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limeyspud's review
3.0
In my opinion short stories can be notoriously difficult to write and I take my hat off to anyone that can write one which is interesting, engaging, creates characters that you care about/connect with immediately and packs a punch. And I take my hat off to Wright as he pulls off a short story which hits all 4 requirements.
It is Issac's 16 birthday and not only can he now but scratchies legally but he discovers he has satanic powers. And therein lies the the worries biggest drawback.
Wright gives Issac powers that are off the chart. Quite simply the lad can do anything, absolutely anything. What could have been a magnificent teaser of a story about an unremarkable and likeable young lad morphing into the antichrist is overshadowed by the infinite powers bestowed upon him.
It is for this reason I hope Wright does not try and turn this into a full length novel, however if he scaled back the devise powers to have some limitations there is a kernel of one heck of a great idea and brilliant novel.
With that said I recommend you read it simply because Wright always crafts an enjoyable story and the metamorphosis of Isaac is one that horror fans will love.
It is Issac's 16 birthday and not only can he now but scratchies legally but he discovers he has satanic powers. And therein lies the the worries biggest drawback.
Wright gives Issac powers that are off the chart. Quite simply the lad can do anything, absolutely anything. What could have been a magnificent teaser of a story about an unremarkable and likeable young lad morphing into the antichrist is overshadowed by the infinite powers bestowed upon him.
It is for this reason I hope Wright does not try and turn this into a full length novel, however if he scaled back the devise powers to have some limitations there is a kernel of one heck of a great idea and brilliant novel.
With that said I recommend you read it simply because Wright always crafts an enjoyable story and the metamorphosis of Isaac is one that horror fans will love.
_grace_c_'s review
dark
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.75
silenttwg's review
challenging
dark
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.5
Isaac's turning 16 and is gonna have the birthday party of his life, so far. But the turnout is less than stellar and it starts off feeling like a dud for him. However, as the night progresses, it becomes a life changing experience for all.
I figured this would be a fun, short read and I'd give it a shot. It definitely packed a punch, when it picked up, it went from 0-80 seconds flat. The kid is an incel who develops horrifying powers with no idea he even has the potential until his birth-time strikes, so you can imagine how it progresses.
However, it does feel like the writing was done to reflect the time at the party. The opening drags, leaving one rolling their eyes at what the kids do at the party, and Isaac and his friends don't seem comfortable even with each other. Yet when the pace picked up, it felt like it picked up too fast and suddenly was blurring by. The characters didn't have time to develop, the plot didn't and all of a sudden, it was like, oh it's over.
There's potential here and the writer's writing skills are strong, but it's too short to accomplish the creep factor while at the same time, focuses too long on other areas. It would be interesting to see what would happen if the author developed this into something more than a short story.
I figured this would be a fun, short read and I'd give it a shot. It definitely packed a punch, when it picked up, it went from 0-80 seconds flat. The kid is an incel who develops horrifying powers with no idea he even has the potential until his birth-time strikes, so you can imagine how it progresses.
However, it does feel like the writing was done to reflect the time at the party. The opening drags, leaving one rolling their eyes at what the kids do at the party, and Isaac and his friends don't seem comfortable even with each other. Yet when the pace picked up, it felt like it picked up too fast and suddenly was blurring by. The characters didn't have time to develop, the plot didn't and all of a sudden, it was like, oh it's over.
There's potential here and the writer's writing skills are strong, but it's too short to accomplish the creep factor while at the same time, focuses too long on other areas. It would be interesting to see what would happen if the author developed this into something more than a short story.
whatemsreadingx's review
dark
mysterious
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? N/A
- Loveable characters? N/A
- Diverse cast of characters? N/A
- Flaws of characters a main focus? N/A
4.0
lozababe's review
dark
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
This novella was something completely different to anything I have ever read. Although the subject maybe isn’t too nice, it still had me enthralled from the first page.
The strange things that were happening hadn’t led me to believe anything other than that they were coincidences until about the middle of the book.
It wasn’t too gory, and just enough horror to make it engrossing but not too scary that you can’t sleep afterwards. A great little novella!
The strange things that were happening hadn’t led me to believe anything other than that they were coincidences until about the middle of the book.
It wasn’t too gory, and just enough horror to make it engrossing but not too scary that you can’t sleep afterwards. A great little novella!
atherly_jane's review
dark
tense
fast-paced
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
3.0
alexreads111's review
dark
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
1.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Sexual violence, Fire/Fire injury, Homophobia, and Violence
wordnerd's review
3.0
Okay. This one was just weird... After finishing the story all I could think was "well that escalated quickly".
howlinglibraries's review
2.0
Sadly, this wasn't for me. I think maybe this author's work in general isn't for me. He has so many books that have these incredible-sounding plots, and the writing itself is fine, but I had a really hard time with the characters in this as well as the other book I've read of his! I do have one more book of Iain's on my TBR that I'd like to read, so maybe one more try?
5hadow_girl's review
5.0
Sixteen years old!
Isaac is finally a man, and he’s ready to celebrate the biggest night of his life. With his two best friends at his side, he’s throwing the party to end all parties – one that people will be talking about for years to come.
But for the survivors, the talk won't be about the food, or the games… It will be about the death, and destruction left in the party’s wake.
Full review posted on BBB.
Isaac is finally a man, and he’s ready to celebrate the biggest night of his life. With his two best friends at his side, he’s throwing the party to end all parties – one that people will be talking about for years to come.
But for the survivors, the talk won't be about the food, or the games… It will be about the death, and destruction left in the party’s wake.
Full review posted on BBB.
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