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Nightlife
Nightlife: Night Terrors
Three amazing horror tales in one chilling bundle...the only thing you won’t fear is the price!
Enter a world where the streets crawl with unimaginable demons, and a monster can lurk behind every friendly face. Matthew Quinn Martin first terrified horror fans with Nightlife, the captivating story of two unlikely monster hunters determined to save the city of New Harbor from the Night Angels—bloodthirsty creatures that feed on the forgotten. Jack Jackson and Beth Becker are among the few who can see these creatures for what they really are, but as they hunt the creatures, a mysterious organization known only as The Division is hunting them.
In the novella Hazardous Material, we get a glimpse of The Division’s origins and aims when a young man stumbles onto a long-abandoned video arcade—which three decades ago was the site of the largest mass shooting in New York history—and unwittingly uncovers a relic of unimaginable power and mind-altering terror.
And in the never-before-released As the Worm Turns, Jack and Beth are back, along with their faithful dog, Blood. For months they’ve been keeping just one step ahead of The Division, whose enigmatic leader has been pursuing them with the single-minded obsession to capture them by any means necessary. But as Jack and Beth continue their quest to rid the world of the creatures once and for all, they find themselves facing off against something even more terrifying than the Night Angels––something that could hold the key to humanity’s salvation…or its doom.
Enter a world where the streets crawl with unimaginable demons, and a monster can lurk behind every friendly face. Matthew Quinn Martin first terrified horror fans with Nightlife, the captivating story of two unlikely monster hunters determined to save the city of New Harbor from the Night Angels—bloodthirsty creatures that feed on the forgotten. Jack Jackson and Beth Becker are among the few who can see these creatures for what they really are, but as they hunt the creatures, a mysterious organization known only as The Division is hunting them.
In the novella Hazardous Material, we get a glimpse of The Division’s origins and aims when a young man stumbles onto a long-abandoned video arcade—which three decades ago was the site of the largest mass shooting in New York history—and unwittingly uncovers a relic of unimaginable power and mind-altering terror.
And in the never-before-released As the Worm Turns, Jack and Beth are back, along with their faithful dog, Blood. For months they’ve been keeping just one step ahead of The Division, whose enigmatic leader has been pursuing them with the single-minded obsession to capture them by any means necessary. But as Jack and Beth continue their quest to rid the world of the creatures once and for all, they find themselves facing off against something even more terrifying than the Night Angels––something that could hold the key to humanity’s salvation…or its doom.
ebook
First published May 12, 2014
About the author
Matthew Quinn Martin
7 books25 followersMatthew Quinn Martin was born in Allentown, Pennsylvania and raised in New Haven, Connecticut. However, it wasn’t until he moved to Manhattan that he realized he was a writer. These days, he lives on a small island off the North Atlantic coast of the United States where it gets quiet in the winter…perhaps too quiet.
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Displaying 1 - 14 of 14 reviews
August 24, 2015
This is an omnibus edition containing two novels and one shorter story.
Nightlife:
Fun, contemporary mainstream horror, with the scary sort of vampires.
It's set in an alternate New Haven, CT. Not sure why the names have been changed to protect the guilty. We're in the city of "New Harbor" - which has a university that's not called Yale, and a secret society that's The Order of Sormen, not Skull & Bones. I think anyone who's spent time in New Haven would get a kick out of this.
Beth is a bartender at the local nightclub (I'm certain it's based on a real place, and points are awarded for a very realistic portrayal of what bartending is like.) She has a bit of a conflict going on with her rich lawyer boyfriend, who wants her to drop her job and move in with him. But Beth values her independence and doesn't like a lot of things about his attitude. Soon enough, though, her issues with the guy are rendered moot. Her best friend has disappeared, and there's some strange things going on in the basement...
Beth is on the verge of getting into real trouble, when she encounters Jack Jackson - a weird guy all decked out in tactical gear - who turns out to be a vampire hunter.
The writing here isn't what I'd call polished, and at times, it relies too heavily on familiar tropes - even stereotypes. But it's still an entertaining horror tale that moves along briskly. Recommended for fans of 'The Strain.'
Hazardous Material:
"Hazardous Material" is presented as a sequel novella to "Nightlife" - but honestly, it feels like it was already written, and then the author added on an ending containing revelations to tie it in to the previous novel.
It's a mainstream-genre horror story, and many of the elements are familiar: The walled-off scene of a mass killing, a creepy-carnival atmosphere, and a haunted videogame from an abandoned arcade that may bring death and madness into the present day...
All that, I very much enjoyed. But the ending takes an abrupt turn, and I'm not sure that it worked well at all. I wish it'd just stuck with the first track.
As The Worm Turns:
Where there are predators... you might also expect to find the apex predator.
This book continues the story begun in "Nightlife," following Beth and Jack, vampire hunters. Here, they've gotten their slaying down to a science - literally. However, just when they start seeing hints of something disturbing and possibly more powerful than the beings they've been hunting down, they run into opposition: not in the form of the inhuman monsters they've gotten accustomed to, but in the form of human monsters. The secretive Division has their own agenda, and their agents have a special vendetta against Jack.
Recommended for those who've read Nightlife and want to know what happens next, but for me, the story suffered a bit from 'sequel-itis': "well, I told that story, but how can I outdo it for the next part?" I also thought the evil of the Division came off as a little too cartoonish; with too little justification given for their atrocious actions.
It's still a fun vampire/monster tale, and still reminds me of 'The Strain.'
Many thanks to NetGalley and Pocket books for the opportunity to read. As always, my opinion is solely my own.
Nightlife:
Fun, contemporary mainstream horror, with the scary sort of vampires.
It's set in an alternate New Haven, CT. Not sure why the names have been changed to protect the guilty. We're in the city of "New Harbor" - which has a university that's not called Yale, and a secret society that's The Order of Sormen, not Skull & Bones. I think anyone who's spent time in New Haven would get a kick out of this.
Beth is a bartender at the local nightclub (I'm certain it's based on a real place, and points are awarded for a very realistic portrayal of what bartending is like.) She has a bit of a conflict going on with her rich lawyer boyfriend, who wants her to drop her job and move in with him. But Beth values her independence and doesn't like a lot of things about his attitude. Soon enough, though, her issues with the guy are rendered moot. Her best friend has disappeared, and there's some strange things going on in the basement...
Beth is on the verge of getting into real trouble, when she encounters Jack Jackson - a weird guy all decked out in tactical gear - who turns out to be a vampire hunter.
The writing here isn't what I'd call polished, and at times, it relies too heavily on familiar tropes - even stereotypes. But it's still an entertaining horror tale that moves along briskly. Recommended for fans of 'The Strain.'
Hazardous Material:
"Hazardous Material" is presented as a sequel novella to "Nightlife" - but honestly, it feels like it was already written, and then the author added on an ending containing revelations to tie it in to the previous novel.
It's a mainstream-genre horror story, and many of the elements are familiar: The walled-off scene of a mass killing, a creepy-carnival atmosphere, and a haunted videogame from an abandoned arcade that may bring death and madness into the present day...
All that, I very much enjoyed. But the ending takes an abrupt turn, and I'm not sure that it worked well at all. I wish it'd just stuck with the first track.
As The Worm Turns:
Where there are predators... you might also expect to find the apex predator.
This book continues the story begun in "Nightlife," following Beth and Jack, vampire hunters. Here, they've gotten their slaying down to a science - literally. However, just when they start seeing hints of something disturbing and possibly more powerful than the beings they've been hunting down, they run into opposition: not in the form of the inhuman monsters they've gotten accustomed to, but in the form of human monsters. The secretive Division has their own agenda, and their agents have a special vendetta against Jack.
Recommended for those who've read Nightlife and want to know what happens next, but for me, the story suffered a bit from 'sequel-itis': "well, I told that story, but how can I outdo it for the next part?" I also thought the evil of the Division came off as a little too cartoonish; with too little justification given for their atrocious actions.
It's still a fun vampire/monster tale, and still reminds me of 'The Strain.'
Many thanks to NetGalley and Pocket books for the opportunity to read. As always, my opinion is solely my own.
August 24, 2015
Where there are predators... you might also expect to find the apex predator.
This book continues the story begun in "Nightlife," following Beth and Jack, vampire hunters. Here, they've gotten their slaying down to a science - literally. However, just when they start seeing hints of something disturbing and possibly more powerful than the beings they've been hunting down, they run into opposition: not in the form of the inhuman monsters they've gotten accustomed to, but in the form of human monsters. The secretive Division has their own agenda, and their agents have a special vendetta against Jack.
Recommended for those who've read Nightlife and want to know what happens next, but for me, the story suffered a bit from 'sequel-itis': "well, I told that story, but how can I outdo it for the next part?" I also thought the evil of the Division came off as a little too cartoonish; with too little justification given for their atrocious actions.
It's still a fun vampire/monster tale, and still reminds me of 'The Strain.'
This book continues the story begun in "Nightlife," following Beth and Jack, vampire hunters. Here, they've gotten their slaying down to a science - literally. However, just when they start seeing hints of something disturbing and possibly more powerful than the beings they've been hunting down, they run into opposition: not in the form of the inhuman monsters they've gotten accustomed to, but in the form of human monsters. The secretive Division has their own agenda, and their agents have a special vendetta against Jack.
Recommended for those who've read Nightlife and want to know what happens next, but for me, the story suffered a bit from 'sequel-itis': "well, I told that story, but how can I outdo it for the next part?" I also thought the evil of the Division came off as a little too cartoonish; with too little justification given for their atrocious actions.
It's still a fun vampire/monster tale, and still reminds me of 'The Strain.'
September 1, 2015
Book Review originally published here: http://www.iheartreading.net/book-tou...
This collection includes three books: Nightlife, Hazardous Material and As The Worm Turns. Each book is a stand-alone but together they form an interesting and enjoyable horror collection.
In Nightlife, Beth is a bartender at a local nightclub who has some boyfriend issues – he wants her to drop her job and move in with him. But Beth has little time to think about her relationship when her best friend disappears and strange things turn up in her basement. Then she encounters Jack Jackson, a vampire hunter, and finds out she has a vampire problem (called Night Angels) on her hands. These vampires are scary and deadly, and rather than drink blood, they feed on lifeforce.
It’s an interesting book, and I really liked Beth. She was a strong character. The vampires (Night Angels) are a good addition too, and although not really creeping me out, I did have some chills while reading this.
Hazardous Material focuses on Jarrod Foster, who discovered an old video game arcade and starts playing one of the games, Polybius, with disastrous consequences. This is a prequel novella to Nightlife, and as such it’s rather short, but it does a good job of setting the scene, introducing us to the characters, and wrapping up the story.
And then there is As The Worm Turns, the sequel to Nightlife. Jack and Beth leave town to start over, but unfortunately the horrors they once faced seem to have followed them to their new town.
I loved how the focus was on the horror and not on romance or the like. The action, despite the story involving paranormal creatures, seemed very realistic. The writing is solid, the characters develop and grow throughout each book, and every once of these books managed to give me the chills at least once or twice. If you like supernatural horror, I recommend you check out this series.
This collection includes three books: Nightlife, Hazardous Material and As The Worm Turns. Each book is a stand-alone but together they form an interesting and enjoyable horror collection.
In Nightlife, Beth is a bartender at a local nightclub who has some boyfriend issues – he wants her to drop her job and move in with him. But Beth has little time to think about her relationship when her best friend disappears and strange things turn up in her basement. Then she encounters Jack Jackson, a vampire hunter, and finds out she has a vampire problem (called Night Angels) on her hands. These vampires are scary and deadly, and rather than drink blood, they feed on lifeforce.
It’s an interesting book, and I really liked Beth. She was a strong character. The vampires (Night Angels) are a good addition too, and although not really creeping me out, I did have some chills while reading this.
Hazardous Material focuses on Jarrod Foster, who discovered an old video game arcade and starts playing one of the games, Polybius, with disastrous consequences. This is a prequel novella to Nightlife, and as such it’s rather short, but it does a good job of setting the scene, introducing us to the characters, and wrapping up the story.
And then there is As The Worm Turns, the sequel to Nightlife. Jack and Beth leave town to start over, but unfortunately the horrors they once faced seem to have followed them to their new town.
I loved how the focus was on the horror and not on romance or the like. The action, despite the story involving paranormal creatures, seemed very realistic. The writing is solid, the characters develop and grow throughout each book, and every once of these books managed to give me the chills at least once or twice. If you like supernatural horror, I recommend you check out this series.
June 21, 2015
Nightlife: As the Worm Turns
by Matthew Quinn Martin
The third book the series brings you to another aspect of the stories. The fear and terror of the demons of the Nightlife: Hazardous Material, the violence and destruction vampires of Nightlife has not prepared me for the continuing development of obscenely deadly and destructive monsters in As the Worm Turns. What right does man have to face creatures that can possess the mind, giving dreams and fantasies as they destroy the body for their benefit. The Vampire worms of Nightlife have been over taken by a new species, a virus based organism that is taking man beyond his limited human nature. The books look into the sacrifice of human nature, the repetition of making the same mistake again. The book looks into the eternal fear of our nightmares and questions our ability to face our fears.
by Matthew Quinn Martin
The third book the series brings you to another aspect of the stories. The fear and terror of the demons of the Nightlife: Hazardous Material, the violence and destruction vampires of Nightlife has not prepared me for the continuing development of obscenely deadly and destructive monsters in As the Worm Turns. What right does man have to face creatures that can possess the mind, giving dreams and fantasies as they destroy the body for their benefit. The Vampire worms of Nightlife have been over taken by a new species, a virus based organism that is taking man beyond his limited human nature. The books look into the sacrifice of human nature, the repetition of making the same mistake again. The book looks into the eternal fear of our nightmares and questions our ability to face our fears.
August 11, 2015
In Nightlife, we are introduced to Jack Jackson, a vet who has spent years chasing and trying to eradicate “The Night Angels”, creatures akin to vampires but, as Jack puts it, “Not as sexy as the movies make vampires out to be”.
In actuality, they are vampires in the sense that they steal the lifeforce of those they hunt, but these creatures are something else, them, creatures that make their targets see what they want, luring them in with their deepest desires.
Beth Becker, a nightclub waitress as the local watering hole for the university’s frat crowd, stumbles into Jack’s life when her best friend/roommate goes missing and she spies a man tearing down her ‘Missing’ poster and spray painting a strange phrase on the wall in its place – Beware the Night Angel.
After feeling one another out and soon realizing that two hunters are better than one (much to Jack’s chagrin & resistence), both Jack and Beth plunge headlong into New Harbor’s underground (literally) to hunt down the source of the town’s missing persons.
Nightlife starts out with multiple viewpoints but soon whittles it down to Beth and Jack alone, and follows them as they get their hands dirty tracking the terrifying creatures with the help of Jack’s homemade weapons cache.
NIGHTLIFE: HAZARDOUS MATERIAL
Nightlife: Hazardous Material doesn’t include either Jack or Beth but does offer a deeper insight into The Division, the super-secret organization who works behind-the-scenes to keep the reality of these Night Angels from the general public.
Graphic-designer-turned-day-laborer Jarrod Foster discovers a cache of dusty old video game terminals squirreled away in a hidden room behind a strange mural inside the local roller rink. The scene is vaguely familiar to Jarrod, and once he has one of the games, Polybius, in his possession, things start to go off-kilter in the most bizarre and frightening ways for him.
This is where The Division moves into the spotlight and we are given a glimpse at their methods and how they will come to play a larger role in the world in which both Jack and Beth fight to survive.
NIGHTLIFE: AS THE WORM TURNS
The sequel novel, Nightlife: As The Worm Turns, follows Jack and Beth after they leave New Harbor in their rearview and start out anew. But even going so far as Kentucky doesn’t mean their old troubles don’t follow. Same horrors, different town. The Night Angels lurk in the shadows yet again.
Inspired by the Faith No More song “As the Worm Turns” as well as a line by Shakespeare, “The smallest worm will turn, being trodden on,” As The Worm Turns ups the ante with a decidedly darker and more violent tone, showing the struggle for our favorite monster hunting trio (with Blood the dog included). But the Night Angels aren’t the only foe Jack, Beth and Blood must face and with The Division doing what it takes to keep the truth about the Night Angels under wraps, As The Worm Turns has Beth & Jack besieged on all sides.
WHAT I LOVED
Jack and Beth aren’t your average wise-cracking hunter-duo, nor do they make doe eyes at one another. They care for each other, as every good team should, but the focus here is decidedly on the horror and I like that. Their lives are constantly in peril. I was often left wondering (and worrying) whether either Jack or Beth were going to make it out alive.
I also loved that the action, relentless as it was, was also realistic. There was no magical fairy dust carrying these character through the torment and danger they faced. They had to fight every challenge they faced, constantly and hard. Just when they seem to overcome one obstacle, another sprouts up (often in the form of writhing, seething creatures out for just on thing – to take. Blood. Life. To take it and deplete it from everyone they encounter, everything they touch.
Another thing which really impressed me – there were some incredible passages that, despite being plunged in horror, truly made me stop and bookmark pages. Adding depth to the darkness with a bittersweet sort of melancholy, it mirrored perhaps the hope within Nightlife’s characters that somehow, some way they could still see the possibility of hope through the darkness.
I can only hope that there is another book in the Nightlife series. I would snap it up in a second. With all three books instilled with the same oppressive terror and terrifying monsters that alter to suit their target, I want to read more from this world where powers shift and in which the hunter and hunted are one and the same.
In actuality, they are vampires in the sense that they steal the lifeforce of those they hunt, but these creatures are something else, them, creatures that make their targets see what they want, luring them in with their deepest desires.
Beth Becker, a nightclub waitress as the local watering hole for the university’s frat crowd, stumbles into Jack’s life when her best friend/roommate goes missing and she spies a man tearing down her ‘Missing’ poster and spray painting a strange phrase on the wall in its place – Beware the Night Angel.
After feeling one another out and soon realizing that two hunters are better than one (much to Jack’s chagrin & resistence), both Jack and Beth plunge headlong into New Harbor’s underground (literally) to hunt down the source of the town’s missing persons.
Nightlife starts out with multiple viewpoints but soon whittles it down to Beth and Jack alone, and follows them as they get their hands dirty tracking the terrifying creatures with the help of Jack’s homemade weapons cache.
NIGHTLIFE: HAZARDOUS MATERIAL
Nightlife: Hazardous Material doesn’t include either Jack or Beth but does offer a deeper insight into The Division, the super-secret organization who works behind-the-scenes to keep the reality of these Night Angels from the general public.
Graphic-designer-turned-day-laborer Jarrod Foster discovers a cache of dusty old video game terminals squirreled away in a hidden room behind a strange mural inside the local roller rink. The scene is vaguely familiar to Jarrod, and once he has one of the games, Polybius, in his possession, things start to go off-kilter in the most bizarre and frightening ways for him.
This is where The Division moves into the spotlight and we are given a glimpse at their methods and how they will come to play a larger role in the world in which both Jack and Beth fight to survive.
NIGHTLIFE: AS THE WORM TURNS
The sequel novel, Nightlife: As The Worm Turns, follows Jack and Beth after they leave New Harbor in their rearview and start out anew. But even going so far as Kentucky doesn’t mean their old troubles don’t follow. Same horrors, different town. The Night Angels lurk in the shadows yet again.
Inspired by the Faith No More song “As the Worm Turns” as well as a line by Shakespeare, “The smallest worm will turn, being trodden on,” As The Worm Turns ups the ante with a decidedly darker and more violent tone, showing the struggle for our favorite monster hunting trio (with Blood the dog included). But the Night Angels aren’t the only foe Jack, Beth and Blood must face and with The Division doing what it takes to keep the truth about the Night Angels under wraps, As The Worm Turns has Beth & Jack besieged on all sides.
WHAT I LOVED
Jack and Beth aren’t your average wise-cracking hunter-duo, nor do they make doe eyes at one another. They care for each other, as every good team should, but the focus here is decidedly on the horror and I like that. Their lives are constantly in peril. I was often left wondering (and worrying) whether either Jack or Beth were going to make it out alive.
I also loved that the action, relentless as it was, was also realistic. There was no magical fairy dust carrying these character through the torment and danger they faced. They had to fight every challenge they faced, constantly and hard. Just when they seem to overcome one obstacle, another sprouts up (often in the form of writhing, seething creatures out for just on thing – to take. Blood. Life. To take it and deplete it from everyone they encounter, everything they touch.
Another thing which really impressed me – there were some incredible passages that, despite being plunged in horror, truly made me stop and bookmark pages. Adding depth to the darkness with a bittersweet sort of melancholy, it mirrored perhaps the hope within Nightlife’s characters that somehow, some way they could still see the possibility of hope through the darkness.
I can only hope that there is another book in the Nightlife series. I would snap it up in a second. With all three books instilled with the same oppressive terror and terrifying monsters that alter to suit their target, I want to read more from this world where powers shift and in which the hunter and hunted are one and the same.
July 23, 2015
Nightlife: Night Terrors bundles together three stories, two novel length and one novella length, set in the Nightlife series. The well-written horror series follows veteran monster hunter Jack Jackson and novice Beth Becker as they seek out and kill bloodsucking creatures who feast on humans for their blood, and The Division, a secret organization hunting both the creatures and Jack & Beth.
In Nightlife, Beth starts out ignorant to the existence of “The Night Angels”, creatures who kill humans and drink their blood, until people close to her start going missing. Beth’s search for answers brings her into the path of Jack, a seasoned hunter of the creatures. The two team up in their shared mission to eradicate the deadly killing machines prowling the streets of New Harbor. Nightlife is a bit slow in the beginning and takes a while to build momentum. There are several threads, and several different points of view, that are slowly woven together to set the story up. Well-written and unsettling, but pretty light on horror and gore throughout.
In Nightlife: Hazardous Materials, a guy stumbles upon an old Polybius game cabinet and gets pulled into a nightmare when he tries to play it. This novella takes the urban legend of the Polybius arcade game, a highly addictive game said to cause blackouts, amnesia, and night terrors before being removed from arcades by “men in black” types, and weaves it into a tale of The Division, giving us a closer look at the secret organization only vaguely touched upon in Nightlife, as well as a peek into some of their earlier methods.
Nightlife: As The Worm Turns hits the ground running and never lets up. The imagery is much more disturbing and the kills exponentially more gory – this book is horror at its finest. Jack and Beth are still hunting the same bloodsucking creatures, struggling to stay one step ahead of The Division’s relentless pursuit. Although Jack and Beth are still the main POV’s, a lot of time is spent seeing things from the perspective of Division agents as well, providing some answers about who The Division is and just what it is they want.
Great action, great horror, and wholly unique monsters – I really enjoyed all three books in this bundle and would absolutely read more books by this author and in this series.
*I received an ARC of this book to review. You can find this review and others like it at BookAndCoffeeAddict.com, along with recommendations for a fantastic cup of coffee.
In Nightlife, Beth starts out ignorant to the existence of “The Night Angels”, creatures who kill humans and drink their blood, until people close to her start going missing. Beth’s search for answers brings her into the path of Jack, a seasoned hunter of the creatures. The two team up in their shared mission to eradicate the deadly killing machines prowling the streets of New Harbor. Nightlife is a bit slow in the beginning and takes a while to build momentum. There are several threads, and several different points of view, that are slowly woven together to set the story up. Well-written and unsettling, but pretty light on horror and gore throughout.
In Nightlife: Hazardous Materials, a guy stumbles upon an old Polybius game cabinet and gets pulled into a nightmare when he tries to play it. This novella takes the urban legend of the Polybius arcade game, a highly addictive game said to cause blackouts, amnesia, and night terrors before being removed from arcades by “men in black” types, and weaves it into a tale of The Division, giving us a closer look at the secret organization only vaguely touched upon in Nightlife, as well as a peek into some of their earlier methods.
Nightlife: As The Worm Turns hits the ground running and never lets up. The imagery is much more disturbing and the kills exponentially more gory – this book is horror at its finest. Jack and Beth are still hunting the same bloodsucking creatures, struggling to stay one step ahead of The Division’s relentless pursuit. Although Jack and Beth are still the main POV’s, a lot of time is spent seeing things from the perspective of Division agents as well, providing some answers about who The Division is and just what it is they want.
Great action, great horror, and wholly unique monsters – I really enjoyed all three books in this bundle and would absolutely read more books by this author and in this series.
*I received an ARC of this book to review. You can find this review and others like it at BookAndCoffeeAddict.com, along with recommendations for a fantastic cup of coffee.
July 11, 2015
This is a really good book with three intertwined stories. It's all about creatures that go bump in the night and the hunters that chase them to protect humanity. I really enjoyed each of the stories, two full length novels and a novelette that really caught my attention. I couldn't put the book down, action, adventure , blood and gore kept me on the edge of my seat. I will definitely keep my eye open for more from this author, I want more!! Independent reviewer for Paranormal Romance & Authors That Rock.
July 7, 2022
Goodreads has done something a bit wonky and is using the compilation version of these three books to represent the last one so to be clear this review is for the last of the three, Nightlife: As the Worm Turns. The fact that it's the last book is disappointing because it shouldn't be, there is more to tell! Without spoiling anyone I can say that the end sets the reader up perfectly for more, the next level of this incredibly engaging series but as of this writing, there aren't more. I am not done with Beth, Jack, Agent Thorne or Agent Ross, I feel like I just started getting to know Agent Ross and with what the reader learns at the end (not a total surprise if you've read all the books), takes things in a new direction that held the promise of more unnerving, urban horror. I hold out hope that there will be more because I would definitely read more of these books.
September 26, 2015
Jack and Beth continue to hunt down any hives of the worm like creatures that are sort of like strange versions of vampires. They can look like anyone, so it's hard to to know some times if it's a worm or the person you are thinking of. It makes it hard to make sure you are killing the right person or to not let emotions get the better of you when your staring down someone you love and you know it's not them.
Jack and Beth are also on the run from The Division a group of government officials who are probably not even on the record books as being government officials. They are tracking down the worms and are tracking down Jack because he use to work with them a long time ago and knows things. He knows how to make the vile's from the venom that helps you be able to see the worms for what they are.
Something is also wrong with Jack and he thinks it's cancer, but with out proper treatment he doesn't really know what it is, but the thinks it's from all the venom he has injected himself with.
There is something else out there besides the worms and it's a higher being than the worms but it also hunts the worms. The Division catch up to them and all kind of hell breaks loose.
I like the characters Jack and Beth and I was excited that Jack finally let his guard down with Beth and let her get closer to him. In the first book he was so holding her far away so that she didn't get hurt.
Nightlife: As the Worms Turn was a book that had it's ups and downs. When I read the first book I was real curious about where the story was going but at times it was a tad boring. Same thing happened with this book. It was real interesting at the beginning then it had some serious lag time and then picked up again towards the end. OOOOH and the ending made me so mad....I wanted to throw the book across the room!!! There has to be another book coming cause it didn't end like it was over, but even if there is one it won't make me any happier about what happened at the end of this one. :(
Though it had it's ups and downs and I totally hated the ending it was still a decent book and if there is another one I am sure curiosity will get the better of me and I will read it. :) It's not a real scary book but more action based so if you like that type then you might give this series a try.
Jack and Beth are also on the run from The Division a group of government officials who are probably not even on the record books as being government officials. They are tracking down the worms and are tracking down Jack because he use to work with them a long time ago and knows things. He knows how to make the vile's from the venom that helps you be able to see the worms for what they are.
Something is also wrong with Jack and he thinks it's cancer, but with out proper treatment he doesn't really know what it is, but the thinks it's from all the venom he has injected himself with.
There is something else out there besides the worms and it's a higher being than the worms but it also hunts the worms. The Division catch up to them and all kind of hell breaks loose.
I like the characters Jack and Beth and I was excited that Jack finally let his guard down with Beth and let her get closer to him. In the first book he was so holding her far away so that she didn't get hurt.
Nightlife: As the Worms Turn was a book that had it's ups and downs. When I read the first book I was real curious about where the story was going but at times it was a tad boring. Same thing happened with this book. It was real interesting at the beginning then it had some serious lag time and then picked up again towards the end. OOOOH and the ending made me so mad....I wanted to throw the book across the room!!! There has to be another book coming cause it didn't end like it was over, but even if there is one it won't make me any happier about what happened at the end of this one. :(
Though it had it's ups and downs and I totally hated the ending it was still a decent book and if there is another one I am sure curiosity will get the better of me and I will read it. :) It's not a real scary book but more action based so if you like that type then you might give this series a try.
May 12, 2015
This is a vampire tale and it isn't. It is a tale of a millennium old conspiracy, complete with a host of identical agents of a secret agency. It is also a love story.
This is an interesting book. You get shades of X Factor, leavened with a smidge of Twilight and a pinch of Indiana Jones. Now that I have spewed forth enough metaphoric flotsam perhaps I can move forward.
Martin writes an entertaining tale regardless of my reviewer's drivel or is that dribble. The story moves with good speed. The plot is intricate with minimal confusion especially when you consider this is the third volume of the series. There was a very minimum back story which is more alluded to than told.
Jack and Beth are on a quest to defeat evil while being pursued by those steeped in ignorance or malice. The two are caught between two implacable foes. As in the best of fiction, things aren't always as they seem or as we hope.
This is a good story that I recommend.
Site: http://www.matthewquinnmartin.com/
This is an interesting book. You get shades of X Factor, leavened with a smidge of Twilight and a pinch of Indiana Jones. Now that I have spewed forth enough metaphoric flotsam perhaps I can move forward.
Martin writes an entertaining tale regardless of my reviewer's drivel or is that dribble. The story moves with good speed. The plot is intricate with minimal confusion especially when you consider this is the third volume of the series. There was a very minimum back story which is more alluded to than told.
Jack and Beth are on a quest to defeat evil while being pursued by those steeped in ignorance or malice. The two are caught between two implacable foes. As in the best of fiction, things aren't always as they seem or as we hope.
This is a good story that I recommend.
Site: http://www.matthewquinnmartin.com/
August 6, 2015
Initial Thoughts: Wow, another wild ride. Though there were quite a lot more players this time than in the previous novel, more mini points of view, they didn't distract but pause the story, giving another perspective. In some ways it was less horror and more thriller - finding more about the Division, the origin of the creatures and such. Though we know so much more now, I feel as if we have only scratched the surface. I felt there was more personal touches to it, more sentimental moments. Just as the previous novel, it was a nail biter and I enjoyed it. I hope to see more in the world as it just does not feel as if it is over, but just a new beginning. Please click on the link to the full review by myself and my review partner, Gikany, posted at That's What I'm talking About blog: http://twimom227.com/2015/07/review-n...
September 15, 2015
This is three short stories rolled into one, each able to be read as standalone novellas. The writing is impressive and each tale was terrifying! There's monsters, vampires, and a plethora or creepy creatures...who could ask for more? The writer used some familiar character tropes but he made them frightening and fresh. There were parts of the stories when I actually had chills! The stories are well-plotted and paced. The characters were relatable/likable. And most importantly, I was scared! This was the first book I've read by this author, and now I'm interested to read more. I'm a fan! Definitely a 5-star read.
August 13, 2015
Haunting, harrowing, heartbreaking. Matthew Quinn Martin has done it again, first with HAZARDOUS MATERIAL and then with AS THE WORM TURNS, following Beth and Jack (and Blood!) on a darker hunt than they ever expected. Can't wait for the third book (there is a third book, right? Don't leave me hanging!!!)
Currently reading
June 4, 2015** e-Arc provided by Netgalley **
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