Shivers

by William Schoell

Book by Schoell, William

Genres: Horror, Science Fiction

400 pages, Mass Market Paperback

First published January 1, 1985

About the author

WILLIAM SCHOELL was born in Manhattan where he resides. He is the author of over thirty-five books in various genres, including celebrity biographies (some written with co-author Lawrence J. Quirk); horror-suspense novels; biographies of such people as Edgar Allan Poe and Giuseppe Verdi for young people; and books on the performing arts and pop culture. He has been a radio producer and talk show host, worked for Columbia pictures, and is a blogger, playwright, and activist.

Reviews

[Phil · Rating 3 out of 5]

Really 3.5 stars, but had to round down for a few reasons. Another fun read by Schoell, first published by Leisure in 1985. This starts with a bizarre prologue where an older guy is trying to write something along the lines of a confession/revelation when he is mentally forced to tear it up, toss it out the window and then is turned into a reddish paste on the wall. WTF?

Once Shivers really starts, it assumes a rather typical Schoell style of introducing a wide range of diverse characters, mainly in NYC, but features Steven, who was hosting his 'kid brother' Joey in his flat when Joey went for a Central Park jog in the afternoon and never came back. He goes to the cops, but, hey, a 21 y.o. guy who has only been gone for a day? Probably shacked up with someone...

As readers, however, we know something is going on. One of the characters works at a parapsychology institute in NYC (this is an 80s novel after all!) and gets strange 'vibes' from some homeless folks, and later that evening fights off a horrible mental challenge. Other characters are 'forced' to do things like jump in front of a subway, while others are turned into paste like the guy in the intro. The plot meanders as it thickens as is typical of Schoell, and the atmosphere of 80s NYC-- still a real, gritty city then-- really comes through. This may be a bit bloated and the denouement came too fast and too clean, which is the main reason I rounded down to 3 stars. Worth a read if you stumble across it!

[Peter · Rating 5 out of 5]

Great 80s classic. Well paced extremely eerie story with a fulminant ending. It's a must read and will run shivers down your spine. Clear recommendation!

[DJMikeG · Rating 4 out of 5]

Interesting, original horror/science fiction/mystery hybrid. First thing I've read by Schoell and I enjoyed it. He definitely gets points for originality, as this was unlike any other novel I've read. The only thing close to it would be Stephen King's "The Tommyknockers", but even that book is very distant in its comparison and was released two years after this one. I look forward to reading more of Schoell's work. Highly recommended to horror and sci fi fans.

[Ethan’s Books · Rating 4 out of 5]

4 stars.

This one took a minute for me to get into, but once you get the snowball rolling it wasn’t a bad read.

This book is 398 pages long and the pages go by pretty quick. I have only read two William Schoell books, and so far they have both been good. I have picked up Spawn of Hell and The Saurian. Hopefully those are even better.

If anyone needs this book spoiled for them just message me and I’ll tell you.

I wont leave spoilers here.

[Jeff Jellets · Rating 3 out of 5]

’… poor Mamie had wiped old Mr. Peterson off his own wall like so much dirt and dust.”

It was just a few days before Halloween … so a great time to dive into some vintage paperback horror … in this instance William Schoell’s Shivers that promises to ‘… make your blood run cold!’ Even when these old spinner-rack novels turn out to be not that great, I continue to dig the nostalgia, both from a story and packaging perspective. Shivers, for example, has metallic silver ink for its title and in the eyes of the gargoyle leering from its cover; it also has exactly zero gargoyles in the story … so accuracy … not so much.

Instead, a malevolent entity is lurking in New York City and racking up an impressive number of missing persons, including protagonist Steven Everson’s brother Joey. As Steven sets off to hunt up his lost brother, the entity starts picking off anyone who gets wise to its nefarious existence by ‘shivering’ them (and their attire) into protoplasmic jelly. Some of the deaths are pretty neat, including one poor dude who gets blender-ed while in the shower and subsequently washed down the drain.

But while Schoell has a bit of good idea here, but plot meanders to nearly 400 pages and seems to be intentionally skipping any of the good parts. The monster’s entire backstory is delivered in a two-page expository dialogue, its demise delivered in about four … all because we desperately need to fill time while Steven angsts over his deteriorating relationship with Andrea, Valerie flirts with a cabbie, Ralph can’t figure out where his marriage when wrong, weatherman Harry can’t predict snow, and Lina recollects poor performances at past job interviews? Sure … we could talk about how this bad guy took over a whole research lab, is enslaving the homeless, and conspiring to turn the New York underground into a giant electric chair …but Eric is going to dinner with his friends. Let’s listen in and see if Beau gets the pork chops!

(The veritable smorgasbord of powers our monster has is also a bit of problem: mind control, hallucinogenic manipulation, weather wizardry, telepathy -- in addition to the aforementioned ‘shake you into a slurpee’ mush – and an even weirder need as we get toward the end of the story for … ingesting men … and sex?)

Awww … this really isn’t any worse than a lot of the other shlock horror I’ve read, and Schoell has one of the more interesting bibliographies. In addition to a small pile of paperback horror, he’s penned a number of biographies on famous film stars and 1991’s Comic Book Heroes of the Screen which was written – ya know – when most superhero movies were really, really bad – so mark me down for that one.

But Shivers … is more ‘shake my head.’

[Sean · Rating 4 out of 5]

A mysterious force is orchestrating a terrifying plan in New York City. Can our protagonist, a sympathetic fellow searching for his missing brother, put the pieces together before it's too late? An intriguing, frequently scary thriller with some original scenes that won't be easily forgotten. Schoell incorporates psychics, family secrets, conspiracy theories, and inhuman evil into a highly entertaining mix. The only real flaw is the pacing--if anything, the plot moves a little too slowly most of the way, but then everything just sort of falls together in an avalanche of contrivances at the end. Having said that, the ultimate climax is powerful, and taken as a whole SHIVERS is definitely an above-average horror novel.