Night Shoot

Rating: 4/5 Student Filmmakers

Night Shoot by David Sodergren follows a group of student filmmakers who have the opportunity to shoot their movie in Crawford Manor, an old home owned by one of the students’ uncles. The uncle is clear that they need to leave by a certain time so he can lock up the home, and he cannot allow them to stay longer. But when the lead actress quits, it’s clear that the limited time they can be in Crawford Manor will not suffice, so they have the brilliant idea of breaking into it after the uncle locks up. What could possibly go wrong?

Night Shoot is such a fun slasher story. Any fans of slasher films will enjoy this book; it pokes a lot of fun at the sexism often seen in the genre. Sodergren leverages a lot of slasher tropes to write a vivid and interesting story, but there are loads of twists and turns along the way, and it’s anything but predictable.

The pacing of Night Shoot is perfect. Readers get action and scares from the beginning, and the creepy tone of the novel is set immediately. And through it is an action-filled book, the characters are fully formed and Sodergren does a great job of giving backstory and character development in a way that keeps the plot moving forward.

Anyone who likes slasher stories needs to read Night Shoot.