Darkchylde

Ariel Chylde Saga #1

by R. Queen

Ariel Chylde is haunted by horrible dreams, and on her eighteenth birthday sheds her skin as the nightmares emerge to act out her deepest, darkest impulses.

But before Ariel can save her small town from the terror of her dreams,
she must first save herself from the sinister secret of her subconscious.

A secret guarded by unspeakable evil.

Genres: Horror, Paranormal, Fantasy, Urban Fantasy

Paperback

First published October 31, 2016

About the author

R.Queen is an accomplished comic book creator, poet, fine artist, and writer.

In this, his first novel, Queen brings a visual power and a lyrical sensibility to one girl’s struggle with loss, identity, and nightmares beyond imagination. Shining a light into the darkest depths of the heart to illuminate the courage of the human spirit. A courage found only by facing the fears which dwell hungry and ancient within us all.

keysofshadowandlight.tumblr.com
instagram.com/rqueenauthor
darkchylde.com

Reviews

[Anna lost in stories *A* · Rating 4 out of 5]

I got the ARC of this book from the publisher in exchange for an honest review and let me tell you... it was like nothing I've read before... and quite honestly, not what I expected... :) I finished it some time ago and I still have troubles getting all my thoughts together and trying to write something about it... especially since I feel I need to be really vague when it comes to details about the actual story and characters, because this book truly surprised me many times and I don't want to ruin those surprises for you... so let me tell you a bit about the main character and the premise of the book and then I will share with you some of my none-spoilery thoughts and feelings after finishing it :)

The main character of this book is Ariel... the majority of the story is told from her perspective, although we do get chapters from other people as well :) she is... I want to say a senior in high school, but I didn't write that particular detail down so I'm not 100 % sure... but back to more important details... she is... well... the situation about her is quite complicated, especially since I don't want to spoil you the most important things... so let me just say, that she's fighting some very horrible nightmares... is there more to this situation...? I'm not gonna answer that :) what I CAN tell you is that there is definitely more to know about Ariel and her past... but we get those answers further in the book so no spoilers from me :) soooo... to be honest, that is all I can tell you about her and the premise of the story :) I mean, I probably could tell you a little detail or two more, but to be honest, I really think it's best to get into the book knowing as little as possible :) so now let me tell you about all my feelings about it :)

Ok, so to be completely honest, if I would knew before what this book is actually about, I probably wouldn't read it... and here's why :) it reads like a horror movie... and I mean that as a compliment :) the writing style pulls you in from the very beginning and was the main reason why I actually finished this book :) you may not know this about me, but I really don't like horror movies... I can't even watch trailers for them, because my imagination is to vivid and I can't sleep afterwards... so imagine what thoughts went through my head when I started reading this book and getting to know what was really going on in it... we are thrown straight into action, basically without any explanation whatsoever... and pretty much throughout the first half of the book I was all like "what the WHAT is going on?!?" :) but then, the answers started appearing... and I was not happy with that situation as well... why? oh I'll tell you :) it was damn scary, that's why :) like I said before, the writing style was truly phenomenal in this story... vivid and descriptive, it made me feel like I was watching a movie... and that was also what made me read this book for quite some time... because the story got so creepy and scary at times, that I couldn't read it at night... I had to wait for the time when I could finish this book during the day... #TrueStory :) I definitely don't regret reading it, after all I made a conscious decision to actually finish the book, but I blame the fantastic writing style for that ;) the story itself was full of surprising turns of events, and that's mainly why I don't want to say anything else about it... so if you are looking for a different book... a book that will definitely creep you out and make your imagination run wild... then definitely give this one a try... :)

XOXO

A

[Cassandra (Thebookishcrypt) · Rating 5 out of 5]

*ARC provided by publisher in exchange for an honest review*
"If you stare long enough, you start to realize the shadows stare back."
This was my first novel by R. Queen and I am unbelievably proud to say that he has become one of my favorite authors ever. I had such high expectations for this book due to this GORGEOUS cover and the synopsis that I was beyond terrified I would ruin my experience because of it. But as soon as I cracked it open, Queen crumpled my expectations and gave me so much more than I hoped for. The beginning set the perfect mood for the entire story and it had me falling in love from the very first word. Every page in this novel appealed to so many parts of my soul that I kept getting teary eyed. THIS is exactly what I look for in a horror book. It made me cringe, it made me smile, it made me hope while at the same time dread the worst, and most often than not, it made me cry. Queen has such a flawless way with words that I was awestruck by him from cover to cover.
This book is beyond phenomenal, both inside and out. It has a beautiful cover, a satisfying plot, the perfect amount of gore, realistic characters, memorable monsters, a few journal entries from our main character, and fantastic illustrations at the beginning of every chapter.
This story is based on the comic books and I have never read anything like it before. It mainly follows Ariel Chylde, an 18 year old outcast who is grieving and who can't catch a decent amount of sleep. Her nightmares keep her awake until they start manifesting into her real life, in the most fascinating way ever. She literally turns into the creatures from her nightmares and it made me so giddy to witness it all. Ariel is now one of my favorite female characters of all time. She has such a beautiful heart who has experienced some of the worst things imaginable but she somehow managed to keep a hold of the light within her. I actually related to her in a level that surprised me since I rarely come across it. Some of the things she said and did felt like they were ripped straight out of my life and it was the most amazing experience. We get a few other point of views here and there which made the story so much better, in my opinion, since I loved witnessing certain events through different eyes.
I can't recommend this book enough and I will rave about it until the end of time. This book needs it's own spotlight on my shelf and I won't rest until I make it happen. Every word in this novel oozed extreme sadness and torment which made it even more memorable than it already was. It had enough physical and emotional brutality (and gore) to make my heart sing... I need more!! That ending ripped my heart to shreds and I couldn't stop crying for a great while after finishing this. There were sooooo many stunning quotes that made up this novel so it was difficult to choose just one to feature on here. So I will feature another one that deeply resonated with me and won't stop haunting me:
"That weird, apprehensive feeling where you realize someone could be a friend or just one more person to pour fuel on a fire when there's not much left to burn."
6/5 stars!

[Maud · Rating 1 out of 5]

DNF

I did not like the writing style, the main character and some weird comments that the author added in the story (i.e. a teacher who looks better without her glasses and has cat pictures on her desk must not be able to find a man). I tried to finish it but this book only makes me feel annoyed and frustrated. There is nothing in it that makes me want to continue reading.

[Montzalee Wittmann · Rating 5 out of 5]

Darkchylde: The Ariel Chylde Saga by R. Queen is a wonderfully dark and creepy fantasy I enjoyed tremendously. It was full of twists, turns, WTF and scare you to death moments, but I loved every minute! Wow, what a book! A horror, romance, mystery, and more. Great plot, great characters (even the strange creepy ones!), and lots of twists. This is the book for those who has read horror books and is getting bored, this is for you! Thanks NetGalley for suggesting this book! WOW!

[Nay Denise · Rating 3 out of 5]

Received a copy for review.

I wasn't sure what to rate this book because it really dragged for me and the characters were a bit strange, but I'm definitely giving this 3.5 stars. Why? As much as I tried to love this book and really get into it, I just couldn't. I felt detached from the characters which made the story boring for me. However, I enjoyed the dark fantasy aspects and the dreamlike state this book took place in.

Ariel Chylde was a good character. She used to have friends and a boyfriend until her nightmares started to get to her. Now Ariel is seen as the freak of the school. She has sudden fits, outbursts and goes into a dreamworld at unexpected moments. Ariel was a brave girl. Even though people made fun of her, she stayed true to herself. Even when the nightmares started to crack on the wall between reality and dream she stayed strong. She embraced her difference from people.

Miss Happy is Ariel's younger self in her dream world. Miss Happy is the polar opposite of Ariel. She's loud and outgoing, but still quirky. Cute Face aka Perry was the hottie that seemed to have an eye on Ariel. Of the three main characters, he was the medium. He was shy, but spoke his mind. I enjoyed Perry a lot. I think he was a good "companion" of sorts for Ariel. Stacy was a total grade A bitch. I hated her from start to finish. She wasn't a main character, but I just needed to put it out there that I hated her.

The idea behind this story seemed pretty awesome. I found my mind being blown away with the writing and the worlds, but I still felt like some things were missing. The book for me just was all over as far as pace and the way it flowed. One moment we see Ariel doing something, but than she blacks out and enters her nightmares or we hope from Ariel over to Miss Happy or even Perry's dad. It was to the point where I found myself re-reading several passages over to try and understand what happened and when it exactly happened.

Overall, the story was a pretty okay read for me and I do plan to read the sequel to see how things fair out for Ariel.

[Tânia · Rating 4 out of 5]

*Received this books from the publisher and choose to review it honestly*

''This story is a tale about loss, struggle, mind-illness and coming of age. Is a beautifully written tale of one’s struggle to find the light in a path carved to be very dark....''

Find out everything in: http://like-a-fangirl.blogspot.com/20...

[Candace Wondrak · Rating 3 out of 5]

I've never read the comics, which apparently this is based off of/goes with? I have a lot of comics, but they're mostly for collection purposes only. Anything with a cool cover, and i'm in. It doesn't take much to make me want to read a book. With all the books on my to-read shelf, and all the books sitting on my multiple bookcases, maybe I should start having higher standards.

Darkchylde is unlike anything I've ever read. It's dark, gritty, and its language is very lyrical and eerie. The descriptions of Ariel's nightmares were fantastic - full of blood and weird things that I can't even describe here. Penance was scary. I don't read much horror/suspense, but this book had plenty of horror.

Let's talk about the Characters. Ariel is the MC ,who just turns 18 in the beginning of the book. It's on this night that everything changes. Things start to occur that I won't spoil. She's constantly tormented by her classmates. Really, really tormented. Like, reminiscent of Carrie. You've seen the movie, so you can imagine where this goes, especially for our main tormenter, Stacey, who stole Ariel's boyfriend and now flaunts him in front of her while filming her breakdowns. Her mother died when she was younger, and it plays a large part in the story later on.

And, of course, I have to mention Perry, AKA Cute Face. He's got a bit of a past of his own, and he's drawn to Ariel. He must be some kind of weird, though, because if I just met someone and they said weird things like she does...well, I can't say if I'd stick around.

The story did enthrall me, but sometimes as I was reading, I was confused at what was going on. That might be the point, as we don't find out what's really happening with Ariel until the end. The writing style fit the plot of the book, but sometimes it was too much.

A solid book. Since I didn't read any of the other Darkchylde things, I can't say much more. 3 stars.

I received a free copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

[Miranda · Rating 4 out of 5]

Received a copy via netgalley.

This was such a refreshing read it had so many amazing things going on. Characters were dark, mysterious, interesting plot was not break neck paced but moved steadily. I loved the details in the pages with the printing would definitely be one to purchase for the shelves.

[moonlit reads · Rating 3 out of 5]

I received a copy of Darkchylde from the publisher, and I was genuinely excited to dive in, especially since it’s based on a comic book series. The cover is striking and dramatic, and it’s not hard to see why this book would catch someone’s eye. It’s just a shame it didn’t quite meet my expectations… though maybe that’s partly on me for having too many to begin with.

The plot isn’t easy to figure out. It starts with a simple enough premise: a young girl named Ariel is battling her own nightmares (literally). And at first, it works. The intro pulled me in with this strange but effective setup, and I really liked the way the main character was introduced. There was definite potential. If it had kept that tone and pace, it could’ve easily become one of those stories I devour in a single night, no matter how busy I am (and trust me, I was busy, okay?).

But as the book went on, it began to lose me. The pacing became inconsistent, the setting kept shifting, and new characters were thrown in without much context. It reached a point where I just wasn’t even curious about what would happen next. And worse, I didn’t really know what was happening anymore. The writing didn’t help much either. I couldn’t stop thinking about how this would’ve played out in comic book form, and honestly, I think I would’ve enjoyed it a lot more that way.

[Daniel · Rating 2 out of 5]

This review originally published in Looking For a Good Book. Rated 2.25 of 5

I enjoy a good horror/dark fiction read and I will be honest - I was drawn to this book because of this beautiful cover that promises so much beauty and imagination in darkness. The book is set in a world first developed by the same author as a comic book series (a 'hit' comic book series according to the book cover).

Ariel Chylde is a high school student who suffers from horrible dreams and nightmares. She has sudden, strange outbursts in school and as a result is treated as an outcast and pariah. Most of us know how cruel high school students can be (does anyone NOT know the Stephen King book, Carrie?). Ariel suffers from her peer abuse.

But on her eighteenth birthday, Ariel's nightmares become a reality. She sprouts wings and she winds her way into her nightmare world to fend off the monsters for real. Those living in the 'normal' world don't understand what she's doing and what she's protecting them from. Instead, they think that she's the monster who needs to be stopped.

Ariel is a wonderful character. Despite the abuse she takes from her peers and the nightmares and her questioning her sanity and everything around her, she remains strong and willful.

Unfortunately, however, the writing was terribly uneven. We learn at the end that this is R. Queen's first novel despite a career writing for comics, and I think it shows. The writing, as many others have indicated, is very lyrical and poetical, but it takes more than poetry to tell a story, and the writing necessary to tell a 32-page comic and/or a multi-comic series, is very different from building a story for a novel. Most of the book is from Ariel's point of view but we do get occasional spurts - by way of very short chapters - from someone else's point of view. This might work easily in a comic when we can see a panel or two, or even a page, but in a novel it tends to slow us down more - unless the alternating points of view are balanced well to tell the story.

And while the writing is poetical and lyrical at times, it sometimes felt like poetry in place of story. We gloss over character development to spend time waxing poetic about dark descriptions and monsters. The descriptions in the comics come by way of the art, where we can absorb description and action and dialog all at once. In a novel we can only take it in a word at a time - this is where the seasoned story-teller understands the balance and where R. Queen is very uneven.

I wanted to like this, and hoped that the story would live up to the great cover. I suspect I would have really liked the comic/graphic novel. But this book, as a work of fiction, doesn't hold up.

Looking for a good book? Darkchylde: The Ariel Chylde Saga is based on a comic book, both by R. Queen. The comic is probably a better place to go to get this story as this is extremely uneven and a struggle.

I received a digital copy of this book from the publisher, through Netgalley, in exchange for an honest review.

[D · Rating 5 out of 5]

Dark fantasy with a touch of sweet

Metric system - Those are my personal opinions, you may discord, my final rating of the book is not necessarily linked to this system and may diverge from it.
Book Storyline
- Originality: 5/5 stars
- Development: 4/5 stars
- Enjoyment: 5/5 stars
- Writing stile: 5/5 stars
- Funnyness: 1/5 stars
- Epicness: 3/5 stars
- Scaryness: 3/5 stars
- Smartness: 3/5 stars
- Addictiveness: 3/5 stars
- Plot twists: 3/5 stars
- Pace: 3/5 stars
- Storyline planning: 3/5 stars OR /5 negative stars
- Ending: 3/5 stars OR /5 negative stars
- Holes: 1/5 negative stars
- Self contained (Y/N): √
- Cliffhanger (Y/N): ○
- Adult (Y/N): ○
- Mystery (Y/N): ○
- Treasure Hunting (Y/N): ○
- Violence level: Good enough, with people losing body parts and dead
- Tech level: Current age, cellphones
- Religion level: Native American fictional
- Main genre: Fantasy
- Subgenre: Dark Fantasy, Urban Fantasy
- Point of view: Main Character first person, with rare interludes
- Aftertaste: Enjoyed it
- Quote: Sometimes things break so they can be put back together stronger. Other times they break so they can die.
World
- Originality: 5/5 stars
- Variety: 5/5 stars
- Consistency: 5/5 stars
- Impact on the story: 5/5 stars
- Maps: -/5 stars
- Real world (Y/N): √
- Fantasy based on real world (Y/N): √
- Journey (Y/N): ○
- Main scenario: Salem City
Characters
- Total amount: ~ 10
- Points of view: 1
- Main characters: 1
- Secondary: 5
- Ordinary: ~7
- Overall quality: 4/5 stars
- Main: 4/5 stars
- Secondary: 4/5 stars
- Consistency: 5/5 stars
- Connection: 3/5 stars
- Dialogs: 5/5 Stars
- Interactions: 4/5 Stars
- Romance ( Y/ N): √
- Underworld Crew (Y/N): ○
- Training (Y/N): ○
- Notable best characters: Old owl lady
- Notable worse characters: ex-boyfriend
Setting
- Historical importance: 5/5 Stars
- Historical deep: 3/5 Stars
- Historical score: 4/5 Stars
- Geopolitical importance: 1/5 Stars
- Geopolitical variety: 1/5 Stars
- Geopolitical score: 1/5 Stars
- Setting overall score: 5/5 Stars
- Supernatural (Vampires, werewolves) (Y/N): Supernatural unusual stuff
- Superpowers (√/○): √
- Non-human races (Y/N): √
- Virtual Reality (Y/N): ○
- Monsters (Y/N): √
- Historical relevant period: 1 generation
Rules
- Devised system: 5/5 stars
- System complexity: 3/5 stars
- System explanation: 3/5 stars
- Impact on storyline: 5/5 stars
- Rulebreaker (Y/N): N
- Type of Rule: Nightmares
Final
- What went great: Nightmares, some dark philosophy
- What went wrong: A little too much of sweetness
- Worth to read: 5/5 stars
▶◀
I didn't knew Ariel Chylde comics previously to reading this, and enjoyed it quite a lot, the nightmares stuff is pretty cool, being supernatural yet not so superabused by media yet.
There is a little too much of "pretty thinking" for my taste, but it's not so much as to deny a nice experience.

[Connor Fineran · Rating 1 out of 5]

TASTELESS. VAPID. DANGEROUS

You can go a long way with a good idea. But eventually, said idea must yield something deeper than the initial appraisal. In layman's terms: Your cool idea must eventually lead somewhere, to something greater.

Darkchylde: The Ariel Chylde Saga doesn't go anywhere. In fact, it slides backwards into a brick wall, splattering its insides all over the brick. And then somehow keeps moving backward.

For those not in the know (and thankfully no one knows about this disgusting book), Darkchylde was a character *cough* I'm sorry, trend that appeared in 1996 in an Image comic book. There was little to the story outside of the basic premise: Hot chick with problems shapeshifts into cool monsters. Due to the time period, the comic ran on its art rather than writing. Since then, the property quickly faded into obscurity. Fast forward twenty years, and the same artist and writer who decided to over-sexualize a 17 year old girl in the midst of and after an apparent sexual assault by her stepfather lends his overwrought prose to converting her into "The Next Big YA Franchise" (http://www.scifipulse.net/why-randy-q...)

Goody!

So what's the plot?

WHAT PLOT?!!

I'm not entirely sure what the plot is. It's more like cheap melodrama theater. Our heroine, Ariel Chylde (yes, that really is her name), is bullied (I guess?) and has nightmares about monsters. She has a pervy teacher (I think?) and a nosy guidance counselor who wears pink and has pictures of cats (so you know she's dumpy and gross). Her dad is also an alcoholic. And then she falls asleep and dreams of a little girl version of herself, dubbed Miss Happy, who warns her(?) and gets capture d by the Nightmares...And then she meets a hot guy named Perry, and she goes on a date with him, but doesn't tell her father about it even though she seems to have a good relationship with him...
And the bully is at the date spot...And Ariel gets in a fight...And Dad shows up and is drunk and acts like an abusive dad...And then there's a car accident and Ariel turns into a monster that disembowels the bully...?

Seriously, trying to summarize this plot is impossible. It's not even really a story, it's just a bunch of random things that happen. There's no rhyme or reason to how anything even works, things just happen because "Hey, I read Carrie and/or watched the Wolfman!" How do her powers work exactly? Is she controlling the monsters? Are they controlling her? Why is nothing every properly explained? Who's the Native American owl lady (yeah, that's a thing. Charming, Queen.)? How does the Nightmare World work? Where did Miss Happy come from? Are the monsters intelligent or not? Did she create them?

Characters? What characters? Everyone is a stereotype! Ariel's basically Bella Swan now, but an even BIGGER bitch, Perry is "Mr. Perfect with a Tragic (read: FUCKING TASTELESS) backstory", Jack Stodghill is DA SHERIFF, so on and so on. Special mention goes to Miss Happy for being an incessant "mysterious little girl" cliche who never shuts up and speaks in riddles even though she could just clearly say WHAT THE HELL IS GOING ON!!!

And don't get me started on the prose. Queen desperately needs an editor or at the very least someone who can remove his head from his ass because NEWS FLASH, buddy: Sniffing your own farts won't make you a better writer!

“It begins with a butterfly in a web, with surges of frantic color eager to be born back on an unforgiving wind. The web had waited for empty days between the railing and steel column of our breezeway, and now trembles with life as my classmates gather with their phones to capture the final moments of desperation.
Maybe I’m the only one who appreciates an orange monarch on this grey fall morning—even from here I can see how pretty it is. Like me, it was on its way somewhere, and it makes me sad it got tangled.”

You're really laying it on thick, aren't you, Queen? "Oh, she's the ONLY ONE who wants to help the butterfly and everyone is SO CRUEL. SEE?! Everyone's taking pictures of a butterfly in a web! So horrible! Everyone's so meeeean!!" I know you read Carrie, but what does this have to do with your story? It never comes up again. In fact, our heroine is a monster WITHOUT the cruelty of her classmates!
The entire. Book. Is written like this.
Except the parts that aren't from her perspective. Which begs the question: If you're going to switch perspectives, why not fill us in on other characters?!! Like the MAIN CHARACTERS?!! (More on that later)

Which brings me to the real ugliness at the center of this. The raw, calculated cynicism that birthed this shameful excuse for literature.

It throws self harm for a few pages and has the gall to say that "it's a choice not to cut".

Perry's backstory? Yeah, he apparently lost a girlfriend to suicide. But the book doesn't have the BALLS to just say "She committed suicide, and I think it was my fault." He describes it like: "She loved me, and I left her to her darkness." Suicide and mental illness. In FLOWERY FUCKING LANGUAGE.

Ariel's father apparently cares for her despite his affliction, but SUDDENLY he becomes a drunk abusive dad like freaking Alvin Marsh (See Stephen King's IT).

A teacher whom we are TOLD is a perv (never actually shown, by the way) gets his head bitten off, and his wife and dogs die. And the bully, who mostly just menaced our protagonist and cyberbullied her (and says stuff like "Did you shit yourself Ariel, or is that insanity I smell." I'm not kidding) gets disemboweled along with her boyfriend.

Ariel gets out of the hospital after a horrible car accident, right? Well, there's an entire segment of page space devoted to her feeling herself up, noting her nipples are far more sensitive now. (Side note: After the cops find her after the aforementioned car accident, the narration notes that she's "very naked" with a "supernatural beauty". Yuck.)

OH! And she's known Perry a day, okay? So when he finds her naked and unconscious in the rain, he takes her to his house (at her request, to be fair), but then she wakes up in his bed and she's CLOTHED.

HE DRESSED HER WHILE SHE WAS UNCONSCIOUS. SHE'S ONLY KNOWN HIM A DAY.

AND SHE FINDS THIS ROMANTIC!!!!!

You know, I just realized, there's a lot of scenes that involve her being naked. Our traumatized, mentally ill, BARELY LEGAL protagonist being in states of undress. She's been in an accident, she's lost her father, she apparently has no living relatives left. She turned into a monster that apparently acts on her instincts.

And all she can think about is getting revenge on a bully who didn't even bother her that much and how her breasts aren't lopsided and her nipples are more sensitive. And she finds it romantic that a guy she barely knows touched her while she was asleep.

F***. THAT.

[Heather Blackman · Rating 5 out of 5]

I was given an ARC in exchange for an honest review. This honestly took me a while to get through (not because I didn’t like the novel, but because I only read 1-3 chapters at night to make it last). The book started out captivating. I love to detailed descriptions and darkness, some things that were never really mentioned in the graphic novels were portrayed here all in one novel. My mind painted another who picture of this character more so than the comics for me. I was able to use my imagination and add in some details to Ariel’s story I did not know simply from the comics. I would recommend this to young adult readers as well as fans of Darkchylde and those even unfamiliar with the story. This has a unique edge that is worth reading. I can’t wait for its rerelease to share with other or to see a hardcover edition.

[Megan =^..^= · Rating 5 out of 5]

So good!! This is the first attempt towards the Darkchylde world I've made, and it fully succeeded in making me a lifelong fan. I definitely plan to look into the comic book series, but this book was stellar regardless if you've read the comic or even plan to. Fiction fans, primarily sci-fi/ fantasy fans should all add this to their "must read" list!

[Diana Davis · Rating 5 out of 5]

Darkchylde: The Ariel Chylde Saga Kindle Edition
by R. Queen
I received a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review
Some books are character driven. You want to see the character evolve, get what they want or what they deserve. Other books are plot driven. Scene to scene in a swift swish. Darkchylde is not one of those books. The reader is driven to the next sentence, the next page or the next chapter by the sheer beauty of the writing. Stunning writing at its poetic best. Mr. Queen takes prose and turns into poetry, creating images and rhythms that go together, creating a world half a step away from ours. Close in its reality but different so different in its truth
Mr. Queen has created some of the most beautiful and truthful sentences and quotes I've read. From Perry saying to Ariel “Optimism is necessary when confronting dragons.” to the description of Ariel's empty home “Even the dampness of the air feels damned.” pull us into their world and their feelings in a way rarely seen.
For once the adults aren't stupid and the kids can't always save the day. Perry, though, has the heart and the soul of a warrior poet. His internal monologue at the beginning of Chapter 31 “Apricot” is what every woman, from 13 to 93, wants to hear. I particularly like “If she needs you lie to protect her, you do it with the roar of a lion. If that Means you break the law, you shatter it into ten thousand pieces.” Moments later, his Lancelotian rush to rescue Ariel, he is stopped, suddenly. An interesting piece of trivia, that I am sure Mr. Queen is aware of, Ariel is Hebrew for Lion of God. So, Perry has not only his own figurative lion heart, but Ariel's lioness's heart.
This book is part of a larger ouevre, consisting mostly of graphic novels and comics. This explains Mr. Queen's tragically, visceral and gorgeously created images and character.
In fact, we can see this in the horrible dreams that haunt Arial Chylde that are far more than simply bad dreams or night terrors that pass with the rising of the sun.They are part of her, allowing her to take on the forms of the monsters that chase her through her sleep. Those are not the only monsters she has to deal with. Her mother is gone, passed on. Her father might as well as have gone with her, as he is consistently drunk and not a high functioning drunk either. School offers her no sanctuaries as the rabid hyenas that seem to populate every popular crowd in every hospital are aware of her monsters and her belief they are coming from her. These kids have demoted her from one of them, one of the blessed and popular to an outcast who can no longer trust anyone. That includes her teachers and guidance counselor, to whom she has become an object of gossip.
She is counting the days until she can leave, until Perry enters her life and offers her the one things she needs, a friend. He has his own secrets. But he is willing to shoulder hers as well as his as they try to solve the mysterious deaths that are linked to Arial and her monsters.
There is an overarching theme of flying insects, beginning with Ariel freeing a monarch butterfly from an orb-weaver's web in front of the predatory popular cliche, and receiving their mocking rage in return for her compassion. This concept of a butterfly or moth continues through the novel including one striking example as Ariel is lead to jail – Mattie's Haunted Jail. She and the police car she rides in passes by some of the few remaining old street lights that give off an orange light and “the insects float up like souls to a sodium vapor heaven.” This these of flying monsters and flying insects go in line with the angel theme that is carried by Ariel's mother's necklace that she was given on her 12th birthday, the last birthday she had with her mother. These are references to Ariel's soul and her strengths – will see allow herself to fly and fight, or will she flee.
While not driven by plot as much as a thriller, this dark fantasy's climax and explanation of Ariel's dark gifts is done in a cinematic way that would make one weep if James Cameron or Stephen Spielberg presented it to us. That moment, that betrayal is heart-wrenching, a moment that every daughter dreads.
In Ariel's life, reality is as fluid and quickly changing as a dragonfly's wing. For lovers of dark fantasy or lovers of dreams or for the reader who thirst for words to quench their literary souls, this a perfect book.
It is sad that there is only a scale of 1-5. Had it been 1-100, this would score a definite 97 or 98. Since I am limited for 1 through 5 and the writing is so amazingly stunning, cinematic, visual and visceral that I consider the text perfect in itself, I give it a 5 out of 5

https://www.amazon.com/Darkchylde-Ari...

[Seraphia Bunny · Rating 5 out of 5]

Darkchylde: The Ariel Chylde Saga by Randy Queen is a novel based on the Ariel Chylde comic book series. In this book we meet Ariel Chylde as she saves a butterfly from a spider while the rest of her class simply stands around and waits for the poor creature to be devoured. Ariel is viewed as strange, weird and has no friends because of the demons that she battles in her dreams. She used to have friends but now she has none. A girl, named Stacey, insists on tormenting Ariel every chance that she gets by doing cruel things and videoing it and posting it on-line for the whole world to see. Ariel is struggling with her problems when new boy Perry comes to school. He’s drawn to her because she reminds him so much of a girl he used to know. So he works to try and befriend her but when they go out to the dam with the rest of the town things reach the breaking point. It’s Ariel’s birthday and she’s now 18. While at the dam Stacey confronts Ariel again with Ariel’s ex-boyfriend Spencer. Spencer is not onboard with Stacey’s torturing of Ariel but he does nothing to step in and stop it at any time.
Ariel and Stacey end up getting into a fight and Stacey ends up breaking and stealing Ariel’s angel pendant that she just received from her dad as a birthday present. The necklace was once her mother’s before she passed away…from cancer. Things only get worse for Ariel when her father shows up at the dam looking for her…and he’s drunk. On the way home they are hit by another vehicle that sends them into the river. Ariel’s father dies in the crash and river but Ariel just manages to survive somehow but something dangerous…something dark is let loose from her nightmares.
When I first saw this book’s cover I was immediately drawn to it and wanted to grab it up and read it immediately. Now, when I first started reading I was a bit disappointed that Ariel seemed like just a normal girl and not the gorgeously amazing supernatural creature depicted on the cover but as I continued reading the story I became more and more engaged especially when she came across the 12 year old self called Miss Happy. That side of her that was lost during the tragic days of her life is such an engaging character. She’s unique, strong, brash and dynamic all her own. In the nightmare dreamscape we are introduced to each of the horrors that are all unique in their own ways and the story only keeps getting more and more interesting.
The more I read the more and more it became harder and harder for me to put this book down. I wanted to know more about Ariel and how she would manage to survive this…would she be able to survive this? How many people were going to die? For me this book is so full of so many interesting characters that it just grabs you and makes you want to read this book all in one go. Granted I couldn’t because I had to do other things but I definitely would have given the chance. I have never read any of the Ariel Chylde comic books but I will say that I really hope to read another Ariel Chylde book by Randy Queen because this book is very dynamic. It left me wanting more and I hope that he writes more because I know that I’ll definitely be reading because these are some very well developed characters with dark, sinister and engaging story. Two thumbs up and 5 stars absolutely loved and recommend to anyone who likes the darkness because as the author so eloquently puts “Light is easy to love, show me your darkness.”

[Rosie · Rating 4 out of 5]

I received a free copy from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

Summary

A comic book in novel form, Darkchylde is based on the comic series of the same name. It is dark, twisted and addictive as it follows Ariel Chylde as the barrier between her life and her nightmares starts to crumble.

Plot

The idea behind this novel is scary but the plot does lack a little. The novel is very much about the visuals and the characters and while there is a plot, it does not have quite the same impact as the rest of the novel. The progression happens in stages and there were moments I had to re-read because they happened too quickly. While some parts were predictable, I thought the reveals were done beautifully and had me on the edge of my seat, even where I had guessed what would happen.

Characters

As I said above, the characters form a primary part of this novel and by characters, I mean Ariel, Perry and Miss Happy. While there are other characters such as Jack and Gladys, these are the three which stay in mind and really bring the novel to life. I could picture Ariel so clearly from the moment she is introduced and her transformation in the novel is quite incredible. You can really sense what she is feeling and the fear she finds herself in. Miss Happy is the perfect balance. Where
Ariel is afraid, Miss Happy is cool-headed and it is she who is the most important in Ariel’s development and an insanely cool character in her own right. Opposite these, Perry is the grounding, the reader’s own connection in the novel. The three of them combined make a very powerful combination of characters and it really hooked me in. Unfortunately, the other characters did not get quite as much development and I did struggle to care for the casualties that do occur in this book.

World/Setting

Darkchylde takes place in two worlds – ours and in Ariel’s nightmares. While I found it difficult to visualise the setting in this world, the nightmare world was all too real. This made the horror come across quite strongly and you really got the sense that something terrible was occurring. I did struggle to understand the movement from one world to the other, but the rest of the mythology was fascinating, and decidedly creepy.

Final thoughts

Darkchylde is the perfect book to read this autumn. It is dark, thrilling and reads like a comic book – it is very easy to see the images being written and the lyrical writing helped with visualising the events and places. The characters had me cheering for them and reading with trepidation with all they get put through. There is a lot going on, however and some parts did not quite work for me. Still, I have no idea what could possibly happen next in Ariel’s story and I’m dying to find out. Not to mention, that cover is brilliant.

[Kit (Metaphors and Moonlight) · Rating 3 out of 5]

3 Stars

Full Review:
*I received an ecopy of this book from the publisher. This has in no way influenced my review.*

I think this is one of those books that will be great for some people but simply wasn’t for me. So to explain, here are some lists!

Things I Liked:

– Ariel, the protagonist, was a good character in that I could root for her even though I didn’t fully connect with her. I was expecting her to be one of those tough, emotionless, badass female stereotype characters, but she was actually just a kind of quirky girl who had lost a lot in life and liked ladybugs and squirrels and was picked on in school for being “weird.”

– The concept was an interesting one. And once I understood what was going on, it made some sense (not, like, scientific sense, but sense within the realm of fantasy/horror).

Things I Disliked:

– Half the characters talked in riddles. I could understand characters in the nightmare dreamscape talking like that, but even Ariel in real life talked like that. It really frustrated me when Perry wanted to know what was going on, and she wanted him to believe her, but she didn’t actually explain anything. She just kept saying these short, chopped-off, riddle-like things that wouldn’t have made any sense to anyone who didn’t just experience what she did.

– There was a lot of description of things, like the settings.

– The things that happened in the nightmares seemed kind of random. I don’t do well with random in books. Thankfully most of the book took place in the real world though.

– Instalove, at least on Perry’s part. I don’t think Ariel mentioned love.

Things I Neither Liked nor Disliked but Are Worth Mentioning:

– The writing style was kind of different. It had this desolate and ethereal undertone, and in the beginning especially it reminded me of a voiceover you’d hear at the beginning of a horror movie, the kind that would have a washed-out filter and just be kind of unsettling and weird rather than scary. But either that kind of faded or I just got used to it as the book went on.

– Lots of blood-and-gore-filled monster battles.

So overall I didn’t like all the riddle-speak and descriptions, but Ariel was a good character I think people will appreciate and the concept was unique.

Recommended For:
Young adult horror fans. Anyone who likes books that involve dream/nightmare worlds and themes of good vs. evil.

Original Review @ Metaphors and Moonlight

[Shh I am Reading Leticia · Rating 4 out of 5]

I received this eBook from the Publisher in exchange for an honest review.
Visit me at Shh, I Am Reading for more reviews like this!

Well damn, I am glad I placate my inner child with chocolate, video games, and art therapy involving markers, pencil crayons and colouring books. I am also glad that my nightmares don’t come to life. Or that I don’t become a manifestation of my nightmares.

This played heavily into the inner psyche and the inner child. For some reason, Ariel Chylde is plagued with darkness.

“It’s not weakness to admit sadness- it takes strength to drag pain kicking and screaming into the light.”

This reminded me a lot of Silent Hill in the sense of the nightmares and the bringing it out into the world somewhat. But the psychological side reminded me more of The Cell.
(I know, Silent Hill movies did not do the games justice!)
The fact that Ariel could manifest her dreams, or nightmare if you will; and reach her inner child, Miss Happy, and still be sane is amazing. Penance was terrifying. The Crimson Devils, no thanks. I choose life!

Despite suffering the loss of her mother, horrific nightmares and being tormented by her classmates, Ariel is a great main character and heroine. Just when she is at her lowest, along comes Perry or “CuteFace”, wanting to be her friend.
Ariel’s inner child, Miss Happy. My goodness, what spunk she has! She survived Ariel’s nightmare landscape. She was chilling in her poetry. But she was such a comedic relief, it was worth it.

“She points at the webbed neckline of my dress, switching gears from sad to ominous as she makes circles in the air over my heart. ‘Let this warning be upon you then, what breathed before will breathe again, they’ll borrow your bones, they’ll borrow your skin, you’ll bridge these worlds, indeed they’ll mesh, you’ll host them with your very flesh.’ Great, now I’m even more spooked.”

Those nightmare monsters were incredibly intense. I do not want to tangle with Penance at all. It was amazing Miss Happy survived without being horribly damaged.

This wasn’t just a fantastic read, it was also a tough, dark and gritty story. It hits you right in the feels.
I would totally love to see this in a video game and I would completely play the crap out of it!

Highly recommended even if you are unfamiliar with the comics, as I was. I may have to search out these comics now!

[Tonja Drecker · Rating 5 out of 5]

Darkness and nightmares interweave with lyrical beauty to form a story where the action never ceases and the secrets grow deeper with every turn of a page.

Ariel is a strange egg, and mentally imbalanced--at least, that's what everyone thinks. The death of her mother years before has left her a victim to her own horrendous nightmares. But when these nightmares become reality and darkness reaches past her dreams, the entire world teeters on the brink of disaster.

This is said to be written as an inspiration from a comic series, but I've not read this series, so I entered this book with absolutely no previously formed expectations. This story is dark, as sinister as the cover suggests. And yet the writing is beautiful with descriptions so vivid that every scene comes to detailed life. The author does a fantastic job of letting the reader get lost in the world, one with very gruesome tones.

One thing the plot doesn't do is sit still. The story moves at a quick pace, never pausing for a single breath. Each phrase has meaning, which doesn't allow for a light-skimming read. There's a lot going on as well. The chapters shift not only between characters but also glide from reality into the world of dreams. Sometimes I did have to go back and read a few paragraphs again to make sure things didn't grow confused. Each scene has it's own depth, each character their own past and story, and it's easy to lose something in the race. But it's exactly this furious frenzy which the entire plot feeds upon. The darkness brings chaos, and it comes to life the whole way through.

The romance is odd, but then so are the characters. And together, it fits nicely in its own weird way. But both are still easy to feel for and cheer for the entire way through. And they have a lot to go through in so many ways. There's insanity and madness, and all of it comes together in an oddly lovely way to match up against the even more insane evil creatures.

In other words, this is a great read for those who enjoy dark reads with an amazing visual aspect , which is guaranteed to send chills coasting down the spine. There's blood, gore and death, but also a tiny beam of demented light. Horror, fantasy and comic fans are sure to get their thrill.

I received a complimentary copy from the publisher and thoroughly enjoyed it.

[Bettina Sparacio · Rating 4 out of 5]

*I received a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review. This has not influenced my thoughts.*

Let me first start by saying that I am absolutely in love with R. Queen’s writing style. I found his prose and poetry by chance a year or so ago, and it read like the walls of my soul. When I heard he was coming out with a debut novel in a genre I enjoy, I was super excited and it did not disappoint!

The writing is absolutely beautiful. It is lyrical, eerie, and completely engulfs you in the magical, scary, fantasy world that has been created. Not to mention that this story is truly unlike anything I have ever read before – dark, twisted, and keeps you on the edge of your seat wondering what exactly is going to happen next. The scenes completely grip you and pull you in. The storytelling in itself is magnificent.

While there were a few predictable plot points in the beginning of the story (tragedy with one parent, a totally detached second parent, the popular mean girl and ex-boyfriend at school, almost insta-love with the new kid, etc.) the middle fills out quite well and the end wraps up nicely with what I thought was a lovely little plot twist for my taste (the truth about her mother). The story isn’t at all fast-paced, but each chapter flows smoothly into the next.

If you are in search of lyrical storytelling, a twisted nightmarish world, and not having the romance be front and center for a change, this is totally the book for you!

[Cary Morton · Rating 3 out of 5]

I received a copy of this book through NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

I have been a huge fan of the Darkchylde comic series since it first came out years ago, so understandably, when I learned that a book had been written based on the comic series, I was ridiculously excited.

The core of the Darkchylde saga was essentially the same as in the comic series and I was glad of that. I’ve always liked Ariel as a character, the dark gritty world building was phenomenal and different than what you find in most YA novels. The dreamscape Ariel visited was certainly the stuff of nightmares… but that’s about where my love of this novel ends.

Honestly, I didn’t like the style the book was written in. It was distinctly poetic, vague, and overly descriptive in a way that bogged down the pace and made it hard to follow. Even when I read everything presented, I felt like I was reading the book while only partially paying attention. I just couldn’t keep interested. I think in this instance, the story was better represented through visual media than it was in written form, and I don’t think the style of the writing fit the intended YA audience.

Overall, I’m glad I gave this book a try, and I’d love to see it as a movie…. but I remain disappointed by the novel as it stands. I think the style did the story a great injustice by making it more difficult to read than it needed to be, and by slowing the pace to a painful crawl.

[Mary Bernsen · Rating 5 out of 5]

Darkchylde... where to begin. This story is poetically dark and gruesome, while the writing itself is captivating. Littered through out this novel you will find one-line truths of the darkest nature with just a glimmer of light in the very core of them. The tale of Ariel Chylde holds a message the world should hear: with evil festering in her soul, she grasps at every sliver of goodness she can find to pull herself free from the clutches of her inner-demons. I'm so pleased to have had the opportunity to read this amazing book.



*I received a complimentary ARC from Curiosity Quills*

[Sue Wallace · Rating 4 out of 5]

Darkchylde By R queen is a horror and teens ya read.
Ariel Chylde is haunted by horrible dreams, and on her eighteenth birthday sheds her skin as the nightmares emerge to act out her deepest, darkest impulses.
But before Ariel can save her small town from the terror of her dreams, she must first save herself from the sinister secret of her subconscious.
A very good read. Really enjoyed this book. Little slow to start with but soon picked up. 4*. I voluntarily reviewed an advanced copy of this book from netgalley.

[Engie · Rating 3 out of 5]

Better than I thought it would be. I hadn't seen the series before and I'm glad I requested it on Netgalley and that I was approved for it on Oct 27th.

This book was released on Nov 1st. The story is fun and spooky. Definitely an easy read and captivating plot. Though there were minor grammatical errors and some parts and characters could have been better developed, overall this was not difficult to follow and like I said before, it was fun.

[Angelh · Rating 5 out of 5]

Looked forward for a long time to read this book. I was always big fan of Queen's comic book work. As usual Randy Queen did not disappoint. His characterization of Ariel, Stacy, Miss Happy and mother in the book were very vivid and engaging. His scenes in the dream world were very well written and stuck in your head long after you finished reading them. If you enjoy well written horror and suspense this is definitely your book.

[VeronicaMarie1986 · Rating 5 out of 5]

I received a copy of this book from NetGalley and am voluntarily reviewing it.

Nightmares can't hurt anyone. Or can they? Ariel, who has been plagued by awful dreams, has to attempt to save her town from her nightmares after she turns 18 and they emerge in the waking world.

This book was creepy and fun and I highly recommend it to fans of fantasy and horror!

[Alexandra · Rating 3 out of 5]

ARC received from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

I think I may have read the comic once, so I did my research. The book adaptation was good with a chilling cover to match, yet I couldn't connect with the heroine much. Yes, her ability is terrible and it seems to consume her at times, but there weren't much to kepp my attention.

[Rachel · Rating 5 out of 5]

Where dreams are brought to life. Where the innocent is guided to survive. Where the hurt learns to live. Where faith in love is restored, even when she must let go. Novel that connects to my soul.

[Tyrolin · Rating 4 out of 5]

Darkchylde has a certain tone and vibe that gives you chills. The world was incredibly vivid, thanks to R. Queen's imagination and descriptive word choices. Realism mixed with fantasy...my kinda book.

Pick this baby up!