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Simulacra
The night over Deep Dell has turned orange.
A sudden jack-o-lantern sky on a snowy, sleepy evening.
The residents of the snow-bound valley don't know it, but their lives have changed forever. What they always believed about their place in the universe was wrong. They're no longer alone on this cold, terrifying night.
Trapped in the valley, they must pull together, protect each other against an enemy they never expected, and can't explain.
Because what do you do, when the enemy turns out to look just like you?
A sudden jack-o-lantern sky on a snowy, sleepy evening.
The residents of the snow-bound valley don't know it, but their lives have changed forever. What they always believed about their place in the universe was wrong. They're no longer alone on this cold, terrifying night.
Trapped in the valley, they must pull together, protect each other against an enemy they never expected, and can't explain.
Because what do you do, when the enemy turns out to look just like you?
- GenresScience FictionHorror
351 pages, Kindle Edition
First published July 9, 2014
3 people are currently reading
74 people want to read
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Displaying 1 - 3 of 3 reviews
November 4, 2018
Hated. Really hated. Badly edited. Grammar, spelling, and continuity errors. Too long and then suddenly and abruptly it crashed into a bad ending. I’m grateful I didn’t pay for it. Unfortunately a friend lent it to me and I have to tell them I didn’t like it. Bah humbug.
November 10, 2015
Damnit! Kate Genet’s done it again. I’ve always said I don’t care for romance novels; then, not quite a year ago, I read Kate’s Don’t Go There and thought it was great. I’ve also maintained forever — maybe even longer — that I absolutely don’t do horror. (This could be because my first taste of the genre was King’s It, and maybe that was just too heavy a dose for a beginner.) Anyway, after reading Simulacra, the “I don’t do horror” assertion no longer holds water, either. I could say that it’s more a suspense novel than pure horror, but that would be a cop out. Hell, if Kate Genet wrote a friggin’ western, I’d probably love it, too.
Simulacra is considerably longer than anything else I’ve read by Kate except for the aforementioned romance novel, but Don’t Go There has a smaller number of characters than Simulacra. However, she handles the larger form and the challenges presented by a bigger dramatis personae with all the skill I’ve learned to expect from her shorter works such as the Michaela and Trisha series and the Reality Dawn novellae.
As always, Kate’s narrative style is fluid but not ornate. Elsewhere, I’ve called her style “spare.” That doesn’t mean depictions aren’t vivid – “There was something decidedly sick-looking about the cloud, as though any moment it would burst open, and some oozing infection would drain out on top of them.” — just that the words aren’t superfluous. Even in an expanded form, there’s no fluff – no Doc either, for you Pat Califia fans out there — no filler or padding. The matter-of-fact, economical style serves the author well, making the uncanny events of the story stand out in contrast.
As I said, I haven’t read much in the way of horror, so I don’t know which writers to compare this to. Switching media, though, I’d say the overall creepiness and the escalating suspense is almost Hitchcockian, if Hitch had ever used elements of sf as a jumping-off place for his imagination. I especially like the way Genet builds suspense: Initially, there are five pairs or individual characters in five separate locales. Tension escalates in the first pairing, then when we move to the next character or couple that section begins at the initial level and rises again. This continues through the course of the novel in a sort of ebb and flow, but each time the cycle begins anew, the starting point tension-wise is higher than before. Also, the characters, spread out in the beginning, are gradually “herded” to a single locale, another means if increasing tension and suspense.
The characters are all well-drawn and the dialogue is realistic, even in this unrealistic situation. The same is true of their behavior, despite the outre occurrences.
Simulacra is a very well written, enjoyable and entertaining novel. So, does it convert me into a diehard horror fan? Not so much. Unless, of course, it’s written by Kate Genet.
Simulacra is considerably longer than anything else I’ve read by Kate except for the aforementioned romance novel, but Don’t Go There has a smaller number of characters than Simulacra. However, she handles the larger form and the challenges presented by a bigger dramatis personae with all the skill I’ve learned to expect from her shorter works such as the Michaela and Trisha series and the Reality Dawn novellae.
As always, Kate’s narrative style is fluid but not ornate. Elsewhere, I’ve called her style “spare.” That doesn’t mean depictions aren’t vivid – “There was something decidedly sick-looking about the cloud, as though any moment it would burst open, and some oozing infection would drain out on top of them.” — just that the words aren’t superfluous. Even in an expanded form, there’s no fluff – no Doc either, for you Pat Califia fans out there — no filler or padding. The matter-of-fact, economical style serves the author well, making the uncanny events of the story stand out in contrast.
As I said, I haven’t read much in the way of horror, so I don’t know which writers to compare this to. Switching media, though, I’d say the overall creepiness and the escalating suspense is almost Hitchcockian, if Hitch had ever used elements of sf as a jumping-off place for his imagination. I especially like the way Genet builds suspense: Initially, there are five pairs or individual characters in five separate locales. Tension escalates in the first pairing, then when we move to the next character or couple that section begins at the initial level and rises again. This continues through the course of the novel in a sort of ebb and flow, but each time the cycle begins anew, the starting point tension-wise is higher than before. Also, the characters, spread out in the beginning, are gradually “herded” to a single locale, another means if increasing tension and suspense.
The characters are all well-drawn and the dialogue is realistic, even in this unrealistic situation. The same is true of their behavior, despite the outre occurrences.
Simulacra is a very well written, enjoyable and entertaining novel. So, does it convert me into a diehard horror fan? Not so much. Unless, of course, it’s written by Kate Genet.
February 7, 2016
I... don't give one star reviews.
Ever. I mean, I suppose that stems from the fact that I've never read Twilight (ha. ha.) but... I struggle to give any book a review under at LEAST three stars.
But this book... it's awful. If you don't read any further, then please heed my advice; I wish to sternly caution you against reading this, but above all, for God's sake, don't pay for this!
I bought it because I wanted to read something in the vein of sci-fi horror, and this is the book that came up as I searched for that exact search term. The reviews were good, which now has me wondering if they're paid reviewers, so I started reading it.
Now, I haven't been able to finish the book. I'm ashamed to admit that this book bested me; I *never* put down a book until it's finished (except for the Wheel of Time series. Long story. Literally) so I cannot speak for the ending, maybe it miraculously turns around. I plan to flick through it, so I'll update on that later.
1. To begin with, this is a book that doesn't know if it's a horror, an adult story, or a pride-and-prejudice style story.
The head hopping is so dizzying that I think even the Author loses track of the perspective currently being used.
Not only do we swap between scenes, but we swap between NARRATORS in each scene. The end of one chapter is told from the perspective of one character, the next chapter in the EXACT same scene is told from the perspective of a different character.
At one point, Ms Gennet seems so confused about who is doing the storytelling that in Chapter 13, a woman searchign for her sister in a blizzard *screams her own name*.
2. Everything sexual is described in sickening detail. It's not even just sex scenes, it's a hyperrealistic description of anything remotely sexual in the book, from an old fart watching porn to an adulterous tryst during which I *really* didn't need to hear about the towel to catch the bodily fluids.
I'm sorry to say that, 13% of the way into the story, that's the scariest thing that's happened.
3. Where is the horror?! At Chapter 13, the scariest thing that's happened is that an old guy has had a heart attack (during which he *literally* holds onto his chest for around a chapter. That's not what a heart attack looks like!), the sky has turned orange (which actually creeped me out for a while, until the narrative turned back to monotony) and some sheep made some strange noises.
I plan to flick through it because I *REALLY* want to hear about the Aliens!
Kate, you had me at the Alien abductions. I *love* that stuff! I was so excited to read this book, I bought it the moment I got paid and started reading it that night.
Why oh why did you have to cut it with garbage?
I am genuinely sorry to say, I detested this.
Ever. I mean, I suppose that stems from the fact that I've never read Twilight (ha. ha.) but... I struggle to give any book a review under at LEAST three stars.
But this book... it's awful. If you don't read any further, then please heed my advice; I wish to sternly caution you against reading this, but above all, for God's sake, don't pay for this!
I bought it because I wanted to read something in the vein of sci-fi horror, and this is the book that came up as I searched for that exact search term. The reviews were good, which now has me wondering if they're paid reviewers, so I started reading it.
Now, I haven't been able to finish the book. I'm ashamed to admit that this book bested me; I *never* put down a book until it's finished (except for the Wheel of Time series. Long story. Literally) so I cannot speak for the ending, maybe it miraculously turns around. I plan to flick through it, so I'll update on that later.
1. To begin with, this is a book that doesn't know if it's a horror, an adult story, or a pride-and-prejudice style story.
The head hopping is so dizzying that I think even the Author loses track of the perspective currently being used.
Not only do we swap between scenes, but we swap between NARRATORS in each scene. The end of one chapter is told from the perspective of one character, the next chapter in the EXACT same scene is told from the perspective of a different character.
At one point, Ms Gennet seems so confused about who is doing the storytelling that in Chapter 13, a woman searchign for her sister in a blizzard *screams her own name*.
2. Everything sexual is described in sickening detail. It's not even just sex scenes, it's a hyperrealistic description of anything remotely sexual in the book, from an old fart watching porn to an adulterous tryst during which I *really* didn't need to hear about the towel to catch the bodily fluids.
I'm sorry to say that, 13% of the way into the story, that's the scariest thing that's happened.
3. Where is the horror?! At Chapter 13, the scariest thing that's happened is that an old guy has had a heart attack (during which he *literally* holds onto his chest for around a chapter. That's not what a heart attack looks like!), the sky has turned orange (which actually creeped me out for a while, until the narrative turned back to monotony) and some sheep made some strange noises.
I plan to flick through it because I *REALLY* want to hear about the Aliens!
Kate, you had me at the Alien abductions. I *love* that stuff! I was so excited to read this book, I bought it the moment I got paid and started reading it that night.
Why oh why did you have to cut it with garbage?
I am genuinely sorry to say, I detested this.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
Displaying 1 - 3 of 3 reviews