The Wolfen...be prepared to be eaten!!

 

Some time ago I made a comment on an online forum that I felt annoyed and depressed at the complete lack of intelligent and readily available horror reading material. Recently I have been pleasantly surprised to discover such gems as “The Concrete Grove” by Gary McMahon and the ultimate werewolf tail (little play on words !) High Moor by Graeme Reynolds a new and rising star in this genre…so belief and a smile are slowly returning to my face.

After some difficulty I was successful in securing a copy of “The Wolfen” by Whitley Strieber and am so pleased that I did. In essence The Wolfen is a story of man and Canis Lupus Sapiens or more commonly referred to as the Werewolf trying to eke out a living and cohabit in an overcrowded world and a world that refuses to acknowledge it’s existence. Two policemen are murdered whilst carrying out routine duties at a car pound in a district of New York, and the investigating officers Rebecca Neff and George Wilson are tasked with bringing the perpetrators to justice. Wilson and Neff soon discover that this is not a simple case and suspicion soon falls on the Werewolf, The Wolfen as named in the book. The story evolves with a great list of characters and a cracking storyline that never relaxes. It soon becomes clear that The Wolfen pack are themselves hunting Wilson and Neff, as the knowledge these two officers now possess concerning the existence of The Wolfen, threatens the werewolf community and way of life….the hunters have become the hunted!! The chief of police Underwood is only interested in his promotion to Commissionaire and refuses to accept that a pack of Werewolf’s are living and running amok in his city, and are responsible for the death of two of his officers. Carl Ferguson the curator of the Natural History Museum is haunted by the possibility of an imminent Werewolf attack and in one particularly tense scene he is walking the museum late at night and is deeply troubled and frightened by every sound the building exudes. This tension and fear prevailing throughout the book draws the reader in and creates a great sense of unease. The Wolfen is a silent predator who can destroy his prey efficiently and with clockwork precision. To understand the mind of The Wolfen it must be appreciated they only really attack to satisfy their hunger and they view man as a means to exist and a good source of nourishment. They are also selective in their choice of victim,(the murder of the two policemen was a mistake) and choose to kill only those who they see as weak and who live in the fringes. They kill with ruthless and silent efficiency and it is this ability that totally immerses the reader in a nightmare reading experience! The brutal strength and beauty of The Wolfen is best described in one memorable scene from the book……

“Now she was down, she was pushing her nose past cloth, slick hot flesh, feeling the vibration of subvocal response in the man, feeling his muscles stiffening as his body reacted to her standing on it, then opening her mouth against the flesh, feeling her teeth scrape back and down, pressing her tongue against the deliciously salty skin and ripping with all the strength in her jaws and neck and chest, and jumping back to the wall with the bloody throat in her mouth. The body on the bench barely rustled as its dying blood poured out….Now her job was over,she dropped behind the wall and ate her trophy. It was rich and sweet with blood. Around her the pack was very happy as it worked….Then the pack ate in rank order. The mother took the brain. The father took a thigh and buttock. The first mated pair ate the clean organs. When they returned from their duty the second mated pair took the rest. And then they pulled apart the remains and took them piece by piece and dropped them in the nearby lake…When this was done, they went to a place they had been earlier, a great meadow full of the beautiful new snow that had been falling. They ran and danced in the snow, feeling the pleasure of their bodies, the joy or facing headlong across the wide expanse, and because they knew that no human was in earshot they had a joyous howl full of the pulsing rhythm they liked best after a hunt…..

Neff has a difficult home life and a complicated working relationship with Wilson, however they must lay aside these differences to keep focused and avoid being consumed by The Wolfen. The chase becomes a game of cat and mouse and a marvellous experience for the reader as the tension never relaxes and we rush towards a bloody conclusion. This is not merely a horror story but the portrayal of a misunderstood group trying to exist and survive in the shadows of the city and avoid the wrath of man….I strongly recommend!

The Whisperers by John Connolly

John Connolly's books fall between two genres horror and crime with a little bit of da vinci code thrown in. I love Charlie Parker, yes like all cops he's got his past and his demons but these in no way interfere in a cracking storyline. In essence ancient artifacts have been stolen from Iraq and are being smuggled into the US via Canada for what else profit...for the bad men : The Whisperers are a curse/demons that are securely locked in a small box and just waiting to be released on an unsuspecting world...Into this story enter a host of characters...The Collector..The Captain...Herod (being eaten alive by a speeding cancer...which only adds to his evil), and lets not forget Charlie's two able bodied helpers Angel and Louis....add a number of ex servicemen who are mysteriously dying/committing suicide, an array of evil gangsters...together with the aptly named Jimmy Jewel (didn't he have a comedy show with Hilda Baker ;)...and we have a top class thriller and as they say....grabs you from the first page and never lets go!.....so for all fans of dark and highly entertaining crime/horror fiction this is a must read...enjoy...and sleep tightly otherwise the Whisperers will get you......

It's an amazing Boy's Life...

This is a book rich in imagery, innocence, good and evil. It is a book that is far above the standard set by Stephen King and his stories of small town America. This story is set in Zephyr Alabama and follows the coming of age of a young and exuberant Cory Mackenson. From the opening chapter our attention is grabbed as Cory and his father our delivering milk one morning ,they avoid a collision with an auto mobile travelling towards them as it crashes into the nearby lake. Corey's father dives into the lake deep down, and tries to rescue the driver, who is naked and handcuffed to the steering wheel, but he is unsuccessful in his rescue attempt. This image of the trapped man haunts Cory's dad throughout the book and fills his every day with feelings of inadequacy and suicide. This however is only one of many images and stories that entertain and enthral the reader. We feel Cory's love of life and freedom, when school recesses for the summer and Cory and his friends sprout wings and fly, a lovely magical scene depicting the sense of freedom that only the coming of school holidays can bring. We learn of Cory's sadness when his old and trusty bicycle collapses, when he returns with his father to collect and perhaps repair the bike is no longer there but has disappeared collected by Mr Scully the local scrap metal merchant, the description at the scrap yard where Cory's bike is now "dead" is funny and touching. Corey is presented with a brand new bicycle by "The Lady" and he names it "rocket", Cory and rocket have many great adventures together. The residents of Zephyr are both eccentric and fun, at the local barber shop we meet one elderly gentleman who supposedly saved the life of Wyatt Earp, and proceeds to tell a colourful story. At a later stage in the book there is a scene reminiscent of High Noon when there is a shoot out at the bus station with the local bad guys and our elderly gentleman again saves the day, a lovely fun and touching scene. The music of the beach boys enrages the town's clergyman and he preaches hell and damnation to the locals with very funny overtones. Equally there are some very touching chapters when Cory's best friend accidentally falls on a rifle,the rifle discharges and he dies, or Cory reading a copy of "Life" in his room and looking at pictures of the assassination of Kennedy, the war in Vietnam, awakening him to the realities and cruelties of the human spirit. In the final chapters we travel forward in time and meet Cory as a grown man returning to his place of birth only to find as we all do that his childhood memories, and places he knew no longer exist...lost in time 
This is a truly entertaining, exciting and enjoyable book rich in heart-warming dialogue, imagery, sadness and hope. It makes the reader laugh and cry, it makes the reader warm to a story of outstanding beauty and a dialogue that is rich in it's delivery. This is a story that has certainly touched me, and will live in my mind and memory for a very long time. I highly recommend and hope this review will encourage many to join Cory on a trip down memory lane and meet the residents of Zephyr Alabama.

Welcome to Concrete Hell!

The word concrete, the overpowering image of the Concrete Grove, the shear struggle for survival in a world full of harsh, bitter and destructive influences is what flows through this book making it an unbelievable and at times difficult read. The content is bleak, the subject matter is bleak and the characters we meet, for the most part are people at the bottom of the food chain struggling for some form of survival and existence. The story takes place in a run down council estate somewhere in North East England, and in such a locality there lives the takers and those who are taken from. The author must surely draw upon his knowledge when he introduces us to Monty Bright, evil personified who together with his associates Terry (whose prosthetic limb lends itself to one of the most enduring and horrific scenes)and Francis Boater a murdering psychopath for most of his life but finally finds some sort of peaceful conclusion. The only real hero, in an otherwise pitiful list of characters, is Hailey whose bad luck it is to find herself living in this concrete hell, but has the good fortune to be drawn to a form of magic that may prove her redemption. Hailey's mother Lana Fraser is a woman who will do anything to remove herself from the burning fires of this living nightmare and when she finds herself in debt to Monty Bright hopes that her friendship with Tom will be her escape. Tom receives very little sympathy from the reader as he is fundamentally a weak character and bemoans his life and his non existent marriage to the grotesque Helen. Gary McMahon graphically shows what life must be like living in the gutter style existence of the concrete jungle where only the takers succeed and the taken from survive by eking out an existence in a world that largely chooses to ignore them.

Mo Hyder....a bit of a disappointment :(

What is it about crime writers that they just do not seem to be able to keep me the reader entertained for the complete read??? I have read all Mo Hayder's books and even enjoyed the stand alone's ie Pig Island...but here in this read we have a real dilemma..:(( The first 300 pages is enjoyable and the plot/storyline is a little different...and our two heroes Caffery and Flea are once again on the case. I particularly enjoy "The Walking Man" which in essence is a "sounding board" for Caffery, a man who lives by his wits under the skys and although he and Caffery share a related/sad past for the most part The Walking Man is a way for Caffery to take stock and introduces a nice touch for the reader...we should all have a walking man to bounce our ideas off. Living in Bristol I enjoy the setting for this series with the mystical surroundings of Somerset playing a major part...however this all falls apart if the story becomes somewhat pedestrian and predictable. Someone is kidnapping young children..why?..when it becomes known the answer is somewhat bizarre...who is doing this?...someone with insider information...any amateur reader/detective will soon have worked the solution out by page 300..and then there is the question of Flea??? What exactly is her role in this story, she is a police diver by trade....and well does what she is best at...eh..diving...why...not sure?? She's gets into a little trouble and blow me down the killer tracks her down..will our hero Caffery rescue in time!! Of course he will, this is a series, and so we plod along for some 200 pages...killer dies...Flea lives...what a surprise!! Dear author please try not to bore us the reader, this book was too long by some 200 pages, fine if the story merits it but if not it is a real struggle to finish...but finish I did. I started off giving this latest Hayder book 5 stars....but it became so utterly predictable by the final page I was tempted to award one star...however on reflection and given that I have great respect for the author I decided to award two stars...but come on Miss Hayder if there is no further life in this series and the storylines become even more boring and bizarre...perhaps it is time for Caffery and Flea to do themselves a favour and both retire.....

Infected by Scott Sigler

I read Scott Sigler's Intected last year and thought if a first class horror/techno thriller with some very funny moments....here's my review :)

Well just finished my first sigler book and wasn't it great  I had this strange sensation of wanting to scratch myself and take a knife to that spot that's been annoying me on my butt! The little fellas what a lovely name for those cute little triangles THEY'RE HATCHING...HURRY UP...GET THIS THREAD POSTED.... Well fellas we all know what was the most horrific and gut wrenching for us to read...yep putting your balls on a table and getting your big knife out...now that really did make me cringe . I loved the writing style the fast and easy to absorb chapters and the techno talk which was never too complicated or long to allow you to lost interest. I have the follow up book Contagius on order and I look forward to another great instalment of the life and times of the anti-hero Perry Dawsey!

A cracking edge of the (tube) seat horror story :))

"John continued staring until the train moved on, and her peculiar words floated back to him, resonating with threat "We'll all cook before the end" A great line in what is a cracking short horror story by a very talented author. A pulsating London, a crowded tube station, a busy rush hour and always the fear of the unknown...all these ingredients come together to make this novella an exciting albeit short read. Who is the mysterious John Rowe, where is Melody the girl he wants to marry, what is the significance of the Lady and the child and what part does the young Asian gentleman play??? All is revealed in a surprising and timely conclusion but let's leave the final word to the woman announcer "This is a Hell-bound train...to your impending demise"...read and enjoy :))