Customer Reviews

The Scarecrows (Definitions S.)

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A dark and deeply disturbing story of a boy overcome by hatred when his mum decides to remarry after his father's death. Even worse, is that she's chosen to marry Joe Morton, the man who embarrassed him at his boarding school Parents' Day, by turning up with his mum, no tie, in his flashy white Range Rover. Simon is torn apart with anger that his mum and little sister, Jane, seem to have forgotten his dad so easily. Having to return home in the school holidays, Simon explores an abandoned mill near his house, but there's something quite weird about the mill, and the way it's been left untouched for so many years. There is another powerful hatred here too, just waiting to be unleashed, and Simon is forced to face his fears.

Powerful and at times violent and deeply disturbing - a story for teens.

I first read this when I was about 10 years old, and it has never left my mind.
It was my first real encounter with a deeply disturbing sort of thriller, and I have been grateful always. This is no mere blood and guts raggedy man story, this one is much more frightening, with an ending that won't be forgotten. It is very subtle, but the dread and fear just keep building up until there's nowhere left to hide. Give this one a chance, you'll be glad you did.

The premise for The Scarecrows is initially very simple. Simon's father is dead and he is appalled to learn that his mother is going to remarry. Worse, his mother's fiancé Joe is a slobbish cartoonist with piercing insight into the weaknesses of those around him, open about his feelings and uncaring of what people think of him - a huge contrast to the straight-laced army officer Simon still idolises as a hero. So Simon finds an unwelcome dose of reality entering his life as he is forced to realise that his mother has her own wants and needs, that maybe his parents' marriage wasn't as happy as he thought it was, and that his mother is going to marry Joe whether he likes it or not. But just as Simon has an unexpected wellspring of violence inside him, unleashed when another boy at his school insults his mother, he seems to have the ability to attract the supernatural. As his anger and resentment grow, an atmosphere of violent evil draws ever closer to his house as a love-triangle from the past with a murderous ending starts spilling over into the present. Or is it all in his head?

This book does a really good job of blending Simon's family dramas with the supernatural. The characters are lively and sympathetic, especially Simon and Joe. Joe reaches out, Simon pushes him away; but Joe has limits in what he'll tolerate from Simon, and you get the feeling that he'd be a good father if only Simon would put his resentment aside and accept him. The plotting is well-paced and concise, the use of language good, the supernatural atmosphere suitably eerie, and the denouement satisfying. Recommended.

(Originally published in the 1980s, I believe. Suitable for teens.)