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Deadfall
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Twin brothers Ty and Cory Bic are on the run. When they encounter a dying deer in the middle of a remote mountain road with fresh tire tracks swerving down into a ravine, they know they have to help. But when they reach the wrecked car the vehicle appears empty, with signs that the driver escaped.
Until they hear a sound coming from the trunk.
Ty and Cory are escaping demons ...more
Until they hear a sound coming from the trunk.
Ty and Cory are escaping demons ...more
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Coming off an eight-year break from his 2009 young-adult debut, Pod, Stephen Wallenfels released two novels in two years, culminating in Deadfall. The narrative switches between the past and present, two situations in which teenage twin brothers Cory and Ty Bic are at risk from a variety of felons...including their own father. Cory and Ty are in a hurry as they drive along the secluded mountain road in a stolen car. The last thing they want is a delay, but they come upon a dead deer in the road
...more
This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers. To view it,
click here.
This was a tough read; lots of heavy material (trigger warnings: drug use, abuse, sex trafficking - to name a few).
This story follows twins Ty & Cory. (Mostly told from Cory's perspective) - the boys have been dealt some crappy cards their whole life starting with an abusive father, a mother who left them and eventually foster care after a crazy turn of events.
The story intertwines the events leading to the present in an alternating present/past chapter format. The way the story was written kept ...more
This story follows twins Ty & Cory. (Mostly told from Cory's perspective) - the boys have been dealt some crappy cards their whole life starting with an abusive father, a mother who left them and eventually foster care after a crazy turn of events.
The story intertwines the events leading to the present in an alternating present/past chapter format. The way the story was written kept ...more
Review to come!
Hard-hitting thriller
TRIGGER WARNINGS:
Emotional, physical and sexual abuse, implied rape, sex trafficking, violence.
This was a dark, difficult book for me to read. Don't get me wrong - it's an excellent book. But know that just because this book has two teen brother protagonists, that doesn't make it a teen book.
It bounced back and forth between the past and present events in Ty and Cory Bic's lives, which I thought was handled very well by the author. And the momentum and suspense kept buildin ...more
TRIGGER WARNINGS:
Emotional, physical and sexual abuse, implied rape, sex trafficking, violence.
This was a dark, difficult book for me to read. Don't get me wrong - it's an excellent book. But know that just because this book has two teen brother protagonists, that doesn't make it a teen book.
It bounced back and forth between the past and present events in Ty and Cory Bic's lives, which I thought was handled very well by the author. And the momentum and suspense kept buildin ...more
Dec 03, 2018
Ruthsic
rated it
really liked it
Shelves:
contemporary,
male-author,
thriller,
diverse,
arcs,
mystery,
lgbtqiap,
standalone,
young-adult
Warnings: child abuse, child sexual abuse, sex trafficking, violence
This mystery thriller delivers its story in two timelines- the present where these twins find a girl trapped in the boot of a car in an accident, and their life 16 months before, counting down to how they came to be on that road. Both timelines are through Cory's perspective, but the present is in first person, and the past in the third person, a choice that felt a bit jarring in the start but which I got used to as I went along ...more
This mystery thriller delivers its story in two timelines- the present where these twins find a girl trapped in the boot of a car in an accident, and their life 16 months before, counting down to how they came to be on that road. Both timelines are through Cory's perspective, but the present is in first person, and the past in the third person, a choice that felt a bit jarring in the start but which I got used to as I went along ...more
Stephan Wallebfels’ “Deadfall” is a survival action horror book that is a fresh change of pace compared to the other books I have read this year. The story is about two brothers, Ty and Cory, which find themselves in a predicament when they investigate a car wreck. The brothers notice that no one was injured and the driver managed to escape the wreck. They both think everything is okay until they hear a noise in the trunk. There is something new about the imagery in this book whether it’s the wr
...more
I really, really liked this book! I read the author's other novel, Bad Call and liked it as well. But Deadfall was on a whole new level of awesome.
Deadfall is told by alternating between Cory and Ty's current situation (finding a car accident with someone tied up in the trunk) and the events leading up to it. If Hatchet, The Outsiders, and Breaking Bad had a baby, this would be it.
I loved the slow buildup of tension, the alternating timelines, and the way everything played out. I loved the dyna ...more
Deadfall is told by alternating between Cory and Ty's current situation (finding a car accident with someone tied up in the trunk) and the events leading up to it. If Hatchet, The Outsiders, and Breaking Bad had a baby, this would be it.
I loved the slow buildup of tension, the alternating timelines, and the way everything played out. I loved the dyna ...more
The change in chronology from about sixteen months ago to the present is what kept the action moving as twin brothers discover a girl in a trunk and are then part of a more sinister plot that leaves them battered and broken when that sometimes seemed tame to the things they experience from their deadbeat and abusive father.
It's a bit bloated but felt action-oriented and thriller-esque for fans of this mystery thriller genre with typical elements to help master the trope but some unexpected disc ...more
It's a bit bloated but felt action-oriented and thriller-esque for fans of this mystery thriller genre with typical elements to help master the trope but some unexpected disc ...more
This story was a good survival story and a good story about trauma in children and overcoming bad circumstances. Mind you, it’s a very dramatized story about that, but nonetheless it worked. The actual thriller aspect was a lot less heavy than the synopsis suggested. However, the writing style of flashbacks was great storytelling and the characters, especially Cory, were pretty well-rounded. I really enjoyed this one, even more than the last Stephen Wallenfels I read, and look forward to more fr
...more
Cory and Ty live with their abusive, meth-addicted, drug-dealing father. When their father, Benny, gets mixed up in something that he can’t get out of, the boys move to an idyllic town with a former judge, future senator, foster father, but not all is right with this rosy world. A deer, a wrecked car, a girl in a trunk, and a stump/bug-out deep in the woods make this a highly engaging, suspenseful story.
Deadfall was a quick, thrilling read. When I reached the end of one chapter, I'd look forward to reading the next. The pacing was on point. The narrative was complimented by good writing and great details.
I nearly gave this a flat four-star rating because of a couple plot points. One seemed awfully convenient and somewhat forced. As a developmental editor, I know this happens when an author visualizes a plot point and it makes perfect sense in his/her head, but the delivery is weak or not execut ...more
I nearly gave this a flat four-star rating because of a couple plot points. One seemed awfully convenient and somewhat forced. As a developmental editor, I know this happens when an author visualizes a plot point and it makes perfect sense in his/her head, but the delivery is weak or not execut ...more
Deadfall by Stephen Wallenfels is a book about twin brothers, their horrible father and how they ended up in the foster care system.
My above description of this book sounds vague and that is because I want it to be. This is one of those books where you need to read everything in order to understand all the events and I don't want to spoil that for anyone so I will keep it vague.
I will say, however, that the beginning of the book was pretty slow for me. I really didn't enjoy the parts where it ...more
My above description of this book sounds vague and that is because I want it to be. This is one of those books where you need to read everything in order to understand all the events and I don't want to spoil that for anyone so I will keep it vague.
I will say, however, that the beginning of the book was pretty slow for me. I really didn't enjoy the parts where it ...more
I was lucky enough to read an ARC of this slow burn, psychological thriller. I found myself heavily invested in the characters, hoping against hope for the Bik brothers. Cory stole my heart. My other favorite character was Benny. He was unpredictable, terrifying and spot on. The scene with Benny and the brothers on the bridge is horrifyingly realistic. The tension never flags and the pace picks up when they discover the girl in the trunk, but without the prior character development, I wouldn't h
...more
"They reached the tree.
'Want me to count?' Ty said.
'Sure.' Cory closed his eyes. He heard a soft click behind them. His breath caught in his throat.
Ty counted. 'One Mississippi... two Mississippi...three Mississippi...'
At ten they slowly turned around. Benny was gone."
Cory and Ty Bic are running from something in a stolen car. Somewhere in the woods, they come across a deer that had been struck by a car, and tire tracks that went off the road. When the reach the car, there is destruction and blo ...more
'Want me to count?' Ty said.
'Sure.' Cory closed his eyes. He heard a soft click behind them. His breath caught in his throat.
Ty counted. 'One Mississippi... two Mississippi...three Mississippi...'
At ten they slowly turned around. Benny was gone."
Cory and Ty Bic are running from something in a stolen car. Somewhere in the woods, they come across a deer that had been struck by a car, and tire tracks that went off the road. When the reach the car, there is destruction and blo ...more
3.5 Stars
Deadfall is a thrilling new young adult mystery that fans of survivalist fiction are going to love. Here's what I liked and disliked about the book:
Liked:
Characters - The twins, Ty and Cory, are completely different in almost every way but they stick together and have each others' backs no matter what. I liked getting to know both of them throughout the story, especially Cory who we get to know even better in the 'present' part of the book because he narrates it.
Writing Style - I love ...more
Deadfall is a thrilling new young adult mystery that fans of survivalist fiction are going to love. Here's what I liked and disliked about the book:
Liked:
Characters - The twins, Ty and Cory, are completely different in almost every way but they stick together and have each others' backs no matter what. I liked getting to know both of them throughout the story, especially Cory who we get to know even better in the 'present' part of the book because he narrates it.
Writing Style - I love ...more
This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers. To view it,
click here.
Deadfall began with real promise, its structure – alternating between the increasingly recent past and the present in the style of a film noir – plus some choice ‘reveals’ along the way meant I was keen to keep reading and find out how the increasingly complicated plot would tie up in the end. However, it proved far too long with too many confusing passages which served to undermine its own ending.
The plot revolves around twin brothers Corey and Ty Bic and their life with their abusive father B ...more
The plot revolves around twin brothers Corey and Ty Bic and their life with their abusive father B ...more
This story begins when Benny Bic takes his twin 16-year-old sons Cory and Ty on a road trip for their birthday. Benny is a drunk who has taken to physically abusing Cory since his wife left the family a couple of years earlier. Ty is the one who is the most like their father, including his anger issues. Cory is more sensitive. He's fat, bright, interested in cooking, and is coming to believe that he is gay.
The road trip isn't something either of the boys want to do. They wind up hiking into the ...more
The road trip isn't something either of the boys want to do. They wind up hiking into the ...more
Special thanks to NetGalley for providing me with an ARC of this book!
If you advertise a book that involves two brothers on the run who find a kidnap victim in the trunk of a car, I will probably be enticed. Given that reality, it's not surprising that I was interested in DEADFALL by Stephen Wallenfels. I was lucky enough to get an eARC from NetGalley. So I dove in, hoping for something that would keep me on the edge of my seat.
Cory and Ty, twin brothers who have been through a lot together, are ...more
If you advertise a book that involves two brothers on the run who find a kidnap victim in the trunk of a car, I will probably be enticed. Given that reality, it's not surprising that I was interested in DEADFALL by Stephen Wallenfels. I was lucky enough to get an eARC from NetGalley. So I dove in, hoping for something that would keep me on the edge of my seat.
Cory and Ty, twin brothers who have been through a lot together, are ...more
3.75*
I quite enjoyed this book. I thought that it was a pretty good thriller. It had quite and interesting story line and it was pretty suspenseful. It is written in a way that makes the story jump from past to present. I was very invested in both sides of the story.
One of the problems I had with this book was that it did take a little bit for me to get into. The beginning of the story is nothing like how the rest of the story goes so it did take a while for me to get really invested in the st ...more
I quite enjoyed this book. I thought that it was a pretty good thriller. It had quite and interesting story line and it was pretty suspenseful. It is written in a way that makes the story jump from past to present. I was very invested in both sides of the story.
One of the problems I had with this book was that it did take a little bit for me to get into. The beginning of the story is nothing like how the rest of the story goes so it did take a while for me to get really invested in the st ...more
My Dad liked to say, “If he didn’t have bad luck…he would have no luck at all.” Our two lead protagonists in “Deadfall” are twin brothers who have drawn a major short stick in the game of life. An absentee mother, a sociopath and abusive father who also dealt in making meth and female trafficking when he wasn’t torturing his twin boys, Ty and Cory. It seemed like a never-ending life of misery for the young 16-year old boys. When their father is brutally killed, they get an opportunity to live in
...more
A trapped in the wilderness thriller that seems to be Wallenfells go to has just enough intrigue to keep you guessing as the past and present meet resulting a bloody conclusion.
“Deadfall” goes back and forth in time telling the story of twin brothers Ty and Cory trying to make a life with an absent mother and deadbeat dad whose get rich quick plans go from bad to worse. I’m the present, the brothers are in the woods in a stolen car when they come upon a crash with something darker lurking withi ...more
“Deadfall” goes back and forth in time telling the story of twin brothers Ty and Cory trying to make a life with an absent mother and deadbeat dad whose get rich quick plans go from bad to worse. I’m the present, the brothers are in the woods in a stolen car when they come upon a crash with something darker lurking withi ...more
I'm not typically a big mystery/thriller fan; I prefer my books a little bit more fantastical. But there sometimes comes a book that peaks my interest, and I pick it up. Deadfall by Stephen Wallenfels was one such book, and is going on my small thriller shelf after reading this tense survivalist rollercoaster.
At the heart of this story you find two brothers trying to survive and overcome obstacle after obstacle, who grew up within very abusive household, and now are on the cusp of possibly follo ...more
At the heart of this story you find two brothers trying to survive and overcome obstacle after obstacle, who grew up within very abusive household, and now are on the cusp of possibly follo ...more
4 stars. I bought a copy of DEADFALL after hearing Wallenfels give a brief plot summary at an author talk and book signing. Two things particularly intrigued me: the Pacific Northwest setting and his use of twins as his main characters. The first because it's home territory, though I admit that can be tricky as authors often have to fictionalize bits and pieces to fit their story. Yet there remains something about reading those familiar place names or descriptions of flora and fauna that adds to
...more
I thought this was a good book with a lot of mystery. Ty and Cory are brothers who end up with a dead beat dad who gets caught in some shady business. They pick up and move but on their birthday (twins) he takes them to the woods to a location where there is a shelter built into a tree. After their dad dies they get placed in foster care with a very wealthy judge and his family. When they come across some shady business being done with the judge they pick up and leave. On their route to the wood
...more
Z picked up this book at the library and read it in one day, so I thought I'd give it a try. It is a page turner -- it's about two brothers (twins) who have a terrible, junkie dad who ends up getting killed. They go into foster care with a family that seems great, but turns out not to be so much. They run away, and find a wrecked car with a girl locked in the trunk. And then they must figure out what to do. My first thought was, I'm not sure I want my 12 year old reading books about meth addicts
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Solid 2.5 stars
First of all, how much can you make one character vomit, read this book to find out. It is the main characters go to response for anything and everything. Afraid? Vomit. Anxious? Vomit. Grossed out? Vomit. Nervous?Vomit. Shocked? Vomit. Good grief, enough already.
This was a fairly predictable book with some intriguing or interesting bits. It does have themes of drugs, abuse, and sex trafficking along with murder so the reader should be prepared for that. Some of the reasons why t ...more
First of all, how much can you make one character vomit, read this book to find out. It is the main characters go to response for anything and everything. Afraid? Vomit. Anxious? Vomit. Grossed out? Vomit. Nervous?Vomit. Shocked? Vomit. Good grief, enough already.
This was a fairly predictable book with some intriguing or interesting bits. It does have themes of drugs, abuse, and sex trafficking along with murder so the reader should be prepared for that. Some of the reasons why t ...more
Maybe more like 2.5 stars?
I don’t really know how I feel about this book. The flashback chapters were far superior to the present day chapters, but I still don’t know why it used two different narratives. (Flashbacks were in third person, present day was in first.) And while their life with Benny was certainly awful and hard to read about, I thought the reason they ended up running later on was not nearly as bad as what they had already lived through, and didn’t seem worth putting their lives a ...more
I don’t really know how I feel about this book. The flashback chapters were far superior to the present day chapters, but I still don’t know why it used two different narratives. (Flashbacks were in third person, present day was in first.) And while their life with Benny was certainly awful and hard to read about, I thought the reason they ended up running later on was not nearly as bad as what they had already lived through, and didn’t seem worth putting their lives a ...more
Title: Deadfall
Author: Stephen Wallenfels
Genre: Thriller, YA
Rating: 4 out of 5
Ty and Cory Bic are running away from the danger and drama in their lives when they come upon a dying deer in the middle of the road, and tire tracks swerving off the road beside it. Though they need to disappear without a trace, they follow the tracks and find an empty car. The banging from the trunk reveals Astrid, so traumatized she doesn’t speak, and they realize they’ve stumbled into something bad. Something that ...more
Author: Stephen Wallenfels
Genre: Thriller, YA
Rating: 4 out of 5
Ty and Cory Bic are running away from the danger and drama in their lives when they come upon a dying deer in the middle of the road, and tire tracks swerving off the road beside it. Though they need to disappear without a trace, they follow the tracks and find an empty car. The banging from the trunk reveals Astrid, so traumatized she doesn’t speak, and they realize they’ve stumbled into something bad. Something that ...more
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I wrote freelance in the health and fitness industry for twelve years before re-committing myself to my first love - writing fiction. After publishing several short stores for kids, I wrote and published my first novel, POD (namelos.com | Penguin/Ace), a YA scifi survival story set in Prosser, Washington and Los Angeles, California.
My second novel, BAD CALL (2017 with Disney/Hyperion) is a YA s ...more
My second novel, BAD CALL (2017 with Disney/Hyperion) is a YA s ...more
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