I read it straight through in one night because I couldn't put it down. The author puts a spin on your typical magical world and it made for a great story. With this being the first book in a series, it does a fantastic job of introducing you to all the main characters and dynamics of the series. This book gives you just enough information about the new world Maggie calls home with still leaving you wanting more, but it's great that she holds back on info dumping the world on us because it leaves more to be discovered by Maggie and us. ( )

2,5* ( )

This is slight even by Laymon's standards, but still an entertaining (if frequently disgusting) way to spend a few hours. Was interesting to read in the intro that Laymon never achieved much success in the US. ( )

Good ol Richard. Oh how I love thee. I've not read much of Richard Laymon so far but I intend to put that right as soon as possible. He reminds me very much of a well loved old slasher movie, or the best of Hammer Horror as seen through a few decades of rose-tinted nostalgia.

This version was put together by his daughter from his original writings after the original publisher messed up the editing when it was first published. I've not seen the original version but absolutely loved this one. It's not overly original at first glance, being a kind of Hills Have Eyes type of story, but it certainly does manage to surprise as the story moves on and has some very nice little twists and touches that I didn't expect. The main characters are portrayed quite well, or at least, well enough anyway, and I'd heartily recommend this to anyone who either wants to try some Richard Laymon or who has a weird love for old, atmospheric slasher movies. The sex isn't actually nearly as graphic as I'd thought it was going to be and somehow even the violence isn't up there with some of the more modern novels you get these days, so it fits right in with that classic slasher feel.

Anyway, very good read. Highly recommended. ( )

Blutig, grauenvoll und unterhaltsam! ( )