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9 of 10 people found the following review helpful:
2.0 out of 5 stars
Not a total waste, but . . . ., July 11, 2005
If there's one positive thing I can muster about Al Sarrantonio's "Hallows Eve," it's that he conjurs atmosphere beautifully. Like other reviewers have noted, Sarrantonio truly knows how to capture the essence of our darkest and most rustic holiday. The spirit of Halloween is readily apparent in this book; it practically clings to every page as Sarrantonio sketches a refreshingly macabre, yet strangely picturesque, portrait of smalltown Americana amidst the cold Autumn chill of Samhain. Reading this book I could practically *smell* the candy corn and hear the rustling of the cornstalks as they emanated from the page. So, based on that aspect alone, I would recommend this book.
Unfortunately, the novel is saddled with a dull, contrived supernatural plotline that Sarrantonio must have dug up from a cobweb-covered box of CLICHES. Of course there's the emotionally scarred hero, returning to his hometown of Orangefield for the first time since something really bad happened to him as a youngster. There's the good-hearted but skeptical cop who gets caught up in the action, and the innocent little girl who holds the key to the mystery. And then there's a helpful wraith, disguised as a scarecrow, who pops up at random intervals to provide needless exposition for the audience.
Now, overused plot I could've dealt with, but the main problem with "Hallows Eve" is the simple fact that Sarrantonio doesn't have the talent to bring even this story justice. He may be great at writing atmosphere, but when it comes to characterization he's at a total loss. The heroes are one-dimensional and uninteresting, and the villains are just as bad. Samhain, the Grim Reaper-like spirit that serves as the book's Darth Vader to Corrie Phaeder's Luke Skywalker, is about as menacing as a seventy-year old substitute with a hearing aid and liver spots. And the book is littered with utterly bland dialogue: In one scene, as the cop is hiding in the attic from a swarm of undead spectres, Sarrantonio cheekily writes " . . . he sat in an attic gaurding [Corrie and Regina] from an army of evil pumpkin men and the Lord of Death because someone who claimed to be dead made out of corn stalks with a smiling pumpkin for a head told him to." Yuck. Another howler is when Corrie, wondering in some alternate dimension ruled over by the evil one, thinks to himself that "If this was the Kingdom that Samhain ruled, Corrie felt almost sorry for him." Bland, bland, bland!
But still, it's an entertaining read if you're in the right mood. The right atmospherics would certainly do it justice; reading this on your front porch in the middle of Fall, amidst the blowing leaves, a nice hot cup of cider in your hand, you could very well fall under the spell of this quirky little book. It's by no means a great novel, and I wouldn't really claim that Al Sarrantonio is the "...very talented writer" that the Washington Post claims him to be, but it's worth a look nonetheless.
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2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars
Folklore of All Hallows Eve, February 22, 2006
I have always had a soft spot for Halloween in my heart, and even though I haven't read the prequel, Orangefield, I still enjoyed this story. Sarrantonio sucked me into his tale of the whimsical town that is known for its pumpkins. Halloween is the main event and celebration; everyone seems to prepare it all year round. This year however series of unexpected events reoccurs more often, and as we learn what caused them the tale grows chillier by each page. I loved the description of the festive mood, the corn husks under the shoes, warm winds, crisp harvested apples, pumpkin patches and town full of folklore.
Corrie Phaeder is back home because suddenly his life fell apart back in California and he is mysteriously drawn back to the place where his mother died. He didn't want to be back in Orangefield, but power beyond him have directed him back home. Right of the bat, we meet John, a mysterious creature that seems to know everything Corrie dreams about and who foretells him about horrible things happening, while Halloween is two weeks away. He and a little girl, Reggie with the help of a local cop, Grant, try to solve the unnatural happenings while battling mythological evil that has spawned stories about Orangefield. The trouble is that the stories start to look more like truth and when everyone who tries to help Corrie seems to have a fatal "accident" he has nowhere to turn but John, but can he fully trust a strange creature that comes from another dimension?
Sarrantonio did a great job writing phenomenal descriptions of matter that is not of this world, the shapes, colors, sounds, inflated bubbles, geometric forests, Technicolor waiting stations, ghouls, walking pumpkin men and dark clouds of destruction were really vividly pained and filled my head with images. I read this book in a very short amount of time, and it sure made me miss Halloween!
I must say I enjoyed the ending! The story filled me in on what I missed in the first book, and if anything, it made it even more haunting and mysterious as the puzzles of mystifying deaths in the town were answered before my eyes. The ending itself reminded me of The Matrix. Life and death are all contained in this intangible nothingness that is yet full of color. I cannot do the writer justice as this is a good story, and it was a fun ride that a book reader should hop on.
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2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Echoes of Bradbury, January 9, 2005
Al Sarrantonio writes the best halloween books of this generation. His Orangefield stories are a refreshing take on what could be a boring, seen it before tale in the horror genre. Sarrantonio never fails to entertain, and Hallows Eve is another winner. If you enjoy stories about people trying to go home again, which we all know you can't do, and if you like stories about mysteries surrounding Halloween, this is the book for you!
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