Snowblind: The Killing Ground

I love the way Michael McBride has left the door of this brilliant short novel open (even though that door is cold and there is snow coming in!!) for a sequel. I also found his notes informative and very useful for the enjoyment and progression of the story, in particular the subtleties in the naming of the “Alferd Packer Grill”

The use of landscape blended with unexpected and extreme weather conditions is a very powerful tool in the hands of an accomplished author. Who can ever forget Jack Torrance newly appointed caretaker at the isolated and snowbound Overlook Hotel and the sad events that followed.
4 friends Coburn, Baumann, Shore and Vigil are once again embarking on their yearly elk hunting expedition to the aptly named and show more snowbound Mt Isolation. They are forced to seek refuge when Vigil suffers severe trauma and injury in a fall and are now along surrounded by the harsh elements of nature and something evil and unknown....the scene is set! “Someone or something was still out there. Watching them. Waiting”...

A horror story (to appreciate the full effects!) is best enjoyed alone and possibly with the aid of an alcoholic beverage as the silence and tension can be unbearable. I sometimes read very early in the morning and approaching winter, here in the UK, the wind may be howling accompanied by a little rain....and then I read the following....

“Coburn crept closer, prepared to grab the branch, toss it away from the house, and sprint back toward the open window. He had already loosened his grip on the rifle when his brain caught up with his eyes. It wasn’t a branch. It was a hand. A human hand at the end of a severed forearm.Tied to a bent, rusted nail in the door by a tendon. Swinging gently back and forth at the behest of the wind. The curled fingers raking the wood.Scratch.....Scratch....Scratch...”

An important element I use to judge a good story is....Do I think about it the following day? Where is the author going? Are the characters real? Can I sympathize with them?....more importantly in a horror story....does it scare the hell out of me?? Let me tell you dear readers of my review that I cycle to and from work each day (ok you say what has that got to do with it....hold on I will tell you!) My 12 mile route home in the evenings is dark and lonely with only me my bike and my little light for company...the mind plays funny things and “Snowblind” became my mental companion this week as I struggled through the darkness....what was that I began to see to my left and right....????

“A lone silhouette separated from the shadows. Large and hunched. Low to the ground. Was it a bear? He couldn’t....couldn’t quite tell. He tried to zero in on it through the scope- Another silhouette materialized from the woods to the right of the first...another to its left...”

Michael McBride has written a novel that blends all the elements of good horror writing to produce a masterpiece of tension and fear and one I will remember for a very long time. Highly recommended! show less

Michael McBride sets the perfect scene for Snowblind. One that is so easy to picture. Four friends that have recently grown apart, but come together out of tradition. Four people with entirely different lives, who let go of all of that to enjoy the weekend away. A weekend packed with camping and hunting. What could go wrong? Apparently a lot. The hunters become the prey in a terror-filled tale of survival.

I found myself completely obsessed with flipping the pages, terrified and yet unable to stop reading. The book unfolds into a nightmarish story that bleeds off the page. McBride does a stellar job of creating a fearsome story that moves at a lightning fast pace. I could picture myself in the shoes of the men: trapped, horrified, show more hunted. Peering out into the dark night, eyes frozen open, mouth dry, hoping that there is no movement and you survive another night. Do you see what I'm getting at? Snowblind draws you in. It gets in your head.

I'm honestly glad that this was a short story. I'm not sure I could have taken much more of the very raw and vivid writing style that the book presents. The attention to detail is insane, especially with the character's emotions and their deaths. If you have a weak stomach, you've been warned. Just when you are sure you have an idea of what is going on, a twist gets thrown in that will make your mouth gape open. I loved the ending! No spoilers here though. You'll just have to see for yourself.

If you are a fan of horror, this is a book you absolutely need to read. I am so glad that I took the time to read Michael McBride's Snowblind and I can't wait to read more from him! He is definitely a master of his craft. Grab a blanket, turn down the lights, and prepare to be scared. show less

An easy, somewhat spooky, ambience-filled read that shows four friends who get the fight of their lives on a trip when a sudden blizzard strikes down. It's nothing new, but it's always an interesting plot choice. I didn't like the annoyance of the final page, but the pace stays strong and there's some brutal imagery that stays imprinted in the brain. The author's note at the end further explains the possibilities of the story and where the idea came from. Now on to read Sunblind.

They come at night.

A stranger staggers out of the wilderness under the cover of a blizzard and stumbles into a diner full of people. He collapses in the entryway, unzips his jacket, and allows the object hidden inside to fall out. Screaming commences.
And so begins this suspense filled tale of Old College Buddies out for their annual hunting trip to the Rocky Mountains.
But someone or something is hunting them.
And they stumble upon answers that no one wanted to know.

Pusle pounding, addictive, page turner...what else can I say, Oh Yea..
the tension just jumps from the pages!
Expertly written to make the hairs on your neck stand up.
Do NOT read this at night.
But read it.
Scary as HELL ! Right to the Harrowing , surprising conclusion.

Snowblind was a fast and furious read. McBride's tale, of an annual elk hunting trip for four college buddies now pushing towards their forties, is full of atmosphere and paranoia. While hunting, one of the hunters breaks his leg just as a blizzard is dumping foot after foot of the white stuff on the mountain. Visibility is zero and they're lost. They eventually stumble onto a dilapidated cabin to get out of the miserable weather. Unfortunately for the hunters, they aren't alone.
Snowblind was a fun story that fills the reader with dread as you try to put yourself in the characters shoes. What would I do if I were them? Would I be able to survive or would I be the next victim? Great stuff. The only reason that it's a four star read and show more not a five is because I would've liked to have seen a little more character development. It's not that they were cardboard cut outs. They were actually interesting and I wanted to know more about them and their backgrounds. I think that would've ratcheted the dread up even more by being more invested in the characters. show less

Really scary and tense read about a group of four men, out on their annual elk hunting trip in the Rocky Mountains. After one of them is injured, and it starts to snow heavily, they find shelter in an abandoned old homestead. Then they start to hear noises in the woods… I don’t want to give anything else away. I thoroughly enjoyed this totally eerie read. It was very descriptive, with the freezing weather, the feeling of being watched, the unfolding horror. A great story, but my only complaint is that I didn’t like how the story ended.

Rating - 3.5 stars

John Avery has spent the last seven years looking for his missing girlfriend, Michelle. (Michelle went on a skiing holiday with some friends and they were never seen again.) Now John is contacted by the police. A ranger has found a videotape machine with a video in it in the wilderness, and on it is a message from Michelle. This prompts the sheriff to form a search party. The party goes into the snowy wilderness in search for some answers. But they discover something more terrifying than they would have imagined…

This was a very eerie and tense read. It had great atmosphere… the snow, the cold, the wind, the isolation, and the characters not knowing what is out there. I didn’t like how the story ended, though. show more This book can be read as a stand-alone, but it is better to read with the previous one, “Snowblind”, which I enjoyed a bit more. show less