What do you think?
Rate this book
Dead White
In the tiny Catskills town of Deacons Kill, the blizzard strikes without warning. The people of Deacons Kill have seen terrible storms before, and they settle down uneasily to wait it out. But this one is different. As the drifts creep higher, a train appears out of the storm, arriving on rusty abandoned tracks–an antique circus train bringing clowns...and shadows...and death
320 pages, Paperback
First published January 1, 1983
5 people are currently reading
682 people want to read
About the author
Alan Ryan
94 books41 followersAlan Peter Ryan was an American author and editor, known for his work in the horror genre in the 1980s.
Ratings & Reviews
Friends & Following
Create a free account to discover what your friends think of this book!
Community Reviews
Displaying 1 - 30 of 38 reviews
December 31, 2022
This exciting novel is about a small village being snowed in. Then the circus comes to town. How did they come through on those derelict railways? Why are there only clowns? What do they have in mind? People are missing. Is it the snow or something else? The author is slowly building up tension in a great way. You come to know the main characters like your own neighbors and the horror is creeping relentlessly in chapter for chapter (formed as a kind of day to day diary entry) like a cold winter day. What a blast from the past! Best book for freezing winter nights. Highly recommended horror classic with all the right ingredients.
March 14, 2015
I’ve rarely been so excited to read a book as I was to crack open Dead White because, well let the back cover blurb take it away: “In the tiny Catskills town of Deacons Kill, the blizzard strikes without warning…As the drifts creep higher, a train appears out of the storm—an antique circus train bringing clowns…and death.”
Oh, dear god in heaven above, this book is about Killer Clowns on a Circus Train of Death attacking a snowbound community. It’s like Alan Ryan peered into the future, figured out exactly the kind of book I’d want to read, and wrote it 31 years earlier. And yet...by the time it was all over I had experienced no tingling in my pants. Sad trombone.
Why sad trombone? Read the rest of this review and find out.
Oh, dear god in heaven above, this book is about Killer Clowns on a Circus Train of Death attacking a snowbound community. It’s like Alan Ryan peered into the future, figured out exactly the kind of book I’d want to read, and wrote it 31 years earlier. And yet...by the time it was all over I had experienced no tingling in my pants. Sad trombone.
Why sad trombone? Read the rest of this review and find out.
December 29, 2014
Oh wow, what to say. This was my first Alan Ryan novel and I have two more to read. I can't really say I'm disappointed. The cover kicks ass and the story was well written. Great descriptions of a blizzard that traps a small town. I kept willing it to snow here in Ohio to hype up the creepiness of this novel but no luck. Anyway, much of this story is buildup. For example the feeling of doom impending, strange visions of clowns that arrive mysteriously on a train, sudden death, people missing just to name a few. You really get a sense of some of the people and who they are. The ending, however, doesn't do much for all the tension it builds. You get glimpses of the history and even of the clowns themselves. It ends quite quietly and ur left a little forlorn. If it's graphic horror u are into, I would skip this one but if u like it subtle and like to use your imagination for the details, go for it! I like a little more "in your face," but I can appreciate "quiet" horror so I went ahead and gave it 4 stars. Can't wait to see how his other novels pan out!
June 30, 2022
Spoiler
the premise is pretty good for campy horror
town closed off do to severe weather, town gathers most people under one roof, mysterious circus train shows up on long disused rail road station.
Its ghost clowns, awesome love the idea! Campy horror hooray! but i feel its lacking and could have done more, 3 of the deaths are dis-likable ppl thats fine horror gets like that sometimes. Theres only a few deaths talked about only 3 from the clowns but they talk about a lot of heads being tossed around... why not show those deaths.... thats what i'm reading the book for, not the weather.. NOT THE WEATHER AND ITS TALKED ABOUT A LOT. I GET IT, ITS COLD I WANNA HEAR ABOUT THE CLOWNS. and their show is at the very end.. I got hyped it sounded fun but it ends fast and then the book ends. I don't think it was supposed to feel like a satisfying ending but I felt that way bc theres only little of clowns and them murdering, its lacking
2.5- to a low 3 stars, keepable (mostly bc of the cover)
the premise is pretty good for campy horror
town closed off do to severe weather, town gathers most people under one roof, mysterious circus train shows up on long disused rail road station.
Its ghost clowns, awesome love the idea! Campy horror hooray! but i feel its lacking and could have done more, 3 of the deaths are dis-likable ppl thats fine horror gets like that sometimes. Theres only a few deaths talked about only 3 from the clowns but they talk about a lot of heads being tossed around... why not show those deaths.... thats what i'm reading the book for, not the weather.. NOT THE WEATHER AND ITS TALKED ABOUT A LOT. I GET IT, ITS COLD I WANNA HEAR ABOUT THE CLOWNS. and their show is at the very end.. I got hyped it sounded fun but it ends fast and then the book ends. I don't think it was supposed to feel like a satisfying ending but I felt that way bc theres only little of clowns and them murdering, its lacking
2.5- to a low 3 stars, keepable (mostly bc of the cover)
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
March 31, 2019
This was a nice flashback to a time before cell phones and internet and what it means to be truly isolated. Even though I figured out what was going on, long before the reveal, I wanted to keep reading. Overall a fun horror novel to read. Yes it's a bit dated, younger folks might not appreciate it. I have no regrets stepping into the past.
March 7, 2013
Written by Alan Ryan during the start of the Tor Horror line, which back in the beloved and crudely-neonized 1980s, covered the paperback shelves in the horror sections of so many stores (in my case, a Waldenbooks, where I’d stand as a young teen and ogle the lurid covers and those shimmering raised fonts that boldly highlighted the title as if borrowed from the Las Vegas strip), this novel is so minimally written, so restrained and tempered, that it makes the work of Charles Grant not only seem ‘quiet’ but downright mute. The prose is the equivalent of Weight Watchers, as Ryan seems to be aware that adding stylistic flourishes and deep ruminations of character will only fatten the page count, and not really accomplish much for the story. Even chapter size is stripped to a minimum, some merely a half a page long, and the longest being about five pages. But while it may appear that there is nothing to the novel, there is a growing sense of doom from page to page, a subtly menacing unease that grows as it moves ahead toward the climax. And don’t get me wrong, there actually is some outward terror – c’mon, floating clowns playing in the snow, looking at families through ice-caked windows, doubling over in laughter and walking on air through the blizzard. Yes it is a horror novel, and it isn’t a waste of time.
Sans metaphor, time shifts and multiple narratives, Ryan creates a highly economical tale about a circus train invading a small upstate New York town during a freak blizzard which locks down the inhabitants and makes them easy prey for an evil presence, led by a ringmaster adorned in the black top hat and the cape. It’s all up to the young sheriff incapable of handling all the chaos, and the old doctor who senses something wrong right from the get-go, to put an end before the whole town disappears off the map in a white-wash of snow. Okay, I admit it sounds standard horror pulp fare, but stick with it. It’s all atmosphere with this one, but instead of relying on the tricks of the trade, Ryan really keeps things simple, and relies on the reader’s imagination (yes, the ‘I’ word) to paint the landscape and scope with creeping dread. Of course, he doesn’t leave us completely void of description, and when he does, it is in restrained doses, describing the wind, the starless sky, the snow changing direction as if sentient. Horror readers are not going to get overflowing grue and outright ‘in your face’ horrors, nor are they going to get the epic widespread panic that many 80′s novel strived for, and lesser times, achieved.
While reading this, I was aching for more suspense, more descriptions of the invasion. I wanted more incidents of the villagers encountering glimpses of the clowns – I wanted to be chilled to the bone, fucked with (for example, checking out my window to see if a pale-faced clown was floating there), but I was simply teased with all the tension the book alludes to but really never fulfills to its potential. All in all, Ryan turns out a solid horror novel. And especially if like tales of seclusion by way of winter storms, then this is a future read for you. Perhaps as an appetizer to other works of ‘winter horror’, King’s ‘The Shining’, Ramsey Campbell’s ‘Midnight Sun’, and Peter Straub’s ‘Ghost Story’.
Sans metaphor, time shifts and multiple narratives, Ryan creates a highly economical tale about a circus train invading a small upstate New York town during a freak blizzard which locks down the inhabitants and makes them easy prey for an evil presence, led by a ringmaster adorned in the black top hat and the cape. It’s all up to the young sheriff incapable of handling all the chaos, and the old doctor who senses something wrong right from the get-go, to put an end before the whole town disappears off the map in a white-wash of snow. Okay, I admit it sounds standard horror pulp fare, but stick with it. It’s all atmosphere with this one, but instead of relying on the tricks of the trade, Ryan really keeps things simple, and relies on the reader’s imagination (yes, the ‘I’ word) to paint the landscape and scope with creeping dread. Of course, he doesn’t leave us completely void of description, and when he does, it is in restrained doses, describing the wind, the starless sky, the snow changing direction as if sentient. Horror readers are not going to get overflowing grue and outright ‘in your face’ horrors, nor are they going to get the epic widespread panic that many 80′s novel strived for, and lesser times, achieved.
While reading this, I was aching for more suspense, more descriptions of the invasion. I wanted more incidents of the villagers encountering glimpses of the clowns – I wanted to be chilled to the bone, fucked with (for example, checking out my window to see if a pale-faced clown was floating there), but I was simply teased with all the tension the book alludes to but really never fulfills to its potential. All in all, Ryan turns out a solid horror novel. And especially if like tales of seclusion by way of winter storms, then this is a future read for you. Perhaps as an appetizer to other works of ‘winter horror’, King’s ‘The Shining’, Ramsey Campbell’s ‘Midnight Sun’, and Peter Straub’s ‘Ghost Story’.
April 20, 2017
If I could, I'd give this 4.5 instead of five, ONLY because the train was introduced a little awkwardly, and the townspeoples' immediate acceptance of it was a little too quick and casual. HOWEVER, the beautiful prose and careful construction of suspense and description MORE than make up for it. This isn't the type of novel for those who want immediate bloodfests, either. We get to things slowly and surely. All in all, a fine read.
January 31, 2023
During a giant snowstorm, an old Victorian era train pulls into town on a lonely disused rail. Abord is a traveling circus with a ringmaster and his clowns. Seems that they are back to settle an old score. They could have just derailed for all I care.
For the most part, this book was just a bunch of people frittering away their day in a hotel while the weather gets worse. Some get a glimpse of a clown now and then. Others check on elderly neighbors who are snowed in. There were a few moments in this that had some promise, but it turns cold just as fast. Clowns are supposed to be scary. They are to me. This just wastes the potential of some mayhem by the jesters of merriment.
For the most part, this book was just a bunch of people frittering away their day in a hotel while the weather gets worse. Some get a glimpse of a clown now and then. Others check on elderly neighbors who are snowed in. There were a few moments in this that had some promise, but it turns cold just as fast. Clowns are supposed to be scary. They are to me. This just wastes the potential of some mayhem by the jesters of merriment.
September 13, 2017
Enjoyed it. Quite creepy. A slow-burn though, so don't expect a Richard Laymon type of a novel.
August 2, 2025
In the spirit of Charles L. Grant’s Oxrun Station, which gets namechecked within, this is a novel of building strangeness in a small town, the same town from Ryan’s The Kill. A relentless snowstorm descends, a strange circus train shows up on a little-used track and hints of strange clowns scampering about follow. It’s atmospheric and interesting overall.
June 22, 2009
I'd give it 3 and a half stars. Pretty atmospheric. good solid writing.
November 26, 2016
I read this about a thousand years ago. It was likely one of the first times I understood as an adult the fear of clowns. As a child I was terrified of The Banana Man who appeared on The Captain Kangaroo Show, but the phantom clowns who roll into Deacon's Kill , New York in the dead of winter and proceed to make the residents pay for some long forgotten sin would probably have The Banana Man for breakfast.
Alan Ryan knew how to put together a story and this one is no exception. The ending does seem to just, well, end, but up to that point, you will be promising yourself that you will be planning a move to Arizona, preferably in a town that circuses cannot access.
I've often wonder if his Deacon's Kill clowns are somehow related to the "Horrible Harlequins" that Joseph Citro mentions in his non fiction book of New England Lore "Passing Strange." The mad jesters who allegedly terrorized the Cape Ann settlements of Massachusetts in the 1600s seem to have a lot in common with the monsters that attack Deacon's Kill in winter.
In any event, if you can find a coy of Dead White, choose a snowy afternoon in mid February, open the book, sip your hot chocolate and start reading.
Alan Ryan knew how to put together a story and this one is no exception. The ending does seem to just, well, end, but up to that point, you will be promising yourself that you will be planning a move to Arizona, preferably in a town that circuses cannot access.
I've often wonder if his Deacon's Kill clowns are somehow related to the "Horrible Harlequins" that Joseph Citro mentions in his non fiction book of New England Lore "Passing Strange." The mad jesters who allegedly terrorized the Cape Ann settlements of Massachusetts in the 1600s seem to have a lot in common with the monsters that attack Deacon's Kill in winter.
In any event, if you can find a coy of Dead White, choose a snowy afternoon in mid February, open the book, sip your hot chocolate and start reading.
June 12, 2022
An atmospheric, eerie novel that hooks you early on and keeps you invested all the way, but stutters to a sudden end with an anticlimactic whimper.
January 4, 2020
2.8 out of 5 stars!
I could have titled Ryan's novel review- "What Happens When Characters Make Good Decisions in a Horror Novel?" The answer is...It isn't scary! HELLO! It's a horror axiom for characters to make BAD decisions in horror.
Blizzard isolates the small town of Deacon's Kill just as a circus of evil clowns arrives on an antiquated train. Sounds scary? I thought so. But not in Dead White. Immediately the sheriff, doctor and townsfolk shift into an emergency force that puts FIMA to shame. A huge centrally located hotel morphs into home base for emergency services and a place of refuge for any towns folk who want a place to weather out the blizzard. Snowmobiles are confiscated as deputies check on folks, cut off on the outskirts of Deacon's Kill. Women shift into high gear baking cookies and popping popcorn, creating a winter wonderland for the children. Men frequent the hotel's open bar all blizzard long! An occational evil clown covorts and chuckles outside the hotel's freezing pereminter. When the Sherrif yells," Don't panic! Leave immediatly in an orderly manner." The townfolks leave like a drill team, calmly exiting a dangerous situation in an orderly manner. FIMA could use Alan Ryan's novel as a textbook example of
what to do right" in a natural disaster. I'm cracking up cause I've never read anything like it! Maybe Alan Ryan decided to destroy horror tropes just to see what happened when folks make good decisions during a malevolent chuckling evil clown attack? I dunno. Maybe Ryan's trolling horror fans? You got me...
Anyway, minus scary moments, I enjoyed Ryans endless descriptions of snow, swirling winds, and bad weather. I award Dead White 2.8 stars rounded up to 3 stars. In my world three stars means I enjoyed reading the novel however I'll never read it again.
If you like reading scary snowy stories and terrifying winter tales then pick up copy of...
"The Terror"by Dan Simmons
"Snow" by Ronald Malfi
"Bone White" by Ronald Malfi
"The Shinning" by Stephen King
"Vampire Winter" by Lois Tilton
"At the Mountains of Madness" by H.P. Lovecraft
"Darkness on the Ice" by Lois Tilton
"Ghost Story" by Peter Straub
Maynard's House" Herman Raucher
I could have titled Ryan's novel review- "What Happens When Characters Make Good Decisions in a Horror Novel?" The answer is...It isn't scary! HELLO! It's a horror axiom for characters to make BAD decisions in horror.
Blizzard isolates the small town of Deacon's Kill just as a circus of evil clowns arrives on an antiquated train. Sounds scary? I thought so. But not in Dead White. Immediately the sheriff, doctor and townsfolk shift into an emergency force that puts FIMA to shame. A huge centrally located hotel morphs into home base for emergency services and a place of refuge for any towns folk who want a place to weather out the blizzard. Snowmobiles are confiscated as deputies check on folks, cut off on the outskirts of Deacon's Kill. Women shift into high gear baking cookies and popping popcorn, creating a winter wonderland for the children. Men frequent the hotel's open bar all blizzard long! An occational evil clown covorts and chuckles outside the hotel's freezing pereminter. When the Sherrif yells," Don't panic! Leave immediatly in an orderly manner." The townfolks leave like a drill team, calmly exiting a dangerous situation in an orderly manner. FIMA could use Alan Ryan's novel as a textbook example of
what to do right" in a natural disaster. I'm cracking up cause I've never read anything like it! Maybe Alan Ryan decided to destroy horror tropes just to see what happened when folks make good decisions during a malevolent chuckling evil clown attack? I dunno. Maybe Ryan's trolling horror fans? You got me...
Anyway, minus scary moments, I enjoyed Ryans endless descriptions of snow, swirling winds, and bad weather. I award Dead White 2.8 stars rounded up to 3 stars. In my world three stars means I enjoyed reading the novel however I'll never read it again.
If you like reading scary snowy stories and terrifying winter tales then pick up copy of...
"The Terror"by Dan Simmons
"Snow" by Ronald Malfi
"Bone White" by Ronald Malfi
"The Shinning" by Stephen King
"Vampire Winter" by Lois Tilton
"At the Mountains of Madness" by H.P. Lovecraft
"Darkness on the Ice" by Lois Tilton
"Ghost Story" by Peter Straub
Maynard's House" Herman Raucher
December 20, 2020
An old circus train rolls into town on abandoned tracks during the worst 3-day snowstorm a town in the Catskills, Deacon’s Kill, has ever seen. The phone lines go down (this was written in the days before the internet and cell phones) and almost everyone in town holes up in the town’s hotel to ride out the storm as a community. Pretty soon, people think they’re seeing clowns dancing in the snow...and people start going missing. How could this not be fun?
This was no literary masterpiece, but I found it a creepy and fun read. The writing was serviceable and easy to read, chapters were short and it was a slow burn. It’s interesting to note that this book came out right around the time Stephen King started working on IT and has a review from him on the back. Can’t help but wonder if this may have inspired the whole creepy clowns thing for King. There’s also some elements of The Shining and Storm of the Century here. Overall it was an entertaining 80’s style horror paperback!
Unfortunately this book is long out of print, and isn’t available as an ebook, so it’s a bit difficult to find. Nonetheless I would say it’s one to keep your eye out for when you’re poking around used book stores-if you come across this rarity, it’s definitely worth picking up. I’m keeping my eye out for Alan Ryan’s other book about this town called “The Kill”. 3.8/5
This was no literary masterpiece, but I found it a creepy and fun read. The writing was serviceable and easy to read, chapters were short and it was a slow burn. It’s interesting to note that this book came out right around the time Stephen King started working on IT and has a review from him on the back. Can’t help but wonder if this may have inspired the whole creepy clowns thing for King. There’s also some elements of The Shining and Storm of the Century here. Overall it was an entertaining 80’s style horror paperback!
Unfortunately this book is long out of print, and isn’t available as an ebook, so it’s a bit difficult to find. Nonetheless I would say it’s one to keep your eye out for when you’re poking around used book stores-if you come across this rarity, it’s definitely worth picking up. I’m keeping my eye out for Alan Ryan’s other book about this town called “The Kill”. 3.8/5
February 18, 2017
This book was a real surprise. I'd never heard of Dead White until I came across it on a horror novel blog. I ordered a used copy from Amazon, and I'm so glad I did.
This was one of the best horror novels I've read in a long time. A wonderful, eerie mood, fast-paced due to the structure of short, time-stamped chapters, and an original story that only falters once or twice.
If you like quiet, eerie horror, check it out.
This was one of the best horror novels I've read in a long time. A wonderful, eerie mood, fast-paced due to the structure of short, time-stamped chapters, and an original story that only falters once or twice.
If you like quiet, eerie horror, check it out.
September 15, 2018
Scared the hell out of me.
October 26, 2021
Spooktober 2021 Book 12
It’s not that Dead White is bad…it’s just it could have been so much better.
Ryan’s inspirations are pretty obvious, from King to Grant, however, unlike those 2 masters of horror, Ryan just can’t seem to pull it off.
All in all, this book is supposed to be about a murdering cavalcade of killer clowns and the isolation of a sever blizzard. Unfortunately, neither really hit the mark.
The blizzard is just there as atmosphere and the clowns are shockingly absent. They show up every once in awhile to do their dirty killing and the disappear for another 50 pages while the townsfolk of Deacons Kill act inept and totally ok with a mystery train of circus performers randomly showing up in the middle of a white out storm.
I could have forgiven some of this had the clowns had an interesting and unique backstory…but nope. It’s just a typical and derivative background explanation. As a massive horror fiction fan, I can totally understand the fact that horror is rarely 100% original or even clever, though it has to be at least fun. Dead White really doesn’t succeed on either of those fronts.
I’ll still give credit where credit is due. I’d be remiss to not point how beautiful the cover of this novel is. It’s the perfect minimalistic artwork that worked so well in conjunction with the massively overdone covers of the 80’s. Taking a step back and doing something simple was a great idea from Tor and it works. This cover is an absolute classic amongst the horror genre. Dead White is also an extremely fast and easy read…so there’s that.
It’s not that Dead White is bad…it’s just it could have been so much better.
Ryan’s inspirations are pretty obvious, from King to Grant, however, unlike those 2 masters of horror, Ryan just can’t seem to pull it off.
All in all, this book is supposed to be about a murdering cavalcade of killer clowns and the isolation of a sever blizzard. Unfortunately, neither really hit the mark.
The blizzard is just there as atmosphere and the clowns are shockingly absent. They show up every once in awhile to do their dirty killing and the disappear for another 50 pages while the townsfolk of Deacons Kill act inept and totally ok with a mystery train of circus performers randomly showing up in the middle of a white out storm.
I could have forgiven some of this had the clowns had an interesting and unique backstory…but nope. It’s just a typical and derivative background explanation. As a massive horror fiction fan, I can totally understand the fact that horror is rarely 100% original or even clever, though it has to be at least fun. Dead White really doesn’t succeed on either of those fronts.
I’ll still give credit where credit is due. I’d be remiss to not point how beautiful the cover of this novel is. It’s the perfect minimalistic artwork that worked so well in conjunction with the massively overdone covers of the 80’s. Taking a step back and doing something simple was a great idea from Tor and it works. This cover is an absolute classic amongst the horror genre. Dead White is also an extremely fast and easy read…so there’s that.
January 8, 2025
There is like 60% of a fantastic horror book here. The setting is wonderful even if obviously derived from the Salem's Lot formula. A little upstate NY Catskills town getting smashed by a historic storm when a creepy train arrives on a supposedly dead line is a killer place to start. That and the amazing cover art, how can we go wrong? With a few tweaks to the formula, this could have been an all-timer.
I thought the book was too long with far too many characters who only get so much to do. Too much time is spent lingering on the needlessly sad death of a little girl from a broken abusive home and the end is a bit abrupt and undercooked. I never really felt the creep factor from the ringmaster--whose name I've already forgotten--and the presence of the clowns (already at risk of being goofy) wasn't menacing enough to raise the blood pressure. If this had fully taken the atmospheric horror approach that it hints at a la Carpenter's The Fog or maybe cut down on the preamble and upped the danger and savagery of the climax, then maybe this would have been more successful. Instead, it tries to be atmospheric, slasher, supernatural, and folksy all at once and kind of disappears with a fart.
That being said, I want to draw attention again to how good the setting is. AR really had me feeling the storm. In this way, it's an inspiring book and one that I wouldn't hesitate to recommend to the right reader.
Read on archive.org.
I thought the book was too long with far too many characters who only get so much to do. Too much time is spent lingering on the needlessly sad death of a little girl from a broken abusive home and the end is a bit abrupt and undercooked. I never really felt the creep factor from the ringmaster--whose name I've already forgotten--and the presence of the clowns (already at risk of being goofy) wasn't menacing enough to raise the blood pressure. If this had fully taken the atmospheric horror approach that it hints at a la Carpenter's The Fog or maybe cut down on the preamble and upped the danger and savagery of the climax, then maybe this would have been more successful. Instead, it tries to be atmospheric, slasher, supernatural, and folksy all at once and kind of disappears with a fart.
That being said, I want to draw attention again to how good the setting is. AR really had me feeling the storm. In this way, it's an inspiring book and one that I wouldn't hesitate to recommend to the right reader.
Read on archive.org.
January 15, 2020
It was well written, with lots of good details. I felt like I was right there with the main characters, staring out the frosted windows at the snow, feeling intense trepidation. I liked how the "chapters" were very short; it made for fast reading. The author kept up the creep factor, so much so that I thought for sure there would be a very big payoff at the end. Sadly there was not. Like Bram Stoker's Dracula, the big climax came and went so fast I almost missed it! When I read the back of this book, I had high expectations for lots of creepy, killer clowns, murdering people left and right in horrible, but wacky, ways. There were a couple of satisfying kills though, people you really hoped would bite the dust, and they did. I think that was this book's saving grace. Otherwise, I could have used a lot more violence! I bought this book because I liked the way Grady Hendrix described it in Paperbacks from Hell. For me, a good book is one that I will buy, if I don't already own it, and will read again. This is one of those books. I will shelve it for now, and read it again somewhere down the road. Possibly during a blizzard, when it's dark outside, and something might be looking in the window at me, but I can't see them...
October 6, 2024
The Circus Comes to Deacon's Kill...
The book begins with Susan wrestling with her car on a snowy, icy road. Where had the snow come from? The weather wasn't supposed to be this bad...Her car slides off the road so she has to make her way home across the town square...by the old warehouse and the long defunct railroad station. Except now there's a train there. A Victorian-looking one. And she sees a clown leering out at her from a window.
So begins a few days of snowbound isolation and creeping fear as the town's denizens hunker down and prepare for the winter onslaught. Richie the deputy has big shoes to fill as the well- respected sheriff is out of town. A base of operations is set up at the Centennial hotel and the snow keeps coming down. The townspeople start to see clowns capering in the snow. People begin to disappear. And the ringmaster shows up, all charm, smiles, and grandeur to get into the town's good graces. They've been this way before, this circus troupe. And the town's doctor learns that they're not back just to entertain the town...Rich in characterization, maybe a bit skimpy on the circus backstory..
Still a great yarn. The blizzard like conditions were so evocatively described, I had to keep looking out my window to see if it was snowing.
The book begins with Susan wrestling with her car on a snowy, icy road. Where had the snow come from? The weather wasn't supposed to be this bad...Her car slides off the road so she has to make her way home across the town square...by the old warehouse and the long defunct railroad station. Except now there's a train there. A Victorian-looking one. And she sees a clown leering out at her from a window.
So begins a few days of snowbound isolation and creeping fear as the town's denizens hunker down and prepare for the winter onslaught. Richie the deputy has big shoes to fill as the well- respected sheriff is out of town. A base of operations is set up at the Centennial hotel and the snow keeps coming down. The townspeople start to see clowns capering in the snow. People begin to disappear. And the ringmaster shows up, all charm, smiles, and grandeur to get into the town's good graces. They've been this way before, this circus troupe. And the town's doctor learns that they're not back just to entertain the town...Rich in characterization, maybe a bit skimpy on the circus backstory..
Still a great yarn. The blizzard like conditions were so evocatively described, I had to keep looking out my window to see if it was snowing.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
October 5, 2022
I bet Alan Ryan wished there were more synonyms for snow in the English language. The landscape descriptions are the strongest aspect here, but they get repetitive towards the end. Speaking of the end, this doesn’t pay off in a satisfying way, which is a bummer. The setup is solid, classic disaster movie type plotting of setting up the wide cast of characters and such, but then it never really goes anywhere past that. The characters aren’t memorable and there’s next to zilch in terms of the ghost clown action. The gimmicky embossed cover of the book is neat, at least!
November 4, 2020
didn't actually read this but I gave it 5 stars already sooo
how's your day? yeah
I should properly read this book but I am retarded like this shitty web site
I did a cool review on game as Ned also didn't read it...
🙄 there is a small blonde child next to me rn his name is Brayden he is really mean
how's your day? yeah
I should properly read this book but I am retarded like this shitty web site
I did a cool review on game as Ned also didn't read it...
🙄 there is a small blonde child next to me rn his name is Brayden he is really mean
July 13, 2021
As insane as the premise sounds, haunted circus comes to town with murderous clowns set loose during a blizzard, this was actually a pretty sedate horror potboiler. Needed more clown murders and to ratchet the loony level higher to be more enjoyable. But it is still not bad.
Bottom line : it came nowhere near delivering on its wacky and wild premise.
Bottom line : it came nowhere near delivering on its wacky and wild premise.
February 23, 2025
After 120 pages, I’m Dead Done. Awesome premise. Promising start. Countless repetitive lines of landscape description.
When the dialogue comes, it’s bland.
When the horror comes, it’s brief.
I just reached a point where I thought… Ryan, if you start describing the snow and wind outside again, I’m out.
He did.
When the dialogue comes, it’s bland.
When the horror comes, it’s brief.
I just reached a point where I thought… Ryan, if you start describing the snow and wind outside again, I’m out.
He did.
April 22, 2025
This was a very enjoyable read. The writing was good - but not great. The story moved quickly, and there was good character development. It wasn’t scary though. The clowns weren’t scary at all. The final scene was interesting and there was lots of good atmosphere, but that’s about it. It’s worth a read if you like vintage stuff
March 15, 2022
Well written and the organization of chapters by time made it easy and engaging to read for any period of time.
But how could you make a book about killer phantom clowns in a snowstorm dull? Don’t bother finding out.
But how could you make a book about killer phantom clowns in a snowstorm dull? Don’t bother finding out.
January 11, 2024
Snow, snow, snow. Endless descriptions about snow falling. In between those descriptions, you get a side plot about a ghost circus train returning to get revenge on the townspeople. Slow burn for sure. Not enough about the revenge clowns and too much focus on the townspeople. An average read.
September 8, 2020
Read in 1984. Horror fiction.
August 3, 2021
Mediocre romanzo dell'orrore, con una trama tutto sommato apprezzabile.
Displaying 1 - 30 of 38 reviews