The Dogs by Alan Stratton is a psychological/horror thriller about a boy and his mother who are on the run from the violent husband who has apparently been stalking them for some time. Aimed at a YA audience, the author does an excellent job of exploring the mindset of a young boy who is under a permanent state of dread and self-doubt.

Their latest move has brought Katherine and Cameron to the small rural town of Wolf Hollow. They are renting an isolated farm house that Cameron discovers has a number of strange stories attached to it. Cameron is tired of living in constant fear, and he’s never quite sure whether his father is the evil person his mother claims, or if his mother is paranoid. When he starts to feel watched and then comes into contact with a ghostly being, again we are not sure if this is really happening or if it’s all in Cameron’s head. As more strange things happen, Cameron is feeling desperate so he reaches out to his father, inadvertently letting his father know where they are.

The Dogs is a gripping and insightful story that is well written and builds to a dramatic climax. The horror isn’t overdone, yet there are chilling moments of both the supernatural and of domestic abuse. ( )

I don't remember the last time I finished a book in one day. It means something about the nature of the writing and the immediate attraction to the plot.
I admit I was skeptical at first because I'm less attached to stress nor dark books, but it was just fantastic; from beginning to end.
It is a relatively a short book, and not too hard to understand it's plot. On the other hand, it is interesting and exciting. ( )

It was gripping from the start... Couldn't put it down! ( )

Cameron and his mom have been on the run for years trying to escape his abusive father. Trying to get as far away as possible, his mother moves them to a house in the middle of a cornfield near a small town where she thinks they will be safe. While exploring the house, Cameron stumbles into the basement where he feels that someone is watching him. After he discovers eerie drawings in the basement closet, he sets out to discover who was the boy that drew them and what happened to him.

Although this book is somewhat of a ghost story, in my opinion, the central theme is about families that have gone through domestic abuse and what its aftermath may be like. While Cameron is trying to figure out what exactly happened to the previous tenants, his mother starts believing that he is going crazy and is going to turn out like his abusive father. At the same time, Cameron starts to question if his father really was abusive or if his mother has made the abuse up.
Overall, it's a good read that will have you wondering until the very end ( )

The Dogs is an entertaining, young adult psychological thriller, but it didn’t have the psychological suspense that I was expecting. I still found it to be engaging, but for different reasons.

Katherine Weaver and her son Cameron are on the run for five years trying to escape Cameron’s father. They move four times and in each home, Mrs. Weaver is convinced that they’re being watched. She’s afraid for herself and her son, so she must leave and keep them both safe. Cameron can only go by what he’s told by his mother. He has memories with his father and some of them seem abusive to him at first, but as he thinks about it, he starts to second-guess himself. He starts to think that maybe he misinterpreted everything. He wonders if it’s mother who has the problem and not his father.

Their most recent home is on an old, rundown farm that carries dark secrets. Cameron finds himself in the middle, trying to unveil the secrets that have remained hush for over fifty years. The only person who really knows what happened is Cameron’s new landlord and he’s not talking. Cameron encounters a bully at his new school and feels like an outcast. He begins to hear things that he shouldn’t, but he can’t let it go. He needs answers.

The mystery behind this story is captivating and you find yourself in the throes of Cameron’s amateur investigation. At first, I thought Cameron was a wimp, but over time, he grew into a curious teenager who faced situations that would have sent most teens running. I wasn’t really sure what to think about Katherine. At first I thought she was just a worried mother who wanted to keep her son safe, but after a while, I wondered if she was just nuts. It took about midpoint before I was fully glued to the pages and at that point, I needed to know how it ended.

There’s more to it than just “the dogs”, but I won’t ruin it for you. I will say that the dogs play a double duty and really get the job done.

I wasn’t expecting to be a little teary-eyed at the end, but I was. What can I say, I’m a sucker for a happy ending. This is definitely worth reading, so I say, go for it.

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