Patrick R. Delaney

The best way to approach this book is by knowing as little as possible going into it. That’s what I did and it was an amazing experience! Just the premise of a giant house suddenly appearing in the middle of nowhere had me hooked, and I couldn't wait to find out what was inside. The book is somewhat of a slow burner, as it takes about half of it to actually get the characters inside the house. But that's not to say the first half is bad (and there are plenty of creepy scenes and events mixed in). I actually appreciate the time it takes to establish our four main characters and build their personalities and relationships to one another. This groundwork enabled me to care much more for them in the second half of the book where things truly get horrifying. I think Scarlet is definitely my favorite of the four. Her spunky attitude is quite charming.

By the time the characters finally enter the house I was bursting with anticipation. I also realized that there were 250 pages left, so I was quite curious to know what all else was going to happen. And therein lies my main fault with the book. While the inside of the house is incredibly imaginative (and author Delaney does a great job of describing a wide variety of rooms in a way that I could easily picture in my mind), the characters spend a little too long exploring and the book begins to drag. But it definitely kicks back up the pace and it has a final act that blew my mind multiple times! Lots of crazy twists and turns!

This book hit a lot of personal likes of mine: from a focus on character building, to themes of family, friendship, and grief (a la Haunting of Hill House) to an irresistible mystery that needs solving, to terrifying images of monsters and dark chaos. I love that there’s such a cool mix of horrors (ghosts, ghouls, creepy crawlers, monsters, eldrich terrors, etc). Also healthy doses of Silent Hill, Lovecraft, King, and more. At over 500 pages it drags just a bit in some spots, but overall I was definitely down for this epic tale! (4.5 stars, rounded up to 5 for Goodreads)… (meer)

It's been a little while since I've devoured a book as quickly and feverishly as I did SILVERS HOLLOW. It's nightmarish, uncanny, and absolutely captivating.

I love how the author drops us right into the narrative with the protagonist, both of us lost, confused, and increasingly afraid as the story goes on. The story starts with a nameless young woman who has been picked up from a train station by a police officer and can't remember why she's there. As we go on there are strange little disturbances and hints that things aren't quite right. It's perpetually night, but there is no moon or stars. It's the town she grew up in, but it's a ghost town, and the few people remaining are treating her very oddly. The sideways glances, the looks of fright, the vague remarks. It's the empty house she grew up in, and the red door, and the disturbing memories that are clawing their way to the surface.

Why is she there? Why is everything so strange? And what is the "emergency" everyone keeps referring to?

I don't want to say too much as this is DEFINITELY a book to be experienced instead of explained. I love the way it was written so much. The atmosphere and pacing are perfect. I sensed the timelessness of an out-of-body experience. I felt adrift in a starless nightmare, the kind where the terror is subtle until it suddenly isn't. I knew something was off, but I couldn't figure out what. I thought of Channel Zero's second season NO-END HOUSE, the TV version of THE HAUNTING OF HILL HOUSE, Rob Zombie's song "Perversion 99", and remnants of various psychological thrillers.

I loved everything right up until the very end. It's weird, but I'm very indecisive about ambiguity, especially when it comes to endings. Typically I don't mind it, but there are times I dislike it. Unfortunately, this is one of those times. Because the majority of the book is all questions and few answers, the way it ended was simultaneously intriguing and frustrating to me.… (meer)

What a gorgeous cover. A total work of art. Kudos to whoever designed it. The House That Fell From The Sky was a bizarre and imaginative story that weaves a bit of horror and fantasy together, but it is not the haunted house story I had hoped for. There are lots of flashbacks that for me, did not always work in the book's favor. While sometimes a flashback can fill in details or provide character insights in a faster paced tale it felt to me that this story should have been told in a more direct way since there was plenty of time.
A bit long for my taste, it was a slow start before our main characters actually got into the house. The book was about half over before our 4 friends got inside the house even though it "fell" almost right away. This immediately set up a great spooky atmosphere since even people who got too near the house were affected by it but at over 500 pages It felt to me that the 4 main characters could have gotten in sooner. For me this was just an OK read but I am sure others may enjoy it more than I did.

3 out of 5 stars

I received a complimentary copy for review.… (meer)

The story opens with an unnamed woman waking up disorientated in an abandoned train station in her home town, but with a touch of amnesia. She meets an uneasy police officer who finds her and attempts to get to where she needs to go. The only problem is that this unnamed woman has no idea why she is in Silvers Hollow and how she got there and that is only the beginning of her problems.

From the moment you leave the train station with the woman the story kicks into overdrive and you are thrown into a mystery thriller that doesn't let up throughout it's 160 page run. The pace of the plot is quick, but coherent enough to follow with ease. The writing style was short, choppy, and claustrophobic - which perfectly fit for the theme and plot of the story.

In a town where there is no concept of night or day, time, people, or even the basic functions of town you are constantly questioning everything you read and learn from the little bits of information that the woman is given (which isn't a lot). The flashbacks to her childhood and family life in the same town that parallel the situation she is in are engaging and add another depth to the already saturated and disorientating story. If you feel confused half the time you're reading, then you're on the right track.

The imagery that Patrick Delaney paints about this desolate and confusing town is at times down right eerie, and you really begin to feel as panicked and confused as the woman in the story. From the constant mentioning of 'The Emergency' with zero explanation followed, to the strange neighbors that say and do things that further how truly bizarre the whole situation is. There was so much tension at times that I truly did not know where the story was going to end up going and to further that point, I think that is what I truly enjoyed the most about this story was that the mystery wasn't completely obvious. I had to really put myself in the Woman's shoes from beginning to end and discover the answers just as she did. There were at least five times I found myself thinking 'Did I miss something? what is going on now?' and flipping back a few pages to re read again to find out that, no, I did not in fact miss anything I just have to keep reading to find out whats going on. I loved the feeling of everything being so unpredictable and almost dream like.

As someone who really dislikes endings to almost every book I read, I didn't mind this one! It was vague and slightly confusing yes, but it let your imagination run a little wild for your own interpretation of everything that happened. I enjoyed it, which surprised me.

If you're looking for a solid horror-mystery-thriller read that you can devour in a single sitting, I highly recommend picking this one up! I will definitely be looking into the authors other works now!

FINAL RATING: 4/5 stars

*Special thanks to Netgalley and Oblivion Publishing for this digital reviewer copy in exchange for an honest review!… (meer)