Wednesday, February 11, 2015

Review: Dead Spots by Rhiannon Frater

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I received this book for free from The Author in exchange for an honest review. This does not affect my opinion of the book or the content of my review.

Review: Dead Spots by Rhiannon FraterDead Spots by Rhiannon Frater
Published by Tor Books on February 10th 2015 (ebook) February 24th 2015 (paperback)
Genres: Adult, Horror
Source: The Author
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five-stars

In the dead spots, dreams become reality, terror knows your name, and nightmares can kill you.

The stillbirth of Mackenzie's son destroyed her marriage. Grieving, Mac reluctantly heads for her childhood home to seek refuge with her mother, who constantly reminds her of life's dangers.

Driving across Texas, Mac swerves to avoid hitting a deer...and winds up in a dead spot, a frightening place that lies between the worlds of the living and the dead. If they can control their imaginations, people can literally bring their dreams to life—but most are beseiged by fears and nightmares which pursue them relentlessly.

Mackenzie's mother and husband haunt her, driving her to the brink of madness. Then she hears a child call for help and her maternal instincts kick into overdrive. Grant, Mac's ally in the dead spots, insists Johnny is a phantom, but the boy seems so real, so alive....

As the true horrors of the dead spots are slowly revealed, Mackenzie realizes that time is running out. But exits from the dead spots are nearly impossible to find, and defended by things almost beyond imagination.

It’s not often that I get super excited and fan girl over a book, but this is one of them. I read a very early copy of this since I was lucky enough to be a beta reader. I feel like I need to disclose that. Having said that, this is a book that I need to own a physical copy of because it was absolutely amazing!! I need to read it again. (As soon as I can make myself carve out time for it, which will be soon.) The terror was so real, the emotions and feelings were pulling me every which way, and I felt so drawn into it and needed to know what was coming. This book really just hit me hard with the feels and the creep factor. It even has a super horrifying clown. It is after all set in a world between life and death where nightmares dominate and it’s almost impossible to get out.

Mackenzie was a fantastic character. She is very broken. Having given birth to a stillborn child and losing herself in grief, her life isn’t a bright and happy one. Her marriage is destroyed and she feels like her life has fallen apart. When she ends up in the dead spot, she doesn’t believe it’s real. She thinks she is dreaming. There is terror around every corner. She does find an ally who has been trapped in the dead spot for a long time. It isn’t just that simple though. She stays reluctant, not wanting to believe in this disturbing place, even after numerous gruesome and horrible things happen. Fear is a hard thing and she isn’t able to just overcome everything that has happened or keep the nightmares and horrible thoughts that consume her at bay. The dead spots feed off of fear and that is how the evil lurking gets you. It was very painful at times to go through what Mackenzie was going through. My heart ached for her. I feared for her. I wanted so badly for her to be able to push down some of her emotion so she could survive and find escape back to the real world.

Grant has been in the dead spot for a long time. I did have a hard time trusting him, but I really felt that he wanted to help Mackenzie. He’s been through a lot also. He has also seen numerous horrors in the dead spot. He has seen many destroyed by it. A fate worse than death. He was interesting and pretty complex. He was a bit creepy at times to me as well, but not like the evil beings were.

There is plenty of heart racing, spine tingling moments in this book for those of you who love that sort of thing. For those who don’t, yes, it’s creepy, but there is an amazing story to it. Underlying all the scary stuff, there is a very deep and emotional story as well. There is so much more to this than a horror story. It’s very psychological as well. In fact, the end was the most amazing, head scratching, I’m confused ending ever. Not in a bad way though. It leaves you thinking. I promise it’s not a cliffhanger or anything, it’s just one of those ending that kind of throws you, but it’s perfect for the story. I feel like I haven’t gone into this much, but it’s really something you have to read. I don’t want to give anything away. All I can say is this is one of my favorite books. I adore Rhiannon Frater’s writing and creativity and love many of her books, but this one just blew me away. I hope that many of you get this and read it’s awesomeness. I can’t express my love for this enough!

five-stars

5 Hot Espressos

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I'm no good at this, but I'm a mom of one little girl who really thinks she is a princess. I love reading all sorts of books (horror being a favorite genre of mine), love meeting new people, drinking lots of coffee, and eating chocolate. If you want to know anything else about me, just ask.
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9 Responses to “Review: Dead Spots by Rhiannon Frater”

  1. Allison

    Wow, great review! I love reading reviews when people clearly loved and are super excited about the book. I’m a bit of a scaredy cat, but this one sounds like it’s worth checking out. Plus, what an intriguing premise for a book!

  2. A.P.Bullard

    This was such a great review!!
    I know you have an affiliate link, so I apologize for having to buy it from B&N (eBook). I have a gift card.

    This review was just dripping with enthusiasm, and influenced my decision to purchase a copy. The author made a great choice in granting you a review copy!

    http://www.triskelereviews.com/

    • Amy

      I’m so glad that my review made you want to read this! I hope that you enjoy it. And I’m happy that you bought this book no matter where you got it. It always feels great when I know my review has sold a book.

  3. Michelle @ In Libris Veritas

    I love Rhiannon’s writing and I’m super excited for this one! I requested it, so I have my fingers crossed it might show up in my mail…but even if it doesn’t I plan on getting my own copy when i can. I’m so glad you enjoyed it!

    • Amy

      I hope that you get a copy to review. I also plan on getting a copy as soon as the paperback is released. I know it is a book I am going to read again.

  4. Sarah @ One Curvy Blogger

    I don’t know that I have read anything by this author but I just finished my first horror read in ears and I’m itching to read another. This one sounds perfect! Though he cover kind of reminds me of YA, it’s still a pretty cover. 🙂

  5. fran

    GET OUT OF TOWN!! She wrote a new book?!?! My oh my I really have been out of the loop, haven’t I?!
    I can understand your love for the book because I have everything else she has written. I’m so excited this book came out. It’s not zombies but it’s horror and I have a feeling I am going to love it.