Horror Books > J Horror Books > L

Advantages: Nice idea, well written
Disadvantages: Some parts a bit unnecessarily far fetched

...thank me for it! Year Zero piqued my interest with the summary write up on the back cover. Having read it, I found it somewhat different to what I had expected, certainly much more apocalyptic. The Plot : The main plot line is that a collector of religious relics opens a box that he has recently acquired, which dates back to the time of Christ. in opening it, he releases a virus which has become extinct in the interim 2000 years, a virus which ...
...immunity to it any more and it is lethal. The virus has a near 100% mortality rate and spreads quickly. Soon the only uninfected place is a research establishment in the heart of USA, where they are frantically working on a cure. They use DNA taken from various human remains from that time to create clones, in the hope that they might carry the antibodies to this virus. The "hero" of the story is a relic hunter, slightly less than legitimate, who ... Read review

Advantages: A grand idea, and fine characters.
Disadvantages: Long gets a little lost towards the end, leaving us vaguely unsatisfied.

...caverns and pits, stretching beneath the surface of the whole world. Ever eager to plunder and exploit, mankind descends, seeing new territories to settle, new resources to drain dry. Very quickly, however, it becomes evident that Hell is far closer to the myths surrounding it than initially thought. Hell is, in fact, inhabited. 'The Descent' launches with gusto and style, the first third of the novel being a breathless journey. Hell is discovered, ...
...Much of the nature of the enemy is a mystery to the protagonists, and with this mystery comes great terror, shared in ample measure with the reader. Then Long loses his way somewhat. So eager is he to share the worldwide impact of the unfolding events, throwing in unrelated scenes and dioramas left right and centre, that the powerful thrust of the plot is dissipated. For the second third of the novel, I found myself losing my sense of involvement ... Read review

Advantages: An excellent & imaginative story
Disadvantages: Waiting for the next book

As a children's story this is some seriously dark writing and may not be suitable of younger readers, but for adults it's an exceptionally good read. The heroine of the story, Candy, finds herself pulled into a parallel world by a strange sea, a world that consists of 25 islands. 24 islands represent a particular hour of the day with the 25th a dark place of murder and madness. This initial volume sees Candy's travels around a selection of these ...
...trying to stay out of arms reach of the dark servants of the Lord of the 25th hour. This is a place where friend and foe are never what they seem and many are out for the capture of Candy. The illustrations included in this book give it an extra and enjoyably warped depth. Clive Barkers visual take on his fantasy world is one where even the good-guys can be seen as ugly monstrosities. You'll definitely want to read the next instalment. ... Read review

Advantages: Easy to read, hard to put down, gripping, thrilling
Disadvantages: None

...he must face the demon Lord Loss. I am probably being vague here, but I do not want to give much more away as that will spoil it for readers. At 200 or so pages this is just right. I feel there is far too much padding in adult books at the moment. And reading Lord Loss has made me feel surprised just at how good kids' fiction is. I have read the Harry Potter books, like most adults, but it did not cross my mind to read other works written for children. ...
...is quite graphic. There are no holds barred here and the author gets away with a lot of stuff. Death, blood, gore… But it is written with tongue in cheek - and with plenty of sick humour that did surprise me. The style is straight to the point. And very well written at that! Darren Shan is English born, real surname O'Shaughnessy. His first book, 'Ayuamarca,' was published in 1999, but did not sell well. This was an adult work, and it is his subsequent ... Read review

Advantages: Good cliffhanger ending for the next and last book. Very thrilling!
Disadvantages: A little too short, wanted more action!

...written by Anthony Horowitz, is the fourth installment of the "Power of Five", 5 book series about 5 children who have the power to save the world from evil creatures called "The Old Ones". The book starts before "Nightrise" ends, but from the point of view of Scarlett Adams, the protaganist and the fifth gatekeeper. There is a brief review of all 4 previous books incase the reader cannot remember or has missed a book out in the series, which I ...
...It starts off straight into the action as a 13 year old Scarlett almost gets hit by a van whilst not looking when crossing a road. She is saved by a mysterious chinese man who disappears before she can thank him for his actions. The book then moves 2 years into the future and Scarlett is on a school trip when she passes through a door and travels to a monastary in the Ukraine, where she is imprisoned. Scarlett then meets Father Gregory, a terrifyingly ... Read review