different perspective of what is going on. The writing is just so rich with details that I truly felt like I was in this book.
It's still difficult to put this review into words, especially with it being the 6th book in the series. But something about this one just hits different. It's beautifully executed. THIS IS A MASTERPIECE!
Throwing away every flashlight I own.
And crying forever.
Daniel Barnett has taken us to the end of the first season in his serial novels known as the Nightmareland Chronicles. It has been quite the journey, too! In the sixth installment, LILY, we get a lot of closure but we are also left wondering what's next. If you read the acknowledgements then you will see that it is as good of a stopping place/pause/cliffhanger as we are going to get.
A lot of stuff goes down in Lily. A LOT. It's quite the chonker of a book. One thing Barnett does so well in this one (as he does in prior installments but this one is on another level) is really pulling the reader into the story. We are part of this team now. We have lived with these people and care about them, their past struggles, their current journey, etc. He does this through thoughtful conversations and deep internal thoughts.
As always, the setting around our main characters also plays out like a character itself, giving us a different perspective of what is going on. The writing is just so rich with details that I truly felt like I was in this book.
It's still difficult to put this review into words, especially with it being the 6th book in the series. But something about this one just hits different. It's beautifully executed. THIS IS A MASTERPIECE!
July 12, 2025
This series is amazing, simple as. Phenomenal cliff hanger ending for the series. We still have to wait for the next installments. :'(
December 26, 2022
I give a 4-star rating to the Nightmareland Chronicles series as a whole. Keep up the good work young Daniel Barnett 😉
With kudos to Italian artist Daniele Serra for his stunning covers 👏
(https://www.danieleserra.com)
Waiting for season 2 to arrive ...
With kudos to Italian artist Daniele Serra for his stunning covers 👏
(https://www.danieleserra.com)
Waiting for season 2 to arrive ...
July 18, 2022
Although this book was almost twice as long as the first 5 books in the series, I could not stop reading it. I had the honor of being in a discussion group with Mr. Daniel Barnett, and he had told us right along that there would be resolution to many, but not all, the questions raised by the first book. And he came through in (almost) the most painful and devastating way possible. Well done and i will be looking forward to the next books in the series.
January 23, 2022
Once you have entered the world that is The Nightmareland Chronicles, there's no going back.
From book one we are thrust into a world where the sun has disappeared and the night reigns supreme. Actual nightmares come to life and terrorize what remains of the human population. Lily is the sixth book in this deadly series and it doesn't disappoint.
The writing style that I fell in love with in book one continues to hypnotize me. It provides a good amount of detail without feeling like you're being spoon fed information.
As for the plot? Oh, it thickens alright. Tensions are raised even higher between our characters and they're forced to make some hard hitting choices. You’ll be kept guessing at every turn of the page.
I apologize for being rather vague in my review but it's just one of those books that you have to experience every twist and turn for yourself.
What I can tell you is that Lily made me FEEL any and every emotion there is. I highly suggest you read this during the day time. Otherwise, your worst nightmares may come true.
I want to give a big thank you to the author who provided an ARC in exchange for an honest review. So far one of my favorite books I’ve read in 2022. Now if you’ll excuse me, I need to go talk to my therapist about fictional trauma inflicted on fictional characters and how that makes me feel.
From book one we are thrust into a world where the sun has disappeared and the night reigns supreme. Actual nightmares come to life and terrorize what remains of the human population. Lily is the sixth book in this deadly series and it doesn't disappoint.
The writing style that I fell in love with in book one continues to hypnotize me. It provides a good amount of detail without feeling like you're being spoon fed information.
As for the plot? Oh, it thickens alright. Tensions are raised even higher between our characters and they're forced to make some hard hitting choices. You’ll be kept guessing at every turn of the page.
I apologize for being rather vague in my review but it's just one of those books that you have to experience every twist and turn for yourself.
What I can tell you is that Lily made me FEEL any and every emotion there is. I highly suggest you read this during the day time. Otherwise, your worst nightmares may come true.
I want to give a big thank you to the author who provided an ARC in exchange for an honest review. So far one of my favorite books I’ve read in 2022. Now if you’ll excuse me, I need to go talk to my therapist about fictional trauma inflicted on fictional characters and how that makes me feel.
October 11, 2022
What Barnett has done with the Nightmareland Chronicles is nothing short of beautiful and heartbreaking. Yes, it’s a horror series. Sure, there are actual monsters and nightmares and even a demon. But at it’s core this is a horror story and series built upon the fact that the worst monsters are what lies buried in the hearts of man. And “Lily” takes that to the next level and leaves you feeling breathless, crushed, and heartbroken all while also leaving you wanting more.
If you’ve read through the series you’ll likely be nursing a book hangover, the best book hangover - the kind you get from enjoying a book(series) that is SO enjoyable that everything you think about reading next pales in comparison to what you just finished… at least in your mind… because Lily gives us a damn near PERFECT ending to a damn near PERFECT series.
To see more of my thoughts on this book you'll have to check the review at:
https://storyphoria.substack.com/
If you’ve read through the series you’ll likely be nursing a book hangover, the best book hangover - the kind you get from enjoying a book(series) that is SO enjoyable that everything you think about reading next pales in comparison to what you just finished… at least in your mind… because Lily gives us a damn near PERFECT ending to a damn near PERFECT series.
To see more of my thoughts on this book you'll have to check the review at:
https://storyphoria.substack.com/
January 16, 2022
LILY, the sixth installment of the Nightmareland Chronicles, is now my favorite in what I believe to be one of the greatest horror series ever written, even though this one totally crushed me. If you've read it, you know what I'm talking about; if you haven't, you'll see what I mean. I can't wait to visit the places Barnett takes us next. Unconditional recommendation.
December 26, 2021
It’s great to know just how long this series may go because it allows me to emphasize the word “yet” when I say things like this entry is Barnett’s best yet. So readers, let me once again tell you that the latest installment in Daniel Barnett’s Nightmareland series, Lily, is the strongest part of the story. Yet.
Barnett offers up a 450 page behemoth that manages to do a lot of things at once. Firstly, it brings the first season of the chronicles to a satisfactory conclusion. Don’t read too much into that word. There’s still a long way to go here, but Lily succeeds in tying up some threads while highlighting others, teasing what’s to come without resorting to cheap cliffhangers. Lily also works as the sixth volume in a series where each book stands on its own, while also feeling like a slice of something larger.
The character development is master-class level. We’ve spent about 700 pages with John, Mariah, and Marcos before Lily enters the fray. While there was still more to unpack, Barnett allows us to fall in love with these characters even further, paying off in a major league way. The addition of Marshall and Isaac bring a touch of incisive heart, and this group spends a lot of the runtime playing brilliantly off each other.
The format of the story, switching back and forth between John’s group and the remaining Flashlighters has a feel of inevitability reminiscent of King’s The Dead Zone. The audience has no choice but watch the two vehicles draw closer, knowing the collision is imminent but unable to look away.
The third act is massive, it’s cinematic, and it’s emotional, although that word suddenly seems too small for the moment. That character development we talked about earlier? The branch that makes these characters that dwell in our imagination truly come alive, that’s what makes this final confrontation feel dangerous and forces the reader to finish the book from the edge of their seats. I could wax poetic on the intricacies and successes of the last one hundred pages, but if you’ve let Barnett lead you this far, you deserve to discover the magic yourself.
Nightmareland continues to cement itself as one of the greatest horror series of all time. If that sounds like hyperbole, it’s because you haven’t read it yet. I’m thrilled to have ridden this rollercoaster up to this point, and I’m waiting with baited breath to see where we’re going next. Lily is a special book and one of the best of 2021.
Barnett offers up a 450 page behemoth that manages to do a lot of things at once. Firstly, it brings the first season of the chronicles to a satisfactory conclusion. Don’t read too much into that word. There’s still a long way to go here, but Lily succeeds in tying up some threads while highlighting others, teasing what’s to come without resorting to cheap cliffhangers. Lily also works as the sixth volume in a series where each book stands on its own, while also feeling like a slice of something larger.
The character development is master-class level. We’ve spent about 700 pages with John, Mariah, and Marcos before Lily enters the fray. While there was still more to unpack, Barnett allows us to fall in love with these characters even further, paying off in a major league way. The addition of Marshall and Isaac bring a touch of incisive heart, and this group spends a lot of the runtime playing brilliantly off each other.
The format of the story, switching back and forth between John’s group and the remaining Flashlighters has a feel of inevitability reminiscent of King’s The Dead Zone. The audience has no choice but watch the two vehicles draw closer, knowing the collision is imminent but unable to look away.
The third act is massive, it’s cinematic, and it’s emotional, although that word suddenly seems too small for the moment. That character development we talked about earlier? The branch that makes these characters that dwell in our imagination truly come alive, that’s what makes this final confrontation feel dangerous and forces the reader to finish the book from the edge of their seats. I could wax poetic on the intricacies and successes of the last one hundred pages, but if you’ve let Barnett lead you this far, you deserve to discover the magic yourself.
Nightmareland continues to cement itself as one of the greatest horror series of all time. If that sounds like hyperbole, it’s because you haven’t read it yet. I’m thrilled to have ridden this rollercoaster up to this point, and I’m waiting with baited breath to see where we’re going next. Lily is a special book and one of the best of 2021.
January 17, 2022
This is why people read. Books like Lily. Books that knock your socks off. Books that excite you, scare you, fuck you up and leave you emotionally and physically drained.
The Nightmareland series has been reinforcing this expertise in my mind since its debut, Nightfall. What sets Lily apart from the volumes that came first? Well, for one, it’s the season one finale. What does that mean? The author, Daniel Barnett, has some twelve books planned, so this is the halfway point. There’s that, and there’s the way this particular volume comes to a goddamn cataclysmic conclusion. You’re going to be hurting after the hundred-page finale, I’ll warn you.
Of course, despite its natural stopping point, Lily is not the end for this series. It simply brings to the bridge to the next big journey. Sets up for the next big leap.
On that note, I’d like to point out the wonderful structure of the Nightmareland Chronicles. Despite its enormous size—we’ve already had over 1200 pages from season one—this series manages to stay strong from one section to the next. Every volume has a beginning, middle, and end. Every volume has their “oh shit!” moments and heartbreak. Every volume features rich scenes and locations and characters. This is the kind of feat Stephen King and few others have accomplished with projects of this size. And we’re only halfway! Other than the King, I can’t think of any author that has thrown so much content in my face and gotten away with it being a fantastic fucking time!
Which leads me to a spotlight on the author. Daniel Barnett is an amazing storyteller. And not just a storyteller—he can fucking write, too. Believe it or not, there is a distinction. There are authors out there that can weave wonderful stories but are poor writers. Barnett is the whole package. He writes like a pro, someone with a stack of bestsellers under their belt. How the fuck he is still publishing independently is beyond me. I know horror isn’t a favored genre in mainstream publishing but come the fuck on. Take notice!
I apologize for my foul-mouthed review that will have to receive some deep edits for any hope of approval by Amazon. But I’m passionate about this writer and this series. I don’t know about you, but I don’t get passionate very easily about a book or a writer. I can love a writer and what they publish, but that’s not the same thing about getting passionate. The Nightmareland series is the coming of a mammoth and it excites the hell out of me. Lily is a wild and horrifying ride that will leave you broken, bruised, and—dare I say—eager for more? It will make you a masochist.
You’ll even crave Mr. Horns.
~ Review by Aiden Merchant (Publisher at Snow-Capped Press and author of Horrific Holidays and Sickness is in Season)
The Nightmareland series has been reinforcing this expertise in my mind since its debut, Nightfall. What sets Lily apart from the volumes that came first? Well, for one, it’s the season one finale. What does that mean? The author, Daniel Barnett, has some twelve books planned, so this is the halfway point. There’s that, and there’s the way this particular volume comes to a goddamn cataclysmic conclusion. You’re going to be hurting after the hundred-page finale, I’ll warn you.
Of course, despite its natural stopping point, Lily is not the end for this series. It simply brings to the bridge to the next big journey. Sets up for the next big leap.
On that note, I’d like to point out the wonderful structure of the Nightmareland Chronicles. Despite its enormous size—we’ve already had over 1200 pages from season one—this series manages to stay strong from one section to the next. Every volume has a beginning, middle, and end. Every volume has their “oh shit!” moments and heartbreak. Every volume features rich scenes and locations and characters. This is the kind of feat Stephen King and few others have accomplished with projects of this size. And we’re only halfway! Other than the King, I can’t think of any author that has thrown so much content in my face and gotten away with it being a fantastic fucking time!
Which leads me to a spotlight on the author. Daniel Barnett is an amazing storyteller. And not just a storyteller—he can fucking write, too. Believe it or not, there is a distinction. There are authors out there that can weave wonderful stories but are poor writers. Barnett is the whole package. He writes like a pro, someone with a stack of bestsellers under their belt. How the fuck he is still publishing independently is beyond me. I know horror isn’t a favored genre in mainstream publishing but come the fuck on. Take notice!
I apologize for my foul-mouthed review that will have to receive some deep edits for any hope of approval by Amazon. But I’m passionate about this writer and this series. I don’t know about you, but I don’t get passionate very easily about a book or a writer. I can love a writer and what they publish, but that’s not the same thing about getting passionate. The Nightmareland series is the coming of a mammoth and it excites the hell out of me. Lily is a wild and horrifying ride that will leave you broken, bruised, and—dare I say—eager for more? It will make you a masochist.
You’ll even crave Mr. Horns.
~ Review by Aiden Merchant (Publisher at Snow-Capped Press and author of Horrific Holidays and Sickness is in Season)
February 4, 2022
I think this is the first time I've read a series with 6 books and I've given every one of them 5 stars. The first time. And even being finished now and going back and thinking about books 1 and 2 and the others, I wouldn't change any of it. This journey with the survivors has been thrilling and horrifying and filling me with so much dread... it's also been so great. The characters are so real and so well-written that I am deeply affected by the things that happen to them. I feel what they are feeling and I want only good things for them because they are my friends. That is a sign of great writing and that is exactly what this series is. Great writing.
I tabbed up my book like crazy. Here are some of my favorite quotes:
"All the best stories have hope, Marcos, and don't listen to anyone who tries to tell you otherwise."
"This was the thing nobody ever told you about making the tough decisions, about taking responsibility. Once you started, you couldn't stop."
"Oftentimes, in running away, we find ourselves right where we started"
"It was a thing between us, a language of our own. It didn't need to make sense. It was right."
"It had been a good story, and when you found a good story, you carried it with you."
"They mean everything"
"Did pain ever find its true target, or was it just something people passed around because they didn't know what else to do with it?"
I tabbed up my book like crazy. Here are some of my favorite quotes:
"All the best stories have hope, Marcos, and don't listen to anyone who tries to tell you otherwise."
"This was the thing nobody ever told you about making the tough decisions, about taking responsibility. Once you started, you couldn't stop."
"Oftentimes, in running away, we find ourselves right where we started"
"It was a thing between us, a language of our own. It didn't need to make sense. It was right."
"It had been a good story, and when you found a good story, you carried it with you."
"They mean everything"
"Did pain ever find its true target, or was it just something people passed around because they didn't know what else to do with it?"
January 17, 2022
Well. What have I got to say about this one?
Lily, is, quite frankly, the capstone to an astonishing first half of an extraordinary series. Readers that have read the first 5 books will need no further incentive to read on, other than “Daniel wrote it”, so I feel it is incumbent on me to note that we are no longer “reviewing” the series, we are simply admiring it. I have given up on attempting to cherry-pick. The whole series is the cherry.
Standing alone, or put together in their collective whole, the concept of the series is as well-executed as the actual writing. It is not hyperbole, or misplaced admiration to say that one day, all series will be written like this. Let me clarify that for you: Daniel had the patience and foresight to wait with the release of his series. He wrote the first five books before releasing any of them and continued on with Lily as those books slowly came out. That enabled him to insert details, threads, foreshadowing, and character arcs through the length of the series – 6 books – arcs that sometimes took the entirety of all the books to complete. That shows enormous restraint and an innate understanding of story-telling. It rewards the reader that picks up on clues, mood, and obscure detail. It appeals to the depth of character that voracious readers crave. It lends his world credibility and provides consistency to the series.
This may well be the best “series” I have ever read.
My hesitancy there is not through lack of conviction. Barnett’s characters are superbly illustrated. Each character shines through individually. Character motivations, complexities, faults, graces – all are explored and given time on the page. All of the characters are fallible and are punished for those mistakes. All of the characters shine, and we, as readers, bask in their moments in the light. We wear the characters' emotions on our sleeves and are as traumatized and vilified as they are as Daniel leads them from one situation to the next.
So, my hesitancy, above, is not through lack of commitment to this series – it is due to knowing that this “review” might be read by a potential reader, years into the future. My words here are a moment in time, frozen in a maddeningly heartbreaking summation - of being halfway through an achievement that is – in my perspective – unprecedented, written in reflection – still in the shock and haze of having just finished Lily. “Just finished” being four days ago, and I am still processing the trauma and hope and pain of the book.
This review might be read by a person, in the future, that is looking ahead to the following 6 books in Daniel’s second half to his epos, already written, already lauded by his fans. And that second half, I have no doubt in stating, will be even more exemplary than this one. To clarify – I cannot say that this is the best series that I have ever read because, by the time the next six books are released, that may well be the best “series” I have ever read. In fact, I expect no less.
Daniel is an exceptional writer. The Nightmareland series is an exemplary achievement. That we are alive and here as it unfolds is, honestly, a privilege.
At the end of the book, Daniel asks us to be patient whilst he completes the remaining books, together, in the same process as these books were produced. I think I can speak for everyone when I say – absolutely. We’ll be here, salivating, ready to pounce on them with the same eagerness as we devoured the first six.
My last note – I read primarily on Kindle. I believe that we live in a digital age, and we should be doing everything we can to reduce our carbon footprint on the planet. Postage, printing, it all contributes to a process that is adding to an ongoing problem. Lily was – very kindly – sent to me as an ARC e-book, direct from Daniel, in return for an honest review.
Yet I ordered all of the books in paperback, to arrive the day after Lily is released (tomorrow). Why? Was it the outstanding covers from Daniel Sera (which add such a wonderful common thread to the series) that swayed me? Certainly, that had something to do with my somewhat inconsistent/hypercritical decision. Or just that I wanted to support a fellow Indie Author?
I think it more likely, as a writer, I wanted that example of commitment to his art, here, in my house. Staring at me every day as I write my own series. A physical reminder of getting something right, no matter the time required. To planning out, refining. A promise from the author to the reader to produce his best work.
And what of Lily as a single book, alone – what do I think of it in isolation?
Lily is as good as I could have wished it to be and as devastating and traumatic as I had feared.
I hope it breaks you, too.
All the stars. ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
P.S. - when are you going to come clean that it's Hal that's writing all the damn books, Daniel? Give the dog some credit.
YouTube review to follow.
Lily, is, quite frankly, the capstone to an astonishing first half of an extraordinary series. Readers that have read the first 5 books will need no further incentive to read on, other than “Daniel wrote it”, so I feel it is incumbent on me to note that we are no longer “reviewing” the series, we are simply admiring it. I have given up on attempting to cherry-pick. The whole series is the cherry.
Standing alone, or put together in their collective whole, the concept of the series is as well-executed as the actual writing. It is not hyperbole, or misplaced admiration to say that one day, all series will be written like this. Let me clarify that for you: Daniel had the patience and foresight to wait with the release of his series. He wrote the first five books before releasing any of them and continued on with Lily as those books slowly came out. That enabled him to insert details, threads, foreshadowing, and character arcs through the length of the series – 6 books – arcs that sometimes took the entirety of all the books to complete. That shows enormous restraint and an innate understanding of story-telling. It rewards the reader that picks up on clues, mood, and obscure detail. It appeals to the depth of character that voracious readers crave. It lends his world credibility and provides consistency to the series.
This may well be the best “series” I have ever read.
My hesitancy there is not through lack of conviction. Barnett’s characters are superbly illustrated. Each character shines through individually. Character motivations, complexities, faults, graces – all are explored and given time on the page. All of the characters are fallible and are punished for those mistakes. All of the characters shine, and we, as readers, bask in their moments in the light. We wear the characters' emotions on our sleeves and are as traumatized and vilified as they are as Daniel leads them from one situation to the next.
So, my hesitancy, above, is not through lack of commitment to this series – it is due to knowing that this “review” might be read by a potential reader, years into the future. My words here are a moment in time, frozen in a maddeningly heartbreaking summation - of being halfway through an achievement that is – in my perspective – unprecedented, written in reflection – still in the shock and haze of having just finished Lily. “Just finished” being four days ago, and I am still processing the trauma and hope and pain of the book.
This review might be read by a person, in the future, that is looking ahead to the following 6 books in Daniel’s second half to his epos, already written, already lauded by his fans. And that second half, I have no doubt in stating, will be even more exemplary than this one. To clarify – I cannot say that this is the best series that I have ever read because, by the time the next six books are released, that may well be the best “series” I have ever read. In fact, I expect no less.
Daniel is an exceptional writer. The Nightmareland series is an exemplary achievement. That we are alive and here as it unfolds is, honestly, a privilege.
At the end of the book, Daniel asks us to be patient whilst he completes the remaining books, together, in the same process as these books were produced. I think I can speak for everyone when I say – absolutely. We’ll be here, salivating, ready to pounce on them with the same eagerness as we devoured the first six.
My last note – I read primarily on Kindle. I believe that we live in a digital age, and we should be doing everything we can to reduce our carbon footprint on the planet. Postage, printing, it all contributes to a process that is adding to an ongoing problem. Lily was – very kindly – sent to me as an ARC e-book, direct from Daniel, in return for an honest review.
Yet I ordered all of the books in paperback, to arrive the day after Lily is released (tomorrow). Why? Was it the outstanding covers from Daniel Sera (which add such a wonderful common thread to the series) that swayed me? Certainly, that had something to do with my somewhat inconsistent/hypercritical decision. Or just that I wanted to support a fellow Indie Author?
I think it more likely, as a writer, I wanted that example of commitment to his art, here, in my house. Staring at me every day as I write my own series. A physical reminder of getting something right, no matter the time required. To planning out, refining. A promise from the author to the reader to produce his best work.
And what of Lily as a single book, alone – what do I think of it in isolation?
Lily is as good as I could have wished it to be and as devastating and traumatic as I had feared.
I hope it breaks you, too.
All the stars. ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
P.S. - when are you going to come clean that it's Hal that's writing all the damn books, Daniel? Give the dog some credit.
YouTube review to follow.
April 1, 2022
Well... What a ride...
The story is amazing, Daniele Serra's covers are incredible, but if there's something that makes this outstanding for me is Daniel Barnett's prose... I often found myself reading sentences over and over again.
And the characters.
These characters will stay with me for a long long time. They are complex, flawed, lovable...
Absolutely brilliant series.
The story is amazing, Daniele Serra's covers are incredible, but if there's something that makes this outstanding for me is Daniel Barnett's prose... I often found myself reading sentences over and over again.
And the characters.
These characters will stay with me for a long long time. They are complex, flawed, lovable...
Absolutely brilliant series.
January 18, 2022
I received an e-Galley ARC of Lily: Nightmareland Chronicles Volume Six, authored and published by Daniel Barnett, for review consideration. Cover art: Daniele Serra. What follows is my honest opinion given freely.
Lily brings to a close the opening season to the Nightmareland Chronicles, and as with the others, I read this in a sitting. There is something compelling with this story, with these words, once I open the cover I am there with them; I am immersed. There was one point where I needed to stop reading and gird myself, I knew once I turned the page there was no going back; the words would be revealed, the act completed however it was going to end. I had been tweeting my reading experience, and the author knew what line I had just read! He knew! And in that moment I was a hypocrite. Because I will always say how proud I am when authors will allow their characters to realistically have anything happen to them, whether its big or small, just dare to let your characters suffer, or get hurt. And here I am hoping beyond all hope that Barnett is not going to do that here, please just have a happy moment for no reason other than I love these characters and want them safe. Hypocrite! And then he writes the ending that can only be described as incandescent. It is everything. Perfect, it is perfect. It leaves me broken, but it could not have happened another way. Good people can be driven, and often guided, to do awful things. The layers of horror in Lily are haunting, they cause a deep ache. This is a masterpiece. I can not wait to see what happens next. Everyone should be reading this, and Barnett.
Lily brings to a close the opening season to the Nightmareland Chronicles, and as with the others, I read this in a sitting. There is something compelling with this story, with these words, once I open the cover I am there with them; I am immersed. There was one point where I needed to stop reading and gird myself, I knew once I turned the page there was no going back; the words would be revealed, the act completed however it was going to end. I had been tweeting my reading experience, and the author knew what line I had just read! He knew! And in that moment I was a hypocrite. Because I will always say how proud I am when authors will allow their characters to realistically have anything happen to them, whether its big or small, just dare to let your characters suffer, or get hurt. And here I am hoping beyond all hope that Barnett is not going to do that here, please just have a happy moment for no reason other than I love these characters and want them safe. Hypocrite! And then he writes the ending that can only be described as incandescent. It is everything. Perfect, it is perfect. It leaves me broken, but it could not have happened another way. Good people can be driven, and often guided, to do awful things. The layers of horror in Lily are haunting, they cause a deep ache. This is a masterpiece. I can not wait to see what happens next. Everyone should be reading this, and Barnett.
May 6, 2022
“Easy reading is damn hard writing.”
“Easy” is the word which came to mind while reading LILY. Not in regards to its content or emotional brutality—oh no…but the sheer flow of it all. I haven’t been swept away by something like this in a while. Perfect.
“Easy” is the word which came to mind while reading LILY. Not in regards to its content or emotional brutality—oh no…but the sheer flow of it all. I haven’t been swept away by something like this in a while. Perfect.
September 9, 2022
If I keep telling myself "it's only a book, you can stop crying now" will I eventually believe it?
Fat chance. 😭
Fat chance. 😭
December 31, 2022
Ouch, that hurt. A lot.
I can’t believe that all just happened!! Barnett continues to raise the bar!!
I knew. I knew when I saw the page count that I was in for some trouble, but nothing could have prepared me for the amount of heartache I experienced while reading Lily. What an emotional rollercoaster!! There were tears, chills, jaw dropping moments, plenty of nightmares, and I was screaming at some of the pages. The tension in this book was so addicting. I couldn’t stop myself once the 100 page countdown began - that’s when most the screaming started.
“Once in a great while, a child is born capable of the extraordinary, the unbelievable. You hear about them. The little girl playing Beethoven before her fourth birthday. The twelve-year-old chess wiz knocking off grandmasters. That was John when it came to killing. He had a genius in him for violence."
Barnett’s writing continues to impress - his prose is just on another level entirely. Everything is so brilliantly executed. There’s no fluff here - everything is so intentional and sharp. Barnett sure does know how to tell a gripping story and pull on your heart strings.
“The traffic light - one of few that still worked - continued cycling through its three established colors, casting the lady’s vacant, wrinkled face first in green, then in yellow, then in a disquieting shade of red that made it appear as if she too had visited Provo and was wearing some of it on her.”
After more or less surviving the horrors of the City of Blood, the crew is finally en route to the long-awaited cozy cabin belonging to John’s brother deep in the Wyoming woods, but they aren’t the only ones with that destination in mind and winter is coming. The blanket of cold that sets over Wyoming is enough to make you shiver in more ways than one.
“To chase John was to chase winter…and God help you if you catch it. God help you.”
The finale to the Nightmareland Chronicles delivers - it delivers everything and gives you all the emotions whether you’re ready for them or not. There is so much soul and it’s real and raw and perfect. I can’t help but sympathize on some level with each of the characters Barnett has brought to life - there’s so much weight to them. They have all come so far since their first introductions and the character development has been absolutely amazing.
“What was it about the Hawthorne brothers? How did they carry such cold inside them, and why did their respective chills taste so different on her lips? Simple, said a voice in her head. One feels all of it while the other feels none of it at all. She wondered which was the greater burden.”
The real highlights to Lily are all the slow, soft, quiet moments that give some much-needed hope among all the heavy, darker, more intense ones - there’s a perfect balance. The nightmares come in all shapes and sizes in this one and seem to get progressively worse. And not to forget the elephant in the room - finally getting John’s full story and all the tragedy and parallels that haunt him from his past with the wolves and his family while everyone’s tip-toeing around the subject of John and Lily letting it all fester - the amount of dread building at the cabin with the new company it keeps was the worst in the best way.
“It was a terrible thing to live in fear of something you could never face. Even more terrible was learning to accept that fear as normal.”
There were so many personal connections I had with this book which made it all the more memorable to me. It surfaced memories of my family trip to Wyoming years ago and the cabin we all stayed at in the middle of the woods with a view of the Grand Tetons. And it was so great to read about Marcos experiencing The Count of Monte Cristo for the first time having just read the unabridged version myself earlier this year (it's a pretty weighty tome) and loving it. And Marshall’s mannerisms and attachment to his tortoiseshell glasses reminded me of my grandfather - he’s so particular about his glasses and his cloth and the one frame he’s had for what seems like forever that suits him just fine, always asking me to tinker with them and tighten them up whenever I go to see him. So that bit with the broken glasses just completely melted my heart.
“How could you hold onto anything good when everything worth holding onto broke so easily? It seemed like a design flaw to him, to make light so fragile and dark so lasting.”
Lily is a pivotal climax to the end of the first season and a heartbreaking masterpiece that truly makes the Nightmareland Chronicles unforgettable - this series is among my top 10 favorites, it has been quite a wild ride so far. This ongoing horror adventure has got its hooks in me deep. The start of the second season cannot come soon enough!!
I can’t believe that all just happened!! Barnett continues to raise the bar!!
I knew. I knew when I saw the page count that I was in for some trouble, but nothing could have prepared me for the amount of heartache I experienced while reading Lily. What an emotional rollercoaster!! There were tears, chills, jaw dropping moments, plenty of nightmares, and I was screaming at some of the pages. The tension in this book was so addicting. I couldn’t stop myself once the 100 page countdown began - that’s when most the screaming started.
“Once in a great while, a child is born capable of the extraordinary, the unbelievable. You hear about them. The little girl playing Beethoven before her fourth birthday. The twelve-year-old chess wiz knocking off grandmasters. That was John when it came to killing. He had a genius in him for violence."
Barnett’s writing continues to impress - his prose is just on another level entirely. Everything is so brilliantly executed. There’s no fluff here - everything is so intentional and sharp. Barnett sure does know how to tell a gripping story and pull on your heart strings.
“The traffic light - one of few that still worked - continued cycling through its three established colors, casting the lady’s vacant, wrinkled face first in green, then in yellow, then in a disquieting shade of red that made it appear as if she too had visited Provo and was wearing some of it on her.”
After more or less surviving the horrors of the City of Blood, the crew is finally en route to the long-awaited cozy cabin belonging to John’s brother deep in the Wyoming woods, but they aren’t the only ones with that destination in mind and winter is coming. The blanket of cold that sets over Wyoming is enough to make you shiver in more ways than one.
“To chase John was to chase winter…and God help you if you catch it. God help you.”
The finale to the Nightmareland Chronicles delivers - it delivers everything and gives you all the emotions whether you’re ready for them or not. There is so much soul and it’s real and raw and perfect. I can’t help but sympathize on some level with each of the characters Barnett has brought to life - there’s so much weight to them. They have all come so far since their first introductions and the character development has been absolutely amazing.
“What was it about the Hawthorne brothers? How did they carry such cold inside them, and why did their respective chills taste so different on her lips? Simple, said a voice in her head. One feels all of it while the other feels none of it at all. She wondered which was the greater burden.”
The real highlights to Lily are all the slow, soft, quiet moments that give some much-needed hope among all the heavy, darker, more intense ones - there’s a perfect balance. The nightmares come in all shapes and sizes in this one and seem to get progressively worse. And not to forget the elephant in the room - finally getting John’s full story and all the tragedy and parallels that haunt him from his past with the wolves and his family while everyone’s tip-toeing around the subject of John and Lily letting it all fester - the amount of dread building at the cabin with the new company it keeps was the worst in the best way.
“It was a terrible thing to live in fear of something you could never face. Even more terrible was learning to accept that fear as normal.”
There were so many personal connections I had with this book which made it all the more memorable to me. It surfaced memories of my family trip to Wyoming years ago and the cabin we all stayed at in the middle of the woods with a view of the Grand Tetons. And it was so great to read about Marcos experiencing The Count of Monte Cristo for the first time having just read the unabridged version myself earlier this year (it's a pretty weighty tome) and loving it. And Marshall’s mannerisms and attachment to his tortoiseshell glasses reminded me of my grandfather - he’s so particular about his glasses and his cloth and the one frame he’s had for what seems like forever that suits him just fine, always asking me to tinker with them and tighten them up whenever I go to see him. So that bit with the broken glasses just completely melted my heart.
“How could you hold onto anything good when everything worth holding onto broke so easily? It seemed like a design flaw to him, to make light so fragile and dark so lasting.”
Lily is a pivotal climax to the end of the first season and a heartbreaking masterpiece that truly makes the Nightmareland Chronicles unforgettable - this series is among my top 10 favorites, it has been quite a wild ride so far. This ongoing horror adventure has got its hooks in me deep. The start of the second season cannot come soon enough!!
January 8, 2022
Wow. I need a minute.
It's not hyperbole when I say Daniel Barnett's NIGHTMARELAND Chronicles bear comparison with deeply felt epics like THE STAND and THE DARK TOWER. Six of a planned twelve volumes are out in the wild, and getting toward the end of the last one, I slowed down, sometimes laying a hand on the cover instead of opening it, so I could stay in the world of John and Mariah and Marcos a little longer. That kind of attachment to characters is a gift, and well earned by Barnett. There are scenes that will scare you, disgust and horrify you, and utterly break you, but Barnett guides the reader through the harrowing journey with such achingly beautiful prose, and so many truths spoken through the mouths of these characters you're left feeling that not only do you know them, they know you. Every character, no matter how incidental, is sketched with empathy and clarity—I don't remember the last time I was this immersed in a horror epic.
It's not hyperbole when I say Daniel Barnett's NIGHTMARELAND Chronicles bear comparison with deeply felt epics like THE STAND and THE DARK TOWER. Six of a planned twelve volumes are out in the wild, and getting toward the end of the last one, I slowed down, sometimes laying a hand on the cover instead of opening it, so I could stay in the world of John and Mariah and Marcos a little longer. That kind of attachment to characters is a gift, and well earned by Barnett. There are scenes that will scare you, disgust and horrify you, and utterly break you, but Barnett guides the reader through the harrowing journey with such achingly beautiful prose, and so many truths spoken through the mouths of these characters you're left feeling that not only do you know them, they know you. Every character, no matter how incidental, is sketched with empathy and clarity—I don't remember the last time I was this immersed in a horror epic.
December 4, 2022
This book broke me. I’ll be recovering if anyone needs me. Amazing writing that’s executed flawlessly, terrific complex characters, and an extremely gripping story. Nightmareland is firmly in my top series of all time after binging all of it. Read this asap if you haven’t already. Top tier horror
April 10, 2022
Sharp engaging storyline and characters, horror so real on this adventure that it will haunt your dreams!
"This was the thing nobody ever told you about making the tough decisions, about taking responsibility. Once you started you couldn't stop"
That sums up the whole first season of The Nightmareland Chronicles. Once you start you cannot stop on this journey with John, Mariah, Marcos and The Flashlighters on their journey to The Wyoming Range.
"That's what violence is. It's touching someone with your pain."
In volume #6 Lily we get the background of John Hawthorne and his brother Marshall, Father Arlo and the wolves. Throughout Lily the Author also throws us tidbits of previous things we've experienced in this journey and brings different people and situations to light again. Thank you Daniel Barnett, that's a gift right there because it helps to bury the story even deeper in our subconscious!
"It had been a good story, when you found a good story, you carried it with you"
If I could rewrite that line from the book it would say this has been a great story and yes I have carried it with me and I will continue to carry it with me in my mind! I will even say friends of mine are going to start receiving the first couple books in this series so that they can experience this for themselves as a gift from me!
I cannot wait for the second season of The Nightmareland Chronicles!
(I will never look at a Toyota Prius the same without chuckling...even though it was a Honda)
5⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ for Lily and 5⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ for every volume in this series
"This was the thing nobody ever told you about making the tough decisions, about taking responsibility. Once you started you couldn't stop"
That sums up the whole first season of The Nightmareland Chronicles. Once you start you cannot stop on this journey with John, Mariah, Marcos and The Flashlighters on their journey to The Wyoming Range.
"That's what violence is. It's touching someone with your pain."
In volume #6 Lily we get the background of John Hawthorne and his brother Marshall, Father Arlo and the wolves. Throughout Lily the Author also throws us tidbits of previous things we've experienced in this journey and brings different people and situations to light again. Thank you Daniel Barnett, that's a gift right there because it helps to bury the story even deeper in our subconscious!
"It had been a good story, when you found a good story, you carried it with you"
If I could rewrite that line from the book it would say this has been a great story and yes I have carried it with me and I will continue to carry it with me in my mind! I will even say friends of mine are going to start receiving the first couple books in this series so that they can experience this for themselves as a gift from me!
I cannot wait for the second season of The Nightmareland Chronicles!
(I will never look at a Toyota Prius the same without chuckling...even though it was a Honda)
5⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ for Lily and 5⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ for every volume in this series
October 16, 2022
Daniel Barnett is my favourite horror writer. His books transcend the nightmares and dig into the the whole of the human psyche. These books touch every emotion and scratch every nerve raw. They've also got some of the most beautiful writing in the genre and I can't name a book I've highlighted as many passages from.
I know, too well, the turmoil of loving a violent, caring, complicated man. There were lines in here describing both John and Gregory that apply and I really don't know what that says about me. I get the character of Mariah so deeply and the timing of reading this was hard. I know there would be no one better to have by my side if night were to actually fall but the every day stuff...
I know, too well, the turmoil of loving a violent, caring, complicated man. There were lines in here describing both John and Gregory that apply and I really don't know what that says about me. I get the character of Mariah so deeply and the timing of reading this was hard. I know there would be no one better to have by my side if night were to actually fall but the every day stuff...
October 10, 2022
Lily is the last book in the Nightmareland series. Or so I thought until the end. It is very different from the preceding books, and very long, and the payoff I was expecting did not come.
This book really tried way too hard. It is very detailed and character driven as opposed to the funhouse horror of the first books. The pace is much, much slower as well, as it focuses on character relationships and back stories.
If the readers have stuck with the series till this book, they already have decided whether they like certain characters or not. Too much writing was done going over past events and bonding moments, because we, as readers, were already there when it happened the first time and going over these things again seemed redundant. The author wants to make dang sure his readers are impacted. “Twice didn’t do it? Ok, here it is a third time! Wham! Wham!” For me, this had the opposite effect, and I began to skim.
John and his brother’s complete history was finally told, but it could have been it’s own novella. It was a good story, and well written, but really too long and detailed for my taste. I wish it could have been compressed a bit. By the time we got to the story of John’s own family, it was difficult to accept all the drama and John’s story began to “lose” me. I wanted to get back to the present and continue the original story.
Now this is not my usual complaining that I do when I don’t like a book. I’m simply taking more time to point out what I did not like, because there is so much about this series that I really did like!
It’s too bad, however, that the series is still not at an end, and the next release will be in the future. The insanity of the ending climax leaned into the extreme horror that seems to be gaining popularity with many people (in weird contrast to the character’s introspection and thoughtfulness in the rest of this book), but did nothing to answer any of the major questions of the entire premise. It’s a shame. So much great mystery left hanging in the air, and me with no patience left.
This book really tried way too hard. It is very detailed and character driven as opposed to the funhouse horror of the first books. The pace is much, much slower as well, as it focuses on character relationships and back stories.
If the readers have stuck with the series till this book, they already have decided whether they like certain characters or not. Too much writing was done going over past events and bonding moments, because we, as readers, were already there when it happened the first time and going over these things again seemed redundant. The author wants to make dang sure his readers are impacted. “Twice didn’t do it? Ok, here it is a third time! Wham! Wham!” For me, this had the opposite effect, and I began to skim.
John and his brother’s complete history was finally told, but it could have been it’s own novella. It was a good story, and well written, but really too long and detailed for my taste. I wish it could have been compressed a bit. By the time we got to the story of John’s own family, it was difficult to accept all the drama and John’s story began to “lose” me. I wanted to get back to the present and continue the original story.
Now this is not my usual complaining that I do when I don’t like a book. I’m simply taking more time to point out what I did not like, because there is so much about this series that I really did like!
It’s too bad, however, that the series is still not at an end, and the next release will be in the future. The insanity of the ending climax leaned into the extreme horror that seems to be gaining popularity with many people (in weird contrast to the character’s introspection and thoughtfulness in the rest of this book), but did nothing to answer any of the major questions of the entire premise. It’s a shame. So much great mystery left hanging in the air, and me with no patience left.
April 16, 2022
I am so glad they picked these books for the monthly read. It is an amazing read and I can't wait for the next installment. Heartbreaking yes, but at the end it seemed intuitive. In the same way Marcos does not understand the why of some things/events yet he some how knows in his bones that it is the right things. As Lily ended and I was screaming no, in my bones I know it is what must happen to continue down the path that was chosen.
January 29, 2022
*Volumes 1-6 of the Nightmareland Chronicles* - Season 1 of this series was incredible. It takes influence from some great epics (like The Stand) and excels around every sharp turn. There's horror, drama, suspense, and everything in between. By the end of this first set of books, you'll probably feel like your heart's been broken. I don't know if there are any other series that receive such high recommendation from me in the genre cloud of dark fiction. I have to read more of Daniel Barnett!
March 21, 2022
This book tried to kill me.
September 6, 2022
This was a really well written dystopian series. Each book wasn’t long making the whole series feel like a quick read. My favorite book in the collection was Flashlighters, but Sleepwalking was a close second. I’m really sad it’s over now! It’s weird to have a series you read for a while (one book a month as a buddy read with HA) and then it’s just over. This series keeps getting better and I know the final book will be really great, but bittersweet as good endings usually are.
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