Customer Reviews

Comes the Dark

5 star:		(10)
4 star:		(4)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(5)
1 star:		(4)

 

 

A really great first novel with fascinating, believable characters and an engrossing plot. I can't believe some people found it boring -- I read the whole book in two days, just couldn't put it down! I guess they were hoping for a who-done-it, but COMES THE DARK is a psychological thriller, and the suspense comes from seeing how the characters' lives intersect and how their secrets come out into the open in very dramatic, unexpected ways. Don't let the negative comments turn you off. This is a great book!

I picked up this book without expectations. I was immediately impressed with the prescotts writing style. I was instantly hooked and the pages flew by. Unlike other reviewers, I was not bothered by the author revealing the killer early. To me it made it more interesting (there ar plenty of "who done its" out there). I am not particularly interested in greek mythology... or should I say I wasnt until I read this book. I may just brush up on some of the mythological references, now. Thanks to Mr. Prescott for an interesting and entertaining read.

Michael Prescott's "Comes the Dark" is a potent and absorbing psychological thriller. What is really unique about this book is the complexity of the characters and the inability to really make them either good or bad, although certainly the villain is definitely bad. The usual childhood traumas are used to justify the mental illness, but even then Prescott doesn't offer this as an excuse, merely as a reason.

I particularly found the characters of Marge and Andrew very well drawn. Marge is the lieutenant who felt she should have gotten the chief position when crusty old Paul retired. But instead, they bring in an outsider from New York with his own hidden secrets. The method in which the sour Marge turns to respect her new boss is done with credibility and sensitivity. The transformation is satisfying.

Likewise, we have Andrew, the husband of the heroine who married her for money, and has a criminally colorful past. Although you immediately want to despise him, as the story progresses, he becomes a flesh and blood character, driven by past greeds, but in the end, turning into a rather surprising force in the novel.

The scenes in the cave are at times tedious and drawn out, but they enhance the feeling of our heroine as she tries desperately to battle her evil brother.

This is a great read--I found myself saying things out loud, like "You just did something stupid," or "Come on, Erica, don't be so silly..."

This is good reading; although after reading "Stealing Faces," I think Prescott tends to supply his leading characters the same formulae, but hey if it works, why not?

For a story that closely follows the events of a single day, it's ironic that the only interesting parts of this narrative take place in the past. From the teaser on the back cover and the first hundred pages, you'd think the meatiest aspect of this story is the race to prevent a crazed killer from claiming another victim before the end of day. Instead, this aspect of the story is surprisingly mundane. The identity of the killer is revealed early in the story, and it's at this point that the story begins to lag. The revelation, by itself, isn't necessarily a mistake. Detective shows on TV do it all the time, and the story then focuses on figuring out how the murder was committed and the investigative work involved. This story, however, offers none of that. The killer is the only suspect, his actions will inevitably lead the police to arrest him, and the only reason the police don't arrest him is the fear they won't be able to find where he's hidden his next victim. The real meat of the story focuses on the relationships between the primary characters and why the killer is driven to murder. As the story unfolds, the motivations of the characters are slowly revealed, primarily through flashbacks and other revelations of the characters' past. The final revelations at the end of the story are well done and fully explain the motivations of the killer, but at that point it's not enough to have made the read worthwhile.

I don't know what Mike Moss was reading but it obviously wasn't this book. I was hooked by the end of the first chapter. There was always something going on: murder, suspence, adultery, mythology, and mental illness. This book has everything. It came from so many angles, and each point of view enlightened the plot. Although it wasn't as good a book as Prescott's Stealing Faces; it was still one where you put off reading for a short time for fear that the next story may not be as good.

I had read Prescott's second novel, Stealing Faces, several months ago and loved it. Then I ordered Comes the Dark. I was fascinated...so what if I knew from the beginning the identity of the bad guy. That only made the workings of his mind more intriguing. How else could Prescott have brought in the Mother Earth religious overtones...how else could he have scared the britches off me? Only in this novel have I ever felt both repulsion and sympathy for the perpetrator of the crimes. Robert's aloneness is heartbreaking; he wants to belong, has never belonged and can't figure out how to belong. An exciting tale... and one that kept me too involved to get in the kitchen to make Christmas candy! I'm looking forward to Prescott's next novel...

This book puts extra emphasis on character developement which I believe makes the story entertaining and solid - Mr. Prescott is a highly skilled writer.

I'm a big fan of this author and with his next book I'm sure you'll see he's #1 in writing thriller novels - I'll certainly purchase his next book...

Ever notice how books as in real life the past usually comes back to haunt you? Thats what happens to Erica and her brother Robert. Something horrible happened to them as children Erica has done well in her life but Robert is a recluse who lives in a shack. There are diffinitely a few twists and turns in this thriller. I really like the fact the my name is in it Athena I have never read a book with my name in it before.

After picking up "Last Breath" at the airport on my vacation last year and finding it to be a riveting read I decided to try another book by Michael Prescott. "Comes The Dark" deals with a similar topic- the twisted mind of a serial killer- and does it even better. Prescott drops you into the mind of Robert Garrison as he captures and plans to murder his sister Erica in order to cleanse his soul and eradicate his demons. The result is a rollercoaster ride of suspense and pathos as Erica's secret lover, the local police chief, races to find her before its too late. Robert plans to kill her 'comes the dark'. Despite knowing who the guilty party was I found myself sitting at the edge of my seat until the ride ended.

After about the first 40 pages, I skim-read this one and read the end. It just doesn't work, and it is clear that it doesn't. Not really anyone in the story to pull for, either, in my opinion. With so many other options out there, not worth reading.