KC Jones

A character-driven science fiction/horror blend, KC Jones' Black Tide is Stephen King's Cujo meets A Quiet Place. It was just another day at the beach. And then the world ended. Mike and Beth didn't know each other existed before the night of the meteor shower. A melancholy film producer and a house sitter barely scraping by—chance made them neighbors, a bottle of champagne brought them together, and a shared need for human connection sparked something more. After a drunken and desperate one-night stand, the two strangers awake to discover a surprise astronomical event has left widespread destruction in its wake. But the cosmic lightshow was only part of something much bigger, and far more terrifying. When a set of lost car keys leaves them stranded on an empty stretch of Oregon coast, when their emergency calls go unanswered and inhuman screams echo from the dunes, when the rising tide reaches for their car and unspeakable horrors close in around them, these two self-destructive souls must band together to survive a nightmare of apocalyptic scale.

Black Tide

Audrey Lord

This book was one of my blind date books, a perfect thriller, sci-fi. Kept me on the edge of my seat. The characters are ones you WANT to cheer on.

Adam Goehrig-Bawany

Ryan LaFerney

Black Tide is cinematic horror tour de force by a brilliant new author K.C. Jones. It's a story about an alien invasion - from the point of view of just three characters, and their most horrible day spent at the beach. And it's a hell of a page turner. 

It's not only the action and the scare factor of the weird, almost Cthulhu meets A Quiet Place alien invasion that causes one to turn to the pages quickly but the attachment to the characters. Our main characters, Beth and Mike, aren't perfect but are highly empathic. Their paths cross early on in the story—Beth is house sitting next door, and Mike is staring off into the distance like he’s got the weight of the world on his shoulders.

Both of them are complete messes in different ways. Beth, for her part, can’t seem to keep her life on the rails. Every time she finds something good, she seems to destroy it. Or at least that’s what her mom tells her. She’s accepted it as her lot in life, and she’s bound to make the most of this job before she moves onto the next one.

Mike, on the other hand, seems like a stable guy on the outside. He’s a movie producer who owns a nice car and a big house. He’s got bottles of champagne to spare, but he’s been more than just a little melancholy since his wife walked out (or did she walk out?). Since then, he hasn’t had much interest in this little thing called life.

The two hookup that night, and it’s the start of something for both of them. But when they wake up the next morning to the reality that the heavens are falling and aliens are invading...it's their survival that truly brings them close together and allows for them to grow.

To say much more would ruin the book. Just know that Black Tide is a suspenseful ride and one harboring tale of survival. The characters are crafted perfectly, the story is cinematic, the horror tangible. Do yourself a favor and read it.

Many thanks to Tor Nightfire for the advanced reading copy.

Heather Miller

Well this one was…bizarre. It actually started out really interesting. I love end of the world, alien, zombies, post-apocolyptic, etc.

In the beginning, Beth is an alcoholic mess and spends her days pet sitting for work. She arrives at a house where she is currently watching a dog. After spying on a neighbor, Mike, she initiates a one night stand. Afterward, they wake up in this entire sci-fi otherworld where they have to try and figure out how to survive the strange invisible alien creatures that seemed to have taken over, and it seemed extremely intriguing and unique.

Neither of the characters were very likable. They weren’t extremely developed, and I really couldn’t get myself to care one way or another if they survived. What I really wanted to know was what that world was like outside of the car, and I waited and waited and never got anything to satisfy that interest. They spend pretty much the entire book trapped inside of a car, trying to find their way out to safety. The end.

I kept reading expecting a whole lot more. It had so much potential and it just fell short for me, and it was disappointing because I went into it extremely excited and ready to add it to the top of my list because I absolutely love that type of genre, and the author wrote it well. There was also a whole lot of sci fi monsters, blood, and guts, so the thriller aspect was very much there. It quickly became boring and repetitive though. It contains a lot of visuals and, in my opinion, it would have been better written as a movie instead of a novel. If I’m being honest, I don’t even remember how it ended. 🤷🏻‍♀️

I still recommend this story to people. Just because it wasn’t for me doesn’t mean it isn’t for you! I gave this three stars because although it didn’t quite hit the mark for me, it actually wasn’t a bad book at all, and feel it is worth a shot as I see quite a few people on here that fully enjoyed it!

Jasmine

Black Tide is a book that swiftly gets to the point and does not let up until the very end. I initially requested this novel because I noticed it was highly rated on Goodreads/NetGalley. Sometimes you need a story that can hook you immediately, and choosing this one was exactly what I needed. 

Black Tide is an excellent marriage of sci-fi and horror. I think I saw someone compare it to “A Quiet Place,” and honestly, that’s probably the best description. The claustrophobia seeps from the pages and doesn’t let go until the very last word. The only thing that I’d warn readers about is triggering animal stuffs. Everything else is kinda covered when you bring up sci-fi/horror, I think. 

So yeah, this was a 4 star read for me. I needed a book to hook me, and Black Tide answered that call pretty well. 

Thanks so much to NetGalley, TorNightfire, and the author for this eARC in exchange for an honest review!

Black Tide

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