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The Fallen Boys

Aaron Dries (Goodreads Author)

4.05 · Rating details · 142 ratings · 41 reviews

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

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Paperback, 304 pages

Published October 2nd 2012 by Samhain Publishing

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Aug 18, 2012 karen rated it liked it

Shelves: from-publisher-or-author

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 wh ...more

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Apr 03, 2017 Kimberly rated it it was amazing

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

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Sep 20, 2012 Bark | Ladies Of Horror Fiction rated it really liked it

Shelves: horror, disturbing, hardcore-horror

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 desen ...more

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Sep 19, 2012 Trudi rated it really liked it

Shelves: heart-of-darkness, 2012, october-country, uber-graphic-extreme, on-my-kobo, horror

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

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Apr 01, 2017 Kimberly rated it it was amazing · review of another edition

Shelves: gore, death, emotional, extreme-horror, wtf, thunderstorm

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Feb 08, 2016 Patrick Lacey rated it it was amazing

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

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Oct 28, 2018 lee_readsbooks rated it it was amazing · review of another edition

The greatest gift a human can be given is the gift of a child. To lose them can be torture.
I am a mother so I found this book not only heart breaking but bloody terrifying.
We worry 24/7 about our kids safety be it at school, in public, or on social media. Aaron Dries not only chose to write a parent’s worst nightmare but described it so insidiously that I was a nervous wreck. I had tears, I felt anger, my heart ached. And that was just the first half of the book.

If you like to read horror, Dries ...more

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Sep 18, 2012 Not Now...Mommy's Reading rated it it was amazing · review of another edition

Shelves: horror, favorites, 2012-reads, backwoods-horror

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 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 within the pages of this book. Yet I could. not. stop. reading. Even with my stomach in knots, muscles tense, and anxiety level steadily climbing - my mantra throughout this novel was "Just one more chapter".

Dries is indeed a master storyteller. All five of my senses were engaged with his vivid descriptions and use of imagery. You weren't just reading about what was going on "in the basement" - man, you were there! He also implemented the best use of weather I've read to date to create atmosphere in the story. It really set the mood for certain scenes making one almost believe the weather was used to convey not just the setting but the inner psyche of the characters involved. Speaking of psyche...or rather, psychos...The Fallen Boys has more than its fair share of them. And trust me when I say - you won't see them coming.

This was like some Texas Chain Saw Massacre meets Psycho meets Frailty ish! Definitely not for the faint-hearted, there are very graphic scenes of violence and death and subject matter that may be troubling to some readers (ie. the suicide of a child). What I thought was absolutely brilliant on the part of the author was, as I think back over the novel, there were no 'actual' scenes of torture but the way he describes the after effects of the torture was so horrifying that you believe you actually played witness to the acts of depravity and degradation the characters endured. A true psychological horror, this story did more than just disturb me - It got under my skin.

I'm the type of reader who can accept that with most horror novels, there is no happy ending. But Dries doesn't just introduce you to his characters and then move quickly on to the story. No, he takes the time to get you to know these characters and care - really care - about what happens to them by bringing such a realism to them as people that you almost forget you're reading fiction and by the end of the novel, you're so glad you are. I had a hard time coping with this ending because I really wanted the 'good guy' to win. Uuuggh! Some may find the pace of the novel a bit slow - I was almost 200 pages into the novel before the protagonist met his adversary - but not one time did I feel as if the novel was moving too slowly. Again I could. not. stop. reading. Even though every sane part of my brain begged me to. I am in no way comparing the two but I will say that fans of Ryan C. Thomas' The Summer I Died should feel right at home with this novel.

The Fallen Boys not only reminded me of why I fell in love with the horror genre, it also reminded me that there is horror and then there is horror. There is the kind of horror that speaks of monsters lurking in the closet and boogeymen residing under the bed. Then there's the horror of realizing that the most disturbing of monsters are the ones found behind the smile of a trusted friend, the seemingly innocent greeting of a stranger, or the face that looks back at us from a mirror. From the engaging characters to an awesome story line with villains you pray you never meet in person - all of these elements combined make this novel deserving of nothing less than my highest rating. ...more

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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

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Feb 26, 2018 Armand Rosamilia rated it it was amazing · review of another edition

Brutal and raw. This book will make you squirm and beg the author to do the right thing over and over. A rollercoaster psychological nightmare I couldn't stop reading. ...more

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Sep 09, 2012 Stargirl rated it it was amazing

Recommends it for: Hard-core horror fans everywhere

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 w 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 way that manages to not feel exploitative. Added to this, "The Fallen Boys," like Ketchum's best (The Girl Next Door) genuinely moved me. I was 100% on board with Marshall Deakins, a father who journeys into hell (a madman's basement) in the hope of discovering why his young son has committed suicide. We watch, helpless as he falls into a trap that we know will undo him.

And on this note, I think it's important for readers to know that this novel explicitly deals with the topic of teen suicide and internet bullying ... taken to a very sad, and inevitable conclusion. It's also about the fight against vigilantism and revenge, and how that temptation can change victim into villain, a theme that was also explored in "House of Sighs".

And that's why it gets under your skin. And stays there. This is not the kind of book you can shake off easily. It lures you in with its layered mystery (how does a child's suicide relate to murders on the other side of the planet?), then drags you in further with its morality play (how far would you go to find out the truth and how would it change you?) and then, about half way through, TRAPS you in a terrify situation (think Stephen King's "Misery") and never lets you go - not even to the very last sentence. And it's very dark and disturbing down in that grimy basement. Dries is one of those authors who puts you in a nightmare scenario and refuses to let you out or offer you release. And to me, that's the very essence of horror. Otherwise, what's the point?

This is a descent into darkness with subtext to spare. I'd dare even say it's an important novel. It also helps that it's absolutely terrifying. There may be those who believe that it goes too far - but that's the nature of cautionary tales. The good ones, at least. Which this one very much is.

The characters are richly layered and humane; it's gut-wrenching to watch them fall from grace. The plot is labyrinthian and truly unexpected, throwing superbly constructed twist after twist after twist. It's also wonderfully written in an evocative style that never becomes over-written. It's touching too, the little details of Marshall's marriage, the code words and memories ... The violence is explicit in parts, yes, but it DOES serve the plot - it's cannily delivered, may I also add. You experience a sequence of extreme horror that plants in your mind a dread of what's to come, only to have that inception never eventuate, instead taking you in a COMPLETELY different (and often much darker) direction.

I'm not easily caught off guard, but this damn book did it to me over and over and over again. Kudos where it's due, Mr. Dries.

"The Fallen Boys" is a story ripped straight from the headlines. I'm sure the author believes, above all else, that the greatest evil a man can do is manipulate a child into believing they are not loved. You wouldn't think it at first, but this book has a very moral core. And that's why it soars.

It'll upset you. It'll disturb you. It may offend. It will trick you with its plot. It will make you wince - but it's certainly NOT torture porn (the purpose of porn is to titillate and this most certainly does not). And above all else, it's impossible to not be moved by.

Reading this book is something you'll never forget. In fact, it'd make one hell of a movie. HIGHLY recommended.

I'm still breathless.
...more

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Dec 30, 2012 Greg Chapman rated it it was amazing

Shelves: wants-to-read

An incredible story of how deep grief can take people into darkness. Brutal and harrowing, yet addictive.

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Sep 28, 2012 Lydia Peever rated it really liked it

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 regular- ...more

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Mar 06, 2018 Richard Gerlach rated it it was amazing · review of another edition

This book is fantastic, just straight up fantastic. Aaron Dries can write, and write well. He told a very brutal, despair-ridden book that rips your heart out of your chest and leaves you standing there in awe.

This book follows Marshall, an Aussie man who is living a happy life. He notices his son has been acting a bit strange, but, nothing too out of the normal. Anyways, one day, the son commits suicide in a public area and a very horrific way. The suicide shakes Marshall and his wife Claire to ...more

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Jul 09, 2018 Alan Baxter rated it it was amazing · review of another edition

Shelves: horror

Brutal, uncompromising, unflinching, relentless. This is truly awful stuff brilliantly written. Quite an experience.

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Feb 26, 2017 Andy rated it it was amazing

Shelves: read-owned-total, paperback, horror

This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers. To view it, click here.

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Dec 09, 2016 Nikki rated it it was amazing

Shelves: horror

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. ...more

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Mar 10, 2017 Bob rated it it was amazing · review of another edition

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. ...more

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Feb 21, 2018 Mark rated it really liked it · review of another edition

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

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Dec 16, 2012 Peter Levinson rated it it was amazing

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, su ...more

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Sep 06, 2015 The Grim Reader rated it it was amazing

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 s ...more

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Feb 18, 2013 Matt Anderson rated it it was amazing

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. ...more

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Jun 01, 2020 Erica Robyn Metcalf rated it really liked it

Shelves: horror

The Fallen Boys by Aaron Dries is a wicked dark, twisted tale filled with very graphic situations that will make you cringe! But like all my favorite twisted tales, there was also a lot of heart, hope, and determination.

Trigger Warning: Suicide

Ooooh this book. It’s another one that’s impossible to discuss as I think you’d best go in blind. In my notes below, I will discuss two elements that I loved, but I won’t speak about the plot.

I had two favorite elements of this story; the gore and the de ...more

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Nov 27, 2020 Just another guy rated it it was amazing

Damn! This book mentally broke me after reading it... And it was so good!
(NO spoilers)

I heard about this novel a while back and had an interest in seeing what it was about. I'm a bit late to reading it, but this story is amazing and I'd highly recommend it.

Also a quick disclaimer: This book avoids the torture porn label and doesn't fall into that category. Though this book still does contain a fair bit of violence, nothing worse than the writings of Jack Ketchum though.

Here are the pros and cons Damn! This book mentally broke me after reading it... And it was so good!
(NO spoilers)

I heard about this novel a while back and had an interest in seeing what it was about. I'm a bit late to reading it, but this story is amazing and I'd highly recommend it.

Also a quick disclaimer: This book avoids the torture porn label and doesn't fall into that category. Though this book still does contain a fair bit of violence, nothing worse than the writings of Jack Ketchum though.

Here are the pros and cons of this story. The pros are numerous. First, the story runs smoothly and I think portions of the book being nonlinear really aided the story. Second, the writing is descriptive and uses strong word choice with modern realistic slang and for me nothing was too overboard. Third, the violence isn't as bad as many might make it out to be. It's graphic but not too graphic. Finally, the horror of the story was well done and reading it for the first time I never knew what would happen next.

The cons are fewer but there are a few. These did not take away from the story for me and don't impact my rating too much. First, the italics, my god, I can't believe the overuse and heavy reliance on them. I get that it mattered in some cases but it was just too much, if you read this novel you will understand. Second, there are portions when this book slows down and those chapters were a bit of a chore to get through, but it wasn't too bad because the chapters are short and even the dull chapters built and added to the story.

Conclusion: This is the type of writer I wished Stephen King was. No offense to him, his writing is good and it's what I read as a kid, but this felt like if King stripped down the descriptions that didn't affect the story and the fluff from his book. This felt like reading an amazing Jack Ketchum story, but with enough writing and story telling differences to be wholly unique. To put it shortly I was extremely impressed. I would highly recommend this story for any horror fan, especially those who want to start getting into more hardcore horror or for those who already enjoy the harder side of horror.
I would also briefly mention that the day I got this book in I read it from the early afternoon to late evening and finished this story in one day. That's how good Aaron Dries writing is. ...more

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Apr 20, 2018 William M. rated it it was amazing

Shelves: horror, dark-fiction

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, nearin ...more

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Nov 28, 2020 J Heidecker rated it it was amazing

Wow. This novel left me absolutely devastated. A man seeks to uncover the reason behind his son's suicide and uncovers more than anything he could have possibly imagined. There are two story lines here, one taking place in Australia and one in the Pacific Northwest, and when they finally intersect all hell breaks loose. A novel about love, loss, family, forgiveness and so much more. This is the third novel that I've read by Aaron Dries and by far my favorite. The violence is explosive and writte ...more

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Jan 09, 2017 Roud Faria rated it liked it

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. ...more

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Nov 06, 2020 John Cowell rated it liked it · review of another edition

I'm not sure if I actually liked this book or not. It's a story of two distinct halves. I enjoyed the first half bit the second ends up being dark for the sake of being dark.
I have a strong stomach and the second half didn't bother me but I couldn't see the overall purpose. It felt like the author has watched too many Saw/Hostel films and just went down that road. ...more

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Jan 08, 2021 Lindy rated it liked it · review of another edition

3.5 stars
Dries really knows how to write some gruesome shit!

Marshall loses his son to suicide. Jump forward like 4 years I think (the timing kinda confused me) and he finds a USB stick of some conversations his kid had put together before he died. He writes to the guy pretending to be his kid and ends up down the wrong path. This took a turn I wasn’t expecting.

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Mar 18, 2018 Amanda rated it it was amazing · review of another edition

Shelves: read-in-2018

It's rare to find a horror novel that actually "scares" me. Let's be honest: books aren't scary. Movies can startle you, not being able to find your toddler in the department store will terrify you, but books don't really have that kind of immediate impact that finding a spider on your shoulder does. You know it's just a book. You don't have to keep repeating that to yourself. Normally.

This book is horrifying. I read it in one day, (playing sick from work because I was hooked on this story) most It's rare to find a horror novel that actually "scares" me. Let's be honest: books aren't scary. Movies can startle you, not being able to find your toddler in the department store will terrify you, but books don't really have that kind of immediate impact that finding a spider on your shoulder does. You know it's just a book. You don't have to keep repeating that to yourself. Normally.

This book is horrifying. I read it in one day, (playing sick from work because I was hooked on this story) mostly during the daylight hours, and I did not sleep that night. After I finished it, I walked around stunned for two hours. What may sound like hyperbole is simple honestly. This book is intensely disturbing, and it will stay with you for days, weeks, months. Be warned. But it's also an amazing literary experience, and if you like horror novels (or claim to like them) you will absolutely love this one.

I gave it a month before I reviewed it, because I wanted to see if I still felt the same way about it, after some time had passed. I do. Other reviewers have covered the salient points -- it's not torture porn, but there are descriptions of violence that happen off-stage that are pretty gut-wrenching. The book is heartbreaking because the characters are so darn real. This was one of the first times I had to put a book down to remind myself the characters weren't actual people I knew and loved. It's beautifully written, exquisitely plotted, and absent the kind of loose ends a plot like this could suffer from. It's a near-perfect work of psychological terror (I won't say "perfect" so I can't be accused of being too dramatic) and it proves that real-world horror can be just as frightening as eldritch monsters, demon children, and alien predators.

If there's a negative to this book at all it MIGHT be that it's too sophisticated -- a criticism once leveled at horror legend Jack Ketchum. What this book requires is a reader who cares, a reader who is interested in people as well as plot, a reader who can sympathize with despair. This is a dark, bleak, unforgiving story, that (metaphorically speaking) nobody survives, including the reader. But the writing is beautiful, the characters are beautiful, and finally -- in the end -- that despair itself becomes beautiful, and the ending becomes a kind of surrender for the reader.

Five-star reviews can seem so fake, but this book oh so very honestly deserves every one of those stars. ...more

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About Aaron Dries

Aaron Dries

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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 subsequ ...more