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9 of 9 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Mystery Horror with a bit of bite, October 31, 2007
Freak, Ron Sanders third book, is mystery horror at its most unusual. It deals with the premise that a family has passed the ability to control people through their family for generations, eventually creating a virtually unstoppable psychopath. In this case, Vilenov, a Romanian street boy anti-hero who believes his abilities come from pheromones. The author has carefully crafted a world that is believable and uses it to paint an odd mix of viewpoints that leave the reader slightly off balance, often wondering who they should cheer on.
The plot proceeds from the setup of a rapist sting operation that eventually results in a death. The police and society's difficulties quickly escalate as Vilenov uses his powers on witnesses, on his attorney, on the court, and others to keep the police just trailing him. As the strength of Vilenov's powers are shown, the police raise the stakes in their hunt for him. This story moves quickly and leads to a consistent end that would play well in a movie.
The strong part of this novel is the unusual collection of characters. Readers are not likely to forget Vilenov, in fact, at times he's even a sympathetic character. The beautiful but suicidal Purly is well portrayed. Lawrence Abram the lawyer with no values receives his comeuppance. Frederick Mars the witness with a strange point of view, the Christian seeress Miss Scarboro, and Roland Carre the cop in love with the victim all add to a wacky situation for the police to handle. Every new, slightly off character that is introduced convinces the reader that these people live in a horrific world. Underlying it all, is the author's sense of humor as he caricaturizes media circuses and Christian superstitions about evil and the unexplained.
My only complaint was it would have been more fun to let the police discover Vilenov's past rather than read through his courtroom speech, but it was consistent with the egotism of the character, saved a lot of time, and helped move the story along. Overall, I think this book provides a lot of interesting and fun entertainment provided in a similar style as the movie Blue Velvet by David Lynch. I enjoyed the book and feel sure others will like it too.
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16 of 20 people found the following review helpful:
1.0 out of 5 stars
Completely Absurd, May 28, 2009
This review is from: Freak (Kindle Edition)
I couldn't even get through this book.
The writing was awful. High School level, at best.
The plot just ended up being completely absurd.
I did read most of it, but about 3/4 of the way through, I realized that I just didn't care what happened. It was just too ridiculous.
And, the writing made it difficult to even follow.
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4 of 5 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars
A Thrilling and Entertaining Read ..., August 26, 2007
Freak is a thrilling and entertaining read. It has a little bit of everything: The sad pathetic tortured soul, a little mysticism and sci-fi, and a damn fine crime drama, without the overly cliché cop/attorney speak. The book is extremely dialog dependent, which gives it the intimacy of a first person narrative, while allowing for continued shifts in points of view - and dimension. This story also makes some rather demanding statements regarding the degradation of women in today's society - the undeniably beautiful, egregiously disturbed, fashion magazine brainwashed women - so easily taken in, used, and abused.
This story also speaks to the power that our media possesses. In the endless search for ratings, criminal acts spin into fantastic stories of terror, often turning criminals into Gods.
Mr. Sanders weaves together many common elements and themes into one captivating and suspenseful story: The dark, mysterious stranger, having his way with a bevy of females who seem to lack even basic self-control; a gritty crime drama; compelling courtroom scenes; murder; crazed fanatical media-obsessed civilians; not to mention the media's sleazy hold on the public; a wrenching tale of childhood abuse; mass hysteria; panic stricken citizens converging in the streets; mob rule; rioting; car chases; apache helicopters; a city in flames ... all leading up to an edge of your seat conclusion sure to send the reader into a dizzying frenzy.
And if that wasn't entirely enough ...
Then there is the antagonist of the story, or protagonist depending on how you choose to see him, is spine-chillingly disturbing in a surreal serial-killer/magician sort of blend. I got the willies from the very first chapter. Vilanov has all the subtle command and fierceness to him of classic Stoker's Dracula with a hint of Charlie Manson - powerfully hypnotic. So hypnotic that it begs the question: Did Vilanov actually commit any wrongdoing, other than sidestepping society's definition of morality? Or was he merely expressing the savagery of a man's search for true manhood in an emasculated world?
I recommend this book to anyone who appreciates a little American Psycho, a little Fight Club, blended together with a little Stephen King.
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