Charles L. Grant (1942–2006)

Now we're talkin'. After reading the mediocre first two novels in the Oxrun Station series, we get The Grave (the fourth in the series). Josh Miller's world is becoming slowly unglued and neither he nor we know what is going on. An accumulation of odd details and occurrences build the eeriness. People just seem a little strange, nothing extraordinary, but just little bits and pieces. Eventually the truly bizarre begins to intrude and we're not sure if Josh is going nuts or things are really show more getting bad in the Station or both. A great read worthy of the best horror of Straub or King right up to the end.

Oxrun Station has to be one of the worst suburbs to live in.

Bonus: fornication in a graveyard. show less

And with the end of the third book in the Oxrun Station series (and the second I've read), I'm already getting that sinking feeling.

Why?

Because, for the most part, this book was plotted exactly light the first one in the series, [b:The Hour of the Oxrun Dead|415484|The Hour of the Oxrun Dead|Charles L. Grant|https://images.gr-assets.com/books/1325759739s/415484.jpg|404667].

1 - Younger, single woman, who was away from Oxrun and has recently returned, senses an indefinable something's not show more right.
2 - Very quickly, some vague bad things happen that threaten her life, but not really.
3 - Along comes the unwanted but very quickly welcomed young single man who quickly becomes her suitor.
4 - A lot of stuff, some somewhat important, some not important to plot at all, happens.
5 - People are introduced, one of which, seemingly creepy but mostly innocuous, will be the villain
6 - Heroine makes some really astounding interpretive leaps of logic to finally, about 30 pages before the end, figure out what that something's not right really is.
7 - Villain shows back up and, comic book style, rolls out all the information she needs to prove those really astounding interpretive leaps of logic were exactly right.
8 - Oh, and the means of villainy are really stupid.
9 - Something really stupid happens for her to be saved and the villain to lose.

Grant isn't writing horror here. He's writing potboilers. He seems quite reluctant to define the villain any nearer than the last 10% of the book, aside from some vague threatening actions that amount to nothing. Unfortunately, this leads to the protagonist spending most of that first 90% of the plot wringing and flailing her hands at some vague, undefined threat.

I know I read a couple of books by Grant when I was younger and enjoyed them immensely. The only reason I stopped back then was because I simply never saw his stuff in the bookstores.

Now, I'm really questioning my younger self's standard of quality. Honestly, this book was quite bad and quite boring. The writing is gorgeous, if a little overwrought.

I'm going to give it one or two more books, then I may have to walk away. show less

This is clearly CLG doing his version of The X-Files (a series for which he also wrote a few tie-in novels).

Cabins in the woods, small town creepiness, strippers, hunters, and a backwoods creature on the loose that seemingly kills at random. Proctor comes seeking answers to his friend's murder at the creature's claws. More of a mystery with supernatural overtones (again, like many episodes of X-Files).

As expected from Charles Grant, this is a slow-burn. Also, it's the first in a series, so show more we get elements of set-up, but not that get in the way. Even elements clearly being set in place for future novels serve a purpose, here, so as to be unobtrusive.

I've been away from Grant for many years. This was a nice, comfortable return. Less Grindhouse, then Hitchcock. With a monster. show less

I think the goings-on in this book are actually referred to in one of the earlier Oxrun Station novels. Its truly amazing that people don't realize that this is not only the worst suburb of Hartford, but maybe the worst suburb in the world. Arkham, Dunwich, and Innsmouth are vacation spots compared to Oxrun Station.

Oxrun Station is still a terrible place to live; people have problems losing weight, girlfriends, going to movies, the hospital, and always stay away from the old largely torched show more Armstrong orchard (a formerly popular lovers' lane). No prior knowledge of the "Station" is required to enjoy this book.

This is another great Oxrun Station book by Grant. Four longish stories with a framing story that loosely connects the whole. Overall better than Nightmare Seasons because the stories are more consistent. Grant's formula, if you can call it that, is to build up disconcerting details before he starts to spring the real weirdness on you. The creeps generally build on you slowly and there is always a measure of suspense about what is really going on. His endings, even when enigmatic, are always solid. Grant's writing is atmospheric and sets just the proper eerie tone. There is no more grue than necessary to fuel the plot.

This Oxrun series would all be great Halloween reads. show less