BOOK REVIEW: Darkness on the Edge of Town
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Darkness on the Edge of Town by Brian Keene
I needed some new reading material so I googled “Stephen King recommended books” and Darkness on the Edge of Town popped up in the search results. I’d never heard of Brian Keene. I wasn’t sure if Stephen King actually recommended it (I know… I know… it was on the internet, so it must be true) and honestly, the cover art wasn’t dazzling. But, I yearned for something new to read so I bought it off Amazon.
I am so glad I did. I loved this book and I discovered another great writer!
I rate it 21 out of a possible 25.
The premise: A town finds itself surrounded by a mysterious darkness, like a thick, black fog, from which there appears to be no escape. No one knows how high it goes, or how far down it goes, or how thick it is. People try to penetrate it, but all indications point to a dangerous, potentially deadly, consequence. Even more creepy is not knowing if this is a world-wide problem or if it’s isolated to only this town. Local society quickly degrades and ultimately collapses, leaving the main characters in a desperate attempt to try and escape from the darkness.
Brian Keene told this story wonderfully. It prompted the right amount of trepidation while reading it. Too often, a book is just too long for a simple plot. Or, the characters do stupid things that you can’t relate to because they’re stupid and you think, no one would actually do that, which at that point, I lose interest. But, I can assure you, that’s not the case here.
Brian Keene delivered on this one!
Here are my thoughts and ratings on Darkness on the Edge of Town.
Craft (5) – Well-written! Keene’s style is fast-paced, punchy, and keeps the story spiraling forward. What I love about a fast-paced writing style, when it’s done well, is how wonderful it flows. It’s easy to engulf the words with no stumbling, re-reading, or clunky sentence structures in awkward attempts to sound “writerly”. Keene is a story teller, plain and simple, and he’s good at it.
Pace (4) – As I mentioned above, Keene’s style in this book lends to a fast-paced story. He keeps you moving forward and doesn’t get hung up in boring scenes that ultimately have no relevance. That said, he elaborates in the right places and doesn’t fly past a scene you might want to spend some time in. He’s quite intuitive in that way. The book isn’t long, which is good for a story like this, and by the time you reach the end, you’ve arrived faster than you thought because you were so caught up in it! My only critique is just that; I wanted more story!
Characters (4) – The story is told in first-person, which I enjoy. That said, first-person does limit the opportunity to hear the story from other perspectives. In a story like this, I’d love to understand what other characters are thinking. Don’t get me wrong, first-person works well and Keene pulls it off superbly. The characters are believable and react with realistic emotions and dialogue.
Story (4) – This is my kind of story. Characters who find themselves in this bizarre circumstance and must think their way out of it. I found this story reminiscent of Under the Dome by Stephen King (which I enjoyed except for the ending), especially in how the characters dealt with the darkness surrounding them. They attempted to explain it, to test it, and when they learned it was dangerous, they reacted the way you would expect people to react. I never got the sense that characters were doing things for the convenience of plot.
Ending (4) – It ended well, but mysteriously, which worked since the words were technically part of a journal. I felt only a little robbed by not learning what happened to the characters, but, there was no other way it could end. I’ve been told that the best ending is one that is inevitable. This one was and it worked.
If you’re looking for a fast read (clocking in at 186 pages) that is wonderfully written, contains believable characters, and sparks a sense of dread, then you will definitely enjoy Darkness on the Edge of Town. I certainly did.
My recommendation is to get it!
It’s dark fiction, but it’s not gory or immoral; it’s just a great story with gritty circumstances. I am now a devoted Brian Keene fan!
Feel free to leave your thoughts. As always, I’d love to hear them. And I hope you enjoy Darkness on the Edge of Town!
