Introduction and first review (The Bad Place by Dean Koontz)

Hello!

Well hello there! If you have an insatiable hunger for the gothic, the macabre and the simply DISTURBING, well you've found just the blog- because me too. From Stephen King to Aron Beauregard, Cutter to (as you'll see) Koontz- I gobble down all the horror media I can get my grubby little hands on. SO WHY NOT SHARE? Provided I don't completely forget, which frankly is always a remote possibility, here you'll find reviews, recommendations and lots and lots of horror.

Above:
My very well-read copy
 of the Bad Place

Now that I've poorly attempted to sell this to you, I thought we'd get straight on down to business with a (spoiler free) review of my absolute 100% favourite book of all time. This is of course, "The Bad Place," by Dean Koontz. Where to begin... Well let me preface by saying I hand out five star reviews once in a blue moon, making me the arc-reader from HELL. Not only was this an easy five star read, it made me want to demote every other book I'd ever rated five stars, it was that perfect. I don't know if any of you have ever finished a book so brilliant that you've gotten a bookish hangover, but I definitely had one- and the effects are only now wearing off. 

I'm pretty set in my ways- I'm a horror read and a not very adventurous one at that.. but this. You've got some romance, a bit of sci-fi, plenty of horror (this is after all the work of Dean Koontz) and even a subtle backdrop of comedy. The Bad Place has something for everyone, aside from non-fiction readers- because it's truly madness.

We begin by meeting Frank Pollard, and it's really not his finest moment. Waking up in an alley, with no recollection of who he is or how he got there is pretty damn bad, what's even worse is that Frank can sense he's in danger, and when he's attacked by some weird magical being... understandably- he legs it. These re-occurring lucid dreams haunt Frank, and when he wakes with blood on his hands and a mysterious bag stuffed with cash, he decides he needs help (about damn time if you ask me). He seeks out lovable husband and wife detective duo Bobby and Julie at Dakota & Dakota detective agency.

Julie's brother Thomas, who has down syndrome, lives at a care home. Unexpectedly he also has a very special gift.. and when Julie begins to work with Frank he is able to detect the "Bad thing," that is coming after her.

This is just the basic premise, best believe there is SO much more going on. At 500 odd pages, "The Bad Place," is a thiccc book, but so fast-paced and addictive and just readable, you'll fly through it. There's unexpected twists and developments at every corner, from family trees.. to bugs from a different planet that consume dirt and excrete valuable rubies. It's just WEIRD, and that's the way I like 'em.

The characters are so three-dimensional and well-developed, and whilst (as you'll find with lots of pre 2000s horror) there are some outdated and unacceptable stereotypes, it's not detrimental to the story, and I guarantee Stephen King has done worse...

The ENDING. The girls who get it.. get it. It tore my heart out. It devastated me. I was not only sad that the utter roller-coaster of "The Bad Place," had finished, but GOSH, it will catch you in your feels. I've only read a few of Koontz's popular work and I am utterly completely convinced that it can't be topped.

That about brings us to the end of.. MY VERY FIRST BLOG. I'm excited to see how this goes, and I hope I've not completely bored you. Also please appreciate the amount of time it took for me to insert that damn picture. Until next time.