Ravenous Dusk [Paperback]

Cody Goodfellow (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: June 2003

EVOLUTION IS EVOLVING

In the Seven Devils Mountains of Northern Idaho, in the radioactive shadow of Chernobyl, their numbers grow. They gather to be cured of their cancer, but they become much more. Soon, they will be One. When they come into their kingdom, all plant and animal life on earth will be rendered obsolete, and a billion-year old experiment called evolution will have reached its logical conclusion.

CATASTROPHE

As Special Agent Martin Cundieffe pursues the trail of the mutant cult, he finds a deeper secret that reaches into the hidden heart of American power, and leaves him powerless and alone before the real enemy. Stella Orozco has traded her freedom and her humanity for something more. When her transformation is complete, she will become a goddess-and lose her mind.

Sgt. Zane Storch is a soldier without an army, a species of one fighting both sides for his own survival and sanity in a body that is fast becoming his own worst enemy. How many times will he fight to defend a nation and a species that shuns him as an abomination? How many times will he die for them?

CREATION

As the Mission heats up its genocidal campaign against Radiant Dawn, the armies of the mysterious Dr. Keogh labor to open a sealed pre-human tomb in the Iraqi wasteland. This forgotten place will decide the outcome of the last war of natural selection, for what lies beyond the crumbling wall is no less than the unspeakable truth about the origin of life on earth-and what's coming next.

--This text refers to the Kindle Edition edition.

Product Details

• Paperback: 584 pages
• Publisher: Perilous Press (June 2003)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0970400012
• ISBN-13: 978-0970400017
• Product Dimensions: 8.1 x 5.5 x 1.3 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.4 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 5.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (5 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #765,195 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

Cody Goodfellow is a hollow, wasted shell of a human being.
His appearance, since he realized he only had to groom himself for occasional author photos, would shame an island castaway.
His conversational skills--since he discovered that any idea, emotion or anecdote worth sharing is also a valuable commodity--have atrophied to functional nonexistence. He sits, stares, listens, hoping to steal yours.
His real life experiences are insignificant in the face of those he imagines for himself and others.
His loved ones are hostages.
He is, for all intents and purposes, a patient undergoing a lifelong operation; and also the surgeon, methodically transplanting all his major organs into affordable trade paperback canopic jars.
He lives in Los Angeles.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

7 of 7 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars RADIANT & RAVENOUS- Must Reads!!!, July 26, 2005

By 

Jeremy Robert Johnson "Ne'er-do-well" (Portland, OR) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Ravenous Dusk (Paperback)

Imagine this- a few years back there was a strange meeting where James Ellroy, Robert Ludlum, David Foster Wallace, Swamp Thing-era Alan Moore, Mendel, Darwin, and the ever-expanding tissue mass from the end of Akira were all sitting around a table, holding a séance where they brought back the ghost of H.P. Lovecraft. Imagine that Lovecraft gave them a message from beyond the grave- "I was right! The Old Ones exist! You have to tell the world!"

"But how will we do that?" the strange and majestically gifted group asked.

And then the ghost commanded them to write a pair of seriously epic horror/action literary thrillers (RADIANT DAWN & RAVENOUS DUSK) under the pseudonym of Cody Goodfellow.

I know the whole scenario is ludicrous, but that's the feeling I had when I was reading these books. Both RADIANT DAWN and RAVENOUS DUSK contain moments of real vision and creativity equal to the greats mentioned above- the intricate plotting, conspiracy, and character arcs of Ellroy, the clean, propulsive action of Ludlum, the rampant intelligence and density of Wallace, the sense of comic book activity elevated to high literature that Moore can pull off, the biological and evolutionary radicalism of Mendel and Darwin- it's all here, amidst Lovecraft's tentacles and the machinations of our own obscure political landscape. And it kicks ass.

The plot of the books is so labyrinthine that describing them here would be futile, but I can say that it involves an ever-expanding global conspiracy revolving around mankind's place on Earth and the potential awakening of creatures vast and ancient and powerful. Central to the tale are three fully-developed characters, Zane Storch, Stella Orozco, and Martin Cundieffe. Storch is the battle-scarred ex-soldier who just won't stay down (think Marv in Sin City, but slightly smarter and more driven). Stella is the feisty everywoman just trying to stay alive at any cost. Martin is, well, Martin is a lot of things, but first and foremost he's a cunning FBI agent with a knack for finding the right info while the world is going crazy around him. The dynamic between hard-charging Zane and wiley Martin will be especially resonant to readers of Ellroy's L.A. Confidential or American Tabloid (Zane is the Bud White to Martin's Exley, the Pete Bondurant to his Ward Littell).

RADIANT DAWN & RAVENOUS DUSK (effectively parts 1 & 2 of one giant story-yes, you need both books, and no, you can't skip ahead to RAVENOUS) are fiercely smart, fast-paced novels for the reader who wants cinematic thrills and chills, and as a nice bonus, fascinating ideas. There are moments here where both Goodfellow's line-by-line writing and his gift for the epic and visionary are nothing less than stunning. Remember the first time you read Clive Barker's "In The Hills, The Cities"? Remember that moment towards the end where your jaw dropped and you realized King wasn't pulling your leg when he said this Barker guy was the real deal? There are hundreds of moments like that throughout Goodfellow's RD books.

Both are highly and absolutely recommended.

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Cthulhu Now!, June 2, 2005

By 

John W. Oliver (San Diego, CA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Ravenous Dusk (Paperback)

I picked Ravenous Dusk up immediately after finishing Radiant Dawn, and I definitely feel rewarded. His writing has improved though the course of this work as it lacks the spots where one gets lost in the first novel.

I would definitely have to say he removed the kids gloves in this book. Where before the horrors were hidden behind the scientific rhetoric, he definitely reveals a world that is beyond human through the course of the novel, a world that would make Cthulhu fans very happy. It is not force either. He works the Mythos into his work rather naturally.

Additionally, I enjoyed the level of conspiracy and plotting in the book. It is convoluted and confusing, but it makes sense in retrospect. I enjoyed the fact that not everything was what it seemed, and he kept stuff covered rather well.

He follows Cundieffe, Storch and Stella to reasonable ends that allows one to be satisfied with the characters. In his efforts to cover more of the story, he does create many more narrating characters. While it does fill out the larger picture, I do believe it was a little excessive.

Finally, my only real complaint is when Armitage enters the picture most of the way though the novel with a thin allusion to his actual presence in the novel beforehand, it stretched my level of believability of the story (yeah, I know it is pretty far fetched, but there was no lead up to this event). The issue could have been belayed through better planning.

If you have a chance, I would definitely give this novel a read. It is fun and absorbing.

4 of 5 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars As good as the first one, September 24, 2005

By 

John Oconnor "Wrong Reverend Pope John the Me... (Ohio) - See all my reviews
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Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: Ravenous Dusk (Paperback)

Excellent. It's best to read Radiant Dawn before you read this book, since Ravenous does continue the story started in Radiant, but both books are wonderfully written. The characters are well drawn, the story is complex but fun to follow and although it's not exactly true to the usual idea of the Lovecraft mythos, it's close enough to be fun to read. Yes, please read these two. They are well worth the money. Mr. Goodfellow, do you have any more novels ready to publish? I will buy them