Fright Radio

by Noel Dandes

On the hill behind the university, Amy sits in her new car, listening to her friend's radio programme. With her eyes set on the full moon, she lights a cigarette. In thirty minutes, she will no longer be human.

Meanwhile, Amy's brother, Jo has just said goodnight to his boyfriend and he's rushing back to his room to catch the show. As he reaches the door, a whisper startles him. It's a voice calling his name... and it belongs to his best friend, who killed himself a year ago.

As morning slowly dawns across the small southeastern town, a handwritten note arrives at someone's house: "I hope you burn in hell for what you did to me."

And then a murder changes everything...

340 pages, Paperback

First published October 24, 2013

About the author

Noel Dandes is 28 years old and lives in Central London. His credentials include a degree in Communication, an A* in GCSE English and a 90% in a Creative Writing module at university. He also published 12 short stories in an Italian online magazine in 2012. (The magazine closed down shortly thereafter.) He has been writing novels since he was 12, and getting rejection letters since he was 22. "Fright Radio" is his first published novel.

Reviews

[Love Bytes Reviews · Rating 4 out of 5]

4 STARS
Guest Reviewer - Tash

The plot line for Fright Radio (Take 2) is well thought out and well executed. I thoroughly enjoyed only being given small bits of information piece by piece as it makes for a more gripping read.

I am unsure if this was published through a traditional publishing house or if it was self-published, but either way, the editing needs revisiting. I like to try and avoid being a grammar and spelling Nazi, but there were several errors that put me off and made it difficult for me to continue reading, although I’m glad I stuck it out.

It’s written in the First person tense and that has always appealed to me. I like the idea of looking through the character’s eyes and seeing what they see and feeling what they feel. Unfortunately with this story though, there were too many characters written from that point of view.

Jumping from character to character made it extremely confusing and I often struggled to remember which person’s point of view I was meant to be reading.

I give kudos for originality however. I adored the introduction of a new species. There are a lot of stories out there that are of the same supernaturalcreatures and nothing new happens. The author’s ideas and imaginations are outstanding.

For this, I give 4 out of 5 stars.

Please visit www.lovebytesreviews.com to see this and many more reviews, interviews guest posts and giveaways!

[Anietta · Rating 4 out of 5]

The confiding and informal tone made Fright Radio an effortless and compulsive read. The characters' age group was fairly realistic where some struggle to leave adolescent attitudes behind and develop adult ones, they would slip into the former and struggle to settle into the latter. When engulfed by the bizarre, beguiling and disturbing, and forced to face their own past behaviour, each of their transformations were fascinating to follow. The changes in point of view flowed perfectly with each sequence of events. I liked the fresh twists on the legendary beings in various folklore.

Many thanks to the author for the chance to read a signed copy of Fright Radio, which I received for free through a first-reads giveaway in exchange for an honest review.

[Mark · Rating 4 out of 5]

I was initially drawn into the story because of the musical references the author made in the first chapter, and I'm glad I continued reading the story. Fright Radio is a wonderful tale about college friends and their relationships (the good, the bad, the secrets kept...). The only criticism I could muster was that the three voices all sounded similar (with the surrounding characters and situations doing the heavier lifting of allowing the reader to remember whose eyes they were watching through) and that the end seemed very abrupt. However, I am just chalking up my feelings about the end to a general sense that I cannot wait for the second part of this series to come out so that I can continue exploring the world Dandes has brought to life...or unlife.

[Bruce · Rating 4 out of 5]

Great read--hard to put down. The characters were well developed, their actions, feelings, etc., realistic. The points of view were an interesting and appropriate way to lead us through the story--it worked well. Another plus, a new way to look at the old "monsters," etc. I look forward to more from Noel.

Thanks to the author for the great story and the opportunity to read and own a signed copy of the book that I received free through the first reads giveaway. A real prize in exchange for an honest review.

[Lorna · Rating 5 out of 5]

This was a fantastic book that i loved from beginning to end. This book has a great plot that is filled to the brim with the supernatural. The story kept me guessing the whole way through and i loved all of the current pop culture references that were scattered throughout the book. I can't wait for the next in the series!

[Clay Holland · Rating 5 out of 5]

it has a good plot.