Kealan Patrick Burke

Kealan Patrick Burke can sure mess you up.

He writes fantastic characters and then proceeds to torture you with the awful things that happen to them. Tackling the most difficult of subjects is one thing. But to present in such a way, so deep inside the main character's fractured mind, that you cannot tell what is happening and what is dream, is masterful.

Genuinely horrifying either way, this story works on so many levels. I have discussed this book with several friends and we all came away show more with different takes on this novella---except we all agree that we were squirming throughout. It is a deep and very uncomfortable read---we can all agree on that.

Dark fiction at its best by one of the best---who still just keeps getting better with every book. show less

In my opinion there are only two authors currently producing dependable horror fiction; two authors who hit the mark every single time: Joe Hill and Kealan Patrick Burke. I grew up reading King and Koontz, but Stephen King's endings have been lackluster as of late, and Dean Koontz has completely lost his knack. Hill has yet to let me down, while Burke makes me utterly sick with envy. I've read numerous stories from Burke and enjoyed every one of them, whether they be full-length novels, show more novellas, or shorts. Every single one has been four-star reads or above. His characterization is brilliant, making even the most sickening characters sympathetic (KIN). His monsters are the stuff of which fever dreams are made (THE TENT), and his plots are twistier than an amusement park ride, and just as terrifyingly entertaining (JACK & JILL). He can be dark, funny, poignant, or flat out disgusting; basically everything a horror fan looks for in their fiction.

Like many of Burke's fans, I found him through his novella, THE TURTLE BOY, and instantly fell in love with his ability to tell a story. It would be over a year before I jumped back into the series, though, and I regret that wholeheartedly.

THE HIDES has one of the best openings I've ever read in a book. The prologue can almost be read as a standalone short story, as it has a full tale to be told, and one shocker of a twist.

The middle of the book is Burke doing what Burke does best: character interaction. Timmy's conversation with the librarian stands out the most. Yes, the scene is really nothing more than exposition, but Burke tackles it through realistic dialogue. He made a town's history interesting; something that usually bores me to tears. I enjoyed Timmy's back and forth with his father, as well, especially the scene where they share a smoke.

Now on to the meat of THE HIDES. This book is scary. The spirits that pop up are notable, and will stay with you long after you're done reading the scenes in which they appear. The hanged man really got to me, as did the woman clinging to the buoy. If you're looking for nightmares, seek no further.

Finally, the ending. I picked up THE HIDES because I'd just been disappointed by another book (STEELHEART) and was surprised to find the action I missed there present inside the pages of THE HIDES. There's a very clear image in my head as I type this of a woman blasting from the water and coming down like a boulder atop an ambulance. But even before that, there's the reveal of the titular monster. This part really shocked me, as I had no idea The Hides was going to be the, so to speak, boss battle. Burke's monstrosities never fail to chill me, but this big baddie had me wetting my Superman undieroos in fear for Timmy's life. I do believe I'll refrain from wearing leather anything for a while.

In summation, read everything Kealan Patrick Burke writes. Like, yesterday. show less

From the outside, it looks like an ordinary American home, but since its construction in 1956, people have vanished as soon as they go upstairs, the only clues the things they leave behind: a wedding ring, a phone...an eye. In its sixty-year history, a record number of strange events have been attributed to the house, from the neighbors waking up to find themselves standing in the yard outside, to the grieving man who vanished before a police officer's eyes. The animals gathering in the yard show more as if summoned. The people who speak in reverse. The lights and sounds. The music. The grass dying overnight...and the ten-foot clown on the second floor. And as long as there are mysteries, people will be compelled to solve them. Here, then, is the most comprehensive account of the Abigail House phenomenon, the result of sixty years of eyewitness accounts, news reports, scientific research, and parapsychological investigations, all in an attempt to decode the enduring mystery that is...THE HOUSE ON ABIGAIL LANE.

56 Abigail Lane is a place where people disappear. They can go upstairs but never come down. The account and the 60-year history of the house is so well documented that I had to check to see if I was reading a fictional story or a real-life documented account. The book has a very factual tone that, at times, will make you consider if these accounts had actually happened. That just adds to the eeriness of the house...as if it needed any more eeriness.

The accounts of what happened in Abigail house scared me...something that very few ghostly, eerie, nightmarish books are capable of. If you love horror, you need to read this book. If haunted house stories are your thing, you need to read this book. If you just feed on intriguing stories, you need to read this book. If you just like good solid writing you need to read everything Kealan Patrick Burke has written. To say this is a compelling read would be a gross understatement. Be sure to remember to keep your lights on and your doors locked.

I loved this from the book cover: Remember:"There is something very wrong about the house on Abrigail Lane. From what I can see, it's just a house, no different on the outside than all the others around it. It certainly doesn't radiate evil, but then, the devil is clever, and where better to catch the innocent sleeping but at home in their beds?" show less

This is a novella but a good little terrifying, short story. What begins as a character study of a man who is in the last throes of screwing up his life, slowly turns serious as the man, his wife, and young son are lost in the woods while camping. Kealan builds the tension using small details. You can feel the man's discomfort, both physical and emotional, as events spiral downward. Then, just as you're starting to think that this story is all about internal conflict, the man stumbles across show more something in the woods...and from here the situation turns ugly... fast. Just when you think things are perhaps going to turn out okay... think again. This actually reminded me a great deal of early Stephen King...back when he was writing more short stories than full length novels. This is one very weird, creepy tale the outcome, of which, I would have never seen coming when I started reading about a family camping trip. show less