Kelland in Queereaders

Sep 18, 2009 Nancy rated it it was amazing · review of another edition

Shelves: fiction, gay, award-winners, horror, shelf-inflicted, queereaders-group-read

Posted at Shelf Inflicted

Kelland definitely has the makings of a good horror story, but there is so much more that prevents it from being lumped solidly into one genre. There are elements of magical realism, family drama, suspense, and mystery. The story also explores religious faith, breaches of trust, and forgiveness.

Kelland is the mystery that binds the lives of five very different individuals. There is Minh and Toan, two brothers who left Vietnam to start a new life. There is 9-year-old Geo ...more

46 likes · Like · see review

Jun 23, 2010 Robert Dunbar rated it it was amazing · review of another edition

It's always so wonderful to discover a voice as fresh as this. Paul G. Bens, Jr. is a revelation. Kelland proves to be a remarkably complex, adult novel, and a brilliantly crafted one.

Make no mistake -- this is a sophisticated literary work. Though it may have one foot in Horror, comparing it to the usual genre effort is like comparing Don DeLillo to Mickey Spillane. I was completely engrossed by the layers of texture and meaning, the vivid characters and the utterly original plot. You don't wa ...more

4 likes · Like · see review

Jul 12, 2009 Paul Jr. rated it it was amazing · (Review from the author)

Shelves: asian-characters, gay-fiction, literary-fiction, horror, mystery-horror, i-wrote, psychological-suspense, black-quill-nominee, black-quill-award-winner

2nd Edition of "Kelland" is available at Amazon, now!

http://www.amazon.com/Kelland-Paul-G-...
...more

4 likes · Like · see review

Jul 19, 2010 Bill rated it it was amazing

Shelves: favorite-books-re-read, fiction-literary

This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers. To view it, click here. I just finished Kelland and wow! I do not consider it a genre novel, gay or horror, but as literary fiction that does not really fit a genre. It a complex story with multiple tightly woven threads that all come together and eventually make sense. Further, I have impressions at the beginning about characters, which changed back and forth as the book developed. My feelings and thoughts were not forced by the novel, I could use my own experiences to make sense of the story. And, I think it says thi I just finished Kelland and wow! I do not consider it a genre novel, gay or horror, but as literary fiction that does not really fit a genre. It a complex story with multiple tightly woven threads that all come together and eventually make sense. Further, I have impressions at the beginning about characters, which changed back and forth as the book developed. My feelings and thoughts were not forced by the novel, I could use my own experiences to make sense of the story. And, I think it says things, for me, on a number of levels.

Re Lucas— I do not think developing him would have added much to the novel. His blog posts and implications from other characters are all I really need to know to know Lucas. And here, I am putting a lot of myself into that interpretation. One unanswered question about Lucas, is did Kelland cause him to suicide; as his truth was there is no hope, no way out of this? Did Kelland fail in Lucas' case? I dont really want these questions definitely answered by the author. I think it better they remain uncertain.

A simple outline of the story is a bunch of people who have an abusive priest in common all wrapped by the Catholic church who are visited by the mysterious Kelland who brings them pain, death, temptation, self knowledge, love, hate and even the possibility of redemption.

Considering Catholicism as the book's, milieu, I first thought Kelland was a Demon, and as George's story developed, an Angel and then a Demon again as he interacts with the others and then an Angel at the climax and then both. But then the Devil was an Angel. Like good and evil, Angels and Devils are two sides of a coin. I even considered that Kelland was Lucas incarnate after his suicide, and was forcing all these people towards the climax, sort of like a successful Screwtape. But that's probably pushing things.

One thing that's very personal are the Vietnamese characters, esp the idea of the thousand lions and the boy's experiences during the Vietnam war. I was in college then, very anti-war, but came away with the propagandized feelings that they were an evil people. I had a lot of friends who went to 'Nam, many were killed, many screwed up for life. I have had very strong, negative emotions about the war and the Vietnamese. After all, if they had never existed, I would have been spared a lot of pain. The short descriptions of the boys experiences from the falling bombs allowed me to to face these feelings and start to deal with them. I must thank Paul Bens or perhaps Kelland for that.
...more

3 likes · Like · see review

Aug 28, 2010 Vince Liaguno rated it it was amazing

Kelland is likely to be the best book you might not read this year. With its non-descript cover, vague synopsis, and limited small press visibility, it would be easy for this compelling, beautifully written debut novel from native Kentuckian Paul G. Bens to be overlooked. And that would be a sincere shame.

Kelland is a gorgeous, genre-defying novel of heartrending truth, a work that builds slowly and confidently toward a page-turning climax that will leave you breathless in anticipation of the in ...more

2 likes · Like · see review

May 20, 2010 Kassa rated it it was amazing

4.5 stars rounded up

Kelland proves that Paul G Bens is an exceptional author. After reading his collection of short stories, I knew I wanted to read Kelland and it doesn’t disappoint. While well written and technically easy to read, the topics broached are anything but light. The characters suffer, deeply, but this isn’t a depressing book. Instead it’s compelling, interesting, and dynamic on several levels. You can’t put the book down and don’t want it to end yet you know what’s coming isn’t nec 4.5 stars rounded up

Kelland proves that Paul G Bens is an exceptional author. After reading his collection of short stories, I knew I wanted to read Kelland and it doesn’t disappoint. While well written and technically easy to read, the topics broached are anything but light. The characters suffer, deeply, but this isn’t a depressing book. Instead it’s compelling, interesting, and dynamic on several levels. You can’t put the book down and don’t want it to end yet you know what’s coming isn’t necessarily good.

The story is a psychological thriller that connects the seemingly independent lives of five characters with one big secret. The story weaves these disparate elements together bit by bit with a non-linear timeline. Jumping forward and backward from childhood to the present time of 1997, the characters reveal their lives in pieces. Their lives are all touched by the same secret but that knowledge is withheld until the climax scene at the end when the various threads meld to one narrative. The catalyst for the truth is always a being named Kelland, someone who can be everything and anything including good and evil depending on the situation.

The six characters are all fascinating in their own right. From two young refugees from VietNam, Minh and Toan, we learn the complexities of brotherhood and the pain of betrayal. Minh builds his life based on routine and regimented time schedules while constantly cheating on a wife he adores and loves completely. For Minh, Kelland is a beautiful woman, seducing him from his efforts to be good. Minh’s younger brother Toan is one of the sympathetic and heart breaking members of the cast as his journey to the truth is painful and violent. For Toan, Kelland is an abusive lover, forcing Toan to remember events he would rather forget.

Young proud George is just a child but already wanting to devote his life to God. His belief, faith, and strength are the catalyst for the most change. He, alone, is perhaps the strongest of the group and will survive the events the best. His strength, insight, and faith are offset against the more emotionally troubled characters. Lucas is markedly different as a young man struggling to find himself amid his problems. His parents, Melanie and Gareth, have no idea what their son is going through and the journey to that truth is heart wrenching.

The writing is very clean and crisp with no wasted scenes or descriptions. There is a lot of emotion and intensity packed into the pages with well crafted prose and a good pace. The big evil secret is not difficult to figure out, there are so many clues the story almost wants you to understand the pain and heart break well before the final resolution. Instead the mystery of who Kelland is and how this being hurts, loves, protects, ravages, and forces each and every one of the characters to face the truth is compelling. This being is simultaneously good and evil, meting out the treatment deemed necessary for the truth to be revealed. This utter devotion to the truth eventually helps all the characters to one degree or another but that help is neither cheap nor easy.

One important point to make is that none of the extremes offered in the story are sensational. They fit with the theme and purpose of the story every time. There is always compassion tempered by force and love mingled with pain. This duality keeps you on edge while reading, wanting to hurry yet also wanting to linger, absorbed in the characters and their lives. There are numerous almost repetitive scenes where the characters do little but live their lives. Often fighting knowledge, they want to ignore their truth. The story teases this out bit by bit so for those that already know the secret, this may cause some impatience. Yet the pace is important to teasing out reality in the proper pace. These scenes offer a way to identify with average people with a secret that isn’t so uncommon.

Beyond being a well written, incredibly well crafted story, Kelland is a tale that will haunt you. This is a story that clings to your mind and forces you to think about it long after you’ve stopped reading. Easily a must read, keeper shelf story that I can’t recommend enough. ...more

2 likes · Like · see review

Jan 29, 2013 Paul Jr. added it · (Review from the author) · review of another edition

Shelves: speculative-fiction, paranormal, mystery-horror, i-wrote, psychological-suspense, suspense, glbt-characters, psychological-horror, magical-realism

"Beautifully written, a kaleidoscope of finely drawn characters and an unfolding mystery that reveals the hope and horror in the human heart."

-- Alan Brennert, Author
Honolulu, Moloka'i and Palisades Park

"...likely to be the best book you might not read this year...a gorgeous, genre-defying novel of heartrending truth...that builds slowly and confidently toward a page-turning climax that will leave you breathless..."

-- Stoker Award-winner Vince A. Liaguno,
Dark Scribe Magazine

"Reminiscent of S ...more

Like · see review