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The Immaculate Void
"You wouldn't think events happening years apart, at points in the solar system hundreds of millions of miles distant, would have anything to do with each other."
When she was six, Daphne was taken into a neighbor's toolshed, and came within seconds of never coming out alive. Most of the scars healed. Except for the one that went all the way through.
"You wouldn't think that the serial murders of children, and the one who got away, would have any connection with the strange fate of one of Jupiter's moons."
Two decades later, when Daphne goes missing again, it's nothing new. As her exes might agree, running is what she does best … so her brother Tanner sets out one more time to find her. Whether in the mountains, or in his own family, search—and—rescue is what he does best.
"But it does. It's all connected. Everything's connected."
Down two different paths, along two different timelines, Daphne and Tanner both find themselves trapped in a savage hunt for the rarest people on earth, by those who would slaughter them on behalf of ravenous entities that lurk outside of time.
"So when things start to unravel, it all starts to unravel."
But in ominous signs that have traveled light—years to be seen by human eyes, and that plummet from the sky, the ultimate truth is revealed:
There are some things in the cosmos that terrify even the gods.
When she was six, Daphne was taken into a neighbor's toolshed, and came within seconds of never coming out alive. Most of the scars healed. Except for the one that went all the way through.
"You wouldn't think that the serial murders of children, and the one who got away, would have any connection with the strange fate of one of Jupiter's moons."
Two decades later, when Daphne goes missing again, it's nothing new. As her exes might agree, running is what she does best … so her brother Tanner sets out one more time to find her. Whether in the mountains, or in his own family, search—and—rescue is what he does best.
"But it does. It's all connected. Everything's connected."
Down two different paths, along two different timelines, Daphne and Tanner both find themselves trapped in a savage hunt for the rarest people on earth, by those who would slaughter them on behalf of ravenous entities that lurk outside of time.
"So when things start to unravel, it all starts to unravel."
But in ominous signs that have traveled light—years to be seen by human eyes, and that plummet from the sky, the ultimate truth is revealed:
There are some things in the cosmos that terrify even the gods.
232 pages, Paperback
First published April 24, 2018
40 people are currently reading
3334 people want to read
About the author
Brian Hodge
149 books447 followersBrian Hodge, called “a writer of spectacularly unflinching gifts” by Peter Straub, is the award-winning author of ten novels of horror and crime/noir. He’s also written well over 100 short stories, novelettes, and novellas, and four full-length collections. His first collection, The Convulsion Factory, was ranked by critic Stanley Wiater as among the 113 best books of modern horror.
He lives in Colorado, where he also dabbles in music and photography; loves everything about organic gardening except the thieving squirrels; and trains in Krav Maga, grappling, and kickboxing, which are of no use at all against the squirrels.
He lives in Colorado, where he also dabbles in music and photography; loves everything about organic gardening except the thieving squirrels; and trains in Krav Maga, grappling, and kickboxing, which are of no use at all against the squirrels.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 114 reviews
April 25, 2022
Daphne disappeared when she was 6 years old. A child predator serial killer took her to the tool shed, where she suffered horribly. She is the only one known to survive. Two decades later, Daphne disappears again. Tanner, her older brother, is desperately searching for her. All he found is news clips of the strange fate of one of Jupiter's moons and other cosmic events. Down two separate timelines, the siblings find themselves on the hunt for the rarest people on Earth for different reasons. It all goes back to the 6-year-old girl in the tool shed. Excellent read!
February 13, 2019
THE IMMACULATE VOID is a stellar entry in the fields of cosmic horror and dark fiction!
Brian Hodge has long been a favorite author of mine and this novel only justifies his position on my favorite authors list.
I'm finding that I don't have adequate words to properly review this book. (Which is the same way I felt about John Langan's THE FISHERMAN.) I was lucky enough to read both of these novels in 2019 and I'm just worried that nothing else I read this year will be as good as these two books.
My HIGHEST recommendation! Get your copy here: https://amzn.to/2E6T53x
*This book is on the 2018 Locus Recommended Reading List and for good reason. If you don't want to listen to me, please listen to them!* http://locusmag.com/2019/02/2018-locu...
** Book source: I bought this book with my hard earned cash.**
Brian Hodge has long been a favorite author of mine and this novel only justifies his position on my favorite authors list.
I'm finding that I don't have adequate words to properly review this book. (Which is the same way I felt about John Langan's THE FISHERMAN.) I was lucky enough to read both of these novels in 2019 and I'm just worried that nothing else I read this year will be as good as these two books.
My HIGHEST recommendation! Get your copy here: https://amzn.to/2E6T53x
*This book is on the 2018 Locus Recommended Reading List and for good reason. If you don't want to listen to me, please listen to them!* http://locusmag.com/2019/02/2018-locu...
** Book source: I bought this book with my hard earned cash.**
September 12, 2019
One of the best and most believable cosmic novels I have ever read. The author combines human weaknesses and intense emotional situations with chillingly well-described atmospheres of otherness that combine to build a page-turning novel into a crescendo of fear and passion. In a world where outsiders are prey and supposed god worshippers are devout and cruel hunters, aberrations in the stars cause both dread and excitement. Here are monsters, both human and otherwise. What does eternity mean, and how does it apply to us and the gods? What are the gods? This novel explores the complexity of existence and the void in both intricate and relatable terms. Keep your eyes to the sky and embrace your otherness.
April 19, 2019
When Daphne was six years old, she was hunted down by a monster. It was the same monster who had already abused, tortured then murdered nine other children. It was an act of good fortune saw police arrive before Wade Shavers had time to finish with little Daphne.
Over time, Daphne's wounds healed - well, the physical ones at least. Oh, and except for the strange circular mark burned into her cheek.
When he was twelve years old, Tanner turned away from watching over his kid sister. He only looked away for a few minutes, but that was long enough for little Daphne to become a victim.
In the years that followed, a pattern formed; Daphne developed an inclination for relationships with unlikely suitors, and a propensity for going walkabout a few months into each relationship. And Tanner, ever the dutiful - (read) ever the guilt ridden - brother, would drop everything to go chasing after the little sister he previously failed.
A series of strange phone messages, and the blossoming of a new friendship in her life, leads Daphne to once again up-sticks; her life has always been a mystery, but it feels as though she is finally beginning to unravel the puzzle.
Meanwhile, even before Tanner has a chance to set off on his annual quest to recover the sister he failed, out in the depths of space one of Jupiter's moons is obliterated in an event which baffles Earth's top scientists.
You wouldn't think that the serial murders of children, and the one who got away, would have any connection with the strange fate of one of Jupiter's moons.
As Tanner becomes entrenched in his search, things reach a level of weird beyond any rationale. But, even then, it doesn't bear correlation with events in Jupiter's orbit.
But it does. It's all connected. Everything's connected.
This is cosmic horror at its finest, and if you are someone who has ever spared so much as a thought for the Great Old Ones, then you really ought to read this book. But, in all honestly, even if you've only spent an instant pondering the nature of reality; or considering the possibility of a God, or gods; or even the practicality of a science model based around quantum physics; do yourself a favor. Read this book.
To put it simply; this is one of the finest cosmic horror novels ever written, but it is also so much more. A masterclass in storytelling from Brian Hodge.
Over time, Daphne's wounds healed - well, the physical ones at least. Oh, and except for the strange circular mark burned into her cheek.
When he was twelve years old, Tanner turned away from watching over his kid sister. He only looked away for a few minutes, but that was long enough for little Daphne to become a victim.
In the years that followed, a pattern formed; Daphne developed an inclination for relationships with unlikely suitors, and a propensity for going walkabout a few months into each relationship. And Tanner, ever the dutiful - (read) ever the guilt ridden - brother, would drop everything to go chasing after the little sister he previously failed.
A series of strange phone messages, and the blossoming of a new friendship in her life, leads Daphne to once again up-sticks; her life has always been a mystery, but it feels as though she is finally beginning to unravel the puzzle.
Meanwhile, even before Tanner has a chance to set off on his annual quest to recover the sister he failed, out in the depths of space one of Jupiter's moons is obliterated in an event which baffles Earth's top scientists.
You wouldn't think that the serial murders of children, and the one who got away, would have any connection with the strange fate of one of Jupiter's moons.
As Tanner becomes entrenched in his search, things reach a level of weird beyond any rationale. But, even then, it doesn't bear correlation with events in Jupiter's orbit.
But it does. It's all connected. Everything's connected.
This is cosmic horror at its finest, and if you are someone who has ever spared so much as a thought for the Great Old Ones, then you really ought to read this book. But, in all honestly, even if you've only spent an instant pondering the nature of reality; or considering the possibility of a God, or gods; or even the practicality of a science model based around quantum physics; do yourself a favor. Read this book.
To put it simply; this is one of the finest cosmic horror novels ever written, but it is also so much more. A masterclass in storytelling from Brian Hodge.
February 18, 2019
So let's just call them truffles of the gods.
Another great taste of cosmic horror from Hodge, I loved Whom the Gods Would Destroy and this just adds to my belief that he is one of the best writing contemporary cosmic horror.
The story of siblings bound by a horrific incident early in their lives and how this event forms their relationship and leads them down an unforeseen path.
Daphne, though, had been broken. You could point to the date when it happened. She'd been broken, put back together, and the seams showed.
The story jumps back and forth between the siblings POVs as Tanner begins another search for his sister after her most recent disappearance but this time they will both discover that something has been drawing them down a path ever since the childhood incident.
The souls of those who quit the body violently are most pure
People and places that just don't seem quite right.
That which does not kill me only makes me more dangerous to everyone else around me
As they spiral towards the inevitable moment, Hodge uses the plot to ask all those questions that have run through human thoughts since the beginning......
God?
gods?
nothing?
something beyond our human comprehension?
For the next few moments I continued to see the afterimage as if it were burned onto my retinas in the tones of a photographic negative: the night sky flipped to magnesium white over pale gray mountaintops, with a black moon and peppered with ebony stars like holes punched into a canopy inviting a peek into some greater beyond.
Another great cosmic horror story from Hodge.
For small creatures such as we, the vastness is bearable only through love.
Carl Sagan
9/10
Another great taste of cosmic horror from Hodge, I loved Whom the Gods Would Destroy and this just adds to my belief that he is one of the best writing contemporary cosmic horror.
The story of siblings bound by a horrific incident early in their lives and how this event forms their relationship and leads them down an unforeseen path.
Daphne, though, had been broken. You could point to the date when it happened. She'd been broken, put back together, and the seams showed.
The story jumps back and forth between the siblings POVs as Tanner begins another search for his sister after her most recent disappearance but this time they will both discover that something has been drawing them down a path ever since the childhood incident.
The souls of those who quit the body violently are most pure
People and places that just don't seem quite right.
That which does not kill me only makes me more dangerous to everyone else around me
As they spiral towards the inevitable moment, Hodge uses the plot to ask all those questions that have run through human thoughts since the beginning......
God?
gods?
nothing?
something beyond our human comprehension?
For the next few moments I continued to see the afterimage as if it were burned onto my retinas in the tones of a photographic negative: the night sky flipped to magnesium white over pale gray mountaintops, with a black moon and peppered with ebony stars like holes punched into a canopy inviting a peek into some greater beyond.
Another great cosmic horror story from Hodge.
For small creatures such as we, the vastness is bearable only through love.
Carl Sagan
9/10
February 21, 2019
I have a small red statue of Cthulhu on the dashboard of my car. Not because I worship Our Aquatic Lord and Master, but because, if on the off chance he arises from the depths while I'm whizzing the flying monkeys around to after school activities in the Toyota, he'll notice the idol and hopefully refrain from devouring my skinny arse, or condemning me to an eternity of servitude and damnation. I should probably do the same with Azathoth, Shub-Niggurath, and the rest of the Old Ones, but little rubber idols of them have been a little hard to come by lately.
Anyway, I digress. Mr Hodge has taken Lovecraft's cosmic horror 'mythology' and made it so much more terrifying and believable. I'm going to read everything he writes, coz, you know what, I need to be prepared.
Anyway, I digress. Mr Hodge has taken Lovecraft's cosmic horror 'mythology' and made it so much more terrifying and believable. I'm going to read everything he writes, coz, you know what, I need to be prepared.
October 17, 2019
Somewhere between M. John Harrison's Light and John Langan's The Fisherman floats The Immaculate Void, the newest accomplishment by Brian Hodge.
If those reference points excite you--and they should, if you're into thoughtful and frightening weird writing--it is easy to recommend Hodge's novel, wherein he plays cleverly with structure, time, and style while connecting tiny constellation dots and heavily burdened characters with some violent red slashes. A brother and sister, rock climbing, a child murderer, a missing Jovian satellite, and an anomaly in an oven are all key elements in this surprising book.
I'm somewhat new to Hodge--I didn't care for World of Hurt, though really savored Whom the Gods Would Destroy--and the high-minded concepts herein are as original in the world of cosmic horror as those found in The Fisherman. Although Hodge's images may not be as vividly detailed as Langan's, the length of this tale and its pace and the introduction of new ideas are more deftly accomplished and the emotional resonance similarly strong.
There is some really great sense of wonder sci-fi material here--Greg Bear, Greg Egan, M. John Harrison kinda stuff--and these inspired imaginings took my mind to some interesting places while nasty acts are enacted or recounted in seeming counterpoint.
Cosmic and intensely personal, The Immaculate Void is an outward glimpse beyond the ken of man and into the direct center of his mind. Well done!
If those reference points excite you--and they should, if you're into thoughtful and frightening weird writing--it is easy to recommend Hodge's novel, wherein he plays cleverly with structure, time, and style while connecting tiny constellation dots and heavily burdened characters with some violent red slashes. A brother and sister, rock climbing, a child murderer, a missing Jovian satellite, and an anomaly in an oven are all key elements in this surprising book.
I'm somewhat new to Hodge--I didn't care for World of Hurt, though really savored Whom the Gods Would Destroy--and the high-minded concepts herein are as original in the world of cosmic horror as those found in The Fisherman. Although Hodge's images may not be as vividly detailed as Langan's, the length of this tale and its pace and the introduction of new ideas are more deftly accomplished and the emotional resonance similarly strong.
There is some really great sense of wonder sci-fi material here--Greg Bear, Greg Egan, M. John Harrison kinda stuff--and these inspired imaginings took my mind to some interesting places while nasty acts are enacted or recounted in seeming counterpoint.
Cosmic and intensely personal, The Immaculate Void is an outward glimpse beyond the ken of man and into the direct center of his mind. Well done!
July 22, 2018
When Daphne and Tanner were kids, something terrible had happened to his sister, and since then he's blamed himself. Abducted and tortured, Daphne was lucky to survive, but the scars remained, deep ones both physical and mental. And Tanner has always made it his mission to watch out for his wandering and wayward sister, even as adults.
But now she's gone once again, and this time he can't find her. But Daphne is on a dark journey, to find meaning for the darkness that has consumed her since the days of her sadistic abuser. For a door opened and something touched her very soul. Something ancient and evil and utterly unimaginable from across time and space. And it wants them all...
Cosmic horror at the highest level and one of my top picks of 2018.
Highest of recommendations!
But now she's gone once again, and this time he can't find her. But Daphne is on a dark journey, to find meaning for the darkness that has consumed her since the days of her sadistic abuser. For a door opened and something touched her very soul. Something ancient and evil and utterly unimaginable from across time and space. And it wants them all...
Cosmic horror at the highest level and one of my top picks of 2018.
Highest of recommendations!
December 10, 2019
He had never witnessed anything that felt more unholy than this.It’s always been difficult to define cosmic horror. It’s one of the most elusive of subgenres. The best way to describe cosmic horror is the fear that comes from witnessing something that is beyond the realm of human comprehension, the fear of something so vast that it defies all logic and understanding. This book is one of the best examples of the genre I've read. It’s a difficult feat to write about something that is “beyond human understanding” and make it palpable to read. But Brian Hodge pulls it off here, grounding the fantastic and other-worldly into a story that is relatable and engaging on a human level. It's proof that once your reader is engaged with familiar emotions and characters that they will go along for whatever ride you take them on.
It's a hard book to describe, but Hodge instantly locks us in with parallel stories of a man trying to track down his missing sister, and the sister coming to terms with her traumatic past and what it could mean for her future. But in the midst of all this, Hodge somehow also deals with sadistic god-worshippers, colliding comets, and gazes into the infinite. It's a stunning novel that took me completely by surprise with its passionate writing, its creepy implications, and the touching relationship between the two main characters. If you have any curiosity or interest in cosmic horror, look no further than here for how well it can be done.
He longed to die. He longed to live. He longed to die to live again in some smarter version of this life. He yearned for it, prayed for it, then wept a tsunami when he realized he was the very god he was praying to, and that it was even more helpless than he was.
September 8, 2018
One of the best cosmic horror novels I’ve read since John Langan’s THE FISHERMAN. I could not put this book down.
January 20, 2019
4 AND 1/2 STARS
Author Brian Hodge once again delivers an astounding novel on a truly epic scale. I love small, intimate stories set against a larger, cosmic backdrop, and this really hit the spot. You really have to be 'all in' to get the full effect of the story, but if you are, it is so worth it. Unique, flawed characters tangled in a dark journey of fate. Filled with dread and brutal, spontaneous violence, Hodge never slows down for the reader, pushing the narrative along to some very uncomfortable waters. If you are a fan of HP Lovecraft or cosmic horror, this intelligent books should more than satisfy. The ending might not be what you are looking for, but Hodge does an admirable job with such a massive mythology. Emotional, tense, and filled with atmosphere, this is one of the best books I've read in quite some time. The epilogue alone is worth the price of the book.
Author Brian Hodge once again delivers an astounding novel on a truly epic scale. I love small, intimate stories set against a larger, cosmic backdrop, and this really hit the spot. You really have to be 'all in' to get the full effect of the story, but if you are, it is so worth it. Unique, flawed characters tangled in a dark journey of fate. Filled with dread and brutal, spontaneous violence, Hodge never slows down for the reader, pushing the narrative along to some very uncomfortable waters. If you are a fan of HP Lovecraft or cosmic horror, this intelligent books should more than satisfy. The ending might not be what you are looking for, but Hodge does an admirable job with such a massive mythology. Emotional, tense, and filled with atmosphere, this is one of the best books I've read in quite some time. The epilogue alone is worth the price of the book.
December 22, 2019
Many thanks to Janie C. for recommending this book.
March 19, 2020
Great Premise and start. Sloppy, Silly and unreleastic 2nd half.
The very end wasn't too bad though(the very very end).
2.5 Stars
The very end wasn't too bad though(the very very end).
2.5 Stars
September 29, 2020
Wow. This story was grungy and got under my skin right from the get-go. I haven't read something quite like this at least since Nathan Ballingrud's "The Visible Filth". This was a powerful cosmic/weird fiction tale with Lovecraftian overtones. It hits you running and just keeps going, making you feel completely uncomfortable along the way but keeping you from stopping, for you need to know how it all ends.
December 1, 2020
I couldn't put this book down. Liked it, was gripped but saying that, I'm not entirely what happened at the end! Maybe a good friend of mine will explain it to me over a pint one day.
March 21, 2022
Loved this. Brian Hodge is a unique writer. I look forward to checking out more of his stuff. If you are a fan of cosmic horror, you have to read this.
May 16, 2021
I got first tip of suspicion when I read this exaggerated praise at beginning:
Next step was on page 68
... and 78
No wonder that such book got mostly 5-star reviews from a local inhabitants
“Not only does Brian Hodge get the ‘cosmic awe’ concept nailed down, but his characters, and the way he describes the relationships between them, are expertly drawn to a degree that [H.P.] Lovecraft himself could never have achieved.”
—The British Fantasy Society
Next step was on page 68
...and Bianca, remember how you called me a Valkyrie the day we met? Now watch this.
So confusing. Some days all I wanted was to be rid of the fear and paranoia. I loved this woman and wanted to crawl up inside her smooshy thighs, then turn around and be reborn and have her hold me and rock me back-and-forth for a week. I wanted to be a blank slate again, an immaculate void that she could refill with everything she knew, passed down through generations of Costa Rican mothers with wide feet and wise eyes.
... and 78
“My people?”
“The Viking diaspora.” When Tanner objected, Shawn held up a shushing finger. “Don’t fight it. You’re lucky. I don’t have a people. Just undifferentiated Protestants. It’s more like a lobbying firm for mayonnaise.”
No wonder that such book got mostly 5-star reviews from a local inhabitants
February 17, 2019
The Immaculate Void is a meticulously crafted masterpiece of cosmic horror with a deep and engaging story that instantly pulls you in. You’re taken on a dark and unique journey that can be pretty brutal one moment and the next morbidly beautiful, the prose perfectly illustrates this with a skillful ease. This is the first time I've read anything by Brian Hodge and it certainly won't be the last, I'm really impressed with his writing and imagination. This book is sure to sick in my mind for quite some time and it's now among my favorites, I highly recommend it!
December 22, 2020
In any story where the gods, devils, demons, monsters, or whatever are the main focus, I can only cook up to about warm. So much of this book was characters speculating on the universe and what might rule it, there wasn't a great deal of room for the humanity. This is my typical issue with cosmic horror. Good writing. Interesting setting. Cool follow through. Just lacking what I think counts the most.
September 2, 2021
I feel like this book was seeking to be profound, but it truly wasn’t. The plot was a bit of a mess, the characters were unbelievable and hardly fleshed out, there was a lot of gruesome and needless death. The only character I cared for was Magpie.
October 16, 2022
Bursting with voice and energy, Hodge proves that cosmic horror need not be stodgy, academic, and alienated from our world to witness the end of it.
March 26, 2019
I don’t even know what I just read but it was gruesome and weird and the literal kind of awesome. You’re going to love this one, I promise. The writing was beautiful, the voice was strong and captivating, the world building was… out of this world, the pace was perfect (I read this in four hours) and the overall feeling I was left with is: I can’t wait to look this guy up and read everything he’s ever written. So yeah. Definitely give this one a go!
July 6, 2020
The Immaculate Void’s narrative alternates between two grown siblings, and the way in which they engage the reader’s sympathies drives the story forward from terror to terror. Daphne is living with the damage of surviving a serial killer and trying to do the best she can, although is prone to making bad relationship choices. And Tanner is her brother, wracked with guilt over his role in her misfortunes, and filled with the need to set things right for her. They travel on parallel quests each leading to an enlightening and horrible conclusion.
It makes perfect sense that this novel is a companion piece to the short story collection The Immaculate Void (which I absolutely loved). It feels like a puzzle piece, I didn't know was missing snapping into place. But even on its own this novel packs a wallop. There seems to be some new kind of horror around every corner in this book, starting with a child killer and ending with a full-on cosmic-horror manifestation. And Brian Hodge proves himself once more to be an expert storyteller able to delve into scenes of gritty gore and sublime mysteries of the universe without ever losing the sense of the personal and the human.
It makes perfect sense that this novel is a companion piece to the short story collection The Immaculate Void (which I absolutely loved). It feels like a puzzle piece, I didn't know was missing snapping into place. But even on its own this novel packs a wallop. There seems to be some new kind of horror around every corner in this book, starting with a child killer and ending with a full-on cosmic-horror manifestation. And Brian Hodge proves himself once more to be an expert storyteller able to delve into scenes of gritty gore and sublime mysteries of the universe without ever losing the sense of the personal and the human.
August 11, 2022
it was alright but didn’t live up to the glowing reviews that i encountered online. i think that this is the sort of book which has an interesting premise which is less effective in execution. or maybe i’m just really dumb and too much of a pleb for the pretentious concepts. thinking back to it, i think it’s quite a clever plot which ties together nicely but it was really confusing as i was reading it because the narrative kept jumping from one protagonist to another and because i was reading on my kindle, there wasn’t any differentiation which confused me. maybe that was the point though.
also was very existential. perhaps reading this before sleeping at night on my kindle over the course of a month when i’m super duper exhausted was not the smartest of ideas…
can’t comment on the quality of the horror - didn’t really scare me until i finished it and thought about it a bit. i guess the confusion is the horror part.
also attila was legit a cartoon character which was funny. so dramatic. so camp.
also was very existential. perhaps reading this before sleeping at night on my kindle over the course of a month when i’m super duper exhausted was not the smartest of ideas…
can’t comment on the quality of the horror - didn’t really scare me until i finished it and thought about it a bit. i guess the confusion is the horror part.
also attila was legit a cartoon character which was funny. so dramatic. so camp.
May 14, 2020
My interest in the book ran like an inverted bell curve. It got 4 stars out of me because it finally managed to ring the necessary bells for my genre fetish. Otherwise 3 would have been aspirational. The author intermittently says interesting things. The plotting lacks grace and feels a little like somebody did what they could with Elmer's Glue and Scotch Tape to patch the scenes together after an unknown number of pages got lost in the wind and nobody cared enough to find or replace them.
Still, it made a nice recovery, as if the book was always about the final 15%. Which makes sense, given the story. Genre junkies, have at it. Normal people? Iffy bet. Fairly gory. Almost DNF as a result. Just a heads up to my fellow squeamish peeps.
Still, it made a nice recovery, as if the book was always about the final 15%. Which makes sense, given the story. Genre junkies, have at it. Normal people? Iffy bet. Fairly gory. Almost DNF as a result. Just a heads up to my fellow squeamish peeps.
February 8, 2020
It was disappointing. A book that would have been served by a cleaner narrative, more focus, and a novella length.
August 2, 2021
A lot going on, especially at the end, which will make a score pretty pointless as it's going to take me a while to figure out what happened. I would say I found the first 2 3rds a little slow at times. Quite a lot of dialogue and the switching between characters happens so much it can be a little jarring to get back into the groove. Some good scenes and a nice modern cosmic horror. I actually think I'll prefer his shorts more which are next on my tbr
April 1, 2019
Wow.
This was one of the strangest, most unique cosmic horrors I have read. Despite being terribly brutal and graphic, Hodge does an excellent job conveying the existential of terror of pure existence, along with encountering a sinking nihilism about the world and universe.
Tanner and Daphne are fantastic characters to follow and the pressure of their relationship really comes through. This is also unique to cosmic horror and the genre feels enriched because of this.
It is refreshing to read something that takes the Lovecraft ethos and chooses to spin up something entirely other and unique rather than another rehash.
Fantastic story!
This was one of the strangest, most unique cosmic horrors I have read. Despite being terribly brutal and graphic, Hodge does an excellent job conveying the existential of terror of pure existence, along with encountering a sinking nihilism about the world and universe.
Tanner and Daphne are fantastic characters to follow and the pressure of their relationship really comes through. This is also unique to cosmic horror and the genre feels enriched because of this.
It is refreshing to read something that takes the Lovecraft ethos and chooses to spin up something entirely other and unique rather than another rehash.
Fantastic story!
October 3, 2021
Even a week after finishing it, I am in tatters from this book. Terrible childhood traumas and sobering cosmic perspectives meet in a breathtaking blend of grim, epic, yet understated proportions. The badassery of Tanner slowly gets eroded (yet also, honed) by this dark journey in ways that are disquietingly unexpected, and the raw, naked expressions and certain musings of Daphne flay the reader's emotions and mental capacities wide, wide open. I almost dropped this book when I was finished. If there is any way of obtaining a copy of this lately rare find, please do so. You will ne forever changed for it.
February 14, 2019
Brian Hodge never disappoints with his ability to make even the most terrifying scenarios poetic and beautiful. I started this book with chills and finished it with a deep sense of mental satisfaction.
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