Book Reviews

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Strange Highways – Dean Koontz
“You don’t have to make the world peaceful,” she said. “It is to begin with. You just have to learn not to disturb things.”

Mr. Koontz has an entertaining and thoroughly enjoyable, worth every penny and then some, but not often eye-opening. If you’re a reader of his novels but haven’t seen this collection, you’re about to see an entirely different strength to his writing.

Opening with the novel, also titled Strange Highways, the book starts off strong with a kind of accidental time travel and remains strong after the novel finishes and the shorter works begin. In fact, this book has very little to hinder its momentum besides the 2 novels, and that’s not because they’re somehow at fault, it’s just the nature of novel vs. short story. The other novel contained in the collection, Chase (sometimes referred to as a novella), ends the book. In between the two novels are fast paced stories that nearly anyone who loves horror should enjoy. While Koontz is mostly known today for his thrillers, this book plays up the strange more than anything. It really is mostly horror while he takes a break from thrillers. Strangely enough, this was a good thing in regards to this book.

The story “Twilight of the Dawn,” may be the crowning achievement. If the novels weren’t book-ending the collection, this would be the final story.

“Twilight of the Dawn” is one of the least horror-themed stories contained here, but the author grips you by the throat in this heart-rending story and won’t let you go. There’s a good chance you’ll remember it for the rest of your life. The story focuses on the relationship between a young boy and his father, the latter whom grew up under such oppressive circumstances caused by his fanatically religious parents that he adamantly denies all religion and champions atheism. Tragedy strikes, and the father’s beliefs eventually become at odds with emerging beliefs of his son as the young boy is drawn to some of the answers provided by the vague religious doctrine he’s picked up over time despite his father’s best efforts. As the father grapples with this divide between the two, tragedy deepens, and as the tale approaches its close you will be moved, regardless of your personal system. A relentless, heart-breaking study of the father/son relationship, the nature of faith and the beauty and tragedy of life.

For traditional Koontz fans and horror lovers, this collection is where it’s at.

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[bugen]

Thanks Terry. I must admit I want a bull terrier after reading this. Affable, loveable creatures... perhaps a little dim. Until, of course, everything changes.

[TerryE]

"The Land of Laughs was lit by eyes that saw the lights that no one's seen."

The Land of Laughs - Jonathan Carroll

Carroll's first novel sets the stage for what becomes a kind of trademark later in his career, and his style is tough to explain. The words 'magic' and 'surreal' come to mind, but generally in Carroll's stories the operative word would just be 'real'. These are real characters, with real emotions, in real situations, and then some kind of craziness skews the reality. I've now read 3 of his books, 2 being of them novels - his first novel, reviewed here, and From the Teeth of Angels, considered by many to be his finest work, along with the magnificent collection, The Woman Who Married a Cloud. There is a uniting thread of weirdness throughout each, and The Land of Laughs marks ground zero.

An English teacher and his girlfriend travel to a small town to track down information on their favorite, deceased, author, with hopes of obtaining permission from the author's surviving daughter to write a definitive biography. One writing and the other researching.

Most of this novel plays out as a mystery, as closed-lipped townsfolk alternate between acceptance and rejection, with the daughter providing the lion's share of early information and misinformation while the two main characters pry into the author's life. It's a quick read, as Carroll seems to have an ability to keep any scene interesting enough to keep the reader motivated. Somewhere around 2/3 of the way through the mystery elements take a back seat as the weird-fiction part of Carroll's expertise takes over. By novel's end you've witnessed the birth of a master fantasist.

I don't believe a book like this is for everyone, but I do think everyone owes it to themselves to give this author a chance. If you're a short story reader, my suggestion would be to dip your toes into his world with the collection, The Woman Who Married A Cloud. I haven't yet seen anyone write like him, and his style is undoubtedly effective. The Land of Laughs is part mystery, part romance, part fantasy, and just a little part horror. It's addictive enough you won't really want to stop unless you have to.

4 stars

Great review! The only thing I would have added is that bull terriers now seem even creepier to me. And Carroll loves them, posting pictures all the time on his Facebook page.

[bugen]

Thanks Marduk. I wholeheartedly enjoyed reading Toybox. The collection felt complex and writing it down helped sort it out. Received my hard copy today!

[bugen]

The Land of Laughs - Jonathan Carroll
“The Land of Laughs was lit by eyes that saw the lights that no one’s seen.”

Carroll’s first novel sets the stage for what becomes a kind of trademark later in his career, and his style is tough to explain. The words ‘magic’ and ‘surreal’ come to mind, but generally in Carroll’s stories the operative word would just be ‘real’. These are real characters, with real emotions, in real situations, and then some kind of craziness skews the reality. A uniting thread of weirdness exists throughout Mr. Carrol’s works, and The Land of Laughs marks ground zero.

An English teacher and his girlfriend travel to a small town to track down information on their deceased favorite author with hopes of obtaining permission from the author’s surviving daughter to write a definitive biography–one writing and the other researching.

Most of this novel plays out as a mystery. Closed-lipped townsfolk alternate between acceptance and rejection of the couple, with the author’s daughter providing the lion’s share of early information and misinformation while the two main characters pry into the author’s life. It’s a quick read, as Carroll seems to have an ability to keep any scene interesting enough to keep the reader motivated. Somewhere around 2/3 of the way through the mystery elements take a back seat as the weird fiction part of Carroll’s expertise takes over. By novel’s end you’ve witnessed the birth of a master fantasist.

A book like this isn’t for everyone, but everyone owes it to themselves to give this author a chance. If you’re a short story reader, a strong suggestion is to dip your toes into his world with his retrospective collection, The Woman Who Married A Cloud. No one writes like him, and his style is undoubtedly effective. The Land of Laughs is part mystery, part romance, part fantasy, and just a little part horror. It’s addictive enough you won’t really want to stop unless you have to.

4 stars

[marduk]

Toybox - Al Sarrantonio

I read this a long time ago, but your review makes me want to revisit it with fresh eyes.

[marduk]

Thanks Marduk. I'm not familiar with Abercrombie and am looking forward to your take.

It should be this Sunday the 29th , so then I'll post it here. My first "biggie" (well, for me) so I hope it turns out well.

[bugen]

Chiliad: A Meditation – Clive Barker

Originally published in ’97 as part of Douglas Winter’s Millennium, the stories ‘Men and Sin’ and ‘A Moment at the River’s Heart’ make up this release.

Two men, 1,000 years apart, attempt to locate and exact revenge upon their spouses’ murderers.

That is the plot in its oversimplified form, but laid over this structure are the morality questions causing the struggle in the end. The author has not led us to some kind of inevitable conclusion but rather finished his tale and left us to figure out the answers as to what it means. The stories are compact enough it’s difficult to discuss much without spoilers, but suffice to say it’s undoubtedly Barker and it has a good helping of his distinctive style, pulling no punches with his violence in its grittiness. There’s no bow tie around the story, though, and the reader is respected enough to draw his or her own conclusions.

A thought provoking read of chicken and eggs, grief and blame, darkness and death, but one where ultimately the reader provides the final answers.

4+ stars

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[bugen]

Thanks Marduk. I'm not familiar with Abercrombie and am looking forward to your take.

*edit
And now I'm familiar with Abercrombie. Heir to the throne, perhaps?

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[marduk]

Good idea. I've got a review coming out for Abercrombie's "Half a King", but I'll wait until it's published.

[bugen]

Ghost Road Blues - Jonathan Maberry
“Still, it had held enough magic to kill the devil, and what more can you ask of a guitar than that?”

Modern horror has a slightly different flavor than traditional, and especially classic, horror. When we look back on horror of the past we find ourselves saying things like, “this worked really well in its time” or “this opened the door.” The movie Psycho springs to mind. In situations where statements like this apply we still have vast appreciation for the work because we can view it in its context. With successful, modern horror, there is no need to do this. Ghost Road Blues is successful, modern horror. It’s not really the date of release that accomplishes this but the attitude and pacing, and Ghost Road has very little of that slow building dread that we often find in traditional horror.

A small town in the woods is turned upside down as the most sadistic killer known to police flees to it while responding to a demonic call to evil, creating an unstoppable combination the locals can’t possibly deal with. Neither can anyone else called in to help.

Most of us are somewhat desensitized to horror as we read so much of it, and many authors respond to this numbness by amping up the gratuitous violence, often in the form of torture, to keep us on edge. There’s a lot of violence here, a lot of horror, and yes, some torture, with none of it gratuitous. It’s a decently long book that moves along quickly with frantic, devil-may-care action.

“If he died…well then, he’d just go rushing into that great big blackness with a hard-on and a curse on his laughing lips and see if the darkness could hold him.”

Ghost Road Blues is a highly recommended read, but you may want to have access to the other books in the trilogy if you’re traveling or secluded–it’s a satisfying book but does end in cliffhanger territory.

4 stars

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[bugen]

Toybox - Al Sarrantonio

Many folks first actual exposure to Al Sarrantonio’s work may be the amazing anthology 999, and that’s a very serious collection. If so, your expectations for Toybox should be high. Over the course of this read, and comparing back to that anthology, you may see a unique quality emerging. It’s assembly, not merely the merits of the stories themselves, that help this collection be so effective.

Toybox doesn’t start very strongly, despite the solid opening of “Pumpkinhead.” It’s a good one, ostensibly about fitting in, but more importantly it establishes the kind of text and style we’re about to see from the author. These horror stories about children can seem quite uncompromising as we are generally focused on them in supernatural situations, often learning life lessons they’re not ready for.

The first story smacks us a couple of times, says “wake up, you’re not safe, I want to show you something.” He goes on to spin a few more, each maintaining the authors voice but losing the momentum established with “Pumpkinhead,” until you’re about 1 quarter of the way through and beginning to seriously question the work. Then “Bogy” hits, and you realize the slaps you’ve absorbed so far have really served as appetizers and you are now ravenous for Al’s particular brand of horror. Then the real feast, as some of the sedative from the first few stories is called upon to deal with the trauma of the next, and so on as the stories build upon each other not in a literal sense, but in the reader’s sense of curiosity and foreboding. You get serious, but still somehow rip-roaring horror, gaining momentum nearly right up until the end, but all in Sarrantonio’s distinctive voice with which he took the time to acclimate you in the beginning. Assembly.

“Children of Cain” was a favorite, very closely followed by “Bogy”, “Garden of Eden” and “Father Dear.” “The Corn Dolly”, “Snow”, “Red Eve” and “Richard’s Head” to be exemplary as well. Most of the rest is just pretty damned-good.

As a whole the book would not have been as effective in any other order of story presentation. Like 999, he has brilliantly laid out the terrain for you to follow, and it works similar to a roller coaster except for the whole ‘1st hill has to be the biggest’ thing–well planned and executed pathing. Like a fine piece of music, the right notes are firing at exactly the right times.

Loving the book considering the whole, this masterful skill with putting together the story list has one wondering if he’s not only an impressive author but truly a master-level editor, and uses that editorial skill to elevate his stories further in Toybox. Overall this was an excellent, disturbing read, and while it does spend a large majority of its time with young children for characters, is that really a problem? It certainly doesn’t make things any less scary.

Well done, Mr. Sarrantonio.

4 stars

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[RJK1981]

Thank you guys for your comments and reviews. It's sacrilegious, and I'm sorry, but I'm not familiar with Ketchum besides a short story or two. You've got a great review of I'm Not Sam here - would you recommend this as a good Ketchum starting point for newbies? Or just start with his popular The Girl Next Door? I'll have to check but I think I might have an unread ebook of Peaceable Kingdom available as well.

Thank you also for addressing the aimlessness you found in Down. I agree, while supernatural is cool, there needs to be a reason for it.

I'd say that I'm Not Sam isn't a bad starting point, as long you don't expect his other books to be tame in comparison in the violence department, lol. I actually haven't read Girl Next Door, but I did see the movie, which was powerful. First thing of his I read was the Cemetery Dance edition of Joyride, which was an enjoyable read.

And yeah, Down was definitely a let-down in the way the author finished it. Needed to either be a full novel explaining the supernatural elements a little or reduced to being a novelette, taking out the supernatural altogether. Enjoyed it very much until that part of the story was introduced out of the blue and no explanation was given for it. I don't mind there being things not answered about things, but to introduce a supernatural element halfway through a novella and give absolutely no info on it just smacked of laziness on the author's end to me in a way. Like perhaps just throwing that in to add to the word count or something. This wasn't the worst book I read last year, but definitely the one that disappointed me the most based on the strong start. Luckily a large majority of books I read I end up enjoying a lot. Same goes for movies. I tend to know what I will like and am not usually wrong.

[bugen]

Thank you guys for your comments and reviews. It's sacrilegious, and I'm sorry, but I'm not familiar with Ketchum besides a short story or two. You've got a great review of I'm Not Sam here - would you recommend this as a good Ketchum starting point for newbies? Or just start with his popular The Girl Next Door? I'll have to check but I think I might have an unread ebook of Peaceable Kingdom available as well.

Thank you also for addressing the aimlessness you found in Down. I agree, while supernatural is cool, there needs to be a reason for it.

[srboone]

I'm Not Sam by Jack Ketchum

.........

5/5

Great review! Completely agree with it. This was the most surprising thing I've read from Ketchum, but it's one of my favorites of his.

Of course, I'm coming from the perspective of a single guy...