Customer Reviews

Lake Monsters

5 star:		(6)
4 star:		(0)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

I loved this book! Little did I know that Lake Monsters would turn out to be one of my all-time favorites, when I happened across it one day on a library shelf. The stylish cover & design caught my attention, but it was Citro's writing that kept me eagerly turning those pages. The protagonist's attempt to get his life together and do something meaningful by searching for the monster in the lake, is intercepted by unforeseeable events and freaky isolationist island Vermonters. After reading this book, there is no way I would ever set foot on such an island. The story itself is not so much about him hunting for and getting to find the monster inside the lake. The real dangers lurk right there on that land and with its inhabitants. There is a map in the front of the book laying out the terrain, which helps you get your bearings. It also helped me imagine what a profound sense of isolation the main characters must have felt. The more I read, the more I felt like I was actually there on that island and in those bogs. This is no run-of-the-mill suspense/horror story. Citro is adept at conveying the dark undercurrents that run through the people of Vermont and the land itself. Not to mention the twist of an ending left me shocked and with my jaw on the floor.

One isolated island, a bunch of crazy off-beat characters, a
mysterious monastary and a "monster". That's what you get in the latest re-print by Hardscrabble Books. Originally titled Dark Twilight this is actually Joseph Citro's first novel. Citro is really one of the true under appreciated writers of all time.

Okay, here's the deal. If you pick up a Joe Citro book, you are guaranteed these three things:
- A good scare
- Great writing, with plots that aren't easily predictable and characters you genuinely care about.
- Hunger for every other book he's written.

This was the novel that introduced me to Citro, and it was kind of an impulse buy. I wanted something fresh, but my expectations were low after sampling some other out-of-the-mainstream horror (yes Caitlin R. Kiernan, I'm talking to you!). To my surprise, I found myself completely drawn into Citro's story within the first few pages of the novel, and afterward I was no longer reading - I *was* the main character. I had never been as drawn into a book of this genre before so completely, and after finishing 'Lake Monsters' I made sure to add all of the other Hardscrabble Citro books to the top of my reading list.

When I've described Citro in the past I invariably start out with 'imagine sitting around a campfire in the woods at night...'. Citro is that guy with the ability to spin the truly great tales that you never forget which keep you awake all night long, jumping at the slightest noise.

The only problem is that apparently, Citro hasn't come out with anything new in years. This is most unfortunate, as I would pick up one of his books over a King, Straub, or Koontz any day.

Despite the slightly cheesy concept of the book, Citro managed to write a good little book here. It kept my interest and was largely unpredictable...and low and behold...it has almost nothing to do with lake monsters!

You go in expecting this to be about what the title implies, but the ending will leave you spellbound.

First the good news...."Lake Monsters" (once called "Dark Twilight") by Joseph A. Citro is a great little book. Solid storytelling and a wonderfully complex plot will keep you riveted to this book. Citro has a great knack for leading the reader into a dark corner and then rising up and figuratively screaming "boo" at him or her. This is a book that you will probably read in two or three sittings because it is THAT good and it is THAT short. That bring me to the bad news.....

"Lake Monsters" weighs in at a little over 270 pages. It should have been a novella, but Citro's publishing company must have thought otherwise. I can find absolutely NO explanation, however, why the price tag is so high on a book of this size. Granted, it's a great story, but not at this price. The other bad news is (PLOT REVEALING POINT---- SO READ NO FURTHER UNLESS YOU WANT A "SPOILER") that
there
are
no
Lake
Monsters
in
this
book.
The novel's protagionist travels to a sleepy Lake Champlain village in Vermont to search for "Champ", the Loch Ness-like sea serpent, but he never finds him. Oh, he finds plenty of "lake monsters" all right, but not the kind that the reader expects. Those revelations, and the great plot, more than make up for the disappointment that the reader will get once he or she finds out that there's no "Champ" in this novel.

So, this reviewer had to take off one star for the book's price tag and another for the lack of lake monsters. With that being said though, if you love a great and wonderfully scary story, then by all means, find a copy of "Lake Monsters" (of better yet, it's more reasonably priced predecessor, "Dark Twilight"). Horror fans won't regret it!

I like a very wide variety of book subjects. One of these subjects is monsters. I enjoy books like Jaws, MEG, and other types of giant critters what are just waiting out there somewhere for lunch to come by.
I bought this book after reading the reviews and was curious to see what kind of monster inhabited Lake Champlain. This author did a great job of weaving major plots and sub plots and developing his characters. I'm not much into Yankee Gothic, but this was a nice change.
The central character is a man who goes looking for a monster he doesn't find; who finds a monster he isn't looking for; and whose odyssey is a search for himself - and a monster hunt of its own. The author seldom gets bogged down in dialog, and when he does describe a bog, he does so in a way that you can see, feel, taste, and smell the bog. Oh yeah, and lets not forget the haunted house, the closed up monastery, and the tight lipped locals.
Toward the end, some additional characters are developed; characters who have had a behind the scenes influence on the story from the beginning.
I believe that you'll like this book and I do recommend it for a good read!