Shadowdays

by Polly Schattel

On the dark side of town, what’s past is never really past. And what’s buried is never really dead.

Melissa Sweet is in a delicate state. She’s a clinical nurse in a small southern town who, after a career-ending accident and the accusations of foul play that followed, is just now starting to put her life back together. She’s got her mom, her troubled brother, and her fiancé Jack to keep her grounded, and right now she’s taking life one uneasy day at a time. But tormented by a harrowing act of violence, she makes an impulsive move that changes her life—and the lives of those she loves—forever. This unleashes a disorienting cycle of brutality and revelation as she reckons with the blood of her own past and the blood of those who transgressed against her.

And it will force Melissa to confront the fiercest, most unrelenting monster of all: herself.

Genres: Horror

212 pages, Paperback

First published January 28, 2022

About the author

POLLY SCHATTEL is originally from Birmingham, AL but now lives in Western North Carolina. She likes pasta.

Reviews

[Becky Spratford · Rating 4 out of 5]

Review is in the 12/1/21 issue of Booklist and on the blog [link live 12/3]: https://raforall.blogspot.com/2021/12...

Three Words That Describe This Book: revenge, deeply unsettling, dark pulp

This novel fits in a space between S.A. Cosby's Razor Blade Tears and The Last House on Needless Street by Ward.

Also Samantha Kolesnik's True Crime.

Cinematic, compellingly paced, it hooks you and you cannot look away. Not surprised at end to find out this novel began as a screenplay/

It is brutal and the author challenges your sympathy for Melissa [the MC] more and more with each page. That part was well done because as she goes further and further into her violent spiral, the reader never completely leaves her. Although, if you step away from the book, you will questions why you are still with her, and yet, when you dive back in, those second thoughts disappear. That is hard to do.

From the Author's Note and worth sharing because this book really looks at the toll serious genetic mental health takes on a family. "And special thanks to Robert Kolker, and his definitive account of mental illness in families, Hidden Valley Road, which served as the most valuable resource for this book."

Sharing in case it helps someone.

[Jayaprakash Satyamurthy · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is a relentless, nightmare ride, ideally read in just a few sittings over a day or two. Schattel's coiling prose takes us into the escalating, fragmenting reality of Melissa Sweet, a nurse who is trying to piece her life together after a horrible incident, only to find it falling to bits again.

Told with elements of darkest noir thriller and lurching supernatural phantasmagoria, Shadowdays occupies a kind of twilight realm like the ones Tom Piccirilli's novels are set in. Something sets it apart from a mere twist/misdirection thriller. Schattel may take cover in self-describing as a storyteller on the pulp side of the tracks, but the stakes here are very high, very real.

This a slide to hell with all the inverted pomp of a Jim Thompson or Dorothy Hughes story. I recommend it highly to readers who are looking for a compulsively entertaining, but profoundly disturbing, breakneck excursion.

[Duane · Rating 5 out of 5]

I read this book in two sittings. The first time, I was pressed for time and read the first page. The second time, I turned the page, and kept on turning until I was done. An absolute Russian doll of a narrative, with secrets hidden within secrets within secrets and a sweet noir feel. Schattel writes with the economy of language befitting the subject matter and a poetry that belies the content -- a feat managed by the best and only the best noir writers.
You could sit this novel next to a Jim Thompson joint or a Goodis, Chandler or Hammett offering, and it wouldn't be out of place. Elmore Leonard would like this one, I bet.
I've met some of these people, in the big city. They don't seem out of place, here, from what I understand about the southeast US.
Buy it, love it.

[Max Stanton · Rating 5 out of 5]

Shadowdays is a brutal and propulsive thriller with a lot of sharp wit and bloodied humanity on display. Schattel builds well-rounded, believable characters, which makes the shocking violence hit all the much harder. Fast-reading, satisfying Southern pulp.

[Jennifer Reads · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is an enthralling rollercoaster of a book. I was intrigued and invested throughout the entire read and not prepared for some of the surprises. I must say, Melissa is a fascinating protagonist and the less you know going in to read this book, the better.

[DL Rose · Rating 4 out of 5]

Overview:

Shadowdays details the misadventures of a small-town clinical nurse who is putting her life back together after a devastating mistake killed one of her patients. But when she’s targeted in a mysterious act of brutality, she must make a choice—whether or not to follow her own sinister impulses down a trail of blood, across the backroads and byways of the New South, all the while unraveling the deepest, darkest mystery of all—herself.

​

Review:

Darklings,

This story focuses on Melissa, a nurse who tends to retreat into herself when tragedy occurs.

Two huge incidents happen (one her fault and the other not) and during the second one the reader gets to experience the degeneration of her mental stability.

Melissa is an entertainingly unreliable narrator. She fulfills the revengeful angel of death archetype. She and this story...

See the rest of the review at uncomfortablydark.com!

[Teresa Ardrey · Rating 3 out of 5]

Melissa is going through some stuff, we can all agree. Shadowdays did not really capture my interest until we start to find out what that stuff actually is, which is in the second half of the book. The second half of this book is solid, with genuinely scary moments. Melissa is hitting rock bottom and watching her fall is gut-wrenching and devastating. The trouble with the first half, for me, is that there are no likeable characters. And I don't need characters to be likeable, but I do need them make me feel something, even if it is loathing. Unfortunately, I mostly just felt pity. And this doesn't make me interested in what happens to any of them. I am fully aware that this could just be me. If you are willing to accept that Melissa doesn't really like anyone, least of all herself, and get to where the action is, then this give this book a try. The unraveling is the thing. We never know what we can live through until we have to.

[Andrew Clark · Rating 5 out of 5]

A dark, gripping tale of vengeance, where the reader is left questioning who truly seeks revenge. Secrets long buried resurface, while sinister voices of lingering spirits stalk the shadows, haunting those who believed they've escaped the past.

[Dionne Muller · Rating 4 out of 5]

Shadowdays, by Polly Schattel, is a noir-style thriller that was originally conceived as a screenplay before being adapted into book form.
The story follows the troubled life of Melissa Sweet, a once-promising nurse whose career was abruptly derailed by a devastating accident and the swirling accusations of misconduct that followed in its wake. As the novel opens, Melissa is finally starting to piece her shattered life back together, but the journey is arduous and filled with setbacks.

Schattel's writing style is intentionally slow-paced and rambling, mirroring Melissa's discombobulated state of mind as she grapples with the wreckage of her past and the uncertainty of her future.

The nonlinear, almost disjointed narrative structure enhances the unsettling atmosphere, but may prove tedious for readers not enamoured with the noir genre.

Perseverance is required to wade through the murky, meandering first half of the novel before the plot begins to coalesce and gather momentum in the latter portions.

[Nikki in Niagara · Rating 5 out of 5]

Melissa is a nurse who had a fatal accident at work. Found 'not guilty' at court she still had to move away and had a hard time finding another job as a nurse. But one day there is a knock at the door and her mother and mentally-challenged brother are gunned down and Melissa has had enough. She seeks revenge against everyone involved in their deaths. She's joined by Gordy, the death metal loving teenager next door, his grandmother gets caught in the killers' crosshairs.

This is a wild ride of brutal violence which plays out over and over again. Amongst this violence, we come to feel for Gordy and Melissa. Melissa herself has mental issues, she hears voices and she blames herself so much for the death of the baby years ago that sometimes we wonder whether it was an accident. But even though she is a violent vigilante killer she lives up to her name, Melissa Sweet, she's terribly mixed up with the mental diseases of her genetics.

[Cat Voleur · Rating 4 out of 5]

(Rounded up from 3 1/2)

I liked a lot about the plot and the writing style. I loved Melissa, the protagonist.

What didn't work for me was how the plot skipped around, and how jarring the dialogue sometimes felt.

I also am not a big fan of books that deal with the disorder addressed in this book. I would not go so far as to say that it's bad representation, only that it is not something I personally like reading about.

I was impressed enough with the prose, however, that I'm looking forward to reading more Schattel books in the future.

[Paula Ledoux · Rating 5 out of 5]

Shadowdays is one of those novels that quietly settles into your mind and refuses to leave. The prose is sharp and evocative without ever feeling overwritten, and the emotional weight is constant but controlled. Melissa is a deeply complicated protagonist, and I appreciated that the book never tries to make her more palatable or likable than she is. This is a story about guilt, responsibility, and survival, and it handles those themes with maturity and restraint. By the end, I felt wrung out in the best possible way.

[Jill Hand · Rating 5 out of 5]

Clinical nurse Melissa Sweet is struggling to get back on her feet after causing a medication mistake, which ended the life of a premature infant. She has a new job, and a supportive fiancé. Her mother, a longtime nurse, is there for her, too. But there's trouble ahead. Disaster strikes in the form of acts of horrific violence against Melissa's loved ones. We gradually learn that there's more going on than we realized. Much more. If you enjoy unreliable narrators, you'll love Shadowdays.

[Zelma Culver · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book is heavy, deliberate, and emotionally demanding. The writing is excellent, especially in the way it captures internal dread and quiet panic. At times, the pacing felt slow, but in hindsight that slowness mirrors the emotional state of the main character. Shadowdays isn’t meant to entertain so much as to immerse, and it succeeds at that. A strong read if you enjoy introspective, character-driven fiction.

[Aglae Hermann · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book lingered with me long after I finished it. The writing is sharp, atmospheric, and quietly unsettling in the best way. Melissa is such a deeply human character, flawed, wounded, and trying to move forward while carrying unbearable guilt. Shadowdays isn’t an easy read emotionally, but it’s a powerful one.

[Denis Linney · Rating 5 out of 5]

Polly Schattel’s writing is precise and fearless. Shadowdays doesn’t shy away from discomfort, and that’s what makes it so effective. The sense of unease is present even in mundane moments, and the emotional realism feels earned rather than manipulated. This is not a story with easy resolutions, and I appreciated that honesty. It’s one of the more thoughtful novels I’ve read recently.

[Bruce Davis · Rating 5 out of 5]

Shadowdays is beautifully written, but it requires patience. The focus is clearly on emotional interiority rather than plot momentum. I found myself slowing down to really absorb the language and atmosphere. While not every section gripped me equally, the overall experience was powerful and lingering. Readers who enjoy literary fiction will find a lot to admire here.

[Lydia Stanley · Rating 5 out of 5]

This novel captures grief and guilt in a way that feels painfully authentic. The prose is understated but deeply expressive, and the tension simmers rather than explodes. Melissa feels like a real person, full of contradictions and self-reproach. Shadowdays left me thinking about moral responsibility long after I finished reading.

[Lupe Holm · Rating 4 out of 5]

The emotional weight of this book is significant, and it doesn’t let up. Some readers may find that challenging, but I admired the author’s commitment to emotional truth. The writing is strong throughout, even when the subject matter is uncomfortable. While I wished for slightly more narrative momentum, the character depth more than made up for it.

[Michael Elliott · Rating 5 out of 5]

Shadowdays is quietly devastating. The author has a remarkable ability to depict internal struggle without melodrama. The story unfolds gradually, trusting the reader to sit with uncertainty and discomfort. I found the experience immersive and rewarding, especially in how it explores accountability and loss.

[Jeffery Lloyd · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book is dark, reflective, and unflinching. The atmosphere is heavy, but intentionally so. I appreciated how carefully the author avoids sensationalizing trauma. At times the introspection felt overwhelming, but that felt true to the character rather than indulgent. A thoughtful and well-crafted novel.

[Ines Runolfsson · Rating 4 out of 5]

Shadowdays is heavy, slow-burning, and beautifully written. The prose is vivid without being showy, and the emotional weight feels earned. I sometimes wished the pacing moved a little faster, but the payoff is worth it. A haunting, thoughtful novel.

[Gerardo Breitenberg · Rating 5 out of 5]

Polly Schattel has a way of getting inside her characters’ heads that feels almost invasive, in a good way. The grief, shame, and fear in this book feel painfully real. I finished it feeling shaken and impressed.

[Odie O'Kon · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is not a feel-good story, but it is a meaningful one. I admired how the author handled trauma without turning it into melodrama. The Southern atmosphere and quiet menace worked really well for me.

[Jennyfer Lueilwitz · Rating 5 out of 5]

Shadowdays reads like literary fiction with the tension of a psychological thriller. The emotional undercurrents are constant, and I found myself thinking about Melissa long after closing the book. Beautifully done.

[Brandon Young · Rating 5 out of 5]

One of the strengths of Shadowdays is its restraint. The prose is confident and controlled, allowing the emotional impact to build naturally. I was struck by how often small moments carried more weight than dramatic ones. This is a book that trusts its reader, and I loved that.

[Aaron Vinson · Rating 4 out of 5]

Shadowdays demands emotional attention. It’s not something you read casually, but it rewards engagement. The characters feel authentic, even when they’re difficult to sympathize with. While the pacing occasionally tested my patience, the emotional payoff was worth it.

[Doris Beaudin · Rating 5 out of 5]

This novel feels deeply personal, even though it’s fictional. The emotional honesty is striking, and the writing never flinches away from moral complexity. Shadowdays is the kind of book that stays with you quietly, resurfacing in unexpected moments. I admired its courage and clarity.

[Lara Humphries · Rating 5 out of 5]

The writing here is beautiful, but subtle. Readers expecting a fast-moving plot may struggle, but those who appreciate mood and character will be rewarded. The author captures anxiety and grief with impressive nuance. A strong, if emotionally demanding, read.

[Charlie Kirby · Rating 5 out of 5]

Shadowdays explores guilt in a way that feels brutally honest. The prose is elegant without being precious, and the story unfolds with quiet confidence. I never felt manipulated emotionally, which is rare for a novel dealing with such heavy themes. This is thoughtful, mature storytelling.