Take a photo of a barcode or cover
varinavee's review against another edition
3.0
It started a bit slow and confusing, but ended up being a good little penny dreadful. I will likely check in with the characters of Pitchfork County in another story down the road.
psychohobbit's review against another edition
4.0
The is my first entry to Pitchfork County and its corpulent stomach-turning evil threats kept in check by the Night Marshal. There's magic, dark gods and good old fashioned violence with so much gore that I felt like I may have needed to literally wring out the pages (and I'm reading the Kindle edition). I found this book to be the perfect mixture of dark fantasy and horror tied in to the real life and desperation of rural poverty. Maybe it's my rural Missouri background for I really enjoyed this book, the angsty Night Marshal and his unusual family. I rated this 4 stars as the muck and slime often overwhelmed the story. However, I have nothing but admiration by how well expressed all of the descriptions were especially as relating to a highly rural setting.
writegeist's review against another edition
2.0
I received a free readers copy through Story Cartel for my review.
It's a neat concept: a sheriff who deals with the more mundane issues of life and then there is a night marshall who deals with the supernatural. Very Lukyanenko-esque with a western twist. But here's the rub: in Half-Made Girls, the first in a series dealing with the Night Marshall of Pitchfork County (cool name, I think), I don't see why anyone would want to save this place. Clearly, the current Night Marshall, Joe (who appears to have inherited the position) doesn't see a reason either. "Joe hated Pitchfork County." And I do get that it's part of his character arc. Joe is a mess and has to find redemption in the midst of hell breaking loose. So, the concept has potential.
However, the novel just doesn't work for me, and I realize I might not be the target demographic, so keep that in mind for the review. Action is made up of a lot of blowing people away, a lot of visceral descriptions of heads being blown apart and bodies torn asunder, human and other creatures. Meth is the drug du jour, cultists seem to outnumber normal folk, but I think I'd rather spend my time in Night Vale where there's weird stuff galore, but there are still some breaks in the carnage.
Joe spends a lot of time by himself, which is never a good idea if you want to avoid tons of exposition and memories; not much sub-text. It's okay for readers to not get everything right away and to make them work, especially if this is a series. My questions were being answered even before I had a chance to come up with them.
Mr. Witt has definite talent. His sentences flow; his action scenes are concrete and graphic. But the story just isn't there yet. And I'm not sure I really like Joe enough to follow him to the next book. He's not a very nice person even though I understand there are reasons behind that; I've already been told what they are.
It's a neat concept: a sheriff who deals with the more mundane issues of life and then there is a night marshall who deals with the supernatural. Very Lukyanenko-esque with a western twist. But here's the rub: in Half-Made Girls, the first in a series dealing with the Night Marshall of Pitchfork County (cool name, I think), I don't see why anyone would want to save this place. Clearly, the current Night Marshall, Joe (who appears to have inherited the position) doesn't see a reason either. "Joe hated Pitchfork County." And I do get that it's part of his character arc. Joe is a mess and has to find redemption in the midst of hell breaking loose. So, the concept has potential.
However, the novel just doesn't work for me, and I realize I might not be the target demographic, so keep that in mind for the review. Action is made up of a lot of blowing people away, a lot of visceral descriptions of heads being blown apart and bodies torn asunder, human and other creatures. Meth is the drug du jour, cultists seem to outnumber normal folk, but I think I'd rather spend my time in Night Vale where there's weird stuff galore, but there are still some breaks in the carnage.
Joe spends a lot of time by himself, which is never a good idea if you want to avoid tons of exposition and memories; not much sub-text. It's okay for readers to not get everything right away and to make them work, especially if this is a series. My questions were being answered even before I had a chance to come up with them.
Mr. Witt has definite talent. His sentences flow; his action scenes are concrete and graphic. But the story just isn't there yet. And I'm not sure I really like Joe enough to follow him to the next book. He's not a very nice person even though I understand there are reasons behind that; I've already been told what they are.
aljansundance's review against another edition
1.0
DNF. Disappointed. I wanted to like this book. It has a great premise. I don't think I'm the target audience. It rockets right up to a crescendo of violence and gore and stays there. I wanted more story.
bobnb9j's review against another edition
4.0
I came upon this book when it showed up in an email ad for kindle books on sale. The cover was the first thing that caught my eye, made me think of Harry Dresden. Reading the synopsis, I decided to take the leap and I'm glad I did. Sam Witt does a magnificent job of grabbing the reader by the "unmentionables" and pulling you in. The first few chapters was like being hit by a bus, shaking it off, and saying, "That was fun. Let's do it again." I can't think of another way to describe what I read. It is an odd story but one that is intriguing. Supernatural and spiritual come to mind in a tale of a man and his family set out to save the town with the oddest of friend from an even odder enemy. If it sounds like it is up your alley, take the leap. I think you'll like it
reading_since_10's review
5.0
I'm so happy I found something like this book to read, my new favorite author that I'll keep an eye on for sure.
A great freebie and a freebie from the author, second book in the series, a novella actually, thanks Mr Witt!
A great freebie and a freebie from the author, second book in the series, a novella actually, thanks Mr Witt!
dantastic's review
4.0
Joe Hark is the Night Marshal of Pitchfork County, a rural area of Missouri plagued by meth and monsters. When someone crucifies a mutilated girl in a church, Joe finds himself balls deep in a mess involving drugs, demonic forces, and dark gods.
Sam Witt wrote [b:The Astromundi Cluster|737337|The Astromundi Cluster (Spelljammer Game Accessory 1087)|Sam Witt|https://images.gr-assets.com/books/1177866557s/737337.jpg|723516], a Spelljammer supplement I should get around to writing a review for one of these days. On a whim, I wanted to see what else he wrote and this popped up, for free no less. I've long thought rural fantasy had untapped potential as a genre and I was right in this case.
The lazy way to describe Half-Made Girls is The Dresden Files meets Winter's Bone. There's a lot more grit and a lot more gore than the Dresden files and I don't get the feeling the Night Marshall is working with a safety net like I do with Harry Dresden. The Night Marshall isn't an overly glib white knight, either. He's the guy that gets his hands dirty and does what needs to be done when someone walks the Left Hand Path of dark sorcery.
Set in Pitchfork County, Missouri, a dirt poor place where being a meth dealer is one of the only forms of employment, Half-Made Girls is a tale of dark forces that threaten to consume the earth and the one man that can stop them, the Night Marshall, Joe Hark. Now if he could just put aside his alcohol problem and the curse that has forced a wedge between his family and himself....
Joe Hark is more Roland the Gunslinger than Harry Dresden, a hard man that's been to hell and back a dozen times. When meth head cultist stir up some serious shit, The Night Marshall is forced to do some things he doesn't want to do and question his beliefs and methods in order to set things right. Heavy shit.
As befits the situation, the violence is stark and brutal and no one is making half-assed quips or tired Star Wars references. Even though I knew it was the first book in a series, I felt like all bets were off and I could be reading about a new Night Marshall in the second book.
There's a real sense of place to the book. Sam Witt paints a vivid picture of life in the Ozarks. When he's not painting it in blood and gore, anyway.
Sam Witt is also a much better writer than I thought he'd be. He knows how to write suspense and the dialogue is spot on. Also, he writes things like this: It looked like a bathroom at Hogwarts after a week long meth binge.
Half-Made Girls is a gripping, sometimes gut-wrenching read, so much more than the urban fantasy fluff I was afraid it was going to be. It actually has more in common with Brian Keene's [b:Ghost Walk|2918324|Ghost Walk|Brian Keene|https://images.gr-assets.com/books/1348536019s/2918324.jpg|2945551]. Four out of five stars.
Sam Witt wrote [b:The Astromundi Cluster|737337|The Astromundi Cluster (Spelljammer Game Accessory 1087)|Sam Witt|https://images.gr-assets.com/books/1177866557s/737337.jpg|723516], a Spelljammer supplement I should get around to writing a review for one of these days. On a whim, I wanted to see what else he wrote and this popped up, for free no less. I've long thought rural fantasy had untapped potential as a genre and I was right in this case.
The lazy way to describe Half-Made Girls is The Dresden Files meets Winter's Bone. There's a lot more grit and a lot more gore than the Dresden files and I don't get the feeling the Night Marshall is working with a safety net like I do with Harry Dresden. The Night Marshall isn't an overly glib white knight, either. He's the guy that gets his hands dirty and does what needs to be done when someone walks the Left Hand Path of dark sorcery.
Set in Pitchfork County, Missouri, a dirt poor place where being a meth dealer is one of the only forms of employment, Half-Made Girls is a tale of dark forces that threaten to consume the earth and the one man that can stop them, the Night Marshall, Joe Hark. Now if he could just put aside his alcohol problem and the curse that has forced a wedge between his family and himself....
Joe Hark is more Roland the Gunslinger than Harry Dresden, a hard man that's been to hell and back a dozen times. When meth head cultist stir up some serious shit, The Night Marshall is forced to do some things he doesn't want to do and question his beliefs and methods in order to set things right. Heavy shit.
As befits the situation, the violence is stark and brutal and no one is making half-assed quips or tired Star Wars references. Even though I knew it was the first book in a series, I felt like all bets were off and I could be reading about a new Night Marshall in the second book.
There's a real sense of place to the book. Sam Witt paints a vivid picture of life in the Ozarks. When he's not painting it in blood and gore, anyway.
Sam Witt is also a much better writer than I thought he'd be. He knows how to write suspense and the dialogue is spot on. Also, he writes things like this: It looked like a bathroom at Hogwarts after a week long meth binge.
Half-Made Girls is a gripping, sometimes gut-wrenching read, so much more than the urban fantasy fluff I was afraid it was going to be. It actually has more in common with Brian Keene's [b:Ghost Walk|2918324|Ghost Walk|Brian Keene|https://images.gr-assets.com/books/1348536019s/2918324.jpg|2945551]. Four out of five stars.
hookerkitty's review against another edition
challenging
dark
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.0
Good god the gore descriptions in this were thoroughly disgusting - I loved it. Absolutely not for the squeamish. This is definitely a dark book with some dark topics, like torture, alcoholism, drug addiction (specifically meth), and toxic masculinity made an appearance. I can’t decide if I’m glad they didn’t use or make up an old language that they reference when doing spells, or if I think it was a cop out.
There were several grammatical and spelling errors that were irksome, but it didn’t completely take away from the experience.
There were several grammatical and spelling errors that were irksome, but it didn’t completely take away from the experience.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Animal death, Gore, Gun violence, Torture, Violence, Blood, Murder, and Injury/Injury detail
Moderate: Addiction, Alcoholism, Drug abuse, Drug use, and Alcohol
Minor: Child abuse, Child death, Confinement, Suicidal thoughts, Vomit, Kidnapping, Death of parent, and Fire/Fire injury
paperbackstash's review
3.0
A dark and twisted book that's seriously dark and twisted. It's like...nothing else actually. Surreal and unique. Oddball characters. Bizarre little town called Pitchfork County. Meth is as big of a demon as the actual demons. The author doesn't hold back on the almost morbid noirish vibe, nor does he hold back from the gory tidbits, violent deaths and outright painful torments. Full review to come.
mzzmia's review
4.0
Half-Made Girls
I don't know where Sam Witt has been, but I'm happy I've finally stumbled upon him. At first I didnt know where this one would end up. It seemed like the author had far too many balls in the air, as far as the plot went. But at the end, he threw a net around them and pulled it all together. He even left enough dangling to make you look forward to the next book. I haven't been this pleased with a new character in a while.
I don't know where Sam Witt has been, but I'm happy I've finally stumbled upon him. At first I didnt know where this one would end up. It seemed like the author had far too many balls in the air, as far as the plot went. But at the end, he threw a net around them and pulled it all together. He even left enough dangling to make you look forward to the next book. I haven't been this pleased with a new character in a while.