What do you think?
Rate this book
From Ash
Richard “Richie” Cunning experiences unusual occurrences when he purchases a house at a police auction. Human remains found in a sewage line—quickly followed by a second horrifying discovery. But instead of finding nefarious spirits, he uncovers an awful, but rational, explanation – and, over time, Richie learns to embrace his knack for unraveling such savage, bizarre mysteries. Police struggle for leads as children disappear, their baby monitors hacked by an unknown predator… Shocking GPS footage from a group of missing hikers… A ravaged body found in a car during pick-up at the local elementary school… …and many more, each brutal mystery begging Richie’s attention, and each leading him one step closer toward becoming the very thing he hunts. Readers describe From Ash as “a must read” and praise Benner’s ability to draw them into the lives of his vivid, beautifully crafted characters. From cults to witches to kidnappings, From Ash delivers on its promise to take readers on an unpredictable, twisty ride.
292 pages, Kindle Edition
Published July 19, 2019
101 people are currently reading
137 people want to read
About the author
M. Chris Benner
29 books3 followersMatthew Christopher Benner is an author from the east coast somewhere. I'm thinking Maine but that's probably because I'm confusing him with a good writer. Pretty sure he lives near West Chester but google maps showed a hell of a lot of West Chesters so that piece of information proved not-helpful at all. If I had to guess, I'd say... West Chester, Illinois... but I'm basing that on nothing. Not one single thing. In fact, pretty sure Illinois was one of the few states without a West Chester. Anyway, he has children, several of 'em. I think they're both girls that hopefully take after their mothers. And he's got trades, seems to gather them like shot glasses: massage therapist because he's creepy and he touches people; bartender because he's creepy, and without drinks no one would let him touch them; an avionics technician 'cause why the hell not, apparently; and he's a thief, 'cause I know one time he stole the woman of a guy who writes author's bios for a living. These are just things, just listing things about him, just a list--bunch of stuff, all equally important. Really, all you need to know about the kid is that he doesn't succeed. Ever. And I guess he's got a good sense of humor. And he's balding.
Ratings & Reviews
Friends & Following
Create a free account to discover what your friends think of this book!
Community Reviews
Displaying 1 - 7 of 7 reviews
November 19, 2021
I’ve been checking out random kindle freebies lately, trying to be selective, looking for the best of the best in self-published indies field. This was a pretty inspired choice. You wouldn’t know it by the cover, but one you start reading it, it draws you right in the way storytelling is supposed to. Like some many indies, it’s somewhat uneven, the interconnected stories are not all of the same quality – it begins and ends very strongly with a less exciting/consistent middle. It also would do well with a round of editing, there are typos (Shelley as Shelly), misspellings (casual as causal more than once), things of that nature. Nothing super distracting, just here and there.
But overall, it was very entertaining. The protagonist is a police dispatcher who ends up buying a heavily discounted murder estate (first story), which turns out to be a nightmare, and the subsequent terror and trauma turn him to a different path, one of being a sort of investigative journalist, a private detective/writer. The rest of the stories are tangentially or precisely connected to his cases.
The stories themselves vary in tone, structure, and nature, from historical gothic-like to a heavy-duty police procedural. They are uneven, but they work, each and every one, and they make for an interesting narrative total, albeit one that never quite hits the high notes of the first track. Very dark, very bleak, very messed up…just right to delight genre fans.
It stands to mention that the age count might be off. It’s listed at just under 300, but for me it read longer. Overall, pretty good, though. The talent is there, some finesse is needed, but that’ll come with experience, most likely. Recommended.
This and more at https://advancetheplot.weebly.com/
But overall, it was very entertaining. The protagonist is a police dispatcher who ends up buying a heavily discounted murder estate (first story), which turns out to be a nightmare, and the subsequent terror and trauma turn him to a different path, one of being a sort of investigative journalist, a private detective/writer. The rest of the stories are tangentially or precisely connected to his cases.
The stories themselves vary in tone, structure, and nature, from historical gothic-like to a heavy-duty police procedural. They are uneven, but they work, each and every one, and they make for an interesting narrative total, albeit one that never quite hits the high notes of the first track. Very dark, very bleak, very messed up…just right to delight genre fans.
It stands to mention that the age count might be off. It’s listed at just under 300, but for me it read longer. Overall, pretty good, though. The talent is there, some finesse is needed, but that’ll come with experience, most likely. Recommended.
This and more at https://advancetheplot.weebly.com/
June 26, 2024
What a wild ride this book is!
Richie is a police dispatcher who buys his first home at a police auction. It doesn't take long for him to discover body parts in his water lines and more gruesome discoveries soon after. But when he meets something horrifying and alive one night, it becomes apparent that there's something very wrong with the house.
It's not supernatural though but something much more terrifying. This situation leads him to become a private Investigator of sorts and what follows are his accounts of some very horrific, creepy, and brutal cases.
This book is gory, has a lot of action, unexpected deaths, and has so many great characters as well. It's also humorous at times with some comedic relief and laugh out loud dialogue to ease the tension between the bloodshed.
Everything from child abduction cults to a trio of evil witches who run a B and B to a murderous cannibal family deep in the woods are some of the cases Richie will investigate. And this novel ties all of them together in a single narrative which is crisp, sharp, and easy to lose yourself in. I highly recommend it.
Richie is a police dispatcher who buys his first home at a police auction. It doesn't take long for him to discover body parts in his water lines and more gruesome discoveries soon after. But when he meets something horrifying and alive one night, it becomes apparent that there's something very wrong with the house.
It's not supernatural though but something much more terrifying. This situation leads him to become a private Investigator of sorts and what follows are his accounts of some very horrific, creepy, and brutal cases.
This book is gory, has a lot of action, unexpected deaths, and has so many great characters as well. It's also humorous at times with some comedic relief and laugh out loud dialogue to ease the tension between the bloodshed.
Everything from child abduction cults to a trio of evil witches who run a B and B to a murderous cannibal family deep in the woods are some of the cases Richie will investigate. And this novel ties all of them together in a single narrative which is crisp, sharp, and easy to lose yourself in. I highly recommend it.
October 29, 2020
There's some great stuff here, fun and engaging, resourceful, cynical main character and freaky situations to test him. But it's very unpolished and some segues left me confused and annoyed, especially the last third which flips around messily. Felt much too rushed. The first sections are really good, if it had stayed as grounded as that, without throwing in everything at the end, it would have been much more satisfying overall.
September 22, 2021
Glad I found this. Very entertaining.
I do like Mr. Benner’s storytelling. I enjoyed his character and the humor he brought to him. I found the plot very visual. It was so easy to put myself in the character’s shoes. I liked the perspective in which the story was told. I wasn’t much of a fan of the stories within the story. Especially the last one. I didn’t find it relevant to the character and story of the witches came off as incomplete; but overall I enjoyed it.
I do like Mr. Benner’s storytelling. I enjoyed his character and the humor he brought to him. I found the plot very visual. It was so easy to put myself in the character’s shoes. I liked the perspective in which the story was told. I wasn’t much of a fan of the stories within the story. Especially the last one. I didn’t find it relevant to the character and story of the witches came off as incomplete; but overall I enjoyed it.
May 12, 2020
Disturbing
A very difficult book to read. I usually read a book a day, this one has taken me a month. I have put it down many times. But I always try to finish a book I buy.The story and characters are very distasteful and very graphic
A very difficult book to read. I usually read a book a day, this one has taken me a month. I have put it down many times. But I always try to finish a book I buy.The story and characters are very distasteful and very graphic
July 21, 2021
I was surprised by the creativity in this book. This author has potential.
July 21, 2024
Just WOW!
Displaying 1 - 7 of 7 reviews