Advantages: I got it cheap Disadvantages: Weak characters, not scary
Whilst queuing at the checkout in Asda recently, I spotted Beware by Richard Laymon on one of the shelves for £1. I'd recently read The Lake by Laymon and enjoyed it, so I decided to chuck Beware on the conveyor belt and give it a go.
Strange things are afoot in the town of Oasis; the local supermarket is apparently haunted. Soon, a guard dog is killed and the supermarket owner is found wrapped and jointed on the butcher's block. Local reporter ... ...a little closer to home than she first thought. I found the book to be readable, although I didn't really enjoy the story. The problem was the characters. I found them flat, unbelievable and rather clichéd. The protagonist is Lacey, the reporter. Very early in the story she is savagely beaten, raped, beaten again, raped again, held hostage in her own home and raped a third time. This happens in the space of a couple of days. These horrific ordeals ...
tuftie 05.10.2006
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Ciao members have rated this review on average: very helpful Review of Beware! - Richard Laymon
Advantages: An original take on an old theme Disadvantages: Not long enough to really sink your teeth into at only 218 pages......
A series of strange incidents at a local supermarket prompts the attentions of local reporter,Lacey Allen.But investigating the crimes brings her closer to the truth than she ever wanted to be when she herself is attacked by a mysterious,invisible assailant.
Meanwhile Matthew Dukane,hired to rescue the daughter of a prominent businessman from the arms of a witches' cult,finds himself on the run when the leader of the cult takes his interference ... ...not but,in true Laymon style,both plots are melded together effortlessly in this neat little tale that lives up to all of the nastiness of Laymon's reputation.If you're expecting the more subtle horror of Koontz or King,prepare to be disappointed-this is more along the lines of early schlock-horror from the likes of Shaun Hutson but,despite showing small sign of his later potential,this is still a good read from one of my favourite authors.
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sparkymarky1973 23.08.2006
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Ciao members have rated this review on average: helpful Review of Beware! - Richard Laymon
Advantages: Great fun Disadvantages: Not a deep, complex novel
Beware! is in my opinion the most entertaining of Richard Laymon's earlier books. It is short (by Laymon's standards) but is snappy, fast moving and is basically just great fun. It's theme - invisibility - is of course hardly original, but that doesn't matter a bit when a novel is as entertaining as this. As a general rule, I prefer Laymon's later books: the writing tends to be more accomplished, the characters more complex, and the plots more involving, ...
philsammie 13.07.2000
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Ciao members have rated this review on average: somewhat helpful Review of Beware! - Richard Laymon
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