Kill Creek
By: Scott Thomas
Published: 2017
# of pages: 416
Challenge: R.I.P. XVII
Quote:
“There’s something about letting another person lead you into darkness that is both unbearably terrifying and exquisitely thrilling.”
At the end of a dark prairie road, nearly forgotten in the Kansas countryside, is the Finch House. For years it has remained empty, overgrown, abandoned. Soon the door will be opened for the first time in decades. But something is waiting, lurking in the shadows, anxious to meet its new guests…
When best-selling horror author Sam McGarver is invited to spend Halloween night in one of the country’s most infamous haunted houses, he reluctantly agrees. At least he won’t be alone; joining him are three other masters of the macabre, writers who have helped shape modern horror. But what begins as a simple publicity stunt will become a fight for survival. The entity they have awakened will follow them, torment them, threatening to make them a part of the bloody legacy of Kill Creek.
Goodreads
This has been on my TBR list for a couple of years and I finally picked it up, not expecting anything extraordinary, but I was wrong! I loved it and I thought it would be a 5 star read…up until the last fifth of the story. So close!
Most of the story is a subtle horror and suspense. The story follows four horror authors, who each have their own style of writing the genre. At one point they are asked what horror means to them and they each have a different answer, but each answer is correct. I believe the author of Kill Creek is also incorporating different styles into one book. The reader will experience Gothic, indirect, dreams, supernatural, evil, subtle and graphic descriptions, etc, all in one story.
I personally appreciate subtle and Gothic style horror, but others may like the more graphic, spelled out horror. What disappointed me was that the ending of the book felt a little rushed. After all the build up and intricate details, the end was very “basic.” However, that also made me wonder if it was planned to be that way, because of one of the plot lines of the authors becoming “slaves” to their writing. Maybe Thomas felt the same way about Kill Creek!
Anyway, I was very impressed with how deep the characters and plot were many times throughout the novel. I do wish it had stayed that way to the end, but the very end redeemed itself.
I recommend this to fans of horror. It definitely had a Stephen King feel, so if you enjoy his books I think you’ll like Kill Creek as well.
Carolina Book Nook 