...the Soul of Wit - Short Reviews

Time for new reads, enjoy!

Children of Chicago by Cynthia Pelayo

Children of Chicago borrows from the Grimm tale "Pied Piper" or "Der Rattenfänger von Hameln" to twist and bend into the horrific teenager killings taking place in Chicago’s Humboldt Park neighborhood, signed with the graffiti "Pay the Piper". Detective Lauren Medina who is in charge of the case has many demons of her own and one of them just might have to do with what happened at Humboldt Park. Following her through the investigations, slowly unfolding the mysteries of that unfortunate night, doubts will unfold if she really is the right person to treat this case.

Pelayo's crime/mystery/horror mash-up should be a real treat for especially German horror readers because it doesn't only borrow its main storyline from Pied Piper, there are also tons and tons of talk about fairy tales in general, and the Grimm brothers in special, and how terrifying they actually are! Incidentally, the rat catcher story has always been my favorite Grimm tale, just because until now I thought it wasn't as gruesome and eerie as their other stories; it ends with all children dancing and singing while following the Pied Piper into an enviable life of party and joy with no authority and only friends all around. Only now, while reading Children of Chicago did I realize that I have been presented a cut-down children's version and they are being kidnapped so they would be killed!!! Silly me...

Whisper Down the Lane by Clay McLeod Chapman

I think to really grasp the dread of this book one should better know than me about the events that inspired it; the Mc Martin preschool trial in the 80s "Satanic Panic" era in the USA. During this inconceivable ordeal a group of preschool teachers were dragged through an assault trial that lasted a whole decade, only to be declared innocent in the end. They were accused of 321 counts of sexual child abuse cases which in the end turned out to be made up by the children. It all started with one boy, whose mentally unstable mother put the words in his mouth that the bruises on his body were caused by a sexual attack, and uncontrollably snowballed into extreme accusations, such as children being flushed down the toilet to secret rooms where they would be abused, then cleaned up and presented back to their parents. The case isn't as well-known here in Europe but apparently has had a great impact on children's interrogation methods and trials in the US justice system.

Whisper Down the Lane is very closely linked to the Mc Martin events and as a fiction book really was a race to the finish, a super fast paced page turner. It's partly really uncomfortable to read, not because it was so scary or anything, but because I guess, being wrongfully accused is one of the biggest real-life horrors ever, and the hardest to heal and recover from. That being said, I found the story a little predictable, but still captivating.
 

Preternatural by Peter Topside

Honestly, I only read this book because the author likes my updates on Goodreads from time to time and I happen to know that writing this book was his way of grappling with his rough childhood.

Preternatural revolves around the story of a young boy trying to make it in a world full of abuse and evil, finally falling prey to the town's urban legend, Mr. Smith, a life sucking, vampire-like entity. Even though he has joined "the dark side", he has inner conflicts and is desperately trying to find a branch to hang on to. Yes, it isn't the best story ever written and it definitely hasn't most features I like to read in a book; but I thought it was really well written for a self published work, the characters are relatable and the whole act of writing for catharsis is something I guess we can all very much relate to and appreciate.
 

Animal Kingdom by Iain Rob Wright

For some unknown reason animals turn against people, attack and kill them where they can! Meanwhile a group of random strangers get trapped in a building in a zoo and hide, trying to fend off various animal attacks. And in the end, it turns out that… hell is others and the real monster just might be man himself.

So... Not every book can be exhilarating, I know. And I know that it's part of the deal to read a bad book every now and then. But I didn't expect to dislike this book as much as I did in the end. The whole premise of this book was that animals turn against people and that's it. From then on it was like every other story where a group of people are stuck in a building, much like Stephen King's ravishing short story "The Mist". And you know what? Even the characters were the same; a handsome father and his young son, a young woman, a scholar, a religious fanatic... There’s no mist here but raging animals and it’s not a supermarket they’re trapped in, but a zoo.

Unfortunately, all this made this book neither original nor enjoyable for me. I know that self-published books are kind of easy targets and I feel bad negatively reviewing anyone who is trying to make their money out of this, but I struggled to find something I appreciate in this book. But if you really love Mist- kind of stories, then go ahead, this will surely be your thing. It just wasn’t mine.

The Seven and a Half Deaths of Evelyn Hardcastle by Stuart Turton 

Crime time!

Mystery. More Mysteries. Mysteriest (does this word exist? In any case the mother of mysteries). If any book deserves this superlative it surely is The 7½ Deaths of Evelyn Hardcastle!

This intricate whudonnit is so gnarled and twisty that to say you should best read it for yourself is not only a necessity, it is also an easy way out for me rather than seriously trying to give a plot synopsis.

Fans of murder-mysteries set in typically English settings, of self-reinforcing time-loops and paradoxes: Go into this book without knowing anything about it but the fact that you will be hooked and will ponder it at night trying to fall asleep. Go inside Blackheath and play the game!

I really feel a great respect for the author who schemed this highly complicatedly structured novel and would love to take a peek into his notes while inventing it! It was as challenging as it was great fun. Most highly recommended!