Shane Briant is an actor turned horror novelist which is interesting
because his debut novel reads like a slick knuckle-biting Hollywood
thriller. It sorted reminded me of The Da Vinci Code by Dan Brown in
that as I was reading it felt like I was watching a movie.
The plot follows a best-selling and Booker prize winner author Dermot Nolan. Think of him as a John Grisham or a Dan Brown in popularity but with more of a literary sense. But Dermot has a really big problem that could cost him everything. He was paid a really big advance for his new novel but he has a severe case of writer’s block. Unfortunately, he is about to run out of time and money. Desperate situations force people to desperate things and Dermot Nolan’s back is against the wall.
The other character is only known as the Dream Healer. He runs a website that advertises “Are your dreams a source of pain and anxiety? Let the Dream Healer bring you peace.” People will visit the website and describe in vivid detail their debilitating nightmare. The Dream Healer then acts as a sort Dr. Phil to help them sort through their problems. Of course this is all a rouse as the Dream Healer is just a collector of information. The one thing you do not want is a house call from the Dream Healer as the chances are very low you live through the encounter and he will make you relive your worst nightmare.
The Dream Healer has written down all of his exploits in his manifesto and passes it along to Dermot Nolan. At first, Dermot thinks of it as just sensualist fictional trash but is intrigued by the brutal nature of it. Through a series of events Dermot witnesses the Dream Healer commit suicide. Now he is faced with a quandary, since he cannot write his own novel, does he publish the Dream Healer’s diary as his own?
From this point forward in the novel the story takes off at a furious pace. Dermot and his wife, Neela, begin to look into the murders described in the Dream Healer’s book to determine if there is any validity to them. As Dermot begins to discover the truth he will be forced to cross morale lines that he once strongly adhered to and start down a very dangerous rabbit hole.
The ending is very surprising. There are several twists, some I saw coming and others a complete shock as Mr. Briant pushed his story into some very shocking areas.
What I liked: The last half of the book is just pure fun but will also make you squirm. Dermot Nolan makes some very bad choices that the reader will constantly be questioning him, “what are you doing?” Mr. Briant does a fine job of detailing the desperate situation that Dermot finds himself in and the reasons behind his horrible choices.
I also really enjoyed the ending of the story. Without giving away too much, I really liked the place that Dermot ended up as I did not see it coming and it will give you the hebee jebees for weeks.
What I didn’t like: For me, the beginning of the novel was a little rough and hard to get into the flow. For about the first 50 pages the chapters alternate between Dermot Nolan and the Dream Healer’s exploits. I was concerned that the entire novel would continue in this manner and become tiresome. Luckily, after the Dream Healer is gone and once the story completely centers on Dermot Nolan, it really begins to shine and move at a furious pace.
Last word: One more thing I will never do. After watching Jaws I will never go into the ocean and now I will never, ever tell someone my nightmares on the internet because you don’t know who is on the other end. Mr. Briant has written a novel that will appeal to fans of horror and thriller novels and will keep them entertained and horrified until the very bitter end.
The plot follows a best-selling and Booker prize winner author Dermot Nolan. Think of him as a John Grisham or a Dan Brown in popularity but with more of a literary sense. But Dermot has a really big problem that could cost him everything. He was paid a really big advance for his new novel but he has a severe case of writer’s block. Unfortunately, he is about to run out of time and money. Desperate situations force people to desperate things and Dermot Nolan’s back is against the wall.
The other character is only known as the Dream Healer. He runs a website that advertises “Are your dreams a source of pain and anxiety? Let the Dream Healer bring you peace.” People will visit the website and describe in vivid detail their debilitating nightmare. The Dream Healer then acts as a sort Dr. Phil to help them sort through their problems. Of course this is all a rouse as the Dream Healer is just a collector of information. The one thing you do not want is a house call from the Dream Healer as the chances are very low you live through the encounter and he will make you relive your worst nightmare.
The Dream Healer has written down all of his exploits in his manifesto and passes it along to Dermot Nolan. At first, Dermot thinks of it as just sensualist fictional trash but is intrigued by the brutal nature of it. Through a series of events Dermot witnesses the Dream Healer commit suicide. Now he is faced with a quandary, since he cannot write his own novel, does he publish the Dream Healer’s diary as his own?
From this point forward in the novel the story takes off at a furious pace. Dermot and his wife, Neela, begin to look into the murders described in the Dream Healer’s book to determine if there is any validity to them. As Dermot begins to discover the truth he will be forced to cross morale lines that he once strongly adhered to and start down a very dangerous rabbit hole.
The ending is very surprising. There are several twists, some I saw coming and others a complete shock as Mr. Briant pushed his story into some very shocking areas.
What I liked: The last half of the book is just pure fun but will also make you squirm. Dermot Nolan makes some very bad choices that the reader will constantly be questioning him, “what are you doing?” Mr. Briant does a fine job of detailing the desperate situation that Dermot finds himself in and the reasons behind his horrible choices.
I also really enjoyed the ending of the story. Without giving away too much, I really liked the place that Dermot ended up as I did not see it coming and it will give you the hebee jebees for weeks.
What I didn’t like: For me, the beginning of the novel was a little rough and hard to get into the flow. For about the first 50 pages the chapters alternate between Dermot Nolan and the Dream Healer’s exploits. I was concerned that the entire novel would continue in this manner and become tiresome. Luckily, after the Dream Healer is gone and once the story completely centers on Dermot Nolan, it really begins to shine and move at a furious pace.
Last word: One more thing I will never do. After watching Jaws I will never go into the ocean and now I will never, ever tell someone my nightmares on the internet because you don’t know who is on the other end. Mr. Briant has written a novel that will appeal to fans of horror and thriller novels and will keep them entertained and horrified until the very bitter end.
No comments:
Post a Comment