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Slaughter, Idaho
The horror comes every sixteen years…
Slaughter used to exist in Idaho years ago. Something happened to the town, something that caused it to fall a fraction of a second behind the rest of our timeline — and the entire town disappeared.
Andrew knows the rare skill of travel between timelines, but finding a town like Slaughter — unmoored, isolated, drifting in time — is a difficult task, and traveling to it is even harder.
The space between timelines is a hunting ground for strange creatures that feed on meat they find in places like Slaughter. Andrew lands in a town under siege, with residents arguing about how to best prepare for the invaders who arrive every sixteen years.
He meets Helen, who lost her parents in the last attack. The next cycle is due any day, and the town is hunkering down, deploying new defenses. When the creatures arrive on schedule, Andrew and Helen try to repel the attack, but they are overpowered: people are dragged from their homes and rounded up like cattle, then fed while still alive to giant Eaters. It’s a huge farming operation for the invaders, where half the town’s population will be used as food.
The attack usually lasts for days, but this time, the invaders leave suddenly, well before their normal departure, sparing most of the town. The citizens think they’ve been lucky, but Andrew and Helen soon learn the truth: the worst is yet to come.
Can Andrew and Helen convince the town of what they’ve learned? Or will the citizens of Slaughterid ignore them, thinking they dodged a bullet? The political and religious forces within the town all have their own agendas, and Andrew and Helen’s warnings don’t fit nicely with their plans.
When the new terror arrives, they’re completely unprepared…except for the few who listened.
Slaughter used to exist in Idaho years ago. Something happened to the town, something that caused it to fall a fraction of a second behind the rest of our timeline — and the entire town disappeared.
Andrew knows the rare skill of travel between timelines, but finding a town like Slaughter — unmoored, isolated, drifting in time — is a difficult task, and traveling to it is even harder.
The space between timelines is a hunting ground for strange creatures that feed on meat they find in places like Slaughter. Andrew lands in a town under siege, with residents arguing about how to best prepare for the invaders who arrive every sixteen years.
He meets Helen, who lost her parents in the last attack. The next cycle is due any day, and the town is hunkering down, deploying new defenses. When the creatures arrive on schedule, Andrew and Helen try to repel the attack, but they are overpowered: people are dragged from their homes and rounded up like cattle, then fed while still alive to giant Eaters. It’s a huge farming operation for the invaders, where half the town’s population will be used as food.
The attack usually lasts for days, but this time, the invaders leave suddenly, well before their normal departure, sparing most of the town. The citizens think they’ve been lucky, but Andrew and Helen soon learn the truth: the worst is yet to come.
Can Andrew and Helen convince the town of what they’ve learned? Or will the citizens of Slaughterid ignore them, thinking they dodged a bullet? The political and religious forces within the town all have their own agendas, and Andrew and Helen’s warnings don’t fit nicely with their plans.
When the new terror arrives, they’re completely unprepared…except for the few who listened.
- GenresHorrorScience Fiction
296 pages, Paperback
Published September 19, 2017
66 people are currently reading
247 people want to read
About the author
Michael Richan
55 books129 followersMichael Richan lives in Washington State. He has written horror fiction for over forty years.
He's the author of several best selling series, including "The River," 'The Downwinders," and "The Dark River." All are set within The River universe.
He's also the author of other best selling titles such as "The Haunting of Pitmon House", "The Coldwater Haunting", and "The Seances".
Visit michaelrichan.com to learn more about the series and to see a suggested reading order. Follow Michael via email and receive the free novella "Residual". You can also follow him via Twitter @michaelrichan.
He's the author of several best selling series, including "The River," 'The Downwinders," and "The Dark River." All are set within The River universe.
He's also the author of other best selling titles such as "The Haunting of Pitmon House", "The Coldwater Haunting", and "The Seances".
Visit michaelrichan.com to learn more about the series and to see a suggested reading order. Follow Michael via email and receive the free novella "Residual". You can also follow him via Twitter @michaelrichan.
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Displaying 1 - 16 of 16 reviews
September 27, 2017
SLAUGHTER, IDAHO, by Michael Richan is a departure from his River Universe. Although one character does carry over--briefly--his role is not "river related" as far as the events in this stand-alone book are concerned. The concept here is one of a town that has slipped into another "timeline"--or in this particular case, slipped between timelines. Andrew, with the help of a friend, devises a way to visit this precise town's location, and then is eventually returned to his OWN timeline.
What started out for him as an adventure to learn more about this town that--for all practical purposes--ceased to exist in the 1950's, becomes much more personal when he begins interacting with Helen, one of the residents there. Richan really builds up this isolated anomaly well! His detailed descriptions of the town's "boundaries" is something that I wouldn't have anticipated, and the way of life these people live is literally stuck in the year they were "relocated".
Of course, there were some questions that came to mind as "impractical", but as a work of fantasy/fiction, you're bound to have a few of those. What I enjoyed the most in this novel were the elements of horror that Richan injected. Bordering on science-fiction, these creatures and beings were something all together new. The casual way that the town accepted this (as they had no other choice, or control over these events), was very believable, in my opinion. When something--no matter how atrocious--is an inevitable part of your life, you have no choice but to adjust to the circumstances.
Overall, a unique novel set apart all on its own from the author of "The River Universe".
Recommended.
What started out for him as an adventure to learn more about this town that--for all practical purposes--ceased to exist in the 1950's, becomes much more personal when he begins interacting with Helen, one of the residents there. Richan really builds up this isolated anomaly well! His detailed descriptions of the town's "boundaries" is something that I wouldn't have anticipated, and the way of life these people live is literally stuck in the year they were "relocated".
Of course, there were some questions that came to mind as "impractical", but as a work of fantasy/fiction, you're bound to have a few of those. What I enjoyed the most in this novel were the elements of horror that Richan injected. Bordering on science-fiction, these creatures and beings were something all together new. The casual way that the town accepted this (as they had no other choice, or control over these events), was very believable, in my opinion. When something--no matter how atrocious--is an inevitable part of your life, you have no choice but to adjust to the circumstances.
Overall, a unique novel set apart all on its own from the author of "The River Universe".
Recommended.
May 29, 2021
Great premise
This is a great tale about a man visiting a town stuck between timelines. Such towns are prone to attack from monsters that aren't typically seen in areas that remain within their correct timelines. I loved the idea of a town caught out time, filled with people battling monsters from without and within. This was a thrilling story, but didn't contain hard science, so don't expect a lot of scientific details.
This is a great tale about a man visiting a town stuck between timelines. Such towns are prone to attack from monsters that aren't typically seen in areas that remain within their correct timelines. I loved the idea of a town caught out time, filled with people battling monsters from without and within. This was a thrilling story, but didn't contain hard science, so don't expect a lot of scientific details.
September 21, 2017
Slaughterid
So in this tale, we're taken to a town whose timeline doesn't line up with our timeline. We are shown life through the eyes of multiple characters, but mainly Andrew (the traveler) and Helen (the misbelieved).
While this is a stand alone novel, those of us who are avid River Universe readers will see a few nods to our knowledge of the other stories.
By the ending I'm certain we will be seeing Andrew, Helen and possibly the town of Slaughter again.
So in this tale, we're taken to a town whose timeline doesn't line up with our timeline. We are shown life through the eyes of multiple characters, but mainly Andrew (the traveler) and Helen (the misbelieved).
While this is a stand alone novel, those of us who are avid River Universe readers will see a few nods to our knowledge of the other stories.
By the ending I'm certain we will be seeing Andrew, Helen and possibly the town of Slaughter again.
September 24, 2017
I am floored. Seriously.
I've always been a huge fan of the timely whimey stuff... huge... but Slaughterid is a town straight out of the twilight zone. Between time, and out of it, all at the same time!
I love Andrew and Helen... Sometimes book relationships seem rushed for sake of keeping the story on track, but their interactions are integral, organic, and believable.
Now I can't help but wonder what was really going on in Pleasantville....
I've always been a huge fan of the timely whimey stuff... huge... but Slaughterid is a town straight out of the twilight zone. Between time, and out of it, all at the same time!
I love Andrew and Helen... Sometimes book relationships seem rushed for sake of keeping the story on track, but their interactions are integral, organic, and believable.
Now I can't help but wonder what was really going on in Pleasantville....
September 20, 2017
Great read, as usual!
I really can't understand where the ideas come from for a story like this but I'm certainly glad they do come. Love Michael Richan's books.
I really can't understand where the ideas come from for a story like this but I'm certainly glad they do come. Love Michael Richan's books.
December 29, 2021
The town of Slaughter, Idaho has been cut off from the rest of Idaho somehow (and the rest of the world for that matter) and exists in isolation outside of the normal timeline. All the residents of Slaughterid (a concatenation of “Slaughter” and the postal abbreviation for Idaho) don’t know anything of the world outside of their small town. In fact, their town is the whole world for them. If you were to walk to the edge of this town, which ends at 10th Street, and you tried to continue past, you would loop back around to the other side of town (the east side if you were heading west, and the west side if you were heading east, for example). This makes it pretty easy to see the whole world, and probably not very lucrative to be a travel agent.
Andrew is a timeline researcher from the normal world timeline and somehow manages to travel to Slaughterid. He assists, Helen, a resident of Slaughterid, with the town’s problem with man-eating aliens’ appetite for the town’s residents. These aliens arrive once every 16 years to eat a fraction of the town’s population (presumably the food on their planet isn’t as tasty). What they eat in the other 15 years isn’t explained, but perhaps they only need to eat once every 16 years. The residents of the town have been trying for years to figure out a way to stop or kill the aliens but have never been successful. Much of the plot revolves around these efforts and Andrew’s attempts to help. It is a fast-moving story and a fun nighttime read, but I was disappointed when I finished reading, as the ending seemed to have got lost in another timeline. I strongly suspect that the reason for this is that a sequel is in the works. I think my next vacation will have to be a trip to Slaughter, Idaho, if I can find it.
Andrew is a timeline researcher from the normal world timeline and somehow manages to travel to Slaughterid. He assists, Helen, a resident of Slaughterid, with the town’s problem with man-eating aliens’ appetite for the town’s residents. These aliens arrive once every 16 years to eat a fraction of the town’s population (presumably the food on their planet isn’t as tasty). What they eat in the other 15 years isn’t explained, but perhaps they only need to eat once every 16 years. The residents of the town have been trying for years to figure out a way to stop or kill the aliens but have never been successful. Much of the plot revolves around these efforts and Andrew’s attempts to help. It is a fast-moving story and a fun nighttime read, but I was disappointed when I finished reading, as the ending seemed to have got lost in another timeline. I strongly suspect that the reason for this is that a sequel is in the works. I think my next vacation will have to be a trip to Slaughter, Idaho, if I can find it.
June 12, 2021
Every 16 years the monsters come to the town of Slaughterid, a town lost in its own timeline. When they arrive a large percentage of the population are harvested and eaten, and there seems to be no way of stopping them, though Andrew, a traveller from another timeline and Helen, one of the townsfolk, are determined to do so.
While not exactly a short book, this was definitely a story which I believe could have benefitted from being longer. The ending seemed a little rushed and certain characters you felt would play a larger role were introduced and then pretty much forgotten about. The monsters however were brutal and fascinating and I definitely wanted to know more about them. That said I really enjoyed the journey itself and it was well worth the read. I will look to read more from this author.
While not exactly a short book, this was definitely a story which I believe could have benefitted from being longer. The ending seemed a little rushed and certain characters you felt would play a larger role were introduced and then pretty much forgotten about. The monsters however were brutal and fascinating and I definitely wanted to know more about them. That said I really enjoyed the journey itself and it was well worth the read. I will look to read more from this author.
October 29, 2017
I won this book in a Goodreads Giveaway.
I really liked this book!! It reminded me a lot of the short stories I enjoy so much. It was also reminiscent of the old Twilight Zone episodes I used to watch on TV. An excellent story told in a very simple, straightforward way. I was sad when the story ended suddenly. Actually, I felt a little cheated that there wasn't more to read! I want to know what happens next!!!
I really liked this book!! It reminded me a lot of the short stories I enjoy so much. It was also reminiscent of the old Twilight Zone episodes I used to watch on TV. An excellent story told in a very simple, straightforward way. I was sad when the story ended suddenly. Actually, I felt a little cheated that there wasn't more to read! I want to know what happens next!!!
October 22, 2017
Very sci-fi!
So I had to read this book because I have read all of Michael's other books, and enjoyed them. I am not so much into sci-fi, and I couldn't get drawn into this one as I have his others. There were so many things that was left open ended. Why did everyone say Helen was known for lying? What was Andrew even doing there? It was okay for me.
So I had to read this book because I have read all of Michael's other books, and enjoyed them. I am not so much into sci-fi, and I couldn't get drawn into this one as I have his others. There were so many things that was left open ended. Why did everyone say Helen was known for lying? What was Andrew even doing there? It was okay for me.
June 17, 2021
Unexpected
Only three stars because of the ending. A basis for a much better novel. IMHO the characters lacked depth and persona - at least enough for me to co spider the book average. That does not mean you may really enjoy the read. Not terrible but it could have been more for me. This author has written many books so there is an audience for his work.
Only three stars because of the ending. A basis for a much better novel. IMHO the characters lacked depth and persona - at least enough for me to co spider the book average. That does not mean you may really enjoy the read. Not terrible but it could have been more for me. This author has written many books so there is an audience for his work.
October 11, 2017
Not really my kind of story Sci-fictionish. It took me a bit to get into this story and I never really say loved it. But I love Michael Richan's work so I read it. It is different from the River World. I don't really know how to describe it so I'll just say give it a go. You might be surprised.
May 11, 2018
Another great read
Richan did it again....he made me lose sleep by staying up to finish this book! Thank you Michael, I look forward to your next book. I'm a follower of ALL your books! Great stories,all of them!!
Richan did it again....he made me lose sleep by staying up to finish this book! Thank you Michael, I look forward to your next book. I'm a follower of ALL your books! Great stories,all of them!!
January 4, 2018
I just love these related series and cannot wait for another installment!
June 13, 2021
This book is a nice change from the river series. Imaginative and well written. Well worth reading.
July 4, 2021
I didn't like this book at first, but the more I read it the more I enjoyed it. By the end, I really liked it!
August 30, 2021
Original and Absorbing
The physical predicament the town of Slaughter is in is a little hard to wrap your head around, like an Escher drawing. Time travel stories are like that, if they're well-written.
The author was able to develop Helen's character and motivations well, the others, not so much, though the attraction between Helen and Andrew felt natural. The bad actors among the townspeople felt real, more because they invited hatred for their cruelty and selfishness than because they were three-dimensional.
There are elements to the story that remained unexplored and the book feels like another book is needed. I would read it, If it were offered. Michael Richan is a good writer and I'd like to read what happens next.
The physical predicament the town of Slaughter is in is a little hard to wrap your head around, like an Escher drawing. Time travel stories are like that, if they're well-written.
The author was able to develop Helen's character and motivations well, the others, not so much, though the attraction between Helen and Andrew felt natural. The bad actors among the townspeople felt real, more because they invited hatred for their cruelty and selfishness than because they were three-dimensional.
There are elements to the story that remained unexplored and the book feels like another book is needed. I would read it, If it were offered. Michael Richan is a good writer and I'd like to read what happens next.
Displaying 1 - 16 of 16 reviews