Catchman

Point Horror Unleashed

by Chris Wooding

Davey's always been a light sleeper. But since his last trip home, the dark has become a dangerous place and sleep the stuff of nightmares. Enter the Catchman. Once he terrorised a city, now he's stalking Davey. He's waiting until Davey turns his back, closes his eyes.

Genres: Horror, Young Adult, Fantasy

208 pages, Paperback

First published September 18, 1998

About the author

Chris Wooding grew up in a small town in Leicestershire, where not much of anything happened. So he started to write novels. He was sixteen when he completed his first. He had an agent by eighteen. By nineteen he had signed his first book deal. When he left university he began to write full-time, and he has been doing it professionally all his adult life.

Now thirty-nine, Chris has written over twenty books, which have been translated into twenty languages, won various awards and been published around the world. He writes for film and television, and has several projects in development.

Chris has travelled extensively round the world, having backpacked all over Europe and North America, Scandinavia, South East Asia, Japan and South Africa. He also lived in Madrid for a time. When he wasn’t travelling on his own, he spent his twenties touring with bands and seeing the UK and Europe from the back of a van.

He also learned not so long ago that his family tree can be traced back to John Milton, author of Paradise Lost, which has no bearing on him whatsoever but it’s kind of interesting anyway.

Chris lives in London.

Reviews

[ItzSmashley · Rating 4 out of 5]

I had fun with this one. Unusual set of protagonists lead to some interesting scenarios and there was some gripping scenes of conflict. When the horror was needed it was effective and well written. The only thing dragging a star rating off was recurring story beat involving one of the characters deceased dad which I didn't think fit the rest of the vibe. But I would definitely reccommend this one.

After running away from home, Davey finds himself with a street gang who have a rivalry with another local gang that is threatening to turn violent. When one of their members is killed by a mysterious man in a hooded cloak, the rival gang retaliate and won't believe the story of who did it. When people are lost on both sides though, the gangs realise that something more sinister may be after them all.

[Ekaterina · Rating 2 out of 5]

What kind of ending is this??

[Samantha · Rating 2 out of 5]

I felt that this book was awfully slow. Personally felt like Wooding was too focused on describing the scenery rather than focusing on the build up of fear for The Catchman. However, I did enjoy the references to a typical working UK town. I even enjoyed how he wrote the dialogue but overall I wouldn't read it again as the ending was kind of dissatisfactory. I do have more of Wooding's work lined up in my 'To Read' list so I'm hopeful I'll enjoy his other works.

[Stephanie · Rating 4 out of 5]

Great supernatural thriller from Chris Wooding - still one of my favourite teen/YA authors.