Nightjars by Michael Wehunt
St. Martin’s Press (September 29, 2026)
Reviewed by Briana Morgan
“Does the nightjar remember the night?”
Michael Wehunt has become an auto-buy author for me. Fans of his previous release, The October Film Haunt, will be thrilled to hear that Nightjars also features found-footage elements, this time in the form of terrifying photographs.
Luke Oshel is a divorced dad who owns a bookstore. One night, his date walks out on him and leaves behind a chilling photograph depicting Luke as a child. He has no memory of the incident. And this photograph? It’s the first of many.
Luke struggles to put the pieces of his messed-up past together and makes several puzzling discoveries. When he was younger, his father brought him along on his late-night “adventures,” never explaining why they stalked and attacked local women. What follows is a tense, bloody tale of the burden of legacy, the fluidity of memory, and a compelling twist on a classic vampire story. As bodies start piling up and all evidence points to Luke, he must decipher the clues and find a way to stop the killings. It all raises the question: is he truly a monster, or just a victim of circumstance?
I devoured this book. Once I heard it described as Memento meets Dracula, I had a feeling I’d love it, and I was right. If you’re looking for an unconventional vampire novel to sink your fangs into this season, you won’t want to miss this book.
