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Guardian Angels
Joseph A. Citro takes us back to Antrim, Vermont, and the site of the ugliest event in the town's history. When Sheila Crockett moves in with her 15-year old son, Will, and her new husband, they believe they have found the perfect house. They quickly repair ruined walls and doors, and sand the bloodstained floors. But paint and polish fail to completely disguise the lingering horror of the house's past.
Will realizes things are not as safe as they seem: locked doors open and close by themselves, footsteps echo in empty rooms, and he senses he's being watched. He suspects the house is haunted, but soon realizes things are far worse. His family and everyone he knows begins to fall prey to unseen and menacing forces. Then the deaths begin.
When Eric Nolan, protagonist of Shadow Child, escapes from the local asylum and arrives in Antrim, Will and his family wonder if he will be their savior or the agent of their destruction. Events move relentlessly to a truly terrifying conclusion in this epic of mystery and supernatural suspense, first published in 1988.
Will realizes things are not as safe as they seem: locked doors open and close by themselves, footsteps echo in empty rooms, and he senses he's being watched. He suspects the house is haunted, but soon realizes things are far worse. His family and everyone he knows begins to fall prey to unseen and menacing forces. Then the deaths begin.
When Eric Nolan, protagonist of Shadow Child, escapes from the local asylum and arrives in Antrim, Will and his family wonder if he will be their savior or the agent of their destruction. Events move relentlessly to a truly terrifying conclusion in this epic of mystery and supernatural suspense, first published in 1988.
411 pages, Paperback
First published January 1, 1988
16 people are currently reading
212 people want to read
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Displaying 1 - 14 of 14 reviews
October 28, 2017
This is so funny because I had no idea this was a sequel to that book I read with the clown on the front. What was it called, Shadow Child or People. Anyhoo, this has one of the guys from that book in it. He was locked up in the looney bin after what happened 4 years ago.
Meanwhile, Will's parents move them out to the boonies to the same house where shite went down! They wanted to get away from it all. Yeah..... they should have listened to Will.
Enter in a few more peeps, some cray and we might have the final conclusion 😄
Mel ❤️
September 5, 2015
This was Joe Citro's best horror novel. I've read all of his others, and while good and entertaining, none of them reach "great" status. This one was great. Bizarre premise, great execution. The last hundred pages or so are deliriously suspenseful. Highly recommended.
May 4, 2017
You simply have to read this follow-up to The Shadow Child as you want to know how the story continues. A very exciting read. Nightmarish surrounding in the cellar and the woods.
October 16, 2018
Another good scary thriller by Joseph Citro! As always, this takes place in rural Vermont, where strange things start happening. A new family moves to an old Victorian home which was sold "for a ridiculously low price". As the story unfolds, we learn there are many strange things happening in the forest and high up in the rocks of Pinnacle Peak. The family who bought the house find out the previous family was gruesomely murdered in their home.
Things only go downhill from there. For some reason, Vermonters refuse to speak of the strange sightings of childlike shapes darting through the forest, and pets - and even people - who disappear.
This book has some of the same characters we read about in Shadow Child also by this author. I would recommend reading Shadow Child first, just so you will be familiar with some of the names, although it is not necessary as this is also a standalone tale.
Rarely do I read horror (unless you count Stephen King) I usually stick to psychological suspense/terror type books. Listen, this book is HORROR. Some gore, but not so much that I couldn't read the book. I recommend this book!
Things only go downhill from there. For some reason, Vermonters refuse to speak of the strange sightings of childlike shapes darting through the forest, and pets - and even people - who disappear.
This book has some of the same characters we read about in Shadow Child also by this author. I would recommend reading Shadow Child first, just so you will be familiar with some of the names, although it is not necessary as this is also a standalone tale.
Rarely do I read horror (unless you count Stephen King) I usually stick to psychological suspense/terror type books. Listen, this book is HORROR. Some gore, but not so much that I couldn't read the book. I recommend this book!
October 14, 2007
What I Learned: writing nonfiction stories doesn't mean you write fiction well. Joe Citro writes fantastically about local folklore, but his style when he's creating his own story is a little stiff. Even so, I read the book in about a day, wondering where his mind was going. he's a strange fellow.
April 2, 2007
Not as suspenseful, mysterious or creepy as the first book.
May 10, 2020
A perfectly crafted sequel, Guardian Angels not only delivers more fully on the mysteries and terrors of its predecessor, but hints skillfully at a deeper world amidst its primeval darknesses.
January 30, 2025
This is book takes place a few years after the end of his previous book, Shadow Child, but I think you could read this one without reading the first and it still work well! Obviously getting the back story is best, though. I am not a huge consumer of horror, but from all that I have read and watched (in movies), I have never seen a similar story or “monster” to the ones in this book. It is a very original idea and I love that it’s based on actual legends and mysterious disappearances in Vermont. One star taken off because of the need for trigger warnings. So much child sex abuse involved in this story and I just really don’t enjoy it. Now for a quick, short, spoiler…
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Mona did NOT deserve ANY of that. Being a child who was abused by her father, hit on by her bus driver, kidnapped by the gentry, forced to endure sex acts while paralyzed and not in control of her own body, sacrificing her life to save Will, surviving a fall from a cliff in excruciating pain and refusing to give up and die, and then just being shot by Eric… I’m actually not even mad that he died.
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Mona did NOT deserve ANY of that. Being a child who was abused by her father, hit on by her bus driver, kidnapped by the gentry, forced to endure sex acts while paralyzed and not in control of her own body, sacrificing her life to save Will, surviving a fall from a cliff in excruciating pain and refusing to give up and die, and then just being shot by Eric… I’m actually not even mad that he died.
August 28, 2018
thaT IS A VERY DISRUBING BOOK
September 28, 2025
The basement of this house is described as "a cave designed to store witless children" and I'm in.
December 9, 2014
I thought this was the second of a trilogy, but found that it is the second of two. Things were left more open-ended than I expected. This book involves a family which comes to live on the same island in the same house as the family in Shadow Child. They find terror in a neighbor and from the mysterious beings of the first book.
April 9, 2016
How many keep secrets about what really goes on? This was a pretty good story. I kept waiting to read about guardian angels but they weren't mentioned until almost the end. It was definitely not what I expected. It was also a pretty short story IMO.
July 21, 2013
I couldn't put it down! And when I did, I couldn't stop thinking about it! Excellent horror and suspense writing.
April 6, 2017
Who doesn’t love a good horror novel? Guardian Angels by Joseph A. Citro is a really great book, but creepy at the same time. This book is in the horror genre and extremely scary. This is an amazingly frightening book that is intriguing and well written and everyone who likes this type of book should read it.
This book is always intriguing. When reading this book, people have to try and guess what in the world is going on. What is happening? Is that person dead? Is that person the enemy? Once fifteen chapters or so have been read, things start to become more and more clear. At one point, the main character, Will Crockett, is driving in a car with his stepdad, Dan Wilder, in the middle of the night. They suddenly see a kid standing in the middle of the road. Then more and more kids start running out from behind bushes and trees. They are ghostly white and chanting words in the middle of the road. Of course, they drive away and go immediately back to their house. This is just one reason on how this book is engaging. Another example would be when they decide to go after the little kids (they call themselves the Gentry) who were as white as snow and standing in the middle of the road. They go to their cave and try to find them. It is absolutely terrifying.
This book is well written. Citro uses a lot of different words that help describe things in more detail. He also uses various words that are deep in the dictionary and most people probably do not know exist. Lastly, he uses large amounts of analogies, metaphors, and similes. He really wants people to understand what is going on and how frightening everything is that is going on.
For instance, he uses this simile that is very descriptive and creepy: “Instead, he visualized the Rambo-kid’s face splitting like the skin of a boiled hot dog…” This is a weird simile, yes, but very descriptive as well.
Overall, Citro wrote a fantastic book that people who love this genre should read. It is intriguing and well written. Yes, it is terrifying at times and this probably can’t be read at night because of nightmares, but it is a great book.
This book is always intriguing. When reading this book, people have to try and guess what in the world is going on. What is happening? Is that person dead? Is that person the enemy? Once fifteen chapters or so have been read, things start to become more and more clear. At one point, the main character, Will Crockett, is driving in a car with his stepdad, Dan Wilder, in the middle of the night. They suddenly see a kid standing in the middle of the road. Then more and more kids start running out from behind bushes and trees. They are ghostly white and chanting words in the middle of the road. Of course, they drive away and go immediately back to their house. This is just one reason on how this book is engaging. Another example would be when they decide to go after the little kids (they call themselves the Gentry) who were as white as snow and standing in the middle of the road. They go to their cave and try to find them. It is absolutely terrifying.
This book is well written. Citro uses a lot of different words that help describe things in more detail. He also uses various words that are deep in the dictionary and most people probably do not know exist. Lastly, he uses large amounts of analogies, metaphors, and similes. He really wants people to understand what is going on and how frightening everything is that is going on.
For instance, he uses this simile that is very descriptive and creepy: “Instead, he visualized the Rambo-kid’s face splitting like the skin of a boiled hot dog…” This is a weird simile, yes, but very descriptive as well.
Overall, Citro wrote a fantastic book that people who love this genre should read. It is intriguing and well written. Yes, it is terrifying at times and this probably can’t be read at night because of nightmares, but it is a great book.
Displaying 1 - 14 of 14 reviews