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Trouble at Camp Still Waters
Big, nasty creatures are bubbling up to the surface just as an earthquake gives copycat serial killer Ben Ray Collins the window he needs to escape from prison and continue his life’s work. Destiny seems to have a plan for him as he finds himself at the closed-down campground with a cast of scientists on location looking into the strange disturbances happening at the lake.
Ben Ray Collins has a vision for a bloody outcome at Camp Still Waters, but never for a second foresees finding himself underground battling enormous, mutated snake-fish, huge crabs, massive spiders and terrifying cryptids.
Ben Ray Collins has a vision for a bloody outcome at Camp Still Waters, but never for a second foresees finding himself underground battling enormous, mutated snake-fish, huge crabs, massive spiders and terrifying cryptids.
- GenresHorror
Kindle Edition
First published July 18, 2019
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Displaying 1 - 12 of 12 reviews
March 11, 2020
1 star
Review originally published at Cemetery Dance
https://www.cemeterydance.com/extras/...
Ben Ray Collins is a serial killer fanboy who gets caught trying to execute a copycat murder. By some stroke of luck, he manages to escape prison and finds himself at Camp Still Waters, but the waters are anything but still. Some kind of natural phenomenon is happening there and a team of scientists head out to learn more.
Eddie Generous is the founder, publisher, editor at Unnerving Magazine. If you haven’t checked out any issues, I highly recommend it. There are always interesting articles, interviews and short stories by horror’s finest authors.
I’ve been meaning to read some of Eddie’s horror fiction since I’m such a fan of the magazine. Trouble at Camp Still Waters seemed like the perfect opportunity. I love reading creature features, summer camp slashers and nature horror during the summer and this book promises all three!
As introductions go, the prologue had me worried. I felt like the protagonist, KC Brennan, made some unrealistic choices by taking her two small children on an impromptu stake-out of a man she suspects is a killer. Generous’ writing style also takes some getting used to – there are choppy, broken sentences and a lot of unusual (confusing) metaphors. As a scene begins to escalate, law enforcement is called, but Eddie gives them the old “donut eating” stereotype.
I almost didn’t move on to chapter one, but I wanted to start reading about those “mutated snake-fish, giant crabs, massive spiders and terrifying cryptids” the synopsis teased me with.
As much as I find Generous’s writing clunky and often times juvenile in his descriptions (especially anything to do with sex), I found myself interested enough in the story to see it through to the end.
It’s this reader’s opinion that horror is the most successful when I can fully invest in the characters so that I can engage emotionally with the story. Unfortunately, in the case of Still Water, none of the characters are even remotely interesting or developed. They are uniform, wooden people. Everything is told to the reader instead of shown through dialog or intentional actions/motivations.
The antagonist, Ben Ray Collins is a faceless monster. I was totally unsure what his motivations were other than what was explained in narration. I get that he is obsessed with famous serial killers but it was pretty one-dimensional and couldn’t explain why this man was so hellbent on cruelty.
The creatures finally make an appearance at the end but I was disappointed in the descriptions. They were “huge” or they were “furry” and they “humped each other with ‘furry penises’ and ‘furry vaginas.’
I would like to applaud Eddie’s work with Unnerving Magazine and his dedication to the genre. Unfortunately, this foray into his horror fiction just didn’t work for me.
Review originally published at Cemetery Dance
https://www.cemeterydance.com/extras/...
Ben Ray Collins is a serial killer fanboy who gets caught trying to execute a copycat murder. By some stroke of luck, he manages to escape prison and finds himself at Camp Still Waters, but the waters are anything but still. Some kind of natural phenomenon is happening there and a team of scientists head out to learn more.
Eddie Generous is the founder, publisher, editor at Unnerving Magazine. If you haven’t checked out any issues, I highly recommend it. There are always interesting articles, interviews and short stories by horror’s finest authors.
I’ve been meaning to read some of Eddie’s horror fiction since I’m such a fan of the magazine. Trouble at Camp Still Waters seemed like the perfect opportunity. I love reading creature features, summer camp slashers and nature horror during the summer and this book promises all three!
As introductions go, the prologue had me worried. I felt like the protagonist, KC Brennan, made some unrealistic choices by taking her two small children on an impromptu stake-out of a man she suspects is a killer. Generous’ writing style also takes some getting used to – there are choppy, broken sentences and a lot of unusual (confusing) metaphors. As a scene begins to escalate, law enforcement is called, but Eddie gives them the old “donut eating” stereotype.
I almost didn’t move on to chapter one, but I wanted to start reading about those “mutated snake-fish, giant crabs, massive spiders and terrifying cryptids” the synopsis teased me with.
As much as I find Generous’s writing clunky and often times juvenile in his descriptions (especially anything to do with sex), I found myself interested enough in the story to see it through to the end.
It’s this reader’s opinion that horror is the most successful when I can fully invest in the characters so that I can engage emotionally with the story. Unfortunately, in the case of Still Water, none of the characters are even remotely interesting or developed. They are uniform, wooden people. Everything is told to the reader instead of shown through dialog or intentional actions/motivations.
The antagonist, Ben Ray Collins is a faceless monster. I was totally unsure what his motivations were other than what was explained in narration. I get that he is obsessed with famous serial killers but it was pretty one-dimensional and couldn’t explain why this man was so hellbent on cruelty.
The creatures finally make an appearance at the end but I was disappointed in the descriptions. They were “huge” or they were “furry” and they “humped each other with ‘furry penises’ and ‘furry vaginas.’
I would like to applaud Eddie’s work with Unnerving Magazine and his dedication to the genre. Unfortunately, this foray into his horror fiction just didn’t work for me.
July 22, 2019
Horror readers know that the struggle is real. Do you read the Slasher Fic? Or the Creature Feature? Well, Eddie Generous has solved your problem with this ultra-campy Slasher Fic / Creature Feature Mashup. Yep…it’s on.
Now, I’ll admit that I wanted a bit more killer critter fun, but the slasher fun is over-the-top fantastic. Our killer is…extra. (Just read it. You’ll see what I mean.)
As for the camp-factor, it’s in high gear. These characters are a trip. You may not like them, but they’ll leave you snickering.
As usual, the author keeps it bloody and he keeps it fun.
A blast of a read!
Now, I’ll admit that I wanted a bit more killer critter fun, but the slasher fun is over-the-top fantastic. Our killer is…extra. (Just read it. You’ll see what I mean.)
As for the camp-factor, it’s in high gear. These characters are a trip. You may not like them, but they’ll leave you snickering.
As usual, the author keeps it bloody and he keeps it fun.
A blast of a read!
December 6, 2019
This was a fun slasher/monster novel.
July 27, 2019
Well, that was a wild and crazy ride! Stuffed to the brim with over-the-top splattergore, starring a serial killer who thinks Death is Destiny and orchestrates his acts to reflect infamous killers and slasher film "stars" like some Method actor of murder, TROUBLE AT CAMP STILL WATERS also strums a heated ecological chord, with intense fracking fronting all the blame for release of toxic methane, destruction of flora and fauna, and otherworldly killer mutations. Set in British Columbia and penned by a Canadian author, this is also read for the 2019-2020 Canadian Book Challenge.
June 7, 2020
Disappointing. I was looking forward to a good creature feature, but this wasn’t it. All the characters suck. Shitty dialogue and a ridiculous serial killer. Lousy story.
March 18, 2020
it had a semi-decent start, which was fine because I didn't expect much, but it quickly devolved into an absolute clusterfuck that was incomprehensible and utterly unenjoyable. books of this genre are really driven by ridiculousness but there is a line where it becomes too much, and this book crossed it near the halfway point then just said, "fuck it, let's keep going." that coupled with the seemingly inescapable misogyny of the genre results in a boring read that doesn't even offer that slight satisfaction you get from shitty syfy original movies. the only good thing is that it's short so I didn't waste too much time on it
December 18, 2019
Hope to read more of bens adventures
Serial killer escapes from prison goes to a abandoned camping site
Other stuff is going on after an earthquake somethings escaped from the beneath the lake!!!!!!
Who is worse the things in the lake or Ben? Read on to find out
Serial killer escapes from prison goes to a abandoned camping site
Other stuff is going on after an earthquake somethings escaped from the beneath the lake!!!!!!
Who is worse the things in the lake or Ben? Read on to find out
September 7, 2019
Check out my review of this at:
https://www.horrorbound.net/blog/2019...
https://www.horrorbound.net/blog/2019...
February 17, 2020
Trouble with the Contents of the this Book
I found this story on the Recommended Bar of the Amazon page for the Michael Cole books I read. I wish I could give glowing praise for this book, but I can't. I've read a great deal of true-crime non-fiction as earned my criminal Justice degree. I've read just as many horror and police procedural fiction featuring serial killers / human monster. This book tried too hard to be everything. A set location with several people, an escaped serial killer, picking up a hitchhiker (never the smartest move), and a bunch of different hockey masks. A bubbling lake burping out rotten gaseous fumes killing fish and changing the color of the surrounding flora & fauna.
There are a several large killer species that make appearances and a superman that defies all logic. Sadistic behavior. Vile acts by a depraved killer. Gruesome results from a sick individual. These books are escapism fiction for me, but this was even too farfetched for me. I'm not sure if I want to chance reading another book by this author. Sometimes though one book is not all that good, but the author gets better over time. Maybe in several months or a couple years there will be a book by Generous that makes me want to read it.
I found this story on the Recommended Bar of the Amazon page for the Michael Cole books I read. I wish I could give glowing praise for this book, but I can't. I've read a great deal of true-crime non-fiction as earned my criminal Justice degree. I've read just as many horror and police procedural fiction featuring serial killers / human monster. This book tried too hard to be everything. A set location with several people, an escaped serial killer, picking up a hitchhiker (never the smartest move), and a bunch of different hockey masks. A bubbling lake burping out rotten gaseous fumes killing fish and changing the color of the surrounding flora & fauna.
There are a several large killer species that make appearances and a superman that defies all logic. Sadistic behavior. Vile acts by a depraved killer. Gruesome results from a sick individual. These books are escapism fiction for me, but this was even too farfetched for me. I'm not sure if I want to chance reading another book by this author. Sometimes though one book is not all that good, but the author gets better over time. Maybe in several months or a couple years there will be a book by Generous that makes me want to read it.
November 14, 2021
Two thumbs up for the book, "Trouble at Camp Still Waters"! Eddie takes the familiar, true-and-tried slasher story at a campground setting trope and gives it his own unique spin. Instead of having the main characters be camp counselors they are scientists in this story. I thought that this would turn out to be another final girl story with the last female character surviving but there's a twist to that.
Apparently, there are some strange goings-on with the local marine life in the lake as well as weird earthquakes in the area and they are here to investigate.
And add this to the mix: a serial killer (a pretty terrifying character) has escaped from prison and is on the loose in the area! I like Eddie's homage to the Friday the 13th movies by having the killer wear a hockey mask and wielding a machete. What else could possibly go wrong? The answer is what waits below the water.....
Apparently, there are some strange goings-on with the local marine life in the lake as well as weird earthquakes in the area and they are here to investigate.
And add this to the mix: a serial killer (a pretty terrifying character) has escaped from prison and is on the loose in the area! I like Eddie's homage to the Friday the 13th movies by having the killer wear a hockey mask and wielding a machete. What else could possibly go wrong? The answer is what waits below the water.....
October 8, 2023
For a novella, Eddie packs in a lot of story with this one. You might say, he was Generous to the reader (sorry!)
Bad jokes aside, this is the first of Eddie’s books I’ve read and if this is his least liked, I can’t wait to read the good stuff!
We’ve got an escaped serial killer, a group of scientists investigating ground tremors, and they all converge at an abandoned summer camp.
Cue the scientists getting picked off one by one, Friday the thirteenth style, while something stirs deep down in lake still waters.
I loved this, it had everything a trashy 80s horror paperback needs: slayings, camp fire stories, skinny dipping, missing hikers and mutated creatures from the deep.
It was a riot in every sense of the word. I’m reading his entire back catalogue. Try and stop me!
Bad jokes aside, this is the first of Eddie’s books I’ve read and if this is his least liked, I can’t wait to read the good stuff!
We’ve got an escaped serial killer, a group of scientists investigating ground tremors, and they all converge at an abandoned summer camp.
Cue the scientists getting picked off one by one, Friday the thirteenth style, while something stirs deep down in lake still waters.
I loved this, it had everything a trashy 80s horror paperback needs: slayings, camp fire stories, skinny dipping, missing hikers and mutated creatures from the deep.
It was a riot in every sense of the word. I’m reading his entire back catalogue. Try and stop me!
December 20, 2019
This is a totally fun, campy horror romp. It reminds me of the over-the-top, comedy horror movies of my teen years. Think CLUB DREAD. I don't think you can go into this one taking it too seriously. It's totally bonkers and a damn good time.
Displaying 1 - 12 of 12 reviews