The Darkening Dream (Twilight of the Ancients) [Kindle Edition]

Andy Gavin (Author)

Book Description

The Darkening Dream is the chilling new dark fantasy novel by Andy Gavin, creator of Crash Bandicoot and Jak & Daxter.

Even as the modern world pushes the supernatural aside in favor of science and steel, the old ways remain. God, demon, monster, and sorcerer alike plot to regain what was theirs.

1913, Salem, Massachusetts - Sarah Engelmann's life is full of friends, books, and avoiding the pressure to choose a husband, until an ominous vision and the haunting call of an otherworldly trumpet shake her. When she stumbles across a gruesome corpse, she fears that her vision was more of a premonition. And when she sees the murdered boy moving through the crowd at an amusement park, Sarah is thrust into a dark battle she does not understand.
With the help of Alex, a Greek immigrant who knows a startling amount about the undead, Sarah sets out to uncover the truth. Their quest takes them to the factory mills of Salem, on a midnight boat ride to spy on an eerie coastal lair, and back, unexpectedly, to their own homes. What can Alex's elderly, vampire-hunting grandfather and Sarah's own rabbi father tell them? And what do Sarah's continuing visions reveal?
No less than Gabriel's Trumpet, the tool that will announce the End of Days, is at stake, and the forces that have banded to recover it include a 900 year-old vampire, a trio of disgruntled Egyptian gods, and a demon-loving Puritan minister. At the center of this swirling cast is Sarah, who must fight a millennia-old battle against unspeakable forces, knowing the ultimate prize might be herself.

Online Reviews
 
"Wonderfully twisted sense of humor" and "A vampire novel with actual bite" -- Kirkus Reviews

"Inventive, unexpected, and more than a little bit creepy!" -- R.J. Cavender, editor of the Bram Stoker nominated Horror Library anthology series

"This book will satisfy any fan of the vampire genre and then some!" -- Must Read Faster

"In a similar vein to George R.R. Martin's writing style, Gavin often dangles his characters in the maws of danger and doesn't shy away from ... their blood being spilled." -- Andrew Reiner, executive editor of Game Informer magazine

"Now this is a vampire novel! It flows so perfectly between character point of views, it's a great blend of historical fiction, mythology and paranormal." -- Little Miss Drama Queen Reviews

"Action-packed and suspenseful, and there were twists all over the place." -- Les Livres

"Andy Gavin has taken a bevy of supernatural elements, compelling characters, and an intricate and superbly developed storyline, and expertly weaved them together to create an original and enthralling book." -- Word Spelunking

Editorial Reviews

Review

"Gorgeously creepy, strangely humorous, and sincerely terrifying" -- Publishers Weekly (starred review)

"Wonderfully twisted sense of humor" -- Kirkus Reviews
    
"This is a story that is rich in visual and verbal treasures. The Darkening Dream is an unbelievable first novel." -- Vampire Librarian

About the Author

Andy Gavin is an unstoppable storyteller who studied for his Ph.D. at M.I.T. and founded video game developer Naughty Dog, Inc. at the age of fifteen, serving as co-president for two decades. There he created, produced, and directed over a dozen video games, including the award winning and best selling Crash Bandicoot and Jak & Daxter franchises, selling over 40 million units worldwide. He sleeps little, reads novels and histories, watches media obsessively, travels, and of course, writes.

Find him at: andy-gavin-author.com

Product Details

• File Size: 610 KB
• Print Length: 392 pages
• Publisher: Mascherato Publishing; v5.03h/lv3.51 edition (December 22, 2011)
• Sold by: Amazon Digital Services, Inc.
• Language: English
• ASIN: B006PIMYLY
• Text-to-Speech: Enabled
• X-Ray: Enabled
• Lending: Enabled
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #12,456 Paid in Kindle Store (See Top 100 Paid in Kindle Store)
  • #5 in Books > Literature & Fiction > Genre Fiction > Horror > Dark Fantasy
  • #12 in Kindle Store > Kindle eBooks > Literature & Fiction > Fantasy > Dark Fantasy
  • #78 in Kindle Store > Kindle eBooks > Literature & Fiction > Fantasy > Historical

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

19 of 20 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars Dark and Imaginative... March 18, 2012

By Michael Araujo

Format:Hardcover|Amazon Verified Purchase

Think of Salem, Massachusetts and you would think of the Salem Witch Trials, but we aren't in the 1600's. The year is 1913 and tales of witches are long gone, substituted by those of the vampires. Aside from them being called vampires, what do these vampires have in common with those that we know of in today's world? Absolutely nothing. When Andy Gavin went back in time with The Darkening Dream, he not only brought us to old traditions but to old rules. Farewell to the vampires that sparkle and fall in love with teenage girls and hello to the vampires who burn in the sun, sleep in a coffin and attack for pleasure.

Having received an email from Andy to review his novel, I was a bit hesitant at first. Vampires aren`t generally on my reading list, but how many spoiled apples did I have to go through before I finally gave up? With each word he typed though, I became more and more curious. He revealed the fact that he was co-creator of Naughty Dog, and when I finally saw the cover for the novel I just couldn't turn it down at all. How could this man, this creator of games such as Crash Bandicoot and Jak & Daxter, create a novel about vampires to hold my attention. Not to mention he added Egyptian gods to the mix. A weird mix but yet I set off on the journey.

The Darkening Dream treats us to a dark story about a girl named Sarah who stumbles into some trouble because of these visions she's having. With the help of Alex, a Greek Immigrant and her twin friends, Anne and Sam, she sets off on this terrifying adventure against an elderly vampire, a demon-loving Puritan warlock, Egyptian gods, all in the name of saving the holy trumpet of the Archangel Gabriel. While the plot-line might seem a bit of random and something on the path of comedy, it is the complete opposite.... Never have I seen such an odd group come together so well and truly terrify me and the characters.

I absolutely loved the characters both the good and the bad. They were all written so well, with each of their personalities shining through on the pages brightly. From the very beginning, the story, the writing, the characters all seemed so fresh and new. From the very beginning, you become connected to these characters and yearn to learn more. They're all written with secrets behind them that makes you want to bring out your shovel and dig a little deeper than what the author has given. He made me connect to each and everyone of them in their own little ways. Of course the credit is given to the way he writes.

Like I said before, Andy Gavin gave me this refreshing new story that seriously set out against serious competitors and set the table for them. I was completely surprised at how amazing the writing was for someone who was only a debut author. I immediately connected to the words and could not let go. I grabbed each and every word and let it sink in as the story formed. Everything from the characters, to the way they spoke, to the way he narrated their actions was just perfectly written to the dot. The mixture of the Egyptian gods in the end actually made sense and made one think that anything is possible and can be taken seriously. Even after being finished with the story, it still amazes me how well it was written.

To go a little deeper into the characters, I'd have to focus on the vampires because after all this a vampire novel. The way they were shown simply amazed me. I longed for a novel where I would get killer vampires who attacked for blood and kept to their old traditions of turning into fog and bats, of sleeping in their coffin and staying away from the sun. Knowing that these vampires had a rows of sharp-fanged teeth got me excited for who their victims would be. But when the excitement went down I realized, this put the fear I had of vampires back in its place. Reading in the dead of night with only a book light on and no type of noise whatsoever, I found myself extremely uncomfortable during one part where the 900-year-old vampire torments the characters outside of their home. Knowing that he couldn't get in but wouldn't leave them alone seriously set me on edge and even writing about it now I'm getting that feeling again. The fear of how I felt when I was younger had suddenly hit me and I had to put the book down for a few minutes and turn the lights on.

I've always been afraid of vampires when I was younger, all the thanks should be given to my sister, but with current vampire novels it became sort of a joke. So I thank you, Andy Gavin, for making that fear return again and for reminding me why years ago I had to sleep with two beanie bag babies tight on my neck. A simple childish phobia that had long gone is beginning to return and I couldn't be more happier to welcome it with opened arms. Let's just hope that there's a sequel, especially with that killer ending. Read more ›

7 of 7 people found the following review helpful

4.0 out of 5 stars A fine blend of horror and history February 1, 2013

By Lizzy's Dark Fiction

Format:Kindle Edition

The Darkening Dream is meant to be sipped like a fine wine. Too much at one time and you'll be overwhelmed by the vast amount of horror while simultaneously enlightened about historic information concerning multiple religions, Greek history, and the culture of America in the 1910s. If you'd like just another vampire tale, move along. The author narrates this story like a tour guide narrates a tour. He takes you through every little, forgotten path so that by the last page you have a full appreciation of the events that occurred.

There are two things that may bother some readers (three if you dislike horror). One is that religions play a huge impact in both the story and in the characters' daily lives. This is the first book I've read in a few years that has a Jewish main character, so I did appreciate the fine details in how being Jewish separates Sarah from the other characters. The second thing is that the characters in this book do come off as sexist at times. But considering this book is written before Women's Suffrage, where females have less rights and freedoms than males, this is completely normal for the time period.

I do not read too much historical fiction. In fact, the only time I do it is when it is tied tightly to the horror genre. I can tell that the author put a lot of energy into making this book historically and religiously accurate. At times, this does make the scenes "wordy". Plus both Alex and Sarah are well versed in Greek history, among other things, so there are quite a few facts mentioned throughout the story. As all of the information is relevant and the horror happens often, it never does feel like a "info dump", which I appreciate....

One thing that did confuse me at times was trying to keep track of what language the characters were speaking. Several of the characters are fluent in a couple languages, so they'd switch between Greek, Latin, English, and Hebrew depending on who was involved in the conversation. I would of liked more foreign words to have been used in the dialogue (instead of it being written entirely in English) so that I wouldn't have to pay such close attention to the dialogue tags to figure out what language was spoken and to allow my brain to not digest the dialogue as if it were English.

I was pleasantly shocked by the ending. I should have guessed that the horror wouldn't have given the characters a break even in its last pages. Knowing the ending, I do want to go back and reread, since now I know the motivations behind all the characters. This is one book that I'm sure upon rereading I'll see all the hints leading up to the end and be like "OMG, how did I not see that coming!" If you're interested in a horror novel that will haunt you over the course of weeks, The Darkening Dream is a perfect fit for you. But if you're looking for a quick scare or a vampire novel with more romance than bite, you should pass.

(I received a copy of this book from the author in exchange for my honest review.) Read more ›

9 of 10 people found the following review helpful

4.0 out of 5 stars Dark, gritty sparkle free vampire novel February 4, 2012

By Jessica @ Jess resides here

Format:Paperback

I recieved a complimentary copy of the book in exchange for an honest review.

The Darkening Dream was sent to me by an author who had previously worked in making games so I thought well this will be a nice book light fun though the cover had so much depth so I thought hmm that's interesting but no the covers just the cover the book should be game like. Hahahahahaha oh I have so much to learn.

The Darkening Dream is so rich in story I am blown away that it was written by a first time author. First time! Damn Andy that's like someone painting like that white guy on PBS with the afro right off and not crappy stick figures. Even my stick figures suck so I'm sitting here in envy right now.

A vampire book so dark and gritty yet with religious both Christian and Jewish elements and supernatural all mixed to create a masterfully woven and detailed, rich entertaining story.

Four friends work to cut off a vampire in search of a religious artifact for well nothing good of course in the process lives are lost, mysteries revealed and much death throughout small town Salem, Massachusetts in 1913. The historical details add an addition element to the already rich story.

This book is packed with characters and story and I am impressed by what a first time author has created. It's much darker than what I was expecting but very, very good. I highly recommend checking it out

14 of 17 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars A Surprisingly Deep and Enjoyable First Foray into the Supernatural Genre December 31, 2011

By Lauren

Format:Kindle Edition|Amazon Verified Purchase

Being an avid fan of the scary-vampires-that-don't-sparkle genre, I simply couldn't pass up trying this book when browsing the Kindle library. I was rather surprised upon reading it that this was Mr. Gavin's first book -- the writing quality is superb, and the pacing and characterization are spot on. It's a thoroughly enjoyable read, and exciting enough that I read it all in one go. The plot is just that engaging and, well, different. Mr. Gavin has brought something refreshingly new to a genre now suffused with poorly-concealed bodice-rippers which have more in common with Fabio than Bram Stoker: depth. His big baddies are scary, not romantic interests, and the added religious lore is complex and engaging. Don't expect another Twilight -- the story can get downright creepy, so be prepared for a return to the old horror sensibilities of supernatural fiction.

While I've read vampire novels with added historical fiction before (and, truly, Salem is almost a trope as a mystical setting), I found the addition of religious elements to be both fitting and novel. Mr. Gavin expanded the role that religion typically plays in vampire lore beyond the "true believer" warding off the bad guy with a cross. Particularly interesting was the inclusion of Jewish mysticism, not only because it's something I haven't seen done before, but also because in doing so the book winds up touching upon some deeper, unsettling conflicts between different religions, in addition to the drama otherwise occurring. Most importantly, the addition to these mystical or religious elements doesn't distract from the action, but rather adds another layer of subtext. All in all, I found it very-well researched and interesting.... As a mythology buff, I thoroughly enjoyed the blending of what are typically different "subsets" of lore and theology.

TL;DR: The Darkening Dream is a suspenseful, complex tale from start to end, complete with a strong and enjoyable heroine and interesting mystical themes. Overall, I'd describe it as old-fashioned vampire horror with a surprising amount of depth for the genre. Mr. Gavin makes vampires what they should be: scary, mysterious, the boogeyman waiting just outside your door. Highly, highly recommended for those who would like a "new" take on the supernatural genre! Please, more of this and less Stephanie Meyer. Read more ›

More About the Author

Andy Gavin is an unstoppable storyteller who studied for his Ph.D. at M.I.T. and founded video game developer Naughty Dog, Inc. at the age of fifteen, serving as co-president for two decades. There he created, produced, and directed over a dozen video games, including the award winning and best selling Crash Bandicoot and Jak & Daxter franchises, selling over 40 million units worldwide. He sleeps little, reads novels and histories, watches media obsessively, travels, and of course, writes.

Find him at: http://andy-gavin-author.com