Robin’s Review of Alive at Sunset: Rituals of the Night

Book 2

Alive at Sunset: Rituals of the Night Book 2

Revenge is a fire that consumes everything, even the one who seeks it.

Three years have passed since the nightmare in the woods, and Luna Ketz has buried her past beneath layers of time and distance. Her new life, miles away in the college town of Bowling Green, feels like the fresh start she’s desperately needed. But as she tries to move on, a dark fear gnaws at her. Chance Welfrey. Every week, she visits him at the hospital, praying he’ll never wake from the coma that binds him. She convinces herself she’s free… that she’s finally left the past behind.

Then the unthinkable happens.

Chance is awake. And he’s standing on her doorstep.

But it’s worse than she could have imagined. Dating her roommate, Amanda, he’s found a way into her life that she can’t shake. Although he plays the part of the charming gentleman, Luna knows the truth: Chance isn’t here for a normal life. He’s here for revenge.

Robin’s Review

Triggers: Violence, abuse, trauma, sexual assault, stalking, murder, psychological horror, animal death

What Did I Just Walk Into?

Apparently, I walked back into Luna Ketz’s life, which is unfortunate because this poor woman cannot even breathe near peace without Chance Welfrey popping up like the world’s most unhinged jump scare. Three years after the nightmare in the woods, Luna is trying to rebuild herself, go to college, become a functioning human, and maybe live a life where nobody is actively plotting her destruction. Cute idea. Very optimistic. Immediately ruined.

Chance is supposed to be safely tucked away in a coma, which sounds like the bare minimum society could do for everyone’s emotional well-being. Luna visits the hospital every week just to make sure he is still unconscious, which honestly feels reasonable given his entire personality. But then he wakes up, because apparently trauma was running low on fresh material, and not only does he return, he slides right into Luna’s life by dating her roommate. Sir, absolutely not.

Alive at Sunset is book two in the Rituals of the Night series, and it does not waste time reminding readers that Chance is not just a villain. He is a full-body migraine with a murder list. Luna thinks distance and time may have helped her escape him, but this book says, “That’s adorable,” and then lights the match. The story follows Chance’s revenge as he crosses names off his list and tightens his grip around Luna’s already fragile sense of safety.

Here’s What Slapped:

The tension is nasty in the best way. Chance is terrifying because he does not just want to kill. He wants control. He wants emotional wreckage. He wants Luna afraid before he ever makes a move, which makes him the kind of villain you want to throw into traffic and also keep reading because he is disturbingly effective.

Luna’s fear makes sense. She is older now, trying to be wiser, but trauma does not politely pack its bags just because you changed your address. Her weekly hospital visits are such a strong character detail because they show exactly where her mind still lives. She is not free. She is monitoring the threat.

The college setting adds a fresh layer of dread too. A roommate should be annoying because she eats your snacks or leaves dishes in the sink, not because she unknowingly dates your former torturer and opens the front door to your personal apocalypse. Amanda, girl, please. Read the room. Preferably before the serial killer does.

This book also knows how to keep the emotional pressure high. The revenge angle gives the plot momentum, and the idea that Chance may not be working alone makes everything feel even more suffocating. Just when you think Luna might have one clear path forward, the story slams another door and whispers, “Try again.”

What Could’ve Been Better:

Some readers may want to start with book one, because this sequel carries a lot of emotional weight from Luna and Chance’s history. You can follow what is happening, but the full impact likely hits harder if you know exactly what went down before. Also, this is dark. Not cute dark. Not “light a candle and enjoy the spooky vibes” dark. This is trauma, obsession, violence, and psychological horror dark, so check the content warnings before wandering in barefoot.

Perfect for Readers Who Love:

Psychological horror, revenge plots, cat-and-mouse suspense, messy trauma survival, villains you love to hate, and books that make you side-eye every coma patient in fiction from now on.

Alive at Sunset is intense, twisted, and emotionally sharp. It takes the idea of surviving the monster and asks what happens when the monster wakes back up. Spoiler: nothing good, but the reading experience is deliciously stressful.

Sum-up:

A brutal, twisted sequel where trauma wakes up, dates the roommate, and brings a murder list.

Book Series:

Book 1 of 3: Dead by Morning (Rituals of the Night Book 1)

Book 2 of 3: Alive at Sunset (Rituals of the Night Book 2)

Book 3 of 3: Survive at Midnight (Rituals of the Night Book 3)

Reviewed by Robin for Robin’s Review

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