Customer Reviews

The Dead Parade

5 star:		(15)
4 star:		(2)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

The natural and the supernatural; the normal and the deviant all converge and collide when James McGee becomes the unwitting and unfortunate eye of a tornado on the day that hellish and horrible, horrible things start to happen.

When he can't prevent his best friend's suicide, something wicked comes after James. Something demon-like that drove his friend insane, and that will stop at nothing, and destroy anyone, to reunite with James after he manages to elude it. James' increasingly crazed attempts to escape, and the demon's unrelenting pursuit drive the story towards a savage ending that brutalizes everyone, including the reader.

More than just savagery and gore and a rather impressive body count, The Dead Parade has a well-crafted story with parallel threads that knit together, a mood that will stay with you for days after you finish it, and fleshed-out characters--both appealing and repellent--who don't seem disposable. We get to know every person who crosses paths with James and the demon, and even get to like some of them, so it's even more disturbing when they are disposed of.

And then there's what we all came for--the violence. The truly horrific violence. People die in creatively detailed, graphically described ways. Lots of them. Lots of people; lots of ways. There are some very funny moments, and those moments make the violence that follows so much more horrific. The violence, the amount of it, and the particularly inventive goriness of it feels like an avalanche--you can't stop it, you can just hope that you'll get out without too much damage. But you know you will be damaged.

I started reading The Dead Parade one evening, and finished it the next morning at 5 a.m. because there was no place where it slowed down enough to stop reading. With engaging characters, an intriguing exploration of evil, and an insane pace, James Roy Daley ties you to the tracks and drives the train right over you, in the best way possible. James Roy Daley is a sick freak, a twisted talent who must not be stopped...can't wait for the next book!

The Dead Parade

No prisoners! Not one character in this book comes through unscathed or unchanged in some way or another. Not a single one! From the nosy neighbors to the gung ho cops to the villains ... everyone in this book sees or experiences horror in some unimaginable form or another. I made the mistake of starting this book pretty close to the time I normally go to bed. I made it through most of the book before I slept because I couldn't put it down. It sucks you right in and it moves at a breakneck pace. James Roy Daley is relentless and, I believe, a sadist. I think that Satan himself whispered this book into James' ear and he typed it out to send us scurrying for the imagined safety of our beds!

This book gave me nightmares! I finished it the next morning over breakfast. Needless to say, I may not be revisiting that brand of cereal for a while. If you love fast paced stories, truly evil villains and flawed antiheroes this is the book for you. This one goes beyond terrifying. Way beyond.

I have been reading horror novels for going on 5 years. Being somewhat new to the genre, I always attempt a debut novel with an open mind being somewhat skeptical based on striking out so many times in the past. When I first cracked the spine of The Dead Parade by James Roy Daley, I had no idea what was in store for me.

James writes with the quickness and fast paced style of some of my personal favorite authors in this genre (Richard Laymon and Edward Lee). The intensity starts off on page one and James does not allow you to catch your breath until the final word. The Dead Parade is a fast paced interpretation of true Evils (yes, plural) and how they could show themselves in this World. James builds a main character who commits such inhumane acts, yet still evokes sympathy from the reader. Causing a conundrum over who the reader should be cheering for... with an ending that does not disappoint.

I would highly recommend this book to anyone who is a fan of horror or someone who might want to dabble in it. The development of the supporting characters is clever with unpredictable twists that will keep you guessing what is next.

The Dead Parade is one of my personal favorite debut novels in this genre that I have read.

Start it on a day or night in which you have nothing planned.

This is the second book that I have read by James Roy Daley. This book is BRUTAL! James' depictions of violence caused by the living and dead are sadistic and graphic. Characters are very well developed with a pleasant amount of twists and turns. HIGHLY RECOMMENDED! Buy the ebook or buy the hard copy NOW! I couldn't put it down! Mr. Daley is a very talented author!!!

My title is simple because my review is simple. This is great book from a new author, which is shocking because the book reads like it was written from a season author. The story is one bloody page turner after other, with no end in sight. There is no really clear reasoning in why things are happening, why is this little mounster doing the things it is doing. Which is in a weird reason ok. There are some stories where an explaining something is good and need but in "Dead Parade" it really not need that much. Yes, there is hints of why early on, and it really only last for a page. But it is ok that we don't get a back story, a why, or even a soild end.

This book is also a great read because it is a quick read. I could had read it in a weekend. It is not one of those books that are 500 pages and go nowhere. There is reason for each page and the hook to want the reader wanting to know is going to happen next. To some is up this book "The Dead Parade" is like a bad chin letter, that needs to be pass on. Because I couldn't live with myself If I don't pass it alonge.

The Dead Parade just doesn't let up. Once James Roy Daley starts, he ratchets up the pace, and the violence, higher and higher with every page. He gives us enough characterization, for every player, to make us care if (when) something nasty happens to them. And plenty of nasty stuff goes on in The Dead Parade. This is a debut novel that Mr. Daley can be proud of, and if there is any justice, will garner him a huge following. I know I can't wait for his sophomore effort. I have joined the James Roy Daley parade!

yes, this is a bloodier and sicker book than most big publishing houses would touch. but since I like that sort of thing, I'm not complaining. the book is well-paced, and the characterization is primarily realistic and believable. there is lots of action in this story about a regular guy who has an extraordinarily bad day. there are no great morals or messages in this tale. it is just a well-told story about a rather grizzly day for some very unlucky people. if you like tales of the bizarre, sick and twisted paranormal events, I can heartily endorse this fascinating saga! but read it alone. you can never tell what's going to happen to the person next to you!

It's hard for me to believe that this is Daley's first novel! He spins a wicked tale of a day gone seriously, SERIOUSLY wrong. It's very fast paced and sucks you in from the first page. The book is sick, twisted, and brilliantly clever! The dialogue that the main character has with himself in his mind throughout the book is insanely comical. James takes us on a ride with this book that can only be described as the snowball effect from hell!! Can't wait for more from Mr. Daley!

James Roy Daley's debut novel is a whirlwind of blood, guts, violence. It takes the reader down an insane path, giving no sympathy, taking no prisoners, and basically obliterating anything that might translate into a hope any person found on these pages will ever find peace or redemption.

From the most minor character to the main guy James we are provided ample reason to sympathize, empathize, and comprehend who these people are but then we get to see them all tossed into the blender that is the madness that tracks down everyone it touches. The violence is indiscriminant, completely unshackled, and entirely remorseless.

There is a demon presence, perhaps even a god, that hovers in the background here. A killing machine with no way known to stop it. Something that links itself to a person and destroys everything around them. This is how James enters this story. After already facing the tradegy of the death of his brother and his wife in a car accident, one of his best friends threatens suicide. When James attempts to stop this act something passes on to him from his friend, who makes it clear that death is the only release, the only way that to not be trapped forever by this unseen entity. From there we are taken on a thrill ride of non-stop violence where James becomes seemingly both the witting and unwitting pawn of this demon, this monster who comes with only one warning: the air around it is bitterly cold when it arrives. No one is safe that comes into contact with James.

For a first book this one is quite well done, with developed characters and good dialogue that entertained and kept me involved in this book the whole way through. The author rams this story down your throat, with no mercy and no apologies. It is a full out gore drenched ride from start to finish.

Horrifying, disturbing, creepy as hell '- I loved it!

I haven''t been surprised by a book in a very long time. The pace is set fast and never stops '- Daley's writing style leaves you feeling the anxiety of being chased from start to finish.

Clever and original - putting The Dead Parade down once you start is not an option'... maybe to choke back the urge to throw-up or close your eyes for a minute because you can''t believe what you just read'... those are the parts you''ll go back and read a second time, just to be sure...' I did. Some of the most inventive ways to build a body count I''ve ever had the pleasure of being shocked by.

Thank you for the gruesome nightmares - 'can''t wait for more!