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Dead Branches
When Thomas Tilbrook receives a letter telling him that his estranged father is dying, he realises it's finally time to go back to the Cambridgeshire Fens. But going back evokes memories of the last time he saw his father-memories that he can't entirely trust.
Thomas remembers the summer of 1990 like it was yesterday: long hot days in the sun, watching the World Cup on TV... and his best friend John going missing. He remembers how the silence of the adults had forced him to investigate what had happened to John with his brother and cousins. After all, who knew the hidden pathways and secrets of a village better than they did?
Could it have been the local bogeyman Shaky Jake? Could one of the creatures on his deck of horror cards have been responsible? Could it be the dead tree with the sinister smile that watched him from a nearby field?
...or could the truth be closer to home and far worse than he could ever possibly have imagined?
Thomas remembers the summer of 1990 like it was yesterday: long hot days in the sun, watching the World Cup on TV... and his best friend John going missing. He remembers how the silence of the adults had forced him to investigate what had happened to John with his brother and cousins. After all, who knew the hidden pathways and secrets of a village better than they did?
Could it have been the local bogeyman Shaky Jake? Could one of the creatures on his deck of horror cards have been responsible? Could it be the dead tree with the sinister smile that watched him from a nearby field?
...or could the truth be closer to home and far worse than he could ever possibly have imagined?
- GenresHorror
310 pages, Paperback
Published June 13, 2019
2 people are currently reading
59 people want to read
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Displaying 1 - 17 of 17 reviews
August 13, 2019
What a book! So many twists and turns without losing the story on the way and confusing the reader. A gripping read set in the Cambridgeshire Fens of the 1990s. If you love dark thrillers and mysteries, you'll love this.
May 25, 2020
** Edited as review was featured on Kendall Reviews! **
Once again, big thanks to Pete from Bloodshot Books for sending this one my way. I was keen on this one straight from the amazing, yet simple cover artwork.
The story is a heartbreaking look at loss, while living under a hard-nosed father, in a small town. Interestingly, at one point, I was so convinced on what I believed was a reveal about halfway through that I messaged a friend and complained about it, only to find out I was completely wrong.
What I liked: This is a coming-of-age story that follows a young boy who dreams of making it big as a soccer player. He has his friends, his dog, his brother and in the back area of their farm, a tree. The tree itself haunts him day and night and he believes it is possessed. When his best friend, John, goes missing, he presumes the tree played a role in it and as him and his friends try to get to the bottom of what happened to John, we see how grief makes people see with clouded eyes.
I really enjoyed the friendship between the young characters and I loved the relationship that was presented between the grandfather and the kids. I also enjoyed the time jumps between the present and when the events were happening. It worked really well to see how moments from the past shape the adults we grow up to be.
What I didn’t like: I found there were some parts that could have been tightened up when it came to them watching soccer. It became a distraction when we’d come across a few pages of specific game descriptions. I understand how invested the boys were in the England team and their hopes of winning the World Cup, but it really slowed the narrative.
Why you should buy it: Sucker for coming-of-age? Enjoy a creepy fable that seems to grab and hold a character and make them react in ways that ultimately create chaos for those closest to them? Then ‘Dead Branches‘ is a must-read for you. And I’m glad my initial misgivings or ‘jumping to conclusions’ was completely incorrect. The ending of this one was superb.
Once again, big thanks to Pete from Bloodshot Books for sending this one my way. I was keen on this one straight from the amazing, yet simple cover artwork.
The story is a heartbreaking look at loss, while living under a hard-nosed father, in a small town. Interestingly, at one point, I was so convinced on what I believed was a reveal about halfway through that I messaged a friend and complained about it, only to find out I was completely wrong.
What I liked: This is a coming-of-age story that follows a young boy who dreams of making it big as a soccer player. He has his friends, his dog, his brother and in the back area of their farm, a tree. The tree itself haunts him day and night and he believes it is possessed. When his best friend, John, goes missing, he presumes the tree played a role in it and as him and his friends try to get to the bottom of what happened to John, we see how grief makes people see with clouded eyes.
I really enjoyed the friendship between the young characters and I loved the relationship that was presented between the grandfather and the kids. I also enjoyed the time jumps between the present and when the events were happening. It worked really well to see how moments from the past shape the adults we grow up to be.
What I didn’t like: I found there were some parts that could have been tightened up when it came to them watching soccer. It became a distraction when we’d come across a few pages of specific game descriptions. I understand how invested the boys were in the England team and their hopes of winning the World Cup, but it really slowed the narrative.
Why you should buy it: Sucker for coming-of-age? Enjoy a creepy fable that seems to grab and hold a character and make them react in ways that ultimately create chaos for those closest to them? Then ‘Dead Branches‘ is a must-read for you. And I’m glad my initial misgivings or ‘jumping to conclusions’ was completely incorrect. The ending of this one was superb.
October 22, 2019
Dead Branches is the first I have read from this author, and I thoroughly enjoyed the book. Set in England in 1990, it tells the story of a child who has gone missing in a small village. The author has written the majority of the story from the perspective of the missing child’s friend, Thomas, and has expertly captured the way the boy viewed events. Around half-way through the book I thought I had it figured out, only to be thrown a series of unexpected twists which kept me guessing to the end. A great read and I look forward to reading more form the author.
August 9, 2019
Wow! I could barely put this book down! Such well thought through twists and turns that made the first read through completely mind blowing and unpredictable and then the second read through utterly chilling! I am so excited to read more from this author. This novel has brought my home in the fens right here to me in New Zealand with such accurate and vivid depiction of the setting. Honestly the first book I have stayed up late to read in a very very long time!
August 20, 2019
This could have been a really good book but it had to much fluff in it. I found myself skipping pages. Not one or two pages but five or six at a time. It did have plot twists that I did not see coming and I enjoyed those.
September 13, 2022
A tense, captivating mysterious journey that keeps you guessing about where it may lead, and what is even really happening. A wonderfully told story by a talented writer, and well worth your time. Read in one sitting.
July 2, 2024
Full review at Happy Goat Horror:
https://happygoathorror.com/2022/09/2...
Love the location!
Spooky, atmospheric, and intriguing - a wonderful story that is well worth your time.
https://happygoathorror.com/2022/09/2...
Love the location!
Spooky, atmospheric, and intriguing - a wonderful story that is well worth your time.
August 6, 2019
I really love the way the author writes but it felt like the ending was very rushed.
January 24, 2023
My latest read...Dead Branches by Benjamin Langley.
This one...Oh, where do I start...
I liked where it went, but it took a while to get there.
It's told in an IT-like method—young boy grows into an older man, returns home to face his demons, switching between the two perspectives. And throughout the entirety of the book, you aren't sure if those demons are demented men or the supernatural. There's a heavy soccer presence—or football, depending on which side of the pond you're on—but I honestly couldn't really place why it played such a frequent part in the novel.
The premise of the book is that children have been going missing in this small village for decades. And how this young boy deals with his best friend being one of the victims is really unique. Langley has this young boy almost entirely dependent on monster trading cards and how the little boy associates each of the cards with one of the "villains" in his life. The young boy attempts to play amateur detective, but how successful he is at it is entirely up to your interpretation of the ending.
There are enough clues for you to figure it out, or think you have it figured out, but you won't be quite sure until the ending, which I loved. And the ending had an emotional punch I wasn't expecting.
All in all, I'd definitely give it four stars and recommend it!
Link in the comments, as always.
This one...Oh, where do I start...
I liked where it went, but it took a while to get there.
It's told in an IT-like method—young boy grows into an older man, returns home to face his demons, switching between the two perspectives. And throughout the entirety of the book, you aren't sure if those demons are demented men or the supernatural. There's a heavy soccer presence—or football, depending on which side of the pond you're on—but I honestly couldn't really place why it played such a frequent part in the novel.
The premise of the book is that children have been going missing in this small village for decades. And how this young boy deals with his best friend being one of the victims is really unique. Langley has this young boy almost entirely dependent on monster trading cards and how the little boy associates each of the cards with one of the "villains" in his life. The young boy attempts to play amateur detective, but how successful he is at it is entirely up to your interpretation of the ending.
There are enough clues for you to figure it out, or think you have it figured out, but you won't be quite sure until the ending, which I loved. And the ending had an emotional punch I wasn't expecting.
All in all, I'd definitely give it four stars and recommend it!
Link in the comments, as always.
April 24, 2020
I picked up this novel after meeting the author and being attracted to the setting - in The Fens - and enjoyed straying into the horro genre for the first time. The book has a strong sense of place and there were themes that will appeal to Young Adults as well as grown ups, including football (especially the obsession school boys have with football - and wishing to be certain players), gaming and Top Trumps.
I have posted an interview with the author here http://www.wilson-howarth.com/Blog/Ap...
I have posted an interview with the author here http://www.wilson-howarth.com/Blog/Ap...
November 26, 2019
amazing and superb really liked description on branches.
November 26, 2019
never read the book but he is my english teacher so yeah 5 stars
November 27, 2019
amazing
December 1, 2019
Amazing
March 2, 2024
A quiet horror, expertly told.
A child goes missing in a small Cambridgeshire village. Tom and his friends try to piece together the disappearance; their ‘investigation’ aided only by the similarities of the villagers to the monsters on his Top Trump Horror Cards, interactive comic books and memories of the tall tales spun by his Grandfather. Overhearing the adults agreeing that ‘Monsters are real’, reinforces Tom’s quest to tackle the demons and find answers. Someone has to be the hero.
A real page-turning coming of age story, reminiscent of IT, told alternatively through the POV of Tom as a young child and as a reluctant adult returning to his childhood home.
The writing is superb; it appears a long read but it is so engaging I sailed through it in two sittings.
Cover of Dead Branches By Benjamin Langley features a blackened tree in a barren field. The trunk of the tree is on fire. In the foreground, a discarded book or magazine is left to the elements.
A child goes missing in a small Cambridgeshire village. Tom and his friends try to piece together the disappearance; their ‘investigation’ aided only by the similarities of the villagers to the monsters on his Top Trump Horror Cards, interactive comic books and memories of the tall tales spun by his Grandfather. Overhearing the adults agreeing that ‘Monsters are real’, reinforces Tom’s quest to tackle the demons and find answers. Someone has to be the hero.
A real page-turning coming of age story, reminiscent of IT, told alternatively through the POV of Tom as a young child and as a reluctant adult returning to his childhood home.
The writing is superb; it appears a long read but it is so engaging I sailed through it in two sittings.
Cover of Dead Branches By Benjamin Langley features a blackened tree in a barren field. The trunk of the tree is on fire. In the foreground, a discarded book or magazine is left to the elements.
September 12, 2024
This is one of those books that just lingers. It’s a story that hits deep
I love that while the main plot is plenty horror enough, the story is actually more about what trauma can and does do to a child and how that continues into adult life.
It’s one of those books that has you staring at the blank pages in the back trying to process what you just read
There’s a lot more I could gush about, but I hate spoilers in reviews, so I won’t
I love that while the main plot is plenty horror enough, the story is actually more about what trauma can and does do to a child and how that continues into adult life.
It’s one of those books that has you staring at the blank pages in the back trying to process what you just read
There’s a lot more I could gush about, but I hate spoilers in reviews, so I won’t
Displaying 1 - 17 of 17 reviews