Review: Blood Harvest

Blood Harvest by S.J. Bolton
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

Welcome to Heptonclough! A small village in the Pennines. If you're into ghostly sightings, creepy folklore, missing children and pagan rituals then this is the place for you.

This is the third book from Sharon Bolton  (known as S J Bolton when initially released) who has gone on to release a further six books plus some short stories.

The story starts in a graveyard where a landslide due to heavy rainfall has unearthed a childs grave who must have been having a sleepover as two extra bodies where found along with the gave's supposedly only occupier.

The story then goes back a few months and follows Harry Laycock the new town vicar, the Fletcher family who has recently moved into the area, Evi Oliver a Psychiatrist who is concerned for one of her patients from Heptonclough that goes for walks along the moors looking for her daughter who died in a house fire and numerous other supporting characters that contribute to the build up for a great whodunit that will keep you guessing right till the end. I love the amount of twists that Sharon Bolton throws into this story. My wife who is better than me at calling out a killer also got this wrong.

Although I love horror stories and movies I don't believe in the supernatural so I would like to point out the genius way Sharon Bolton creates a supernatural environment and later explains what caused it.

What I loved the most about Blood Harvest is the location. Now I might be a bit biased with this opinion as it is set very close to where I use to live. Although Heptonclough is a made up place the surrounding area is very real and Sharon Bolton captured it perfectly. I loved the references to The Witch Way bus service which is a real bus service, Rawtenstall Market and other local references that I couldn't help but smile when I came about them.

Sharon Bolton is a gifted author who has created a very enjoyable book with relatable characters that covers some very dark human behaviour where you feel a real sense of danger for the children involved.

4.5 / 5


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Review: HEX

HEX by Thomas Olde Heuvelt
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

It's been a long time since a book has creeped me out this much. At some points while reading I kept thinking the witch was stood at the side watching me read which is when you know the book is doing what the author planned out to do. So I would like to thank Hodderscape for sending me this book and for the nightmares.

Hex is the worldwide debut from Thomas Olde Heuvelt having already had success in Holland with 5 novels Hex is the frist to be translated into English. However this isn't a straight translation, Thomas went back and rewritten the whole book to give it an American setting.

I think the set up is brilliant. The residents of a small town in the the state of New York called Black Spring are under the curse of a 17th century witch called Katherine, The Black Rock Witch. If you were born there or moved there you can't leave. If you spend any extended amount of time away from Black Spring; say a two week vacation you become suicidal and must return or your suicidal tendencies will get the better of you. Katherine whos arms are chained and eyes and mouth are sewn shut has full access to the town; she is seen walking the streets, the woods and she can also appear in your house stay as long as it suites her then disappear again. The town is under strict rules and a high tech surveillance team called HEX who monitors Katherines movements and keep a watch on the residents and outsiders as Katherine is their secret and they can't risk outsiders getting involved as opening her mouth or eyes will be devastating. Unfortunately for the rest of the town a group of teenagers are sick of the restricted life and plan to make Katherine viral.

Thomas Olde Heuvelt has demonstrated the great ability of creating a town and making you feel like one of the residents. The story follows multiple characters as they go about their lives in Black Spring and this helps you normalise living with a seventeenth century witch that is haunting your town. Just when the situation becomes normal to you thats when Thomas Olde Heuvelt pulls the rug from underneath you!

Although the story is set in America to me it still has a European feel to it. The town feels older than the USA actually is. I would be more than willing to read the original story if it ever gets translated into English just to see how much has been changed. But don't let that put you off as this is a real page turner even when you want to cover your eyes cause you can feel the witch is watching you.

I look forward to more from Thomas Olde Heuvelt hopefully we won't have to wait long for his other releases to be translated.

4.5/5

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Book Review: 11.22.63

11.22.63 by Stephen King
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

11.22.63 is by far the best book I have ever read, not just my best Stephen King book (who by the way is my favourite author) but the best book I have ever read.

The story follows recently divorced Jake Epping who is given the opportunity to go back in time to the year 1958 and is convinced to stay there to try and stop the assignation of JFK.

This book has everything to the point it's hard to label what genre to categorise it as. I feel I could recommend this book to anyone as there is something for everyone. Yes there is horror elements in it, not from a supernatural prospect but from real people doing horrible things. It's about time travel so there is a scifi element to it. There's a great love story embedded in it along with the thrill ride of can Jake really change the past. There is also something for Stephen King's constant readers as we get to meet up with some old friends is Derry.

This book I didn't want to end. I'm not sure what more I could have asked for from Stephen King but I just didn't want to be away from the world he created. I've only been to America once and that was to New York fairly recently yet after reading this book I am convinced I was there during the late fifties, early sixties

5/5

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Book Review: The Ritual

The Ritual by Adam Nevill
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

The Ritual was the first book I read by Adam Nevill who is now one of the authors I always recommend to anyone who is looking for a new horror author to read.

The story is about four old university buddies that reunite to go on a hiking /camping trip in the unforgiving Scandinavian wilderness where a simple short cut suddenly goes very wrong for them.

Adam Nevill succeeds very well in creating an atmosphere where you can feel just how cold, wet and scared the four friends are while lost in the middle of nowhere. You really do feel trapped there with them and the scares are very well constructed. I also want to point out just how well he captures the strains that life can have on childhood friendships.

However what stops this book receiving five stars from me is the structure. The book is a story of two halves to the point where it could be two stories pasted together with a noticeable change of pace and setting which really lets the second half down. Without giving anything away the story becomes very repetitive and somewhat silly to the point that you just want it to end.

With that in mind I still recommend the book as the frist part has everything you need that makes a great horror story but just be cautious when you notice the change of setting as that when the book goes downhill.

3.5 / 5

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