Greaveburn

            Greaveburn: A Penny Dreadful Review

            A death on page two is a good start for a horror novel. Greaveburn, by Craig Hallam, grabs the reader and dives right in. I barely came up for air and tea whilst immersed in Mr. Hallam’s rich, gothic world.

            The city of Greaveburn stands alone in an abandoned world. The Archduke Choler has usurped the throne, and Lady Abrasia, the rightful heir, lives as a hermit in the vast palace in order to stave off assassins. Meanwhile, a scientist named Professor Loosestrife creates disturbing mechanisms in a subterranean lab. With a name like “Loosestrife,” how can he be anything but a villain?

            Mr. Hallam tells this gothic tale with a twist of humor in a series of short, cinematic scenes. It is packed with action and intrigue. The characters who turn out to be the heroes are not all the characters one would expect. I can’t even tell you who, or I might spoil the story!

            I adore Mr. Hallam’s vivid description. He has a brilliant way of evoking the spookiest locales. From the first word, the city of Greaveburn rises, decrepit and dark, in the reader’s mind, full of dim alcoves that could conceal anything.

            Greaveburn is awfully short for the amount of plot and the number of characters it contains. On one hand, it can be devoured in the course of one sleepless night, but on the other hand, I feel like the reader misses some bits of story. It feels like it isn’t long enough to properly explore this strange city.

            I give Greaveburn four gears out of five. On the whole, it is quite satisfying. I highly recommend it. 

            Here’s the link to it on Amazon.com.  http://www.amazon.com/s/ref=nb_sb_noss?url=search-alias%3Dstripbooks&field-keywords=greaveburn+

Your Correspondent From The Bookstore,
Penny J. Merriweather