Sunday 15 February 2015

Book Review - Beneath the Boards by David Haynes

I should confess that I'm a bit of a fan boy for this author's work. Ever since reading his collection of Victorian era horror 'The Ballet of the Bones' I've been hooked onto his work. In my opinion he's one of the finest indie horror authors out there. His other genre titles are also damn fine reads. So it's with some excitement that I read his latest work.

In short his latest book is amazing. In an ideal world that would be enough for you to immediately download the book and discover how good it is for yourself. As I'm not President of the World (yet) let me tell you why you should.

Story is king so let's start there. Unlike his previous books this is set in contemporary times and gets going right from the first page. To begin with it follows a familiar theme. A man seeking to escape his demons buys a new house in a remote location and sinister events unfold. That might not sound so original but how the story unfolds is where the genius of the story shines.

There's an imagination here that takes the story to some unexpected places. There's some dark horror here, but also a reflection of joy in the dark places we visit. And it's all written in some excellent prose that demonstrates the author's talent for a turn of phrase.

Normally by this stage of a review I will have pointed out the aspects of the story or writing I didn't like. On this occasion I have nothing. This is an excellent read and probably the author's best work to date - I simply can't recommend this enough.

Click on image to buy from Amazon

Beneath Jim Stokes’s shirt is a scar, one last horrific reminder of his old job in the police force.

Beneath the everyday normality of the village Stormark is a shameful secret, haunting people’s dreams.

Beneath the floorboards of the lake house is a hatch, sealed and forgotten for years until Stokes opens it up.

Beneath them all is blackness, and unheard screams, and scratching sounds in the night…

…and her whispers.


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