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The Express
"CHILLINGLY THOUGHT PROVOKING..."
Are you ready for one hell of a bumpy ride?
A man's daily commute becomes a hellish nightmare in this harrowing account of a horrific bus crash that transforms a fateful ending into a painful beginning for an unlucky lot forced to endure. Based on an age-old premise with a fresh perspective, it visits the undesirable side of life after death. R. K. Howard is an American author. His "Black Machetes" has been in Amazon Top 100 psychological thriller several times. He is also the author of "Error Code," "The Aparting," and "The Express." He was also short-listed for the Eric Hoffer Award in 2015.
Are you ready for one hell of a bumpy ride?
A man's daily commute becomes a hellish nightmare in this harrowing account of a horrific bus crash that transforms a fateful ending into a painful beginning for an unlucky lot forced to endure. Based on an age-old premise with a fresh perspective, it visits the undesirable side of life after death. R. K. Howard is an American author. His "Black Machetes" has been in Amazon Top 100 psychological thriller several times. He is also the author of "Error Code," "The Aparting," and "The Express." He was also short-listed for the Eric Hoffer Award in 2015.
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Published April 21, 2022
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Displaying 1 - 10 of 10 reviews
June 17, 2016
This short story was very different from anything I've ever read before. From the first word I was so interested, I actually listened to the whole thing twice in a row. The story is told in a very unique way, and I'm not sure how to explain it. It's a horror story, but written in a way that feels like something completely new. There is even a little bit of humor thrown in. Alex Hyde-White was the narrator of the audiobook, and he was fantastic! I would love to hear more from this guy, I absolutely love hearing his voice. I really enjoyed this audiobook, and I highly recommend it. I'm planning to check out more of the authors work, and I hope it's very similar to this book!
**This book was provided in exchange for an honest review.
**This book was provided in exchange for an honest review.
May 20, 2016
“This audiobook was given by the author, narrator, or publisher at no cost in exchange for an unbiased review via Audiobook Boom.”
This was a great book. It was short and sweet and to the point. I loved the way the story was told. I'll be reading more from this author!
This was a great book. It was short and sweet and to the point. I loved the way the story was told. I'll be reading more from this author!
March 9, 2017
My original The Express audiobook review and many others can be found at Audiobook Reviewer.
A man just wants to get home after a long day of work. His daily commute on the express bus goes from mundane to strange, then horrific as he learns the meaning of life. There are lessons to be learned, and if you don’t learn them, and learn them well, the consequences are unforgiving and permanent.
The Express is short (under and hour) and to the point. The Devil is in the details as they say. There is a folksy kind of tone to the story, almost a 1940’s novel with an “Oh Boy, this isn’t swell” kind of mood. But the setting is modern until it turns dark, very dark. Somehow the narrator is able to speak to us from way beyond time and warns us of our own possible fate.
The simple plot is straightforward and entertaining with little in the way of surprises or twists, just one man’s fall into the abyss. For a quick listen without too much brain power this could be a nice escape.
The story is performed by Alex Hyde-White. His sonorous voice is perfect for the folksy character both in tone and mood. There is a lighthearted feel to his voice that keeps the dark story from being depressing. There is only the one character telling us the entire story with no other character voices. He excellent and wonderful to listen to. A voice you might want to follow.
The Express is a quick tale that is reasonably enjoyable. Nothing earth-shattering or new, but entertaining enough. Give it a listen if you are in the mood for one man’s descent into darkness.
Audiobook was provided for review by the author
A man just wants to get home after a long day of work. His daily commute on the express bus goes from mundane to strange, then horrific as he learns the meaning of life. There are lessons to be learned, and if you don’t learn them, and learn them well, the consequences are unforgiving and permanent.
The Express is short (under and hour) and to the point. The Devil is in the details as they say. There is a folksy kind of tone to the story, almost a 1940’s novel with an “Oh Boy, this isn’t swell” kind of mood. But the setting is modern until it turns dark, very dark. Somehow the narrator is able to speak to us from way beyond time and warns us of our own possible fate.
The simple plot is straightforward and entertaining with little in the way of surprises or twists, just one man’s fall into the abyss. For a quick listen without too much brain power this could be a nice escape.
The story is performed by Alex Hyde-White. His sonorous voice is perfect for the folksy character both in tone and mood. There is a lighthearted feel to his voice that keeps the dark story from being depressing. There is only the one character telling us the entire story with no other character voices. He excellent and wonderful to listen to. A voice you might want to follow.
The Express is a quick tale that is reasonably enjoyable. Nothing earth-shattering or new, but entertaining enough. Give it a listen if you are in the mood for one man’s descent into darkness.
Audiobook was provided for review by the author
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May 29, 2016"Humourous Fun and Debatably Speechless"
"The Express" was a fun short story. Well, actually it was hilarious. It was a bus trip gone south and the ride down was a bumpy one. This isn't in any way a scary listen. It was a fun ride and about halfway through, I figured it out. The story has a lot of neat quips and awkward moments. I'd like to listen to more stories like this one. Really cute.
Alex Hyde-White was hilarious. His narration was spot on perfect for this story. He had an added flair which made the story all the more funny. His voice inflections were comedic and I enjoyed his performance 100%.
"This audiobook was provided by the author, narrator, or publisher at no cost in exchange for an unbiased review courtesy of Audiobook Blast."
May 22, 2016
I enjoyed this short story. It was interesting and kept my attention, and was well-written. I loved the narrator. The narrator, Alex Hyde-White, was really good and reminded me of the narrator J. Scott Bennett, who I recently discovered and love. Their tone and voice is similar, and I like this guy just as much. I would definitely check out more books narrated by him. If you're looking for an interesting short story with a great/interesting/well-developed main character, I highly recommend this one.
July 8, 2016
My rating: 4.5 stars
Audiobook narrator Alex Hyde-White rating: 4.5 stars
Sometimes I like to not read book descriptions in order to be completely surprised by the book. I mean, I knew that the book was a ‘horror’ book and some other genre-specific things, but no idea about the plot.
Needless to say, we take a wild ride to a scary place. The horror aspect of the book was captured very well and made me feel uncomfortable at times (which is intended).
I liked the narrator’s thoughts and his little one-liners throughout the book. It was told from a conversational story point and fit very well with the tone of the book. The book was interesting and certainly ‘bumpy’ ride. His puns were quite funny. Overall, this painted a nice [scary] picture of the afterlife in hell…
The narrator did a good job. There was no need for him to change his voice for other characters since it was more of a monologue type of thought process. He spoke in a conversational tone.
I received a free copy of this audiobook in exchange for an honest review.
Audiobook narrator Alex Hyde-White rating: 4.5 stars
Sometimes I like to not read book descriptions in order to be completely surprised by the book. I mean, I knew that the book was a ‘horror’ book and some other genre-specific things, but no idea about the plot.
Needless to say, we take a wild ride to a scary place. The horror aspect of the book was captured very well and made me feel uncomfortable at times (which is intended).
I liked the narrator’s thoughts and his little one-liners throughout the book. It was told from a conversational story point and fit very well with the tone of the book. The book was interesting and certainly ‘bumpy’ ride. His puns were quite funny. Overall, this painted a nice [scary] picture of the afterlife in hell…
The narrator did a good job. There was no need for him to change his voice for other characters since it was more of a monologue type of thought process. He spoke in a conversational tone.
I received a free copy of this audiobook in exchange for an honest review.
April 1, 2016
http://alittlebitofrnr.com/review-exp...
So when I saw what this book was about I was thinking it was going to be straight up horror. For me it wasn't at all scary didn't give me goosebumps or anything. The only thing I think that I enjoyed was what was coming out of the sky to grab those waiting in line, to knowing that the level you start at is determined by the bad deeds you did on Earth while you were alive. That comes right out of the book.
What this story is, is about a man who dies and ends up in hell pretty much and a little of what he endures while there.
This is a short story so if I write too long of a review I will be giving away the story being told. I think the author could have added more scariness to what the main character was being put through also to maybe have him relive some of the "bad" deeds he might have done. I do believe the author did a good job with detailing some things to what the main character was seeing and observing. For this I am going to bump it up to three stars.
Give this book a read and see what you think.
So when I saw what this book was about I was thinking it was going to be straight up horror. For me it wasn't at all scary didn't give me goosebumps or anything. The only thing I think that I enjoyed was what was coming out of the sky to grab those waiting in line, to knowing that the level you start at is determined by the bad deeds you did on Earth while you were alive. That comes right out of the book.
What this story is, is about a man who dies and ends up in hell pretty much and a little of what he endures while there.
This is a short story so if I write too long of a review I will be giving away the story being told. I think the author could have added more scariness to what the main character was being put through also to maybe have him relive some of the "bad" deeds he might have done. I do believe the author did a good job with detailing some things to what the main character was seeing and observing. For this I am going to bump it up to three stars.
Give this book a read and see what you think.
July 29, 2016
*I received this book for free in exchange for an honest review *
There is an art to the short story and R.K Howard’s tale of an ordinary man’s every day commute turning into his last has successfully mastered this. Many authors try to pack too much into a small word count and either the flow of the story or the characterisation suffers as a result. This certainly isn’t the case here.
The Express is a quick read that breathes fresh life into the ‘what happens when we die’ question that all of us ask ourselves at some point in our lives. The protagonist discovers the truth when the bus that he is travelling on is involved in a fatal collision.
There is no getting away from the dark subject matter, but R.K Howard has successfully blended sarcastic humour to add some degree of relief. And nicknaming regular fellow commuters is something that we all do in real life!
A fantastic, quick read!
There is an art to the short story and R.K Howard’s tale of an ordinary man’s every day commute turning into his last has successfully mastered this. Many authors try to pack too much into a small word count and either the flow of the story or the characterisation suffers as a result. This certainly isn’t the case here.
The Express is a quick read that breathes fresh life into the ‘what happens when we die’ question that all of us ask ourselves at some point in our lives. The protagonist discovers the truth when the bus that he is travelling on is involved in a fatal collision.
There is no getting away from the dark subject matter, but R.K Howard has successfully blended sarcastic humour to add some degree of relief. And nicknaming regular fellow commuters is something that we all do in real life!
A fantastic, quick read!
June 19, 2016
My e-copy of The Express was sent to me by author R.K. Howard in exchange for a review.
At approximately 47 pages, The Express is an extremely quick read, also a particularly creepy, scary, thought provoking one.
We don't get to know very much about the main character who is relating the story. We are with him as he boards his usual morning bus. Things go down hill from there, and just continue to get worse. Then they get really bad.
Without getting "preachy" or extolling the virtues of any religious dogma, author R.K. Howard does provoke us into the sometimes uncomfortable consideration of: What's next? Is there an existence after this life? Will there be consequences for how we lived this life?
A lot to bring up with a 47 page story. The Express did have a few typos, but not enough to impact my enjoyment of the book.
If you are ready for a story that will make you think, without trying to tell you what to think, The Express by R.K. Howard is the way to go. Enjoy!
Mike
At approximately 47 pages, The Express is an extremely quick read, also a particularly creepy, scary, thought provoking one.
We don't get to know very much about the main character who is relating the story. We are with him as he boards his usual morning bus. Things go down hill from there, and just continue to get worse. Then they get really bad.
Without getting "preachy" or extolling the virtues of any religious dogma, author R.K. Howard does provoke us into the sometimes uncomfortable consideration of: What's next? Is there an existence after this life? Will there be consequences for how we lived this life?
A lot to bring up with a 47 page story. The Express did have a few typos, but not enough to impact my enjoyment of the book.
If you are ready for a story that will make you think, without trying to tell you what to think, The Express by R.K. Howard is the way to go. Enjoy!
Mike
May 31, 2016
This is a slow burning short story horror. Not the gory or scary kind. We start the story with a man describing his daily bus routine…nothing special, but it lays a good foundation for the horrific bus crash that comes next. The entire story is done from the man’s perspective. We travel through the different residents on the bus, to the expressive intake of the bus crash, and carrying over to the life after.
Considering this is a short story it leaves my thoughts about it very short. It was a dark story that kept me thinking about it long after it was over. Howard made me feel like I was there witnessing it all. Alex Hyde-White brought the story to life with his narration. Even though it was a slower pace, I didn’t feel like the story was dragging on. This will definitely be a story that I read again.
Considering this is a short story it leaves my thoughts about it very short. It was a dark story that kept me thinking about it long after it was over. Howard made me feel like I was there witnessing it all. Alex Hyde-White brought the story to life with his narration. Even though it was a slower pace, I didn’t feel like the story was dragging on. This will definitely be a story that I read again.
Displaying 1 - 10 of 10 reviews