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The Fallen Boys
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The road to forgiveness is covered in blood!
Marshall Deakins has tried to come to terms with the tragic suicide of his young son. But it still tortures him. His search for answers will lead him down a twisted path paved with secrets and grotesque lies. Instead of peace he finds madness, held captive as part of a deranged plan filled with suffering…and blood. As the nature ...more
Marshall Deakins has tried to come to terms with the tragic suicide of his young son. But it still tortures him. His search for answers will lead him down a twisted path paved with secrets and grotesque lies. Instead of peace he finds madness, held captive as part of a deranged plan filled with suffering…and blood. As the nature ...more
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oh, god, the pressure... the very first review of this book on goodreads.com. this means i can't just cut-and-paste someone else's review like i usually do.* but this is like being early to a fancy wine and cheese party, and no one wants to be the first one to grab the entire wheel of brie and stuff it in their mouth.i guess that responsibility falls on me.
so, gather round, sickfucks, you know who you are.
this book is one seething pit of torture porn. and if the above scenario were real, the ...more
THE FALLEN BOYS, by Aaron Dries, is #67 in Thunderstorm Books' Black Voltage line. This is one of the most "unique" approaches to a novel that I've read in some time. It almost seemed to be two separate halves of a novel, that are joined together only by the most tenuous of links--one that doesn't reveal itself fully until close to the ultimate conclusion.
"A child's flesh is tender. It does not heal with ease."
In the first half, we join a family in Australia: Marshall, his wife Claire, and ...more
"A child's flesh is tender. It does not heal with ease."
In the first half, we join a family in Australia: Marshall, his wife Claire, and ...more
This book lulls you in with a quiet, insidious sort of horror then takes a turn down torture lane and I was absolutely not at all prepared (despite being warned).
Honestly, as I was reading I was wondering why so many reviews were making such a big deal out of the gore level. It wasn’t any worse than most horror novels I’ve read and most of the terror came from real life fears. Sure, what happens was heartbreaking and tragic but what wimps these other people must be, thought I, all smug and ...more
Honestly, as I was reading I was wondering why so many reviews were making such a big deal out of the gore level. It wasn’t any worse than most horror novels I’ve read and most of the terror came from real life fears. Sure, what happens was heartbreaking and tragic but what wimps these other people must be, thought I, all smug and ...more
Yowzers, this is some pretty sick, disturbing shit, but I'm not going to label it 'torture porn'. The Fallen Boys avoids that fate by offering: 1) a solid story that takes its time to unfold and 2) strongly developed characters who I spent pretty much the entire novel scared to death for their safety.
The tension throughout the story is coiled and lethal. While there are a few uneven parts where the momentum lags for a bit and seems to meander, overall it is a pacing that builds, and builds and ...more
THE FALLEN BOYS, by Aaron Dries, is #67 in Thunderstorm Books' Black Voltage line. This is one of the most "unique" approaches to a novel that I've read in some time. It almost seemed to be two separate halves of a novel, that are joined together only by the most tenuous of links--one that doesn't reveal itself fully until close to the ultimate conclusion.
"A child's flesh is tender. It does not heal with ease."
In the first half, we join a family in Australia: Marshall, his wife Claire, and ...more
"A child's flesh is tender. It does not heal with ease."
In the first half, we join a family in Australia: Marshall, his wife Claire, and ...more
This is one of the best examples of real-world horror I've ever read. Period. The comparisons to Ketchum are inevitable but Dries has a distinct voice all his own. The narrative is at first a slow crawl but once everything is set in place, the book's pacing increases exponentially. Normally, I would take issue with such a slow first act but the way Dries paints characters is hypnotic. There's an emotional honesty that runs throughout this book that's gut-wrenching. Even in the scenes between the
...more
As I began to read "The Fallen Boys" my first thought was, "Oh hell in a hand basket". No, seriously. Aaron Dries opens up this novel by touching on one of my worst fears: waking up in the middle of the night to a total stranger standing over you. And said stranger is not there because you've somehow managed to conjure him from your wettest wet dream. No, he's there to hurt you. Bad.
From that point on, every real fear I've ever had as a living, breathing, feeling human being was brought to life ...more
From that point on, every real fear I've ever had as a living, breathing, feeling human being was brought to life ...more
Apr 30, 2018
Bill
rated it
really liked it
·
review of another edition
Shelves:
2018-mount-tbr-challange
Damn! This one starts off brutal. Then gets brutal in a different way, so much so that I forgot the beginning sequence and then it all came back around and got even more brutal. Damn!
This was not an easy read despite it being very well written and engaging. The subject matter is heavy and there is a true sense of sadness and gloom that blankets this one in a heavy fog of despair.
I almost didn’t want to like it, and perhaps “like it” may not be the best phrasing, but it was good. Real good. And ...more
This was not an easy read despite it being very well written and engaging. The subject matter is heavy and there is a true sense of sadness and gloom that blankets this one in a heavy fog of despair.
I almost didn’t want to like it, and perhaps “like it” may not be the best phrasing, but it was good. Real good. And ...more
Man-oh-man, what a book. I'm still in shock. Shaking - and in the best possible way.
I was terrifically impressed with Dries' first novel, "House of Sighs" a balls-to-the-wall page turner, so I'd been waiting for his sophomore effort with baited breath. I consider myself lucky to have devoured an advance readers copy, and WOW, it was worth the wait. It's a blood-splattered masterpiece that makes Richard Laymon read like a walk in the park.
Like Jack Ketchum before him, Dries does disturbing in a ...more
I was terrifically impressed with Dries' first novel, "House of Sighs" a balls-to-the-wall page turner, so I'd been waiting for his sophomore effort with baited breath. I consider myself lucky to have devoured an advance readers copy, and WOW, it was worth the wait. It's a blood-splattered masterpiece that makes Richard Laymon read like a walk in the park.
Like Jack Ketchum before him, Dries does disturbing in a ...more
An incredible story of how deep grief can take people into darkness. Brutal and harrowing, yet addictive.
The Fallen boys had a few things going for it that made me excited to read it. The trailer was fab. The cover art is compelling. The blurbs were a great tease.
Overall, it was a great story and fairly original which is tough these days. There is nothing new under the sun, but Dries language sheds a dark light on familiar situations.
If you liked characters like Hayley Stark in Hard Candy and the Killer in Haute Tension, then you will find those extremes here. On the flip-side, there are ...more
Overall, it was a great story and fairly original which is tough these days. There is nothing new under the sun, but Dries language sheds a dark light on familiar situations.
If you liked characters like Hayley Stark in Hard Candy and the Killer in Haute Tension, then you will find those extremes here. On the flip-side, there are ...more
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I don't know how he does it, but Dries has a knack for writing horrible things, beautifully. Where you literally want to read the same sentence a few times to make sure you've grasped both the beautiful and horrible. He definitely understands that the scariest things in life are humans and all it takes to end up in one's own horror story is to make bad decisions or to simply be in the wrong place at the wrong time.
Excellent nail biter involves a young son's suicide, a wife's betrayal, revenge, a religious fanatic, and torture. Reading it is like watching an impending train wreck and being helpless to stop it. Highly recommended.
Hot damn... this may be the most singularly savage, depressing, disturbing book I’ve read since Jack Ketchum’s “The Girl Next Door”. It makes sense, as Aaron Dries feels like the heir apparent to the dear, departed Dallas Mayr. From the opening pages, there is palpable dread lurking in the shadows. The cruel intersections of fate and human depravity feel almost akin to Greek tragedy. I would recommend going into the novel knowing as little as possible, but you should know a few things - a child
...more
What a book!!!!! It left me shattered in so many great ways. The story could have been ripped straight from today's headlines, but the issue of cyber bullying is explored in such an original and cautionary way that you can't help be impressed how Dries pulled it all off. It's grisly for sure, but it's certainly NOT torture porn, as one earlier review mentioned. It's a novel about the torture of loss, and how much of what you love is stripped away from you as you fall from grace.
It's intense, ...more
It's intense, ...more
The human spirit is dark and twisted....a little like Aaron Dries. Aaron's next book after the excellent House of Sighs is another slice of visceral modern horror straight out of the top draw. Aaron pulls you in and doesn't let go right until the end. He is a writer I will buy everything he releases, he really is absolutely top, top draw. His most recent book A Place for Sinners is even better! A great release from Black t-shirt books and from one of the genres most gifted writers. These books
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It constantly demands your attention the whole time you're reading it. Perfectly put together for a horror book. I will definitely be reading this one again and again.
Without spoiling anything, this book revolves around the mysterious suicide of a 11 year old boy and the incidents that follows it. The description of the tough time his parents go through made me emotional, it was really sad :(
Then comes the dark and disturbing part of the story, trigger warning is must for this book which contain description of violence children and adults without discrimination.
OMG!!! The twists and turns, many characters in the plot are insane that makes it more ...more
Then comes the dark and disturbing part of the story, trigger warning is must for this book which contain description of violence children and adults without discrimination.
OMG!!! The twists and turns, many characters in the plot are insane that makes it more ...more
4 AND 1/2 STARS
The one thing that this book proves is that Aaron Dries can write, and boy does he do it well. Gripping, flawed characters and a heartbreaking journey delve into a pit so dark, some readers might never find themselves back into the light. The Fallen Boys is a seriously adult story with a hell of a twist. A blend of Jack Ketchum, Edward Lee, and Richard Laymon. This book is the real deal but squeamish readers should be warned. The final third is extremely graphic and brutal, ...more
The one thing that this book proves is that Aaron Dries can write, and boy does he do it well. Gripping, flawed characters and a heartbreaking journey delve into a pit so dark, some readers might never find themselves back into the light. The Fallen Boys is a seriously adult story with a hell of a twist. A blend of Jack Ketchum, Edward Lee, and Richard Laymon. This book is the real deal but squeamish readers should be warned. The final third is extremely graphic and brutal, ...more
This book was recommended to me as a shocking gore story. Even though the plot has got some great twists and the author is able to change points of views brilliantly, it lacks violence. There's nothing new regarding that - it was indeed torturing for us readers when amidst an action scene the victim enters into a parallel world of sweet memories cutting down the climax the author could have been building. Average thriller.
This was the first book by Dries that I read (I've subsequently read them all now, the novels anyway) and I was instantly HOOKED. This book is about a father's journey to find out why his young son committed suicide, a trail that leads him to a basement he may never escape from. Be warned, horror fiction doesn't get any more harrowing than this. We're in deep Jack Ketchum level of gut-punches here. So if you can't handle suspense, intensity, gore, surprises, twists, and tragedy - and all set in
...more
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Avid traveler, former pizza boy, retail clerk, kitchen hand, aged care worker, video director and copywriter, Aaron Dries was born and raised in New South Wales, Australia. When asked why he writes horror, his standard reply is that when it comes to scaring people, writing pays slightly better than jumping out from behind doors. He is the author of the award-winning House of Sighs, and his
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“But lurking behind every summer was a fall just waiting to happen.”
—
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“I'm waltzing with the wrecking ball
'Cause this ain't my home anymore.”
—
1 likes
More quotes…
'Cause this ain't my home anymore.”
