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peterkeep's review against another edition
5.0
This is the last of Robert Jackson Bennett's books that I have read. I started with his fantasy trilogies and worked backwards through American Elsewhere and The Company Man to finally drive at his debut novel.
And wow, what a novel. The desperation and despair of it all really reminded me of Cormac McCarthy. It's more horror than anything, but this is just a tightly packed story with a great hook and a solid ending.
I don't mind that there wasn't really a twist: it felt like there really could only be this over ending.
I haven't written any reviews on here in a while, but figured I'd write this just as a note to myself in the future that good god this man knows how to write!
And wow, what a novel. The desperation and despair of it all really reminded me of Cormac McCarthy. It's more horror than anything, but this is just a tightly packed story with a great hook and a solid ending.
I don't mind that there wasn't really a twist: it felt like there really could only be this over ending.
I haven't written any reviews on here in a while, but figured I'd write this just as a note to myself in the future that good god this man knows how to write!
subparcupcake's review against another edition
2.0
2.5 stars. I'm somewhere in between "it was ok" and liking it. It got a little better in the end, but for the most part it was pretty slow and boring. Good thing it was short.. Wouldn't say I'd recommend it, but I wouldn't not recommend it either. It was fine... Just fine.
I know, my reviews rock lately, right?
I know, my reviews rock lately, right?
joosty's review against another edition
challenging
dark
mysterious
sad
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
beastreader's review against another edition
2.0
Connelly lost the most precious thing to him…his daughter. Three weeks ago, she was murdered by a drifter. Since that point, Connelly has been following the trail of the vagrant. Connelly won’t give up till he has met his daughter’s murder face to face. He wants to personally kill him for what this man has taken from him.
Every town that Connelly stops at, the people there who know Connelly is looking for but they don’t know much about him other than people call him Mr. Shivers. Connelly learns that he isn’t the only one looking for Mr. Shivers. Connelly meets up with the other two men, Reverend Pike and Jakob Hammond. They also lost people dear to them. They men discover that there is more to Mr. Shivers then meets the eye.
Mr. Shivers is new author, Robert Jackson Bennett debut novel. I have had my eye on this book, ever since I first saw it a few months ago. It sounded dark and suspenseful. Unfortunately, this time the book looked and sounded better then it actually was. It started out alright. As the story started to pick up and I was introduced to Mr. Shivers, I found him menacing. The issues I had with this book were that none of the characters grabbed me as well as the story line did move slowly. I think of read this book in a daze. Mr. Bennett did show some promise. Hopefully his next book is better.
Every town that Connelly stops at, the people there who know Connelly is looking for but they don’t know much about him other than people call him Mr. Shivers. Connelly learns that he isn’t the only one looking for Mr. Shivers. Connelly meets up with the other two men, Reverend Pike and Jakob Hammond. They also lost people dear to them. They men discover that there is more to Mr. Shivers then meets the eye.
Mr. Shivers is new author, Robert Jackson Bennett debut novel. I have had my eye on this book, ever since I first saw it a few months ago. It sounded dark and suspenseful. Unfortunately, this time the book looked and sounded better then it actually was. It started out alright. As the story started to pick up and I was introduced to Mr. Shivers, I found him menacing. The issues I had with this book were that none of the characters grabbed me as well as the story line did move slowly. I think of read this book in a daze. Mr. Bennett did show some promise. Hopefully his next book is better.
dantastic's review against another edition
3.0
When his daughter is killed senselessly by a disfigured drifter named Mr. Shivers, Marcus Connelly travels across the Despression-stricken country for vengeance in the company of several hobos, each with a reason for wanting Mr. Shivers dead...
This tale of death in the Dustbowl was an odd animal to pin down. The pursuit of a mysterious man in gray echoed the beginning of [b:The Gunslinger|43615|The Gunslinger (The Dark Tower, #1)|Stephen King|https://d.gr-assets.com/books/1375776480s/43615.jpg|46575]. Much like the first volume in the epic Dark Tower series, Mr. Shivers is a novel of obsession and relentlessness. How far would you be willing to go to achieve your goals?
The writing reminds me of Joe Lansdale's more literary works like [b:The Bottoms|102113|The Bottoms|Joe R. Lansdale|https://d.gr-assets.com/books/1348765461s/102113.jpg|2038476]. The subject matter, however, has echoes of [b:Steppenwolf|16631|Steppenwolf|Hermann Hesse|https://d.gr-assets.com/books/1389332672s/16631.jpg|57612], [b:The Man Who Was Thursday|184419|The Man Who Was Thursday|G.K. Chesterton|https://d.gr-assets.com/books/1403181403s/184419.jpg|195447], and [a:Cormac McCarthy|4178|Cormac McCarthy|https://d.gr-assets.com/authors/1414695980p2/4178.jpg]. When you track down great evil, you have to fight hard to avoid getting swept up by it. The metaphysical questions the book raises make this more than a Depression-era horror novel.
For a book that's less than 350 pages, it's fairly powerful. It might be overly ambitious for a first novel, though. The concepts were great and Mr. Shivers was suitably creepy but I didn't think Connelly or his hobo compatriots were very fleshed out. The book also seemed really linear and could have made more use of the hobo culture of the Great Depression.
At the end of the day, I'm not even really sure how I felt about it. I loved some of the ideas presented but the story itself was lacking. I guess we'll call it a three out of five.
This tale of death in the Dustbowl was an odd animal to pin down. The pursuit of a mysterious man in gray echoed the beginning of [b:The Gunslinger|43615|The Gunslinger (The Dark Tower, #1)|Stephen King|https://d.gr-assets.com/books/1375776480s/43615.jpg|46575]. Much like the first volume in the epic Dark Tower series, Mr. Shivers is a novel of obsession and relentlessness. How far would you be willing to go to achieve your goals?
The writing reminds me of Joe Lansdale's more literary works like [b:The Bottoms|102113|The Bottoms|Joe R. Lansdale|https://d.gr-assets.com/books/1348765461s/102113.jpg|2038476]. The subject matter, however, has echoes of [b:Steppenwolf|16631|Steppenwolf|Hermann Hesse|https://d.gr-assets.com/books/1389332672s/16631.jpg|57612], [b:The Man Who Was Thursday|184419|The Man Who Was Thursday|G.K. Chesterton|https://d.gr-assets.com/books/1403181403s/184419.jpg|195447], and [a:Cormac McCarthy|4178|Cormac McCarthy|https://d.gr-assets.com/authors/1414695980p2/4178.jpg]. When you track down great evil, you have to fight hard to avoid getting swept up by it. The metaphysical questions the book raises make this more than a Depression-era horror novel.
For a book that's less than 350 pages, it's fairly powerful. It might be overly ambitious for a first novel, though. The concepts were great and Mr. Shivers was suitably creepy but I didn't think Connelly or his hobo compatriots were very fleshed out. The book also seemed really linear and could have made more use of the hobo culture of the Great Depression.
At the end of the day, I'm not even really sure how I felt about it. I loved some of the ideas presented but the story itself was lacking. I guess we'll call it a three out of five.
macandgeese's review against another edition
dark
mysterious
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
sdeeim's review against another edition
dark
mysterious
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.25
charlibirb's review against another edition
3.0
Kind of a predictable ending, but I guess it builds up to the inevitability of where it's going. Felt very Steven King-ish. Some of the characters didn't feel super fleshed out. Interesting read, though, I wasn't bored. The world was very well put together, I could see the pictures he painted.