Goodreads helps you keep track of books you want to read.

Start by marking “The Night Eternal (The Strain Trilogy, #3)” as Want to Read:

Other editions

Enlarge cover

Rate this book

Clear rating

1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars

Open Preview

The Night Eternal

(The Strain Trilogy #3)

Guillermo del Toro,

Chuck Hogan

3.68 · Rating details · 25,376 ratings · 2,115 reviews

It's been two years since the vampiric virus was unleashed in The Strain and the entire world now lies on the brink of annihilation. There has been a mass extermination of humans orchestrated by the Master—an ancient vampire possessed of unparalleled powers. The future of humankind lies in the hands of a ragtag band of freedom fighters—Dr. Eph Goodweather, Dr. Nora Martine ...more

Get A Copy

Or buy for

Hardcover, 371 pages

Published October 25th 2011 by HarperCollins Publishers (first published October 13th 2011)

More Details... edit details

Friend Reviews

To see what your friends thought of this book, please sign up.

Reader Q&A

To ask other readers questions about The Night Eternal, please sign up.

Lists with This Book

City of Fallen Angels by Cassandra Clare

Can't Wait Books For 2011

1,219 books — 6,854 voters

MOST AWAITED BOOKS 2011/2012!

462 books — 955 voters

More lists with this book...

Community Reviews

Showing 1-30

3.68 ·

Rating details

· 25,376 ratings · 2,115 reviews

Filter

Sort order

Nov 05, 2011 Kristina rated it did not like it

Recommends it for: no one because it sucks

Shelves: hated-em, fiction, nook-book, brain-candy, horror, suck, supernatural-creatures, disappointing, wtf, want-my-money-back

I am amazed that a series which started so well with The Strain ended so badly. The second book was disappointing, but sometimes the middle book of a trilogy is, but The Night Eternal is simply awful. Mostly I was bored because not much happened in the book. Not only is it not scary or interesting, but it didn't make any kind of logical sense, and yes, even vampire apocalyptic novels should follow some sort of logic. So much is wrong with this novel I'm not sure where to start. Let's see. First, I am amazed that a series which started so well with The Strain ended so badly. The second book was disappointing, but sometimes the middle book of a trilogy is, but The Night Eternal is simply awful. Mostly I was bored because not much happened in the book. Not only is it not scary or interesting, but it didn't make any kind of logical sense, and yes, even vampire apocalyptic novels should follow some sort of logic. So much is wrong with this novel I'm not sure where to start. Let's see. First, our little gang of survivors/vampire hunters/so-called hope for the human race is fighting with each other. Eph has turned into some kind of alcoholic druggie due to his son being kidnapped by his vamp wife. Everyone's irritated with him because he's never where he's supposed to be. Which begs the question: why would you all be separated anyway? Everyone has his own little hide-out, which I thought was weird. If vamps are looking for you, why would you split up? Isn't there strength in numbers? Who guards your back while you're sleeping if everyone is hanging out at his own hidey-hole in different areas of NYC?

Two years have passed since the nuclear explosions took place in the second book. I don't know what our intrepid vamp hunters were doing during that time (other than Eph who raiding pharmacies and hospitals for drugs) apparently because the authors have no idea either. The vamps are busy turning humans into cattle for their feedings and setting up different camps. Also, which made no sense to me, apparently whatever humans aren't in camps as food or being used as labor are allowed to go about their daily lives and go to work and there is still electricity and limited internet and tv broadcasts (all reruns). Huh? What jobs? This is explained by the authors as a way of keeping the humans in line--the vamps give them some semblance of their old lives as a way of keeping them under control. That makes no damn sense. Why would the vamps have to cater to humans? It's quite clear the vamps are physically more advanced and are pretty much in charge of the world. Also, now that there's very little sunlight due to the destroyed environment, the vamps are pretty much out all the time. So where are these humans going on the subways? What jobs are they working? Are they getting paid? Is there still a government? All questions worthy of being asked but do not get answered.

Also extremely annoying is the Harlequin romance that crops up almost immediately. Nora and Eph used to be a couple, but ever since he turned druggie, she and Fet have been making goo-goo eyes at each other. Okay, fine, but this turns into a weirdo love triangle with Eph finding out and getting jealous and there's an absolutely ridiculous scene in which Fet and Nora are reunited (after something stupid happens) and the passage goes something like this: "Nora knew now was not the time to give into her feelings for Fet, but she couldn't help herself and they kissed." Really? Oh, gag. And of course Eph is lurking in the shadows and when he sees them kiss he vows revenge. WTF. How much more awful could this book be? A whole lotta nothing happens in this book. Nothing makes sense and I skimmed a lot of it, just reading enough to keep track of the plot (such as it was).

There's a whole senseless subplot in which Nora needs to escape her hiding place where she's been keeping her mother with her. This makes NO SENSE AT ALL. Supposedly the future of the human race depends on their actions yet this woman keeps her mother with her. Mom has dementia and can't do much except be a burden. If Nora (and the authors) had half a brain, they would have allowed Nora to euthanize Mom. Her death by Nora's hand would be more peaceful and painless than what would happen if the vamps caught her (old people are useless & the vamps drain them and then kill them). But oh no, Nora drags Mom around with her while trying to escape the vamps tracking her--and you can guess how well that turns out. I figure the authors allowed this to happen because they needed Nora to get captured so she could be sent to the camp so what happens there can happen (which is dumb, but again the whole book is dumb). Eph's son has been hanging with The Master and he's turned into a little shithead (he was more or less brain-washed but still I can't forgive him for killing the zoo animals) and I don't care what happens to him. I actually hoped a vamp would get mad and eat him.

The book ends just as stupidly as it began and I'm beginning to think authors who get lost in their plots and can't figure a way out turn to religion, specifically Christianity, and even more specifically, the story of Sodom and Gomorrah from the Bible. I don't really know how that story and these different angels connected to the plot because I didn't care enough to read those parts of the book (the infamous "interludes"). Suffice it to say the authors wrapped it neatly with a bow by borrowing Christian theology and somehow working vampires into it. I won't comment on the end of the novel except to say it smacked of being written in a hurry just to finish off the book and be done with it. And that's how I read it--quickly so I could be done with it. Awful, boring, dumb, horrible book. I will be deleting it from my Nook library.

Attention to those who want to comment on my review:

I enjoy comments. I do. But if you want to explain to me the plot of this stupid book, please don't comment at all! I understood it. Really, I did. I just thought it didn't work for many reasons which I explain in my review. If you want to argue my REASONS for not liking the plot, fine. But quit trying to explain the plot to me! Just because I didn't like the book doesn't mean I'm an idiot who didn't understand it. I'm sorry that I have to add this cranky comment to my review, but I'm tired of having the book explained to me by people who loved the book. If you loved it, great. If you can't handle dissent, then stick to reading reviews that agree with your point of view. To those of you who didn't agree with me but managed to leave thoughtful comments, thank you. ...more

flag 88 likes · Like · see review

Feb 09, 2012 Winskillfull rated it did not like it

One of the worst books I've ever read. Be warned, the following is full of spoilers!

This book is FULL of plot holes - like suddenly, an epidemiologist is a freaking ninja, able to wield a sword against tens of vampires at the same time (even though said vampires have 6-foot long stingers, so...). The vampire blood is now caustic (since when??) and vampires frow wattles (???) even though the Ancients didn't have these...

Also, apparently the UK is largely vampire-free, due to being an island. FYI, One of the worst books I've ever read. Be warned, the following is full of spoilers!

This book is FULL of plot holes - like suddenly, an epidemiologist is a freaking ninja, able to wield a sword against tens of vampires at the same time (even though said vampires have 6-foot long stingers, so...). The vampire blood is now caustic (since when??) and vampires frow wattles (???) even though the Ancients didn't have these...

Also, apparently the UK is largely vampire-free, due to being an island. FYI, geography fans, the United Kingdom is England, Scotland, Wales...and Northern Ireland. So to be clear, Del Torro is trying to tell us that the island of England, Scotland and Wales (that would be Great Britain) PLUS Northern Ireland (on a separate island) are vamp-free, which presumably means that the Republic of Ireland is full of vampires, who don't like to cross the border into Northern Ireland. Maybe they don't like Protestants.

Also, why would the UK, a global power with advanced weaponry, just leave the rest of the world to be run by vampires? What, did we just decide everyone else could go fuck themselves?

Speaking of everyone else, what about New Zealand, Australia, Hawii, Madagascar and all the other hundreds and thousands of islands in the world? Did the vampires get them? The UK is singled out as being different, so it would appear so.

Then we get to the planes - I think this was mentioned in The Fall, but I'm ranting here to stick with it. I can suspend my disbelief & allow for the Master to arrive in New York and infect passengers on a place - but how did he manage doing this in airports around the globe?! Did he have an army of other master-level vampires all able to do his bidding?

Also the religion. The first book was genius in using science to add an element of reality to the vampire myth and it worked brilliantly; this book feels like a massive step backward by suddenly trying to explain vampires via the Bible (sidenote, in the second book we get mention of this mysterious "Sadam and Gamrah" - I'm not even freaking Christian and I could guess that was Soddom and Gomorrah). If vampires came from the blood of angels and were accursed by God, then why doesn't Holy Water and crosses work against them?

The light at the end, over the bomb - was that meant to be God setting off the bomb, or just a coincidence? Why was the "murdered" angel suddenly okay? Why was an angel who went nuts & murdered another allowed to resurrect and go to Heaven? Why did ACTUAL ANGELS appear at the end? DAMN but that was stupid.

It seemed weird that Zack would also become a total sociopath; he was such a nice kid in the first and second books, had a strong relationship with his dad and yet in this book he's identifying with the Master and starving zoo animals trapped in cages, shooting at strangers. Seemed utterly out of character.

The grinding lack of charicterisation continues in this book, too. There were frequent occasions when I genuinely forgot who was meant to be talking, because they all sound the damn same. Also suddenly Setrakian was this big father-figure to Fet. And Fet is Ukranian instead of Russian.

Basically, the second and third books were just error after error after error. Don't bother. ...more

flag 24 likes · Like · see review

Sep 02, 2011 Silvana rated it it was ok · review of another edition

Shelves: scary-stuff, audiobooks, disappointing

A bit spoilerish but not too dangerous...

Disappointing end. Not just the ending of the trilogy but the whole book. It tasted so different if compared with the predecessors. I don't even know where to start pointing out the things I dislike from this book. The archangels and Sodom & Gomora & Old Testament tales are so ridiculous I spent much time frowning and shaking my head. Too much deus ex machina here and there. Why can't the authors make an original tale of the vampire creation? And ...more

flag 24 likes · Like · see review

Jul 11, 2011 Lou rated it it was amazing

Shelves: arc, october-reading, paranormal, other-beings, horror

A great cataclysmic finale to a story of biblical proportions, a story thats unearths a history as old as mankind.
A father and a son separated across the Atlantic, are two important characters in this third and grand finale of a book. The father Dr Ephraim Goodweather, once a prominent epidemiologist with the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, has a very important role, for the end of times is near either for the humans or the vampire race. For some reason, which will be unveiled in th A great cataclysmic finale to a story of biblical proportions, a story thats unearths a history as old as mankind.
A father and a son separated across the Atlantic, are two important characters in this third and grand finale of a book. The father Dr Ephraim Goodweather, once a prominent epidemiologist with the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, has a very important role, for the end of times is near either for the humans or the vampire race. For some reason, which will be unveiled in the book, Ephraim is drawn to the deciphering of the 'Lumen.'
The Occido Lumen is an important book, a wanted book by 'The Master'(the evil leader of the vampires), it is a book of revelations to the vampires, just like the holy books of the humans. It contains the creation and history of the worlds vampire race.
The son, Zack has also a vital role in the darkness ensuing, he is being controlled in the old art of the vampires of telepathic mind control, groomed into a vessel that the Master the one vampire who wishes to soon inhabit his body. The boy Zack lived like a prince under the watchful eye of the evil Master, In a real castle in the center of a giant city. He was given anything he wanted and was handed a zoo to own. But, here is the big but! It all came at a price, a price Zack was not aware of due to the mind control. The price was he is to be the next body host for the master who at present is in possession of a rock stars body. Zack has been lied to his father he was told was dead and his mother a turned vampire in service of the master. The master was controlling his actions and thoughts and emulating the darkness of his heart, to make him more evil. The master gets kicks out acts of decadence and brutality. The boys young mind was an agreeable lump of dough, one the Master continued to knead. There is one scene that stays with you where the boy is placed in a position where he has to kill one animal, on orders from the master, to save the other animals and to keep and own the zoo.

The father races against time in saving the planet and his son from complete human extinction. The others on his side is 'the born' Mr Quinlan another ancient vampire who's against the master, and a band of people courageous souls who mostly have lost loved ones to the vampires.
They are against the master and his band of vampires (strigoi), feelers(four legged blood suckers), and humans that work in his service.

This proved, where many have failed! that a trilogy can really work and the third book can be one of the strongest stories. I don't really have nightmares after reading books but this gave me one hell of a nightmare last night. The two authors really take you back to the beginning with this book and answer all the questions you were left in doubt about in the first and second book, it tells the story of the genesis of the vampires, the ancients, the first few. Their are powers more greater than you can fathom at play in the order of the things that will or will not save humanity, time will tell.
Let me say that this, that the tale of Sodom and Gomorrah play and important role to the vampires history.
I don't want to spoil the story but he has really plotted deep and added some real darkness to this story and genre on a whole, he has rewritten the script on vampires. Forget romance and the now vampire fluffiness ever present in novels, this is darkness true and true a real engrossing tale of humanities perilous battle for survival from the first novel to the third and grand finale.
I am in awe of the kind of movie Del Toro could make from these epic stories!

"Eph wondered what time it was. Sometime o'clock in the morning, he figured, judging by his own failing circadian rhythm. It was summer-at least according to the old calendar-and so the sun should have been high and hot in the sky.
Instead, darkness prevailed. The natural order of the night and day had been shattered, presumably forever. The sun was obliterated by a murky veil of ash floating in the sky. The new atmosphere was comprised of the detritus of nuclear explosions and volcanic eruptions distributed around the globe, a ball of blue-green candy wrapped inside a crust of poisonous chocolate. It had cured into a thick, insulating cowl, sealing in darkness and cold and sealing out the sun.
Perennial nightfall. The planet turned into a pale, rotting netherworld of rime and torment
The perfect ecology for vampires."

"For the Master, it is best to consider the whole of recorded human history as a series of test runs. A set of experiments carried out over time, in preparation for the final master stroke. The Master was there during the rise and fall of the Roman Empire. He learned from the French Revolution, the Napoleonic wars. He nested in the concentration camps. He lived among you like a deviant sociologist, learning everything he could from and about you, in order to engineer your collapse. Patterns over time. The Master learned to align himself with influential power brokers, such as Eldritch Palmer, and corrupt them. He devised a formula for the mathematics of power. The perfect balance of vampires, cattle, and wardens."

New video with Guillermo del Toro and Chuck Hogan discussing THE STRAIN Trilogy Here ...more

flag 23 likes · Like · see review

Mar 05, 2012 Nate rated it did not like it

Shelves: horror

My original review is below. I revisited this book and, though I thought it impossible, my loathing has only grown. I now hate this book and the catastrophic end it brought more than Donald Trump hates our President. More than the Kardashians hate privacy. More than hippies hate soap. More than children hate broccoli. This book is an abomination that made me stupider to read it. This book is a tragedy filled with faux mystical nonsense that the hack writers of the Left Behind series would feel a ...more

flag 15 likes · Like · see review

May 29, 2018 Evelina | AvalinahsBooks rated it it was ok

Shelves: books-of-2018, dark-tbr, end-of-the-world-tbr, fiction, horror-tbr, problematic

The third book is... absolute bull. The only reason I kept reading is because I kind of wanted to know how it ends, but more importantly – so I can record the bull and put it in my review!

So get this. You know how Chernobyl crashed like 40 years ago, and you STILL need permits to go there, and there are STILL areas that are totally off limits cause they're very dangerous? Well, apparently, this is not the way nuclear waste works in the universe of The Strain. There are going to be spoilers n The third book is... absolute bull. The only reason I kept reading is because I kind of wanted to know how it ends, but more importantly – so I can record the bull and put it in my review!

So get this. You know how Chernobyl crashed like 40 years ago, and you STILL need permits to go there, and there are STILL areas that are totally off limits cause they're very dangerous? Well, apparently, this is not the way nuclear waste works in the universe of The Strain. There are going to be spoilers now, but I strongly advise you to click them and read them, cause I also advise you to NOT pick up this series. (view spoiler)

All of these incongruencies were wayyyyy too much for me to deal with. Even a middle grader knows this stuff won't work. When (view spoiler) in book two, I was wondering what book three was even going to be about, cause considering the damage, nobody should be alive in book three, apart from the bad guys, and they don't have anything to eat without humans, so they wouldn't be alive either. But nope. The authors found a way to somehow drive this plot off the cliff and still have book three.

Read Post On My Blog | My Bookstagram | Bookish Twitter ...more

flag 14 likes · Like · see review

Oct 07, 2017 Eliasdgian rated it really liked it · review of another edition

Η επικράτηση του Αφέντη έφερε τη βασιλεία του σκοταδιού και την ανατροπή της φυσικής τάξης μέρας και νύχτας. Τίποτε δεν είναι το ίδιο σε έναν κόσμο που ο ήλιος έχει χαθεί πίσω από ένα αδιαπέραστο πέπλο στάχτης, σε ένα ρημαγμένο περιβάλλον που αποτελεί πια τον ιδανικό βιότοπο για βαμπίρ. Η μοίρα του ανθρώπινου είδους έχει προδιαγραφεί, το ίδιο και ο πολιτισμός του. Ο κόσμος γέμισε ξανά στρατόπεδα συγκέντρωσης και ανθρωποφύλακες.

Το τρίτο και τελευταίο μέρος της τριλογίας The Strain εκτυλίσσεται σ Η επικράτηση του Αφέντη έφερε τη βασιλεία του σκοταδιού και την ανατροπή της φυσικής τάξης μέρας και νύχτας. Τίποτε δεν είναι το ίδιο σε έναν κόσμο που ο ήλιος έχει χαθεί πίσω από ένα αδιαπέραστο πέπλο στάχτης, σε ένα ρημαγμένο περιβάλλον που αποτελεί πια τον ιδανικό βιότοπο για βαμπίρ. Η μοίρα του ανθρώπινου είδους έχει προδιαγραφεί, το ίδιο και ο πολιτισμός του. Ο κόσμος γέμισε ξανά στρατόπεδα συγκέντρωσης και ανθρωποφύλακες.

Το τρίτο και τελευταίο μέρος της τριλογίας The Strain εκτυλίσσεται στο σκοτάδι∙ και περιγράφει το έρεβος, τον όλεθρο, την επικράτηση της Αιώνιας Νύχτας και της μάστιγας που διαβιεί κάτω από τις μαύρες φτερούγες της. Το απόλυτο κακό εγκαθίδρυσε την επί γης εξουσία του κι οι περισσότεροι άνθρωποι συνθηκολόγησαν, υποτάχθηκαν, έγιναν οι ορντινάντσες των βδελυγμάτων, του υποείδους που κυβερνά προσωρινά τα ανθρώπινα.

Υπάρχουν κι οι άλλοι, όμως. Εκείνοι που ονειρεύονται ακόμη, που αγωνίζονται μέχρις εσχάτων, που δεν θα λυτρωθούν αν δεν ελευθερώσουν τον άνθρωπο από τα δεσμά του Αφέντη. Ο Εφραίμ Γκουντγουέδερ, ο Βασίλι Φετ, η Νόρα Μαρτίνεζ και ο Γκας Ελιζάντε είναι μερικοί από αυτούς. Σύμμαχός τους ο γιος του Αφέντη, ο Κουίνλαν, μισός άνθρωπος, μισός στριγκόι, που μολυσμένος από την κατάρα του Αφέντη διάλεξε στρατόπεδο από νωρίς, και το Occido Lumen, το βιβλίο που εξιστορεί την πρώτη εμφάνιση των στριγκόι και περιέχει, ίσως, τον τρόπο να απαλλαγεί κανείς οριστικά από αυτούς.

Στις τελευταίες εκατόν πενήντα σελίδες αδυνατείς να αφήσεις το βιβλίο από τα χέρια σου, η δράση είναι φρενήρης κι οι ανατροπές σε σχέση με την τηλεοπτική παραγωγή εντυπωσιακά πολλές. Ανάμεσα στο αίμα που ρέει άφθονο και στα τρία βιβλία, τα παρασιτικά σκουλίκια που ως φορείς του ιού αναζητούν τον επόμενο ξενιστή τους, τους αμέτρητους θανάτους και τις αναρίθμητες μεταμορφώσεις ανθρώπων σε στριγκόι, επιτρέψτε μου να διαλέξω την ειδυλλιακή εικόνα του τέλους, τα λόγια που σκέφτηκε η Νόρα Μαρτίνεζ κοιτώντας το γαλήνιο προσωπάκι του βρέφους της:

Όταν κοιτάζει κανείς πίσω τη ζωή του, καταλαβαίνει ότι η αγάπη είναι η απάντηση σε όλα .
...more

flag 13 likes · Like · see review

Aug 05, 2014 Carol rated it liked it · review of another edition

Shelves: horror, sci-fi, vampires, trilogy, thriller, read-2014

Book 3 The Night Eternal of The Strain trilogy resumes with the resistance and The Born (Mr. Quinlan) out to find and destroy The Master at his site of origin, but there is a traitor among them and another with his own agenda....

While there is a bit more history and background information than necessary on how "it" all began in this finale, it was still full of action and very entertaining if you like this genre and accept it for what it is.

The ending was not exactly what I had hoped for, (view

...more

flag 12 likes · Like · see review

Aug 12, 2011 Jay rated it it was ok

Shelves: dystopian-sci-fi

The Strain Trilogy is comprised of three separate volumes published between 2009 and 2011: The Strain (2009); The Fall (2010); and The Night Eternal (2011). Written by Guillermo del Toro and Chuck Hogan, it chronicles a vampiric takeover of the world and the efforts of a band of humans to resist.

The trilogy as a whole is entertaining. Certainly not with great literary quality but it will make, under Guillermo del Toro’s direction, a heart-stopping movie. The writing is not bad. I presume that th ...more

flag 10 likes · Like · see review

Mar 31, 2019 Chrissa Vasileiou rated it really liked it · review of another edition

Shelves: horror

Η αλήθεια είναι πως χαίρομαι πολύ που διάβασα τη συγκεκριμένη τριλογία, όμως χαίρομαι και που τελείωσε. Νομίζω πως ό,τι είχε να πει, το είπε. Και αυτό το τρίτο βιβλίο με κούρασε λίγο - όχι ότι δεν το απόλαυσα, αλλά όχι όσο τα δύο προηγούμενα.

Η δράση εδώ εκτυλίσσεται δύο χρόνια μετά την έλευση της Αιώνιας Νύχτας και την επικράτηση των βαμπίρ έναντι των ανθρώπων. Η καθημερινότητα όλων έχει γίνει σκληρή, απάνθρωπη, αβάσταχτη, σκοτεινή και πολύ επικίνδυνη. Η πλειοψηφία των ανθρώπων μοιάζει να έχει υ Η αλήθεια είναι πως χαίρομαι πολύ που διάβασα τη συγκεκριμένη τριλογία, όμως χαίρομαι και που τελείωσε. Νομίζω πως ό,τι είχε να πει, το είπε. Και αυτό το τρίτο βιβλίο με κούρασε λίγο - όχι ότι δεν το απόλαυσα, αλλά όχι όσο τα δύο προηγούμενα.

Η δράση εδώ εκτυλίσσεται δύο χρόνια μετά την έλευση της Αιώνιας Νύχτας και την επικράτηση των βαμπίρ έναντι των ανθρώπων. Η καθημερινότητα όλων έχει γίνει σκληρή, απάνθρωπη, αβάσταχτη, σκοτεινή και πολύ επικίνδυνη. Η πλειοψηφία των ανθρώπων μοιάζει να έχει υποταχθεί στη μοίρα της και στα σκοτεινά πλάσματα του Αφέντη. Όμως, η ομάδα των γνωστών αγνώστων μας συνεχίζει να αγωνίζεται, ενάντια σε όλες τις αντιξοότητες. Συνεχίζει να μη δέχεται πως το μέλλον τους είναι να κρύβονται αιωνίως από τον Αφέντη ή να πέσουν τελικά στα νύχια του. Συνεχίζει να μάχεται το σκοτάδι και να ψάχνει τον τρόπο για να τον εξοντώσει μια και καλή.

Θεωρώ πως το συγκεκριμένο βιβλίο προσφέρει ένα αξιοπρεπέστατο 'κλείσιμο' σ' αυτή την ιστορία και ικανοποιεί τον αναγνώστη. (view spoiler) Και γενικότερα, από κάθε άποψη, η συγκεκριμένη τριλογία αξίζει να διαβαστεί νομίζω από φανατικούς και μη του είδους. ...more

flag 9 likes · Like · see review

Mar 16, 2011 Bonnie rated it really liked it · review of another edition

Shelves: pn-vampires, eek-the-creepies, adult, library, plagues-and-pandemics, buddy-reads-mom

Interested in more of my reviews? Visit my blog!

Night Eternal: the final installation in the Strain Trilogy. As the title may tell you, you’re in for a very dark and desolate journey. I will keep this short and sweet as much of this novel needs to be experienced firsthand, instead of through a review.

The Storyline
As the story opens, Dr. Ephraim (Eph) Goodweather is still reeling from the loss of his son, Zachary. Due to the vampire nature, his mother Kelly came back for him after she had already ...more

flag 9 likes · Like · see review

Jan 18, 2015 Leah Polcar rated it really liked it · review of another edition

Shelves: 2015-popsugar-challenge, read-2015, vampires, 2015-horror-aficionados-reading-cha, audio-book

After reading book two, I concluded that perhaps my love of The Strain was a result of hatred of friendly (and sparkly) vampires and being read by Ron Perleman. I can't rule out the former, but the lack of Perleman did not lessen my enjoyment of The Night Eternal . It is always difficult for me to know how to review books that are continuations of a series since by book three it is likely unfair to evaluate whether the book can stand alone. In fact, who would expect it to? Listening/reading 2 h After reading book two, I concluded that perhaps my love of The Strain was a result of hatred of friendly (and sparkly) vampires and being read by Ron Perleman. I can't rule out the former, but the lack of Perleman did not lessen my enjoyment of The Night Eternal . It is always difficult for me to know how to review books that are continuations of a series since by book three it is likely unfair to evaluate whether the book can stand alone. In fact, who would expect it to? Listening/reading 2 hours of back-story is enough for any series reader to want to choke the author -- so I actually appreciated that The Night Eternal didn't even bother. We went right to the action and that was actually a huge plus of this final entry in The Strain trilogy.

Further, it did a nice job of working well within the trilogy format -- which I quite liked from the entire series. One thing I have complained about is the recent trend to serialize everything with the huge downside that every book seems to end in a cliffhanger and I end up feeling like I am in a book version of the Sims where I have to keep paying for the expansion packs just to find out what happens. The Strain avoided this pitfall and I have to take a moment to acknowledge how much I appreciated that.

Overall, I thought this book was probably the strongest in the series. del Toro finally cut out the overly repetitive and long "action" sequences -- I said it before and I will say it again, how can you actually make sword fighting tedious? I found the character development here much better than in the rest of the series, new elements, like the human camps, interesting and adding a lot of twists and turns (view spoiler) kept it fresh and moving right along. (view spoiler). And I felt that the series did resolve itself well.

Is this serious literature? No, but I find it did a fantastic, better than average, job of being what it was: well-written entertainment. Definite two thumbs up for me. ...more

flag 9 likes · Like · see review

Jun 07, 2017 Димитър Цолов rated it really liked it · review of another edition

Реалната ми оценка за трилогията "Напаст" е някъде ~ 3,5. Щеше ми се апокалиптичната картина, в която вампирите стават владетели на света, да има по-голям размах (спомнете си какво стори с един грипен вирус чичо Кинг в "Сблъсък"), но не би... Главният герой Еф Гудуедър за две години (толкова е времевият интервал между втората и третата книга) се бе превърнал в алкохолизиран мухльо, чак ми идеше да скокна до опустошения Ню Йорк и да му забърша няколко шамара; действието вървеше по холивудски клиш ...more

flag 8 likes · Like · see review

Mar 02, 2011 Debra rated it really liked it

Shelves: series, best-horror-2011, horror-supernatural

I've read through a few of the negative reviews about this final book in the trilogy, and although I saw some valid points, I didn't see anything to sway me from giving this book a good rating.

I enjoyed the entire trilogy and the last book was very good, IMHO. It was a page-turner with plenty of action and intrigue, and I enjoyed the biblical implications (whereas others didn't). I liked how the authors explained the rising of the first vampires. It was uniquely different from what we've heard i ...more

flag 8 likes · Like · see review

Mar 07, 2017 Παναγιώτης Δεληγιάννης rated it really liked it · review of another edition

Η μυθοπλασια φανταστική. Τα πολλά μικρά λαθακια που οδηγουσαν σε ατοπα, δεν εξηγηθηκαν στο τρίτο μέρος της τριλογίας.

flag 8 likes · Like · see review

Nov 23, 2013 Stuart rated it liked it · review of another edition

Shelves: apocalypse, vampires, ya-fiction, science-fiction

"The vampires have established themselves at top of the food chain, Tescos is out, express blood banks are in. Humans are now the cattle."

I found myself rooting for Eph to kick the Masters arse towards the end. What a blaze of glory the ending had. I know, I know, I've said several times how dull this novel is, how much it borrows from Del Toro's other works and genres. I couldn't help it. Damn it, I feel somehow, tainted.

Anyway, so The Night Eternal is the last in Del Toro and Hogan's The Stra "The vampires have established themselves at top of the food chain, Tescos is out, express blood banks are in. Humans are now the cattle."

I found myself rooting for Eph to kick the Masters arse towards the end. What a blaze of glory the ending had. I know, I know, I've said several times how dull this novel is, how much it borrows from Del Toro's other works and genres. I couldn't help it. Damn it, I feel somehow, tainted.

Anyway, so The Night Eternal is the last in Del Toro and Hogan's The Strain trilogy. The vampires have established themselves at top of the food chain, Tescos is out, express blood banks are in. Humans are now the cattle. It's a vampiric paradise out there, 22 hours a day of darkness and meals on legs. Brilliant.

Ephraim Goodweather and his merryband, Nora, Vasily Fet and Gus are still entrenched fighting the good fight. The timeline has moved on by a few years. Food is in short supply and the group have been busy. Fet travelling across the world to find out more about Lumen, a book which is essentially the Bible of the vampires. Yes, complete myth you see. OK, sarcasm aside it's written in a language no one can decipher. A bit of a dead end then? No not really. The Born has arrived. Mr. Quinlan, NO, not Mr. Anderson! The Q-man is a off-spring of The Master. There is a lovely little backstory, which delves into both The Born and Masters past. The tale involving the creation of the Master was complete waffle and jibberish, Arch-Angel indeed. Pfft. The Born really vampiric arse, he is one rather all, just a more pure-strain (or something).

Eph and The Born become fairly tight, watching out for each other, especially as Eph is obsessed with finding his son. What Eph doesn't know is his son, Zack, is now under the influence of the Master. The horror! One thing the writers aren't afraid of is killing off their chess pieces. A lot of characters are gnawed on, chewed over and bleed. I won't be naming names, but things go all grimdark for half the novel. Not a bad thing.

The prose is woefully bad. There are some very basic grammatical errors. Am I being picky? No, this is meant to be a professional piece of work, so should reflect that. The biggest problem with the Strain trilogy is that a lot of the characters and creations are heavily borrowed from Del Toro's movies, such as Blade I and II and Mimic. This was my main problem with the entire series. Surely someone who is so creatively unique can come up with something, well, different. Obviously not in this case. I've also stated how standard the characters are, they are a dull affair. Nothing really grabs me in there regard. Another element that I found weird was that the group i.e. Eph, Nora etc, were killing vampires with ease. Yet the world was being held 'hostage' by ten thousand vampires? Come on give me a break. I know it's a work of fiction, but at least sort the continuation out. Out of balanced comes to mind.

I could go into detail and talk about how one could view this as a sociological rant at society. How we've become owned by the things we own, and the need to break free of this mundane items in our lives. However, these novels are what they are, pulp-fiction. So I won't be wasting my time in this case. Over the entire series it's been a average read. Average doesn't mean I didn't enjoy it. You may more than me. I'd be interested to see what you have to say.
...more

flag 7 likes · Like · see review

Jun 12, 2012 Crystal rated it it was amazing

I am a HUGE vampire fan (real vampires, not those glittery pieces of crap that are in those dumb ass twilight books), and found this series to be a great read. I like the twist on the traditional vampire story with some old legendy stuff thrown in.

In my life I have bought less than a dozen brand new books in hardcover (when they first came out) and this series (after reading the first book) was one in which I just couldn't wait for the paperback version to come out because I had to buy it. I ra ...more

flag 7 likes · Like · see review

Apr 13, 2014 Angel Gelique rated it it was amazing

I can't believe it's over...! With a satisfying ending, this last book of "The Strain" trilogy did not let me down...except by ending! It was thoroughly suspenseful--the last twenty percent or so really had me at the edge of my seat. No spoilers from me, but wow...I didn't expect that ending! Now I can't wait for the television series that's expected to air this summer on FX. I hope it will closely mirror the book, unlike many other series based on books.

Again, I highly recommend this amazing se ...more

flag 7 likes · Like · see review

Feb 07, 2017 Esther rated it really liked it · review of another edition

Shelves: owned-books

Longer review:
http://biteintobooks.blogspot.nl/2017...

This series was a rollercoaster ride! I loved to read this series together with Zwaantina.

I can tell you this; it's a unique series in the vampire-themed books. I loved the fact that del Toro and Hogan weren't scared to make the world in this book AWEFUL. I wouldn't want to live there.

The book really builds up to an ending that could go either way. I felt like the world was lost forever, and a "good" ending wasn't possible in my opinion.

You ...more

flag 7 likes · Like · see review

Jun 03, 2011 Katy rated it it was amazing

Recommends it for: fans of vampires, horror

Recommended to Katy by: Amazon.com Vine

Shelves: vine-book, galley-for-review

Review of a book received from the Amazon Vine program in exchange for an honest review, review written 2011.

Two years have passed since the fall of The Night Eternal. The Master has consolidated his control over humanity by the wholesale slaughter of the leaders, the intelligentsia, the scientists – anyone who might challenge his supremacy – and of those who are elderly or infirm or otherwise incapable of being contributing members of society. In the meantime, humans are controlled by the vampi Review of a book received from the Amazon Vine program in exchange for an honest review, review written 2011.

Two years have passed since the fall of The Night Eternal. The Master has consolidated his control over humanity by the wholesale slaughter of the leaders, the intelligentsia, the scientists – anyone who might challenge his supremacy – and of those who are elderly or infirm or otherwise incapable of being contributing members of society. In the meantime, humans are controlled by the vampires – if humans want to eat, have clothes and be left alone, they must contribute. Payment by money no longer exists – humans are paid with vouchers for rations and clothing. And the unlucky ones are sent to camps, where they become either breeding machines or slave labor. Eph, Nora, Vasiliy, and Gus and his friends continue to fight against the Master and his regime. But things seems to be coming to a head; the vampires have discovered their hiding spots and the rebels are on the run. They need to translate the Lumen, to discover the location of the Master’s origin, and destroy it – thereby destroying the strain. But can they do it? Will they be able to stay ahead of the Master and his strain long enough to decipher the ancient text? And will they survive the treachery that raises its head amongst them?

While I was bothered by a few plot holes – mostly, how is it that they’ve accomplished so little in two years, yet remained ahead of the vamps, and then suddenly everything comes down at once – overall I found this to be an eminently satisfying conclusion to The Strain Trilogy. The characters continue to be a strong aspect, and the plot continues to be fast-paced but strongly developed, and the ending seems realistic – well, as realistic as can be expected in a apocalyptic vampire novel! I thinks fans of this trilogy will be happy with the ending of the series. If you haven’t discovered The Strain yet, be sure to seek it out, starting with “The Strain,” released in 2009, then “The Fall” in 2010, and finally “The Night Eternal,” which was just released. ...more

flag 6 likes · Like · see review

Jan 07, 2012 Rick Urban rated it it was ok

I will add my voice to the chorus who found this final book in the Strain Trilogy to be a great disappointment. One of my major complaints regards the Biblical origin story that Guillermo and Hogan have concocted, since it cheapens one of the great premises on which the original book rests: that the vampires have a detailed, real-world biology. Additionally, the plot is sloppily constructed, as with the chapter that, late in the game, describes how Eph's son is developing OCD; in no previous cha ...more

flag 6 likes · Like · see review

Apr 11, 2018 Книжни Криле rated it really liked it · review of another edition

Радиоактивни облаци потапят света във „Вечната нощ”. Вампирските орди на Господаря властват навред. Хората, доскоро удобно настанени на върха на хранителната верига, сега се превръщат в добитък. Малкото, които не са затворени във лагерите за добив на кръв са на ръба на съществуването. Малцина все още имат сили и воля да продължават да се борят. Бруталната хорър трилогия „Напаст” на Гийермо дел Торо и Чък Хоган (изд. „Студио Арт Лайн”) е към своя край, но нищо не подсказва че той ще е щастлив! Пр ...more

flag 5 likes · Like · see review

May 26, 2011 Rachel rated it it was amazing

Shelves: vampires-witches

This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers. To view it, click here.

flag 5 likes · Like · see review

Apr 19, 2014 Adam Light rated it it was amazing

Shelves: horror, series, own-it, e-book

This is the 3rd installment in The Strain trilogy.
Once again we fjnd the ragged, but slowly diminishing, band of survivors fighging a seemingly insurmountable legion of blood sucking evil led by the hellish Master.
This was extremely engaginf and well written and rounded out the series perfectly.
On the whole, the trilogy was also very entertaining, and I would recommend it to anyone who is tired of vampire cliches, as this story creates an interesting new take on the tried and true formula. And t ...more

flag 5 likes · Like · see review

May 24, 2015 Laura rated it really liked it · review of another edition

Excelente historia, mantiene el suspenso hasta el final, aunque un par d capítulos antes d que termine se va adivinando.
Pero para mi opinión esta bien ese final, lástima por algunos personajes principales (q no voy a poner cuales son xa no spoilear)
Me alegra q esa hdp d Kelly al fin se muera.
Y nada más. Muy buena saga, disfrute de la lectura d los tres libros. Atrapante, intrigante y mantiene el suspenso todo el tiempo.

flag 5 likes · Like · see review

Jul 04, 2015 Marko Radosavljevic rated it really liked it · review of another edition

Da zaboravim zoran kraj i neiskorišćene ideje, tri ipo je solidna ocena. Beše interesantna vožnja

flag 5 likes · Like · see review

Feb 04, 2018 Fausto Arellano rated it it was amazing · review of another edition

Que mejor manera de terminar una saga de esta clase, que no sea con un libro de este nivel.
No mucho que decir, una obra increíble, todo y más de lo que esperaba de un autor como este.
Todo lo más horrible a imaginar de una saga de vampiros, está aquí.
Si eres admirador del cine de Guillermo del Toro, dale una oportunidad y notarás el maestro que es.
Espectacular.

flag 4 likes · Like · see review

Nov 16, 2011 Daniel Duron rated it really liked it

"The Night Eternal", the end of the Strain Trilogy by Guillermo Del Toro and Chuck Hogan is a fine read. Taken on it's own, it's actually quite a good novel about a post-apocalyptic New York City ruled by the iron first of an ancient vampire. However, when the two novels of the trilogy that preceded this one are taken into consideration, it is quite obvious that this is the weakest of the three.

Still, one cannot overlook the good and what this book does good, it does quite well; for instance, th "The Night Eternal", the end of the Strain Trilogy by Guillermo Del Toro and Chuck Hogan is a fine read. Taken on it's own, it's actually quite a good novel about a post-apocalyptic New York City ruled by the iron first of an ancient vampire. However, when the two novels of the trilogy that preceded this one are taken into consideration, it is quite obvious that this is the weakest of the three.

Still, one cannot overlook the good and what this book does good, it does quite well; for instance, the characters of Nora Martinez and Vasiliy Fet are given bigger roles and blossom into quite the likable pair. The development of their relationship in the ruins of society is at times touching and makes sense in the context of the story. Also, Mr. Quinlan, the "Born" and son of the Master is an interesting, solemn figure. His contribution is perhaps a bit small in terms of page length, but in the grand scheme of things, he's one of the most important characters and it's nice to see his story given room to breathe.

However, the arcs of the characters mentioned above come at the expense of that of Ephraim Goodweather, the trilogy's main character. Where in the first two books he was a man of science who cared deeply about his family and friends, he is now a former shell of himself. It's understandable that with the abduction of his son at the end of "The Fall" he would be distraught, but Guillermo Del Toro went a little too far; Eph is no longer an intelligent and resourceful leader, he is a selfish and unreliable drug addict. He is supposed to be a sympathetic father who lost the person most important to him, but he comes across as nothing but a creep. He is supposed to be the heart of the story, but his parts are some of the worst in the whole story. Also, what the heck happened to Zack? He was a cute little kid and now he's a little jerk with OCD (yeah... wait, what?). Fortunately, Fet saves the book from being a total disaster.

Speaking of disaster, what happened with the back story of the Master? As many of you may have already heard, the interesting and unique portrayal of the vampire as a biological virus from the first two books is completely forgotten in favor of a cliched biblical source. Where in the first two books, the Master was a biological intruder and a species looking to overtake man as the top of the food chain, now he is a fallen angel doomed to wander the earth... ::yawn:: It's not that biblical spin can't work, it's just that it comes so out of left field that it almost feels like Del Toro was writing two different vampire novels and then mixed them up. There is absolutely no trace of the scientific approach from the first two novels and frankly, those were what made them interesting in the first place.

Still, all is not lost; the other characters are all interesting in their own ways and there were some really good scenes such as Gus and his mother-turned-vampire. The final battle is full of action and for a moment there, it looks as if all is lost. It was never going to shock anyone when the humans defeated the Master as almost all stories have a happy ending, but Eph finally redeeming himself was a bit of a surprise. The whole novel he was a depressed chore of a character and at the end he finally did what was right and saved the world. The ending is what really made me go with 4-stars over 3, though if possible, a 3.5-star score would have been more appropriate.

All in all, "The Night Eternal" was a good, if flawed, book. I would have made several changes myself, but I can't argue with the overall product. I look forward to Del Toro's next project and at the end of the day, that's a pretty damn good compliment in my book. ...more

flag 4 likes · Like · see review

Jan 25, 2017 Perry Gough rated it liked it · review of another edition

A strong start to this book but eventually took a turn where it kind of became abit like Lost.

This series has been a mixed bag and although the series was enjoyable at times it just came across as abit silly. I did kind of space these books out abit too much reading one each year so at times it took me a few chapters to kind of remember what happened to certain characters.

The vampires in this series are without a doubt 'The Reapers' from Blade 2 and is even co-written by the Del Toro who directe A strong start to this book but eventually took a turn where it kind of became abit like Lost.

This series has been a mixed bag and although the series was enjoyable at times it just came across as abit silly. I did kind of space these books out abit too much reading one each year so at times it took me a few chapters to kind of remember what happened to certain characters.

The vampires in this series are without a doubt 'The Reapers' from Blade 2 and is even co-written by the Del Toro who directed the film. I really love Blade 2 so I do like the vampires from this series but what I dont like about this series is how it sort of goes from regular people fighting vampires to uber vampire killers over the course of a couple of years. The worm blood also which is a huge threat in the first book is easily avoided by this book and now one of the main characters in the final book even pulls a worm out of him when in past books a worm once inside someone would multiply within seconds, there isnt alot of consitancy.

I really like both Fet (the exterminator) and Nora does grow on me but the formers role seems to change as the book progresses making him sort of unrecognisable by the final book and the later does take a while to grow on you. Characters I didnt like were Quinlan(The Born) as he was so out of place it didnt make much sense having him there when Fet could have filled this role easily, Zack (the son) as he is whiney throughout and is gets more annoying in each book and The Master who started out as amazing a true evil villian but then got The Lost treatment and made me kind of feel ripped off alittle bit by how cheap the characters back story is.

For those who are kind of interested in ready a Vampire vs Humans book this isnt too bad each book focuses on the same group of characters and follows a decent timeline however when I compare this to another series I have been reading 'The Passage by Justin Cronin' the difference in quality when it comes too character development, horror, plot and action scenes is clear. Not saying that 'The Strain Trilogy' is bad because it is entertaining and fun at times but there are better books out there in the same genre.

I do however recommend this series as although the books are around 500 pages each they honestly are quick and easy to read and although nothing special they are fun.

The TV series however I am quite a fan of have only watched the first two series so far and is just the right about of different from the book series too keep it fresh whilst still using the source material well. I would def check out either one if you like monster vampires and a outbreak viral type horror genre. ...more

flag 6 likes · Like · see review

Jul 08, 2011 Tressa rated it liked it

Shelves: horror, vampires

I don't have much to say about the third book in this trilogy, except to say that it really loses steam. I loved the first two books, but this one barely held my interest long enough to finish it. And it ended the way I thought it would with a generic feeling survivors epilogue. I'm glad it's over so I can start something more entertaining.

flag 4 likes · Like · see review

« previous 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 … next »

new topic
Discuss This Book

topics	posts	views	last activity
Goodreads Librari...: Please update this Book	2	30	Feb 09, 2015 05:30PM
Thousand Oaks Rea...: Guillermo del Toro's "The Night Eternal"	1	20	Nov 01, 2012 05:07AM

Readers Also Enjoyed

Genres

Horror

966 users

Paranormal > Vampires

286 users

Fiction

249 users

Fantasy

217 users

Science Fiction

90 users

See top shelves…

About Guillermo del Toro

Guillermo del Toro

2,691 followers

Guillermo del Toro is a Mexican director mostly known for his acclaimed films Pan's Labyrinth, The Devils Backbone, Crimson Peak and the Hellboy film franchise. His films draw heavily on sources as diverse as weird fiction, fantasy, horror, and war. In 2009, Del Toro released his debut novel, The Strain, co-authored with Chuck Hogan, as the first part of The Strain Trilogy, an apocalyptic horror s ...more