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Jay Anson – The Amityville Horror | Review

Title: The Amityville Horror

Author: Jay Anson

Type: Fiction

Page Count/Review Word Count: 322

Rating: 3.5/5

Jay Anson – The Amityville Horror

This book will try to tell you that it’s a true story, but it isn’t. Luckily, that didn’t really make any difference to me, and that’s not why I picked it up. I’d seen a few other people talking about it and thought I ought to check it out, especially as I was such a fan of The Exorcist by William Peter Blatty.

Unfortunately, The Amityville Horror just doesn’t have the same feel to it. It’s fine and all, but it didn’t exactly leap out of the page and reads more like a Wikipedia article than a horror novel. Usher’s writing style is reminiscent of hack journalism, but it works pretty well in the context of the book and honestly, I don’t really have any complaints.

If you’re looking for a horror novel then you should look elsewhere. This is more like a non-fiction book, and it certainly presents itself as one, except obviously it’s not. But if you take it for what it is instead of expecting great things from it, it’s good enough at what it does. I think I had a better experience with it than most of the people that I buddy read with, though, so that’s worth considering.

As soon as I’d finished reading it, we watched the movie, which I’ve seen before but not for ten years or so. It was fine, and the movie and the book are pretty true to each other, but honestly I’d say you’re perfectly fine to go with just one or the other. Neither medium adds anything more to the overall story, and it’s also important to remember that that’s all this is: a story. It’s not a masterpiece of modern literature, but it’ll while the time away and doesn’t require brainpower. There’s a place for books like that.

Jay Anson

Click here to buy The Amityville Horror.

Duncan Ralston – Salvage | Review

Title: Salvage

Author: Duncan Ralston

Type: Fiction

Page Count/Review Word Count: 348

Rating: 4/5

Duncan Ralston – Salvage

This is a book by an indie author friend of mine, although I guess he’s more of an acquaintance. I came across Ralston back in the day when we were both published by BookTrope, and even though we’ve since gone our separate ways, I still grab his books when I can because he’s a pretty decent horror writer. On a par with a lot of the professionals if you ask me, and that holds true from the quality of the writing to the editing, layout and cover design. When you buy this book, you’re getting the finished article from someone who’s done this before a bunch of times.

In this book, we’re basically dealing with a ghost story that’s set partially underwater. A dude has to look into the mysterious drowning death of his sister and figure out what she was looking for in a town that was buried by water after the construction of a hydroelectric dam. That’s really all I can tell you without spoilers, but what I will say is that if you’re looking for a decent indie horror then this is a good place to start. It’s spooky, the ghosts are downright sinister, and the little lick of religion gives it a sort of Biblical horror feel too, although I was getting kind of tired of that by the end of it. I don’t like religion.

Overall, Salvage isn’t the best book I’ve read this year but then I read a lot. It’s not the best ghost story either because it’s behind Heart-Shaped Box by Joe Hill, but only by half a rating point. For an indie book, it’s easily in the upper echelons and it can hold its own against a lot of the stuff coming out from major publishers. I enjoyed it for what it was and actually liked it more than I thought I was going to when I went into it. Good job, Duncan. Now which of your books shall I read next?