We Are Monsters by Brian Kirk – 3.5 Stars
Publisher: Flame Tree Press
ISBN: 9781787583795
I thought I had a great story for
the first 70%: well written, interesting, entertaining, and logical. I enjoyed
the characters, relationships, and unique behaviors, challenges, and future
plans. A new and total cure for schizophrenia raised my antenna for intriguing possibilities
and, since this was under the Horror Category, some weird and scary events. I
wasn’t wrong, and the horror did come about 55% into the story like falling off
a cliff. The story changed from a mystery about who killed someone to a deeply psychotic
world surrounding the insane and the staff caring for them. The murder is
explained as an effect of the new drug use, but is the patient the only one
involved? I was locked in for the next 15% of the book consuming brilliant fantasies
and a crescendo of horror. Up to this point my rating would have been around
4.5.
However, too much of one thing,
especially when is no longer new and refreshing, becomes stale and boring. I
tired of reading trivial nonsense over and over again and rushed past the stuff
to get to the end. I must say the book gives you an eerie feeling that the sane
are the ones not in touch with the world and the insane are. I think I got the
message. But I already got it 70% in and didn’t need it diminished by extraneous
writing. I’d be hard pressed to rate the last 30% more than 2.5.
I see the author has another novel
that I’ll probably look into and see if he learned from the reviews of this
book. As I stated, his potential is promising and the horror category is my
carrot. But, overall, I can only rate this one a 3.5 star.
Reviewer: Rich
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