Well, some of those questions are rather silly. How can one compare a newly minted horror writer to Stephen King or Peter Staub or dean Koontz? How can I compare the three of those to each other when they are so distinct? Each of these writers has a distinct flare and I like them differently and distinctly. Some of what they produce I do not like. But overall, I enjoy.
But wait, this was about my cousin. Michaelbrent Collings. And in particular, I want to concentrate on The Loon. I had the opportunity to purchase this book in ebook format and read it a while back. It was one of the first books of his that I read of his. And I enjoyed it. A lot.
Fast forward to a few months ago. Michaelbrent contacted me with an offer to listen to the audiobook rendition of this story. I jumped at the chance to listen to it. I opted to listen to it each morning and afternoon on my commute to and from work. Since I had a smart phone, and could connect to Audible.com, I was able to stream it to my stereo and listen as I commuted. The following is my review, for better or worse. Do remember that I am related to the author. But as any good family evidences, there is a deep seated desire that other members of the family, especially not from one's core family, fail in their particular endeavors. For if they fail, it obviously allows me to succeed. I tease. I do hope that he succeeds. In any event, my review may be tainted because we are related. However, we have not had contact other than social media in such a long time, I cannot even recall the last time we were together for real. So he is somewhat a stranger to me, even to this day. I just wanted to put that out there.
Review of The Loon (the audio story) by Michaelbrent Collings
Why did I read this? I enjoyed reading the book itself. The story was very engaging. It kept me on the edge of my seat as it weaved its tale that kept twisting and twisting and wrenching up the adrenaline of the situation it painted. I found myself caring about the characters. Wondering what caused their particular dysfunctions in the past that were alluded too a the story progressed. What was the creature/thing/monster? And what was the 'other' monster doing?
Where did I get the audio book? I offered to listen to it when the offer was made via social media. I got a code to add it to my newly minted Audible.com account. I did open the account for this purpose and had not ever used the service before. I enjoyed it and it worked amazingly. But then this is not a review of Audible.com. Suffice it to say it worked as designed.
Who would should read this book? Anyone that enjoys a good story and doesn't mind being scared. Its not truly a horror story like so many others out there. It is not gruesome or evil or devilish or vampires. But it does have creatures (both human and other). There was enough intensity and weaving of multiple lines of activity that you can easily get involved in each of them, and even jump when something new reared its ugly head just around the corner.
If you enjoy a story that keeps you moving, that can reach into your chest and close its fist around your beating heart, that will spin and twist as it goes, forcing you to change your guesses as to where it is headed, then this is a good place to be entertained. Could this really happen? Yes, I believe it could. As fantastic or horrific as this leads you to believe? Yes, I want to believe. I am betting the creature is still out there, somehow having survived the explosion, and is confusedly trying to make a life for itself. Somewhere it is probably hungry.
The narration. John Bell, the narrator, did a great job telling the story. He used various voices and intonations to imitate the multiple characters found within the story. Male and female. Hardened and softer. Good and bad. I enjoyed when a new character came into the center stage to hear how they would be portrayed. Remember that I knew the story already, and this was a second vision. Previously it was all in my head, without much distinction. It was nice to have a distinction, which added to the story telling immensely. I did have an issue with some of the pronunciations of the Spanish portions of the story. They were not perfect, but alas, conveyed the idea.
What did I like most? The story starts off simple enough. Character establishment. Along the way, I was wishing I could see around the corner, see more, experience them more. But the story didn't go that direction. And before I knew it, it was pushing me along its path with a level of intensity that I felt like I was on a river trip, knowing what was coming, yet scared of what was coming up. I found myself being swept along and simply enjoyed the ride.
The creature that was the pivotal bad guy ended up sharing that distinction with multiple other humans along the way. Reminding us that the monsters in our life are not always make believe. They may be real.And along the way, I cheered for the creature to get justice against his monster.
I was happy that the love story was simple, and innocentish. We all know that love stories work their way into our stories, as it is a vital part of life. I for one do not always need to see in my minds eye the visual descriptiveness of all aspects of love. This story kept it simple and true to the situation, especially considering the surrounding situation in which they found themselves. Once can understand the human need for that closeness, and it was well portrayed in this circumstance.
The visuals that were provided thru the story telling made me actually feel cold on occasion. Claustrophobic. Scared. Cautious. Frustrated. And terrified.
What did I dislike most? Like all stories, I often wish i could see more of the picture and world. Sometimes less. This story was similar in that I wanted some parts to display differently. But seeing how I am at the behest of the authors vision, I must follow along with their vision and enjoy the ride.
I wish that the hidden pain of the main character didn't take so long to be revealed. But I do understand why this was woven throughout the story. At times though, I just wanted to know what had happened. The pain was obvious and obviously affected his direction, decisions, and thought processes. So I wanted to know earlier what happened to the boy. But at the same time, I mourned the loss of a child. No parent should outlive their child.
I was also understanding of the direction the wife took, but it made me mad. I wanted to yell at her for not being more understanding. For not working on their marriage. For not trying to understand her poor husbands dilemma. I wanted to sit them both down and talk it through. And then I realized that these people were not real.
Overall. I enjoyed the book. I enjoyed the story. I loved the creature and its mindlessness, yet its single-mindedness focus. Knowing that it was lurking around made you scared to round a corner with the characters, or especially go into the dark places of the already horrific locale that a prison would provide.
Knowing that besides the creature, there were other monsters lurking, and trying to guess which character was a human or monster, though they all looked similar was an adventure.
Getting mad at some of them, wanting to talk to some of them, and punch others, made me realize that they had woven themselves into my reality and had jumped of the page.
Get out and try this one out if you have not yet. You will enjoy its romp across your imagination. It will freak you out. You will feel as the characters felt. You will not want to go around that corner knowing that something terrible is lurking.
After you try this story out, go grab another of his and try it out. I have enjoyed many of his stories, some more than others. This was one of those that is at the top of my favorites list.
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