The Midnight Club books – inspiration behind Netflix series explained
Mike Flanagan's new series is based on a novel by Christopher Pike.
It's become something of an October tradition for a new Mike Flanagan series to land on Netflix each year in time for Halloween – and that's the case once again in 2022.
Following his success with shows such as The Hauntings of Hill House and Bly Manor and last year's Midnight Mass, the writer/director's latest new series is The Midnight Club – based on a young adult novel of the same name by Christopher Pike.
In an approach not too dissimilar to the one taken by Flanagan in previous shows, the series also borrows from other novels by the same author – read on for everything you need to know.
The Midnight Club books explained
Although The Midnight Club is primarily based on the novel of the same name – which was a standalone story – like previous Flanagan shows the writer/director has also borrowed from other works by the same author.
"I grew up reading Christopher Pike," Flanagan explained on Twitter. "His stories were a constant through my teenage years, and this show is based on several of his books.
"It's an honor to play in his sandbox, and to help introduce him to a new generation."
Pike has published a huge number of novels and short stories throughout his career so there was certainly no shortage for Flanagan to choose from – and indeed a further six of his works are heavily featured.
Although the narrative of The Midnight Club serves as the central framework for the show, these other novels are adapted as stories told to each other by the members of the titular club.
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You can find brief descriptions of the books that feature below:
The Wicked Heart (1993)
Dusty Shame was a high school senior, and a serial killer. Already he has murdered three young women, and he has more planned. Yet Dusty did not want to hurt anybody. There was something inside him, or perhaps outside him, that compelled him to kill.
Sheila Hardolt has lost her best friend to Dusty’s brutal attacks. It will be her task to probe the clues Dusty has left at the site of each of his murders. Clues that will point her into the past—to a time when a large portion of mankind lost all sense of decency.
There she will find the seed of Dusty’s evil compulsion, the Wicked Heart, and the reason why it did not die the first time it was destroyed.
Gimme A Kiss (1988)
The sweetest words of love can often be the deadliest... In a riveting tale of vengeance turned to terror, a teenage girl devises a plot for revenge that goes too far—with murderous results.
See You Later (1990)
Mark has just fallen in love for the first time. Her name is Becky and unfortunately for Mark, she already has a boyfriend. Mark tries his best, but he is unable to win Becky for himself – until he meets Vincent and Kara and strange things start to happen.
Witch (1990)
Julia is a young woman with extraordinary powers, with the ability to heal people. She comes from a tradition of witches, but before Julia's mother died, she warned her never to look in water that had moonlight shining on it. Unfortunately she does - and she sees a vision of the future.
Road to Nowhere (1993)
Teresa is running away from home - and from a secret. But on the way she picks up two mysterious hitch-hikers. It will be the longest night of Teresa's life. Maybe the last night of her life...
The Eternal Enemy (1993)
A VCR that could tape tomorrow's news. Rela has just bought herself a new VCR. She sets the machine to tape a movie she plans to show at a party she is throwing. But instead of the movie she gets the news -- tomorrow's news. Soon Rela is regularly recording next week's news, even what is to happen in the far future. It's fun, at first, until she sees herself on the news. And learns that there is no future for her. But can she change destiny? Can Rela survive what is meant to be?
The Midnight Club will be available to stream on Netflix from 7th October 2022. Looking for something else to watch? Check out the best series on Netflix and the best movies on Netflix, or see what else is on with our TV Guide.
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Authors
Patrick Cremona is the Senior Film Writer at Radio Times, and looks after all the latest film releases both in cinemas and on streaming. He has been with the website since October 2019, and in that time has interviewed a host of big name stars and reviewed a diverse range of movies.
