Tag: Paranormal

Book Review | ‘Salem’s Lot by Stephen King

Posted on by Adventures in Polishland

‘Salem’s Lot by Stephen King

Published by Signet on October 17, 1975

Genres: Adult, Horror, Paranormal

Format: Paperback

Pages: 427

Source: Purchased

Goodreads: ★★★★

Something strange is going on in Jerusalem’s Lot … but no one dares to talk about it. By day, ‘Salem’s Lot is a typical modest New England town; but when the sun goes down, evil roams the earth. The devilishly sweet insistent laughter of a child can be heard echoing through the fields, and the presence of silent looming spirits can be felt lurking right outside your window. Stephen King brings his gruesome imagination to life in this tale of spine-tingling horror.

REVIEW

I continued on with my Stephen King project in March by reading ‘Salem’s Lot, his second published work. I went into this book blind, and I’m glad I did because there is a big build-up to the story. ‘Salem’s Lot opens with a man and a boy escaping to Mexico from a town in Maine called Jerusalem’s Lot. The reader knows they are both scared, and that they must return to the Lot in order to solve a problem. The book then rewinds to the start of the story when the man goes to Jersulam’s Lot for the first time since his childhood. This is a haunted house book that turns into a paranormal story, and one in which the writing is excellent.

Here’s the thing about my experience with ‘Salem’s Lot – it took me nearly three weeks to read the book, which is three times my normal pace. I had to force myself to continue on with the story, and at times I felt downright bored. That’s because King is creating a new world. Jerusalem’s Lot is a fictional town, and the true protagonist of this book. King writes in exceptional detail, describing characters in the setting in such a realistic way. So even though I didn’t like how slow the pace of this novel is, I can appreciate the work it took. I am really amazed at King’s ability to write such a developed novel so early on in his career.

In regards to the characters, I did struggle a bit in keeping up with the large cast featured in ‘Salem’s Lot. It became more difficult because so many of the characters have similar names, such as Mike, Mark, and Matt. Nonetheless, once I got into the story I was better able to keep track of everyone. If you have trouble with names, I would recommend keeping a character list nearby when you read, and simply jot down a quick note of each character’s role in the story.

Moreover, I was a bit disappointed that I never felt scared by this book. King is known for his horror novels, but I just was never creeped out or on the edge of my seat. I did find some of the real life scenes quite disturbing, but none of the paranormal elements got to me. Perhaps King is trying to make a point here, as I did sit back and wonder what was happening in my own town. Not including the paranormal elements, I’m sure people go through the same things that the characters in Jerusalem’s Lot do, and that is disturbing in and of itself. I’m interested to see if King’s next book The Shining will incite fear in me.

Overall, I’m glad I pushed through the slow pace of ‘Salem’s Lot. I did enjoy the story, and I think the book got better and better as I continued reading. The third-person narration was very well done, and I’m very impressed with King’s writing. If you are looking to get into King’s novels, I do not recommend starting here as it is a very long book. However, if you are familiar with his work, or really enjoy adult paranormal, this is a good book to read. I would love to hear your thoughts on ‘Salem’s Lot if you’ve read it, too!

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Book Review | Shutter by Courtney Alameda (Shutter #1)

Posted on by Adventures in Polishland

Shutter (Shutter #1) by Courtney Alameda

Published by Feiwel & Friends on February 3, 2015

Genres: Young Adult, Horror, Paranormal

Pages: 384

Format: Hardcover

Source: Goodreads Giveaway

Goodreads: ★★★★ 1/2


Horror has a new name: introducing Courtney Alameda.

Micheline Helsing is a tetrachromat—a girl who sees the auras of the undead in a prismatic spectrum. As one of the last descendants of the Van Helsing lineage, she has trained since childhood to destroy monsters both corporeal and spiritual: the corporeal undead go down by the bullet, the spiritual undead by the lens. With an analog SLR camera as her best weapon, Micheline exorcises ghosts by capturing their spiritual energy on film. She’s aided by her crew: Oliver, a techno-whiz and the boy who developed her camera’s technology; Jude, who can predict death; and Ryder, the boy Micheline has known and loved forever.

When a routine ghost hunt goes awry, Micheline and the boys are infected with a curse known as a soulchain. As the ghostly chains spread through their bodies, Micheline learns that if she doesn’t exorcise her entity in seven days or less, she and her friends will die. Now pursued as a renegade agent by her monster-hunting father, Leonard Helsing, she must track and destroy an entity more powerful than anything she’s faced before . . . or die trying.

Lock, stock, and lens, she’s in for one hell of a week.

REVIEW

If you are a lover of young adult paranormal, run to the nearest bookstore and pick up Shutter. This horror novel is the first in a new series by Courtney Alameda, and features a great cast of characters as they go on an epic adventure to kill the ghost who has infected their bodies and is literally killing them from the inside out. I raced through this novel, and highly recommend it to anyone looking for a dark and thrilling tale.

My favorite thing about Shutter is Alameda’s writing style. She is able to create a dark aura surrounding her words that evokes a real sense of eeriness for the reader. The tone reminded me a bit of the Blood of Eden Series by Julie Kagawa, though the stories are quite different, of course.

Alameda also excels in character development. Shutter has four main characters – our narrator is Micheline Helsing, a descendant of Van Helsing who is trained to hunt the undead. Her reaping team is made up of three young men, Ryder, Jude, and Oliver, who each have a distinct personality. These four characters work so well together, and each is likable both individually and as a team unit.

My critiques of the novel are very few, and they are quite trivial. First, there are a few instances in the novel where traditional gender roles are accepted. However, these moments are fleeting one-liners, and probably only stick out to someone like me who is keenly aware of gender relations in all that I read. I also found the beginning of the novel to be a bit complicated, as the world building threw a lot of vocabulary and technology my way all at once. Luckily, as the novel progressed, I quickly grew to understand the world.

Other than those small issues, I loved everything about Shutter, and I cannot wait for the next book in the series to be released. Whether you love ghost stories, or perhaps you’re looking to break into the young adult horror genre, I highly recommend Shutter. It’s a dynamic read that is sure to keep you turning pages to the very end.

 
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When you buy a book through the Amazon or Book Depository links above, I earn a small commission through each website’s affiliate program. All opinions are my own. See my Disclosure Policy for more information.