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GRAVENFROST
The Devil’s Domicile. The notoriously infamous house is just one of the hot spots that cultists, freaks, and other assorted malcontents visit in Gravenfrost, Maine. Founded on ground so tainted it was said to be vomited up from the sea itself, Gravenfrost isn’t your average sleepy New England town. When the host of a popular ghost-hunting TV show brutally murders his crew and co-hosts during an overnight filming, the FBI sends their agent most accustomed to “strange crap”: Special Agent Bobby Doyle. Doyle likes his cases like he likes his whiskey: neat and smooth. This one, however, is anything but. Was it simply foul play… or something far more sinister?
* * For MATURE AUDIENCES ONLY! * *
Praise for GRAVENFROST:
“A ‘romp’ is often over-used as a way to describe the kind of highly entertaining, free-wheeling action/horror story that Peter Hammarberg has come up with in Gravenfrost. A bloody, funny, spooky lovechild of Roger Avery, Quentin Tarantino, Stephen King and the kind of 69-cent ‘Men’s Adventure’ novels you used to see in the spinner racks at the drugstore. This is fun, smart, cinematic stuff and I think most readers will like it a lot.”
* * For MATURE AUDIENCES ONLY! * *
Praise for GRAVENFROST:
“A ‘romp’ is often over-used as a way to describe the kind of highly entertaining, free-wheeling action/horror story that Peter Hammarberg has come up with in Gravenfrost. A bloody, funny, spooky lovechild of Roger Avery, Quentin Tarantino, Stephen King and the kind of 69-cent ‘Men’s Adventure’ novels you used to see in the spinner racks at the drugstore. This is fun, smart, cinematic stuff and I think most readers will like it a lot.”
-Joe Kilmartin from We-Love-Monsters.com and PapaJoeMambo.com
“We can’t stop here, it’s ghost country! Brave readers will sit back, sip their whiskey, and enjoy this gonzo, hard-boiled spook story!”
-Tim Mucci, author of ‘The Geek Baby Book,’ All Action Classics ‘Tom Sawyer’ and ‘The Odyssey,’ and co-host of The Double Shadow podcast.
“A ridiculously raucous read overflowing with clever dialogue, spooky ghouls and insane action with a finale you will not want to miss.”
-Robert Nixon, graphic artist and grindhouse/horror aficionado
- GenresHorror
152 pages, Kindle Edition
First published May 4, 2016
9 people are currently reading
23 people want to read
About the author
Peter Hammarberg
6 books19 followersPeter Hammarberg is a scruffy-looking word herder, and the author of gonzo-horror novella, Gravenfrost, scifi adventure novel, Antillia: The Order of the Lucifuge book one, and outsider art- mix media train wreck love story... comic...type...thing, The Mermaid of Maxport.
He was born and raised on Long Island, New York, but now resides in a nose-bleed section of New England.
He was born and raised on Long Island, New York, but now resides in a nose-bleed section of New England.
Ratings & Reviews
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Displaying 1 - 13 of 13 reviews
August 26, 2017
This book was a hell of a good time! The sort of book you read with a big fat grin on your face. Diaboliquely funny, gory as shit, and written by a guy who obviously loves the genre. I absolutely recommend picking it up, it'll haunt you ✌🏻
May 31, 2022
Read this book start to finish on a flight, what a fucking riot!!!
August 29, 2021
If you are looking for a collage of paranormal activity, occultist rhetoric, suspense, raw and unfiltered dialogue, with a spectacular ending(no spoilers!) then this is the novel for you. When the movie adaptation comes out I’ll be there for sure. Also a great recommendation if you’re a sucker for damaged people. I know I am. 10/10 Fast read, buy the book.
February 23, 2023
If you read any of my reviews, you know I typically start off with sharing how the book came to be on my TBR. Well, this one’s a fun one (at least I think so!) and one of the stranger ones!
Recently, a movie blasted it’s way onto Netflix that had everyone watching it and loving it. That movie was TROLL. I watched it with my son, who you may already know loves creature feature/Kaiju and Kaiju-adjacent movies, and we loved it. I think we’ve watched it five or six times now and each time is just a fun time. The movie itself is really well done, as many of the foreign films are, because it takes the story seriously and isn’t all about big explosions and catchy one-liners. The movie was co-written by Espen Auken and it turned out that we followed each other on Twitter and Instagram. We have messaged a bunch over that time, Espen kindly answering some questions that my son had (yes, there is a quick moment that is an ode to Jurassic Park in the movie!) and I sent him a copy of ‘Churn the Soil.’ Well, Espen had posted about this book, ‘GRAVENFROST’ by an author I’d not heard of and after reading the synopsis and reveling in the glorious cover art, I knew I needed to read it.
I went in with great excitement and I have to say – this book pushed me in a way I wasn’t expecting – but HOLY HELL, was this a fun time.
What I liked: ‘GRAVENFROST’ follows outcast FBI Special Agent Bobby Doyle who heads to the town of Gravenfrost to investigate the deaths of a group of ghost hunters. Only one of them survived, but it was all caught on film, and it took place at a notoriously haunted house, which means Doyle aka the agent tasked with ridiculous cases involving this type of phenomenon is sent out.
I’ve said this a million times in my reviews and online – I don’t like humor in my dark fiction. I never have. It typically throws me right out of the story and makes it hard for me to stay focused and on task. But Hammarberg didn’t care what I thought when he wrote this and Bobby Doyle is not only a massive dick, but a hilarious SOB and it just worked. I raced through this. The best way I can describe his character is this – David Duchovny played Fox Mulder on The X Files. Duchovny also played Hank Moody in the fantastic Californication. Bobby Doyle is Hank Moody as Fox Mulder. Just a frat-boy, ass hat who doesn’t hold back and makes quips, snarky comments and whatever comes into his mind at that exact moment. He’s essentially me in real life and I loved it. His character worked so well, but with the secondary characters, it really had me in stitches.
The story races along as we learn what happened and what Doyle needs to do to end the horror happening at the house, known as The Devil’s Domicile. There are some really frightening moments but those are typically bookended but some really well done set up and knock down scenes, which allows the action to be nicely paced.
The ending is really well done, as well as the closing out of the characters. It definitely sets things up for more in this world. I hope we get to revisit Bobby Doyle. Even though this came out in 2016, there could still very well be another novel coming at some point.
What I didn’t like: I think I would’ve liked it if we would’ve had one more huge scare moment. We get a couple, but the ending is more bash and boom than oooh’s and aaahh’s. I gotta stay spoiler free, but I really wish we would’ve seen a big good vs evil moment.
Why you should buy this: ‘GRAVENFROST’ ticks a lot of boxes for those who like dark fiction. We get really fantastic characters, great banter, a really solid set piece with the town of Gravenfrost but also The Devil’s Domicile and we get some really amazing spooks and sequences. I’m frustrated I didn’t come across this one sooner, but hopefully more of you will get on this amazing read after seeing my review!
Now, we await a potential sequel!
Recently, a movie blasted it’s way onto Netflix that had everyone watching it and loving it. That movie was TROLL. I watched it with my son, who you may already know loves creature feature/Kaiju and Kaiju-adjacent movies, and we loved it. I think we’ve watched it five or six times now and each time is just a fun time. The movie itself is really well done, as many of the foreign films are, because it takes the story seriously and isn’t all about big explosions and catchy one-liners. The movie was co-written by Espen Auken and it turned out that we followed each other on Twitter and Instagram. We have messaged a bunch over that time, Espen kindly answering some questions that my son had (yes, there is a quick moment that is an ode to Jurassic Park in the movie!) and I sent him a copy of ‘Churn the Soil.’ Well, Espen had posted about this book, ‘GRAVENFROST’ by an author I’d not heard of and after reading the synopsis and reveling in the glorious cover art, I knew I needed to read it.
I went in with great excitement and I have to say – this book pushed me in a way I wasn’t expecting – but HOLY HELL, was this a fun time.
What I liked: ‘GRAVENFROST’ follows outcast FBI Special Agent Bobby Doyle who heads to the town of Gravenfrost to investigate the deaths of a group of ghost hunters. Only one of them survived, but it was all caught on film, and it took place at a notoriously haunted house, which means Doyle aka the agent tasked with ridiculous cases involving this type of phenomenon is sent out.
I’ve said this a million times in my reviews and online – I don’t like humor in my dark fiction. I never have. It typically throws me right out of the story and makes it hard for me to stay focused and on task. But Hammarberg didn’t care what I thought when he wrote this and Bobby Doyle is not only a massive dick, but a hilarious SOB and it just worked. I raced through this. The best way I can describe his character is this – David Duchovny played Fox Mulder on The X Files. Duchovny also played Hank Moody in the fantastic Californication. Bobby Doyle is Hank Moody as Fox Mulder. Just a frat-boy, ass hat who doesn’t hold back and makes quips, snarky comments and whatever comes into his mind at that exact moment. He’s essentially me in real life and I loved it. His character worked so well, but with the secondary characters, it really had me in stitches.
The story races along as we learn what happened and what Doyle needs to do to end the horror happening at the house, known as The Devil’s Domicile. There are some really frightening moments but those are typically bookended but some really well done set up and knock down scenes, which allows the action to be nicely paced.
The ending is really well done, as well as the closing out of the characters. It definitely sets things up for more in this world. I hope we get to revisit Bobby Doyle. Even though this came out in 2016, there could still very well be another novel coming at some point.
What I didn’t like: I think I would’ve liked it if we would’ve had one more huge scare moment. We get a couple, but the ending is more bash and boom than oooh’s and aaahh’s. I gotta stay spoiler free, but I really wish we would’ve seen a big good vs evil moment.
Why you should buy this: ‘GRAVENFROST’ ticks a lot of boxes for those who like dark fiction. We get really fantastic characters, great banter, a really solid set piece with the town of Gravenfrost but also The Devil’s Domicile and we get some really amazing spooks and sequences. I’m frustrated I didn’t come across this one sooner, but hopefully more of you will get on this amazing read after seeing my review!
Now, we await a potential sequel!
March 7, 2023
Promising “Gonzo hard-boiled horror” on the cover, Peter Hammarberg’s GRAVENFROST delivers. A glorious mash-up of pulp storytelling and pop culture, brimming with joyful genre fun on every page. Structured as an FBI debriefing, special agent Bobby Doyle spins a tale of The Devil's Domicile, a particularly malevolent locale on the equally spooky island of Gravenfrost, Maine — a place so convincingly described, you’ll find yourself Googling it! Like a friend who never lets your glass go empty, Doyle is the kind of rakish raconteur you could listen to all night — a throwback to the gumshoe detectives of old with a uniquely modern sensibility and sly wit. Mix well with snappy dialogue, heaps of hauntings, depraved serial killers, explosive action, and of course, a femme fatale, and you’ve got one hell of an entertaining read. (Also boasts a terrific cover by artist Glenn Barr)
August 6, 2021
Peter Hammarberg's tongue-in-cheek novel Gravenfrost is a real treat for those fans of the pulp horror persuasion. With rude characters, outrageous dialogue, and a uniquely irresistible plot, it is everything that every horror-comedy fan should have on their shelves.
I recommend pestering your local bookstore to get this gem in, and you can be at the forefront of riding this wave into the future. Mr. Hammarberg certainly has more out-of-this-world tales to tell us, and I wouldn't want to be the one missing out.
I recommend pestering your local bookstore to get this gem in, and you can be at the forefront of riding this wave into the future. Mr. Hammarberg certainly has more out-of-this-world tales to tell us, and I wouldn't want to be the one missing out.
March 24, 2023
Great fun! Gravenfrost is exactly what it says on the cover "for mature readers" (take that seriously) Gonzo Hard-boiled Horror! Reading like maybe a cross of the young Perry Mason, Jim Thompson, a Lovecraft movie, and the X-files, but much funnier (and way more naughty bits) than any of the above. I loved it, and am definitely hoping for more tales of Special Agent Bobby Doyle, more views of the charming town of Gravenfrost... and hoping to see more of the strangely alluring Dr Lydia Hobbs!
February 1, 2023
My initial review was on Instagram but since, I’ve removed myself from social media. Anyway…
This clever, witty, macabre story is the bomb. I finished it and kept it which is a good sign that a book was worth my time.
Five out of five stars
This clever, witty, macabre story is the bomb. I finished it and kept it which is a good sign that a book was worth my time.
Five out of five stars
Read
November 20, 2019gravenfrost was the shit, the author hit it on the head for excitement,waiting for a sequal, and a movie, enjoyed every chapter,want more,more,more
June 16, 2021
Definitely a page turner. Once I started I didn't want to put it down until the end.
May 10, 2024
Really fun read. Clever writing and laugh out loud dialog. The plot was killer and I absolutely loved some of the characters that were thinly veiled caricatures of real life paranormal tv celebs.
July 22, 2016
I absolutely loved this book. It was so good that I read this book in two days and I am NOT an avid reader. I was sucked in and could not put it down. Good comedy, great dialogue of it's eerie beyond belief. Definitely a good read for the summer!
April 22, 2021
This book is fantastic! Fast read, full of snappy one liners, great character development and a great story line. I see more 'Special' agent Doyle joy rides to come. Thank you Peter for fun story. I love it!
Displaying 1 - 13 of 13 reviews