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By Steve Stred
2022 Black Void Publishing
Paperback, 254 pages including Afterword and Writing Playlist!
Seventeen
years to the day of his mother’s disappearance, Tyler’s father’s plane goes
down in the exact same spot of Canadian wilderness where Mom vanished. That
leaves our 17-year-old hero to head out to search for his dad, although the
area is restricted. Military owned. Off limits. Verboten. But thanks to years
of hiking and survival lessons with his Pop, Tyler is ready to break the rules
and go off to search for his parents. If the number of years sound similar to
you, that’s right. Tyler has never seen his mother.
Once
Tyler is past the perimeter of the restricted area, the book alternates between
his survivalist skills, his stealth, and his fears. It turns out the area is
not safe at all. There are strange beasties afoot in the woods. With the help
of a Mountie who is on a similar mission to get to the facility deep within the
woods, Tyler discovers a military/ scientific conspiracy that could end his
life if he gets too close.
I came
to this book as a creature-feature recommendation from the good ol’ Books of
Horror Facebook page. It isn’t something I would ever have discovered on my
own, and I enjoyed it, so… thank you. The tension stays high throughout the
journey through the woods and gets notched up even higher as Tyler nears his
goal. The creatures in this feature are many, with the scientists playing Dr.
Moreau and creating hybrid, mutated monsters that now fill the woods.
Stred
is a fine writer and keeps the pages turning at a rapid pace. My only gripe
would be that it is very much a boy’s book… a son searching for his father.
There isn’t much estrogen in the story. If I had had a stronger relationship
with my own father, perhaps it would have resonated with me more. Shit, if my
father went down, I’d just say, “oh well… bummer” and move on.
All in
all, this is a fun book that hits a lot of the right notes. I’ll check out more
of this author. I like his style.
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