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Dante's Cypher
When author T. Stephens (a pseudonym) stayed at a camp in Maine and discovered the former owner had committed a suicide that involved a mysterious oval – or cypher – he saw a horror story in the making. “Dante’s Cypher” is the gripping result.
The protagonist, Steve, and his wife, Carla, spend a disturbing evening at their friend’s Maine camp. Without giving too much away, things go from bad to worse to horrific in a matter of hours. The whole book takes place over a three-day period, during which Steve must find a way to rescue his wife from a malevolent force; clear his name with local law enforcement who are, it turns out, trying to kill him and exonerate him; understand the bizarre history of the cypher through found objects on the camp property; and live to tell the tale.
Stephens clearly respects and emulates horror master Stephen King (coincidence that his writing alias, the protagonist, and another character are all Stephens? Hmmm), and indeed tips his hat in the afterword to the founder of “terror in a small Maine town” novels. But “Dante’s Cypher” is fresh and original, and moves at a quick pace that differs from the opus storytelling of King. There is a bit of gore, lots of dead bodies and an element of the supernatural that will have King lovers rapidly flipping the pages.
Stephens thankfully includes moments of humor and well-drawn characters to ease some of the tension. The urgency is still always there, though, as Steve eludes those who seek him and hunts the answers he needs to save Carla from … well, you’ll just have to find out for yourself.
There’s a story within the story, where Steve learns the history of the enigmatic oval he encountered at the camp. We’re taken out of Maine and transported back in time to Inquisition-era Spain, where things get dark – really dark.
While writing this, I struggled to not use lots of book-review cliches, like “heart-pounding conclusion” and “hard to put down.” But that’s exactly what I experienced reading “Dante’s Cypher.” I had to sit silently for a spell after finishing it and wrap my brain around it.
This freshman offering by a local biotech professional is definitely worth your time, especially if you’re a fan of supernatural, Kingly horror. Stephens said he’s working on more than a dozen future story outlines, as well as a screenplay. Enjoy this book now, and get on board Stephens’ train before it takes off.
The protagonist, Steve, and his wife, Carla, spend a disturbing evening at their friend’s Maine camp. Without giving too much away, things go from bad to worse to horrific in a matter of hours. The whole book takes place over a three-day period, during which Steve must find a way to rescue his wife from a malevolent force; clear his name with local law enforcement who are, it turns out, trying to kill him and exonerate him; understand the bizarre history of the cypher through found objects on the camp property; and live to tell the tale.
Stephens clearly respects and emulates horror master Stephen King (coincidence that his writing alias, the protagonist, and another character are all Stephens? Hmmm), and indeed tips his hat in the afterword to the founder of “terror in a small Maine town” novels. But “Dante’s Cypher” is fresh and original, and moves at a quick pace that differs from the opus storytelling of King. There is a bit of gore, lots of dead bodies and an element of the supernatural that will have King lovers rapidly flipping the pages.
Stephens thankfully includes moments of humor and well-drawn characters to ease some of the tension. The urgency is still always there, though, as Steve eludes those who seek him and hunts the answers he needs to save Carla from … well, you’ll just have to find out for yourself.
There’s a story within the story, where Steve learns the history of the enigmatic oval he encountered at the camp. We’re taken out of Maine and transported back in time to Inquisition-era Spain, where things get dark – really dark.
While writing this, I struggled to not use lots of book-review cliches, like “heart-pounding conclusion” and “hard to put down.” But that’s exactly what I experienced reading “Dante’s Cypher.” I had to sit silently for a spell after finishing it and wrap my brain around it.
This freshman offering by a local biotech professional is definitely worth your time, especially if you’re a fan of supernatural, Kingly horror. Stephens said he’s working on more than a dozen future story outlines, as well as a screenplay. Enjoy this book now, and get on board Stephens’ train before it takes off.
280 pages, Paperback
First published February 4, 2014
3 people are currently reading
25 people want to read
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Displaying 1 - 9 of 9 reviews
February 11, 2014
This book had me on the edge of my seat. I couldn't put it down. Great plot with a little creepy history weaved in. Excellent read.
February 13, 2014
This book was suspenseful from beginning to end. I found it hard to put down. It was an original storyline with plenty of creepiness and occasional humor mixed in. I thoroughly enjoyed it.
June 21, 2014
Mostly enjoyed, a little confusing for me when the Dante references came in. I liked the eerie parts and I liked the ending leaving it open for a seqel.
August 6, 2014
Do you like raw horror, running for your life through the woods, ghosts, possession, ancient evils in the modern day, vengeful cops, crazy-ass bikers, and scares aplenty? If you do, you're going to enjoy Dante's Cypher. Sorry if any of that was spoilers, but just wanted to warn you of a ride into terror. Good luck- you're going to need it if you go into these woods!
The book's got ghouls and grue galore, a hero who gets the crap knocked out of him and keeps going, and action enough for a couple of books. This ain't a cozy horror story, people get munched in nasty ways. Might give you a few sleepless nights. Let's just say- stay off the logging roads when you're up in Maine!
It'll be good to see where the author goes after this. A solid horror launch that fans of the genre will enjoy.
The book's got ghouls and grue galore, a hero who gets the crap knocked out of him and keeps going, and action enough for a couple of books. This ain't a cozy horror story, people get munched in nasty ways. Might give you a few sleepless nights. Let's just say- stay off the logging roads when you're up in Maine!
It'll be good to see where the author goes after this. A solid horror launch that fans of the genre will enjoy.
January 1, 2015
I met the author of this novel while we were both taping back-to-back interviews for the cable TV show "Be My Guest" (Upton, MA Cable TV).
I liked the premise of the story, which had the main character and his wife fighting for their very lives in the backwoods of Maine. The couple find themselves the target of insular local law enforcement officers and an ancient curse that dates back to one of the most horrific periods in medieval Christian history. I did enjoy the cleverness employed by the author in tying certain characters from that period in history to present day Maine.
I really do want to give the book a decent review. However, it would remiss of me as an author and a reviewer not to point out the problems that really kept me from enjoying the book from start to finish. One of the more glaring issues were the frequent changes in narrator point-of-view within a chapter, and sometimes on the same page. The constant changes in POV had me stopping and re-reading as I tried to keep straight which character was speaking or thinking at any given time.
Another issue was word and phrase repetition within the same paragraph or even within the same sentence. In many places the author would rephrase or restate dialog and narration, which slowed the action and made it more difficult for this reader to stay engaged. This was especially true of some parts of the story which should have been quick moving, but the extra verbiage made it drag. At times I wanted to simply skim because of all the repeated descriptions and verbose narration.
Some of the character development is wanting. For example, the author introduces us to two characters in the first chapter, and takes the time to build a picture of these two incidental characters in the reader's mind, only to abandon them for the remainder of the book. In contrast, the author provides no description of the main character.
The later part of the novel, in which the main character is learning of the source of the evil curse, was especially difficult to read. The author has the main character reading a 400 year old journal that describes the origination of the curse. However, instead of presenting this in the third person, from that main character's point of view, the author tells the tale from the viewpoint of the journal's writer; in the present, first-person narration. I found this to be rather jarring as the POV kept switching not only between the two characters but also jumping from present day to events 400 years in the past.
Once section of the novel which I found especially disturbing was when the main character reads an entry from 400 year-old journal which essentially describes the continuous bondage and repeated rape of a woman over the course of several months. The disturbing part was not the idea of bondage and rape, but rather the ham-fisted writing that the author used to described the events. Rather than feeling sympathetic for the victim of this crime, or feeling animosity towards the perpetrator, I instead chuckled and groaned at the immature writing that was used to describe what should have been emotionally retching scenes.
Overall, I would rate this book a 'C' at best. The story is an imaginative one but it deserves a thorough editing and rewrite to make it an enjoyable read.
I liked the premise of the story, which had the main character and his wife fighting for their very lives in the backwoods of Maine. The couple find themselves the target of insular local law enforcement officers and an ancient curse that dates back to one of the most horrific periods in medieval Christian history. I did enjoy the cleverness employed by the author in tying certain characters from that period in history to present day Maine.
I really do want to give the book a decent review. However, it would remiss of me as an author and a reviewer not to point out the problems that really kept me from enjoying the book from start to finish. One of the more glaring issues were the frequent changes in narrator point-of-view within a chapter, and sometimes on the same page. The constant changes in POV had me stopping and re-reading as I tried to keep straight which character was speaking or thinking at any given time.
Another issue was word and phrase repetition within the same paragraph or even within the same sentence. In many places the author would rephrase or restate dialog and narration, which slowed the action and made it more difficult for this reader to stay engaged. This was especially true of some parts of the story which should have been quick moving, but the extra verbiage made it drag. At times I wanted to simply skim because of all the repeated descriptions and verbose narration.
Some of the character development is wanting. For example, the author introduces us to two characters in the first chapter, and takes the time to build a picture of these two incidental characters in the reader's mind, only to abandon them for the remainder of the book. In contrast, the author provides no description of the main character.
The later part of the novel, in which the main character is learning of the source of the evil curse, was especially difficult to read. The author has the main character reading a 400 year old journal that describes the origination of the curse. However, instead of presenting this in the third person, from that main character's point of view, the author tells the tale from the viewpoint of the journal's writer; in the present, first-person narration. I found this to be rather jarring as the POV kept switching not only between the two characters but also jumping from present day to events 400 years in the past.
Once section of the novel which I found especially disturbing was when the main character reads an entry from 400 year-old journal which essentially describes the continuous bondage and repeated rape of a woman over the course of several months. The disturbing part was not the idea of bondage and rape, but rather the ham-fisted writing that the author used to described the events. Rather than feeling sympathetic for the victim of this crime, or feeling animosity towards the perpetrator, I instead chuckled and groaned at the immature writing that was used to describe what should have been emotionally retching scenes.
Overall, I would rate this book a 'C' at best. The story is an imaginative one but it deserves a thorough editing and rewrite to make it an enjoyable read.
November 4, 2014
First thing you should know is that the Dante of the title is not Dante Alighieri, the writer of 'The Inferno,' book one of the Divine Comedy. However, the evils connected with this Dante were pretty $&@%ed up in their own right.
This is a book I received as a gift. I have to say, Mr. Stephens strikes me as a man with some talent, a shame since the publishing company he signed with appears to be a group of rotten thieves who don't actually care about the people they publish until they start making them money. I am shocked at the reports I am seeing online and on things I have heard.
The story, on its own merits, is quite good. I have minor quibbles, but they are largely editorial; editing, as I understand it, is sorely lacking at Tate Publishing. Most of the editorial problems in the book could be fixed with a small group of beta readers and one dedicated editor. It's not really fair to make the author the sole editor (or the editor for the most part) of his own work. Largely the biggest errors I saw were simple repetition errors; apart from that, I thought Mr. Stephens wrote a pretty tight story, interesting to read, humorous and charming often, requiring very little polishing on the whole.
If Mr. Stephens publishes any more books through Tate Publishing, I'll be sure to exempt them from my "no more Tate Publishing books ever" rule I just made part of my life. Mr. Stephens came across as genuine, talented, and interesting and I'd really love to read more from him. Hopefully, though, he'll publish with someone who won't extract the costs of book making from his own hide.
This is a book I received as a gift. I have to say, Mr. Stephens strikes me as a man with some talent, a shame since the publishing company he signed with appears to be a group of rotten thieves who don't actually care about the people they publish until they start making them money. I am shocked at the reports I am seeing online and on things I have heard.
The story, on its own merits, is quite good. I have minor quibbles, but they are largely editorial; editing, as I understand it, is sorely lacking at Tate Publishing. Most of the editorial problems in the book could be fixed with a small group of beta readers and one dedicated editor. It's not really fair to make the author the sole editor (or the editor for the most part) of his own work. Largely the biggest errors I saw were simple repetition errors; apart from that, I thought Mr. Stephens wrote a pretty tight story, interesting to read, humorous and charming often, requiring very little polishing on the whole.
If Mr. Stephens publishes any more books through Tate Publishing, I'll be sure to exempt them from my "no more Tate Publishing books ever" rule I just made part of my life. Mr. Stephens came across as genuine, talented, and interesting and I'd really love to read more from him. Hopefully, though, he'll publish with someone who won't extract the costs of book making from his own hide.
November 6, 2014
This was an interesting suspense thriller. It has a little bit of everything; mystery, history, the macabre, family values and local folklore. While the storyline was unique, it did seem that the book had strong undertones of S King, D Koontz, and D Brown influences. It would be interesting if the author used more of his own experiences and locations rather than try to cover bases that are too closely associated with these other mystery writers. A good "read it in an afternoon" book.
April 15, 2014
Loves this book! Could not put it down. Great characters, great premise. Awesome.
September 11, 2014
Definitely a first book. Some good ideas, but not well written. The author should keep his day job.
Displaying 1 - 9 of 9 reviews