Anthony Hains
  • Home
  • Books & Novellas
    • Wrath of a Minor God
    • Terrain of Lost Souls
    • Sins of the Father
    • Nightshade's Requiem
    • Sleep in the Dust of the Earth
    • The Torment
    • Sweet Aswang
    • The Disembodied
    • Dead Works
    • Birth Offering
  • Bio
  • Blog

In the Shadows of Children: A review

11/22/2015

 
Picture
I read In the Shadows of Children in one frantic sitting. With this piece, Alan Ryker has penned a chilling ghost story – one that is unique in plot with a couple of neat twists. The novella tells of a young man named Aaron who returns home for his mother’s funeral. This is the first time he’s been back since the disappearance of his younger brother fifteen years prior. Aaron left home at eighteen to attend college and avoided coming back except for when his brother went missing. Aaron had a vague sense that something horrible went on during his childhood which is why he took off for college – but he could not recall the specifics of the events. When he returns however, memories come flooding back - about something sinister existing in the closet of his childhood bedroom which he shared with his brother. Oh, there is also the small detail of his little brother reappearing in their bedroom – still looking fifteen.

​My favorite category of horror is supernatural tales – of which ghost stories snuggly fit (at least in my mind). Ryker wrote another ghost story called Nightmare Man – of which I am very fond. I think In the Shadows of Children is even better. He is able to take the ghost story in different directions. He does not rehash old formulas – everything feels original. I was breathless as I read this tale, expecting him to take it in various directions. He kept surprising me, and the last 25% of the tale (as indicated on my Kindle) was as gripping as any top notch horror story.


Comments are closed.

    Author

    Anthony Hains is a horror & speculative fiction writer.

    Archives

    January 2020
    January 2018
    July 2017
    May 2017
    January 2017
    December 2016
    November 2016
    October 2016
    September 2016
    August 2016
    July 2016
    June 2016
    May 2016
    April 2016
    February 2016
    December 2015
    November 2015
    October 2015
    September 2015
    August 2015
    July 2015
    June 2015
    May 2015
    April 2015
    March 2015
    February 2015
    January 2015
    December 2014
    November 2014
    October 2014
    September 2014
    August 2014
    July 2014
    June 2014
    May 2014
    April 2014
    March 2014
    February 2014
    January 2014
    December 2013
    November 2013
    October 2013
    September 2013
    August 2013
    July 2013
    June 2013
    May 2013
    April 2013

    Categories

    All
    Academia
    Adolescents
    Apocalypse
    Birth Offering
    Birth Offering
    Dead Works
    Horror Authors
    Horror Fiction
    Horror Fiction
    Influences
    Psychology
    Real Life Horror
    Real-life Horror
    Reflections
    Reviews
    Ryan Braun

    RSS Feed

Powered by Create your own unique website with customizable templates.