Book Review of CHILDREN OF THE DARK by Jonathan Janz

CHILDREN OF THE DARK by Jonathan Janz (Sinister Grin Press, March 2016) Paperback, 392 pages. ISBN # 9781944044145 

Synopsis on the Goodreads website . . . . .

Will Burgess is used to hard knocks. Abandoned by his father, son of a drug-addicted mother, and charged with raising his six-year-old sister, Will has far more to worry about than most high school freshmen. To make matters worse, Mia Samuels, the girl of Will’s dreams, is dating his worst enemy, the most sadistic upperclassman at Shadeland High. Will’s troubles, however, are just beginning.

Because one of the nation’s most notorious criminals—the Moonlight Killer—has escaped from prison and is headed straight toward Will’s hometown. And something else is lurking in Savage Hollow, the forest surrounding Will’s rundown house. Something ancient and infinitely evil. When the worst storm of the decade descends on Shadeland, Will and his friends must confront unfathomable horrors. Everyone Will loves—his mother, his little sister, Mia, and his friends—will be threatened.

And very few of them will escape with their lives.

My Five-Star Review on the Goodreads website . . . . .

     This is the fourth Janz novel that I've read, this time as part of a Nightmares and Dreamscapes group read with the author, and it may be the best. What's absolutely clear is that he is a masterful storyteller and you're always going to experience an entertaining read. 

     With CHILDREN OF THE DARK, Janz takes two familiar horror themes, monsters (Wendigo-like flesh devouring cave dwellers) and serial killers (an escaped murderer returning to the scene of past crimes) and manages to weave them into this story of high schoolers coming of age and having to endure the grimmest of times. A double-dip, if you will, that may seem excessive but the connections become apparent later in the story.

     Another way to share with you and indicate how much I enjoyed this book is to re-post my notes here from the Nightmares and Dreamscapes group read with the author . . . .

March 03

Once I got into the book a little bit (like, two pages!) I was thoroughly engaged. I love when authors grab the reader's attention with opening lines or paragraphs, and this one is a good example:

"The week I saw seventeen people die didn't begin with blood, monsters, or a sadistic serial killer.

It all began with a baseball game." 

Wow.

Coincidentally, Children Of The Dark is also a Buddy Read this month with the Horror Aficionados group.

March 03 - later

It's been a long, long time since I was in high school. Same goes for my children. But the characters here seem authentic, as I remember things. I had some of the same concerns and desires while in high school.

i appreciate that the beginning section devotes most of the space to showing the characters, particularly Will (who is very easy to empathize with) - - - with just a few sections foreshadowing the horror to come. That gave readers time to get attached to these characters and start to worry about them.

I 'm anticipating some full-blown horror in the next section.

March 04

I just finished reading Part Two. I anticipated more terror, dread and bloody horror in this section and the final chapter exceeded my expectations. Whew! I'm taking a break.

March 06

I'm at Page 314, really zipping through this, and will probably finish by tonight.

I expected a bloodbath, lots of kills/deaths, all vividly described - - - and Jonathan Jantz does not disappoint. If that sounds like exploitation writing it isn't - - the character depictions are well done and what makes this so disturbing is when bad things happen to them.

The combination of monsters and a serial killer in the same novel is different, and early on I thought it might be a little too much, and over the top. But, I love how Jantz did something unexpected with that.