S. L. Grey

Review from Tenacious Reader: http://www.tenaciousreader.com/2016/10/04/review-the-apartment-by-s-l-grey/

Looking for a fantastically creepy book to start off October? The Apartment by S. L. Grey may be just what you need. It is a haunting tale told through alternating perspectives from husband and wife, Marc and Steph. Both have been traumatized and then things start to get …. creepy.

I’ve read Sarah Lotz’s The Three and Day Four and loved them both. This is the first time I’ve read show more one of the books she co-authors with Louis Greenberg under the pen name S. L. Grey. It definitely did not disappointed and makes me think twice about house swapping for vacation.

Marc and Steph’s relationship is definitely in need of work. In addition to dealing with the house invasion, Marc also has a traumatic history involving his first family, before he met Steph. So, when the opportunity arises to “get away” and take the honeymoon they never had, they leave their young daughter behind and head to Paris hoping this will get them back in touch with each other, make everything good again.

Unfortunately, once they get to Paris, they encounter one problem after another, and their romantic, relaxing time away starts to feel more like hell. The apartment is nothing as advertised, in a virtually abandoned building (the only resident being a woman living up stairs, who like as not, is a squatter. The relationship issues they had before arriving seem to be compounded rather than resolved. And amid it all, things get creepier and harder to explain.

The alternating perspectives are interesting as this couple, at least at times, seems to be growing apart rather than closer. The different perspectives make you question if either narrator is fully reliable. From one perspective you may question the sanity of the other. From the other perspective, you may wonder what supernatural forces could be in play. It is a book where you question everything and trust just about nothing.

My only slight criticism while reading this was in the beginning of the book, the amount of emphasis and reinforcement that was directly used to let the reader know how traumatized this couple was by a recent home invasion. It almost felt overly dramatic (I’m not trying to trivialize it, I just felt the level of emphasis actually dampened the level of drama, at least for me). It wasn’t major, but I wonder if a little more showing, a little less telling for that one tiny aspect of the book could have been effective without repeating reminders about their traumatic event. But it wasn’t something that deterred my enjoyment, so I would consider this a minor thing.

I don’t know about Louis Greenberg (I have yet to read his solo work), but I am convinced Sarah Lotz doesn’t want her readers to be comfortable on vacation or holiday. First planes in The Three, then cruiseships in Day Four, now house swapping in The Apartment … all have new level of creepiness!

The Apartment is fantastically haunting and shuddersome, making it a great choice of book to set the mood as we head in to the fall season, prime time for all things creepy, supernatural and haunting. show less

I’ve read some pretty creepy books in my time, but The New Girl by S.L. Grey is in a whole different category when it comes to horror. Hell, it takes a very special blend of crazy to come up with such a riveting, suspenseful and exceptionally creepy plot, in my opinion, but I am definitely not complaining. The New Girl is a nail-biting book that revolves around a rather odd-looking new student that attends Crossley College. She looks like an outreach student, one that is simply there to show more fill the quota of the private school, but what Tara – an American teacher with a past and a weird obsession with reborn dolls – soon comes to realise is that nothing is quite as it seems. Of course, Tara wasn’t the only one who noticed the girl, Ryan – a predator – has also seen the new girl walking around like she doesn’t belong and he’s taken quite a liking to her. Unfortunately for him, she’s much more dangerous than she looks and in the end he’ll soon fall victim to something other than “urges”.

The New Girl is based in South Africa and has a real otherworldly flair to it that is not only unique but truly a breath of fresh air. Sure, we have our “American moments” with the slang and such, but that’s simply Upside speak. The real trouble’s far below the surface where the rules don’t necessarily apply – especially when it comes to grammar.

The New Girl is the third book in this series. With its predecessors, The Mall and The Ward, both critically acclaimed works, it’s logical to read them first, however it’s not vital. Nevertheless, the moment that you’ve finished reading this spectacularly crafted novel, you’re going to want to read the rest of S.L. Grey’s works.

I loved this book. I loved the fact that I blurted out in the middle of the night: “Jesus, this shit’s whack!” while the shadows danced and the darkness tried to push through the artificial light. I loved how S.L. Grey was able to mix together a fictitious fear alongside a very real threat, while keeping in mind the South African lingo (Parktown prawns anyone?). In other words, The New Girl was absolutely PRIMO! Everyone who loves horror should get their hands on it, and those who are in the mood for something a bit different is in for a huge, albeit creepy, surprise…

(review originally posted on www.killeraphrodite.com) show less

At first, I thought this would be another yawn-fest. Kid gets lost, unlikable babysitter needs to find kid, unlikable loser can't remember kid being in the store... blah, blah, blah... You know, the type of books that really shouldn't be categorised under horror/thriller? Well I was wrong. It took me a while to get into the book, but when I was past the first couple of chapters things quickly changed and I was drawn into The Mall's bizarre twists and turns. The spooky atmosphere jumps off of show more the pages, envelops the reader in its shroud of mystery, and then screws with the reader's mind just for the hell of it. It's bloody brilliant!

Like I said, it takes a while to get into the book, but by golly, once you pushed through the introductory chapters, you're going to be in for a ride of your life, coming straight from a seemingly unknown mall situated in Johannesburg. Not to mention, the mannequins (Doctor Who fans will remember how creepy mannequins can be), freaked me out! I'll never look at a mannequin the same way again.

Okay, but The Mall isn't just about a weird horror story with creepy characters. S.L. Grey (a collaboration between Sarah Lotz and Louis Greenberg) actually has more to say than what meets the eye. With consumerism, drugs, violence, and negligence present between the lines, it's obvious that this book is much more intelligently written than similar horror novels. Granted, you don't have to dissect the book to enjoy it though...
So, what did I think? Well, my suggestion is that you push through. It starts off a bit lame (the writing is excellent, the plot just kind of drags on for a while), but when you finish the book you're going to sit there and swear off mall's for quite some time. In other words, horror junkies, this is a definite must-read.

(review originally posted on www.tentaclebooks.com) show less

I'm conflicted on this book - 3 or 4 stars? It did disturb me enough that I had to take a couple of breaks while reading, especially from about 1/2 through to 3/4 of the way to the end. The amount of craziness and unfortunate events in the apartment in Paris were disturbing (plus the hair!), but the couple's return home is when the book amped up the creep factor, in my opinion. The alternating narrators also served the author well, until the last 1/4 of the book. The switching of narrators show more only confused me at the end instead of adding more information to what was happening. When finally revealed, the "origin story" of the Paris apartment was disappointing and the ending felt rushed and unresolved to me. So, do I give it 4 stars because it did creep me out or 3 stars for the disappointing ending? show less