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Dark Knowledge

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With knowledge comes a dark destiny...

A whole new world beckons inside the mind of mentally challenged Welsey Henson, a world that offers him a gift he can’t resist: knowledge. He carries these bits of knowledge back to the physical world, unaware of the dark instincts that come with them. The knowledge builds Wesley’s intellect, giving him abilities he’s never had before—to know the world around him, to heal...but these new instincts thrust him into an evil contest he can’t understand, much less win, against opponents who are trained to kill. The more Wesley understands, the harder it becomes to tell good from evil, and the more difficult his choices become. What must he sacrifice to save the world from his dark knowledge...his life, or his soul?

Paperback

First published September 13, 2009

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About the author

Keith Pyeatt

5 books26 followers
As a reader, I've always loved the added urgency and imagination a paranormal element adds to thrillers and suspense novels, so that's what I write. I also love well-developed characters, whether they're likable, despicable, tortured, or those in-between characters you can't decide whether to hate or love.

I've been writing novels since 1995 while living in a rural cabin in northeastern Vermont. I've moved around a lot since then. Now I live in Albuquerque, New Mexico. I have five published novels available on Amazon, and they slide between genres—psychological thriller, supernatural suspense, paranormal horror, and dark fantasy. My new release, The Sirens of Sayhurn, is a dark fantasy that reimagines the role of sirens, and I'm already planning a sequel.

My website
My Amazon Author Page

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5 stars
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Displaying 1 - 13 of 13 reviews
Profile Image for Jill  Lynn.
63 reviews6 followers
November 22, 2009
I had the privilege of reading the first chapter of DARK KNOWLEDGE years ago when the author entered a national writing contest. At that time, I thought the first chapter one of the best I ever read. Not just in the contest, but best EVER. With DARK KNOWLDEGE now published, I finally got to read the novel in its entirety, and am pleased to discover it more than lived up to the expectations I developed based on that first incredible chapter.

Wesley is a mentally challenged man whose mother institutionalized and abandoned eight years ago. Bobby--an aide at the institution-- has worked closely with Wesley throughout the years, taking him from an uncommunicative, nearly-incapacitated teenager to a loving special-needs man training for his first job. Proud of Wesley, and pleased with his part in Wesley's development, Bobby is dismayed to learn Wesley's mother has returned. He worries the mother--who left a chilling impression on Bobby when he met her all those years ago--will undo all the good Bobby has done on Wesley's behalf. He becomes even more concerned when Wesley starts having trance-like episodes. Only when Bobby is diagnosed with an inoperable tumor and knows he was somehow healed by Wesley does Bobby begin to understand Wesley's episodes are much more than a trance. He is living in two worlds: his mind world and the physical world. With the return of Wesley's mother, the two world's begin to collide, and along with Wesley's miraculous gift of healing comes a dark evil that threatens Wesley's existence at the same time it advances his intelligence. Aware for the first time, Wesley must determine if a life with more promise is worth holding onto if it comes packaged with dark knowledge.

A very absorbing novel, I read DARK KNOWLEDGE in two sittings, rooting for Wesley all the way. Being in his world is a bit like stepping inside a macabre rainbow of good and evil with twisting and turning colorful arcs; but there’s joy in taking the leap and meeting this heart-warming, good-soul hero.

Profile Image for Kelly.
5,691 reviews228 followers
October 30, 2013
This book runs the gamut from horrifying to sad. Wesley's a happy guy -- content in his routines and child-like with his enthusiasm and friendships -- until the knowledge being unlocked in his mind begins to show him the things he's been missing. In the midst of all the bad things that were happening around him, his metamorphosis from a gentle soul to one who understood that sometimes bad things have to happen to protect those you care about was tough.

I honestly didn't know how things were going to play out as the story progressed. The lengths the other players were willing to go to was disturbing. That Wesley so easily found his way into that same mindset when he was in his mind-world was chilling. That he understood what he had done and that he didn't want to do it again once he came out was heartbreaking.

As fascinating as Wesley's changes were, it still took me a while to get into the book. The beginning introduces a host of characters (who are all important in their own way and play a part down the road) and shows us Wesley as he's just coming into his abilities. Piecing together how they fit in takes a bit of time but once things start moving forward, they really start moving forward.

Dark and sometimes bloody, yet still sad as Wesley begins to see the world through different eyes (while fighting the forces of evil -- Ka-Pow!), this is a good book for a rainy day.

-Kelly @ Reading the Paranormal
Profile Image for Joylene Butler.
Author 8 books52 followers
October 28, 2012
DARK KNOWLEDGE is one of the scariest books I've ever read. Wesley was institutionalized as a child by an unstable mother who liked to dabble in witchcraft. She had no idea what she was messing with. As a mentally challenged adult, quiet Wesley slowly gains his momentum and is destined to battle the most sinister evil the world has ever seen. I don't generally read this genre because it scares me. But as a writer I peeked at chapter one because I already knew what a gifted writer Pyeatt was, and I couldn't stop after the first paragraph.

Pyeatt's ability to draw me in and create a world so vivid that I was there with Wesley the entire time, with each turn of the page I was more spellbound. As a writer, I love well-written novels, with prose I can drool over, and with a story I can't put down. DARK KNOWLEDGE is all of that and more. if you're looking for a book you can sink your teeth into, for a hero you can cheer for out loud, I can't recommend DARK KNOWLEDGE enough. Riveting, on-the-edge-of-your-seat frightening, DARK KNOWLEDGE is a story you won't forget even after you're finished reading it.

If you love Stephen King and Dean Koontz, you're going to love Keith Pyeatt's work. I picked up DARK KNOWLEDGE after reading Pyeatt's ABOVE HALDIS NOTCH and STRUCK, two outstanding horror novels. I can't wait for Pyeatt's next novel!
Profile Image for Kitty Austin.
Author 0 books432 followers
October 21, 2011
"DARK KNOWLEDGE" BY KEITH PYEATT

In a mental institution in Roanoke, a young boy has been left there since the age of 18. Was he left there in hiding or was it in an effort to hide others from him? The color green is a bad color or so Wesley was told by his mama, and he can see it on people when there's something bad about them. Wesley can make the green go away. Sometimes it's a good thing and sometimes the green goes so deep the only way to get rid of it is to kill.

What many don't know is that Wesley's had an enemy his whole life, an enemy since birth. She and her mother have found him, now he has no choice but to kill to be rid of the green. Something dark has come to Roanoke something really bad.

A great book with lots of thrills and surprises. Dark and scary, one that will keep you up all night reading.

My rating: 4 Ravens

Kitty Bullard / Great Minds Think Aloud / http://www.greatmindsliterarycommunit...


Read more: http://www.greatmindsthinkaloud.probo...
106 reviews2 followers
November 1, 2018
Astounding

This story is both spellbinding and beautiful! It has a mixture of supernatural,horror,and love. I tell in love with the characters both good and bad, and loved the ending! A must read!
Profile Image for Nerine Dorman.
Author 70 books238 followers
November 30, 2009
I know it's a bit, erm, biased for the editor of a book to review it but hell, I enjoyed this one immensely, even after having read it for the third or fourth time. I lose count. Also, the author is a pleasure to work with and I look forward to seeing more of his offerings in the future.

What I really, really like about this story is that there's no clear-cut good and evil. Keith also does a really good job of writing a mentally challenged man as a viewpoint character without coming across as patronising.

Some of the dream-visuals are, frankly, disturbing, but I also enjoyed some of the descriptions of scenes and people. Every so often, a passage pops out and sticks in my mind.
Profile Image for Nancy Pogue.
Author 9 books4 followers
November 27, 2012
If you're looking for the thrill of a skillfully crafted horror novel, Dark Knowledge is an excellent choice. But the pleasure doesn't stop there. Author Keith Pyeatt also creates an ensemble of fascinating characters to carry out his fantastic plot. The story's unique hero, a mentally challenged young man named Wesley Henson, leads the cast and wins your heart in the very first chapter. As Wesley faces terrifying paranormal threats and engages in a life-or-death struggle between good and evil, you will cheer him on and keep reading until you know whether he triumphs or succumbs. Dark Knowledge more than satisfies author Pyeatt's promise of "Horror with Heart."
Profile Image for Lynne.
352 reviews14 followers
February 9, 2016
I don't typically read books like this, and yes I figured it was going to have something to do with the paranormal, but I didn't think it would go the route it did. The fact that the author used a mentally challenged main character was the big draw to get me to read this book. I was intrigued on how he would present this character, and I was not disappointed. I enjoyed the author's writing style and characters - he made you really care about the main character Wesley, and his progress/challenges though out the book. I gave this book this rating only because of the subject matter. Paranormal is not my cup of tea, but I liked the author's style.
Profile Image for Catherine Cavendish.
Author 41 books425 followers
October 1, 2011
This is the first book I have read by this author but it won't be my last. I was gripped from page 1 and particularly liked the way he handled his cast of complex and evolving characters. The balance of horror, suspense and the chilling twists and turns of the plot as the central character discovers the awful destiny that awaits him meant that the pace was consistently maintained throughout. This story is multi-layered and keeps you on your toes which I really enjoyed. Fans of good horror stories should love this. I certainly did!
Profile Image for Nanci Arvizu.
Author 18 books10 followers
March 19, 2010
A great story about the power of knowledge and the consequenses of wanting more.

Keith Pyeatt is a gifted story teller, I was blown away by the details he give us with each turn of events.

I had the opportunity to talk with Keith on Page Readers. His enthusiasm and love of what he does is evident and contageous.

He sent me his other novel, "STRUCK", which I can't wait to read!

257 reviews1 follower
January 20, 2019
Interesting concepts with nods to Rosemary's Baby and the Highlander series, but with a new twist. It kept my interest throughout, but n real surprises and the ending was a little disappointing.
4 reviews
September 13, 2017
I love this book. I am a history buff and was delighted with the information on New York city. I especially like learning about the place names: Wall Street gets its name from the wall that was built to protect the city from the Indians and the Bowery from the Dutch word meaning farm where Peter Stuyvesant's farm was located. I knew nothing of the Slave Revolt of 1712. I was curious just how much of the info in the book was fact and how much was fiction. The Internet was a great help here. I found and article from People's World titled: Slavery in New York: Uncovering the Brutal Truth, which backed up what the author has been saying in his story. The ending left a lot of questions unanswered, but left open the possibility of a sequel. I am hoping to read it.
Displaying 1 - 13 of 13 reviews

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