9 of 9 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars
Great Read- Fun and Scary!, February 18, 2007
I really enjoyed this book, best horror book I've read in ages. Reminded me ALOT of early Steven King (before he went way dark, sorry Steve, sad but true).
If you liked Salem's Lot, you'll probably enjoy this book. A very quick read. Three adolescent boys, best pals, on summer vacation dealing with their respective family issues, stumble into true horror. A real monster, bloody murders, an old cemetary, dis-believing adults, a nasty dog, what horror fan can ask for more?
I do agree with some previous reviewers about the somewhat "rushed" ending but other than that,this book was fun! Enjoy!
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8 of 9 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars
Another Great Brian Keene Novel, February 3, 2007
I have read Brian Keene's "The Rising", "City of The Dead", and "Terminal" and they are three of my favorite books in my personal collection. "Ghoul" is a great read but I think it falls short of the quality of the books mentioned above. I found the three young boy characters to be very believable and likeable and the villians nasty enough to root against. The plot was strong overall but I felt at times Keene tried too hard with his 1980's pop culture references to bring his readers into the world of June 1984. He used them to the point of being a bit distracting. I also noted a couple of instances where he was a bit repetitive describing some of the people and places in the novel. I got deja vu reading these passages the second time and felt they were unnecessary. The ghoul himself was a nasty piece of work and a lot of fun to read about. He was a great villian. I also liked Keene's realistic ending and themes concerning the changes we go through as we pass from children into adulthood. I thoroughly enjoyed this novel and highly reccomend it. I just felt it is not quite as good as the other three novels that I have read by Brian Keene. I certainly look forward to reading more books by him.
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16 of 22 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars
More honest horror from one of the genre's best, February 24, 2007
It's 1984 (if you ever forget that, Keene will remind you on the next page), and Timmy, Barry, and Doug are looking forward to summer vacation. Unfortunately for them, there's a ghoul living under the church cemetary that likes to eat dead bodies, and has recruited Barry's father (a monster in his own right) to obtain women for it, through whom it wishes to further its race. Sounds bad enough. But remember, this is Brian Keene we're talking about. So things are bound to get worse...much, much worse...
"The Rising" hooked me on Keene; it was one of the most original, scariest books I'd read in ages (the ending was a true horror classic; surprisingly, the sequel didn't ruin anything). "Terminal," "City of the Dead," and "The Conqueror Worms" (title lovingly borrowed from Poe) continued that reign of no-holds-barred horror, the kind that Stephen King doesn't even dare write anymore (well, ok, maybe every once and a while). Keene uses real-life characters; the hero of "Worms" wasn't some worm scientist, he was a seventy-year-old redneck who just happened to get caught up in the midst of things. Keene's characters are three-dimensional, so much so that they take on a life of their own.
That's why I was slightly disappointed with "Ghoul." I guess I should expect it--this is, after all, a formatted novel. The whole "coming of age" horror novel has become a subgenre all its own, with everyone from Dan Simmons, Mr. King, and Ray Bradbury chipping in (hell, Dean Koontz, a non-horror author, even wrote one). Granted, Keene does bring his own unique touch to the tale, but it doesn't show until the last hundred pages or so. Until this, it's by-the-numbers...with a slight twist. You'll be able to predict most of it, although it's still a ride worth finishing (this IS Brian Keene, after all). If only he hadn't thrown in so many nostalgic moments...you won't ever forget the novel takes place twenty years ago. Still...it's a fiendishly good time, and a novel you should definitely take the time to read.
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