THE NIGHT BIRDS continues to illuminate what I already was well aware of --- Christopher Golden is one of the most inventive horror writers working today. His outstanding Shadow Saga focuses on vampires, but this time, he turns his attention to witches. Golden provides an entirely different take on what we thought we knew about witchcraft lore while producing an extremely frightening thriller.

The novel opens with Ruby Cahill. Alone in her home as a large storm approaches, she is visited by a strange young woman who is carrying an infant. Mae begs Ruby to hide them and tells her that the baby, Aiden, belongs to her sister, Bella. This scene will fit perfectly into the narrative that Golden has created, and in a devastating way.

"THE NIGHT BIRDS is horror presented at breakneck speed that will both frighten and exhaust readers from start to finish. Golden is a master of the genre and has created yet another unique and darkly fascinating work."

Next, we visit the Gumbo Diner in Galveston, Texas, where a small group seated at a table is having a serious discussion. They include Alan Lebowitz, a college professor, and Charlie Book, who just goes by his surname. Book works for the Texas Parks and Wildlife Department and lives on the Christabel, a half-sunken 19th-century freighter.

As Book leaves the meeting to return to the Christabel, he has no idea what the rest of the night has in store for him. It all becomes clear when his girlfriend, Ruby, arrives with Mae and Aiden in tow. Now, with all three aboard the freighter, Ruby relates the tale that Mae has just shared with her. Mae and Bella are part of a coven of witches; they also have been known to be weavers over the centuries they have existed. This is the explanation that Book is given for the sudden appearance of night birds on the freighter, flying around wildly as the storm approaches and soon dive-bombing them and attacking Aiden.

Mae tells Ruby that Bella is dead and that the coven, in the guise of various night birds, would be coming for the child, who they need in order to complete a sacrificial ritual. The Christabel is already a surreal setting, with groupings of various trees and flora rising from its deck after centuries of stagnation. Knowing that the approaching storm may not be man-made and that angry witches are on their way is enough to scare Book into action and share all of this with his team.

What transpires is truly horrific. In the hands of Christopher Golden, the story is told with plenty of action infused into the battle between a small group of humans and an ancient, unstoppable evil. The only thing that gives Book and company a slight bit of coverage is the amount of rust on the freighter, a substance that traditionally wards off witches. However, when the leader of this ancient sect arrives, old rust will not be enough to prevent her from getting her claws on Aiden. It will be a fight to the death.

THE NIGHT BIRDS is horror presented at breakneck speed that will both frighten and exhaust readers from start to finish. Golden is a master of the genre and has created yet another unique and darkly fascinating work.