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Revolt of the Rats: A Dark Fantasy Novel
Amongst factory rats, the ultimate form of loyalty is rebellion.
Kahle Desireau has seen auras since childhood. In 1998, newly returned from the Bosnian War, he follows Beezor Wasikowa’s blazing white halo to Motomax, a dying factory in Frampton, Ohio. Anything to evade the darkness.
For her love, he’ll compete with Motomax’s handsome CEO and join a rebellion against Niles Bodge, their plant manager. But Beezor Wasikowska is more than what he bargained for.
WWI veteran Eli Steiner can dream the future. In 1932, the Great Depression capsizes the farm he owns with his wife and son. Destitute. Bedridden. Without a crop loan, he’ll lose his ranch. Visions portend of twisted days.
Awash in failed loans, bank officer Carter Creel won’t chance another. Not even for Eli Steiner.
“The past is never dead. It's not even past.” William Faulkner
Book one in a series of occult supernatural and dark fantasy.
Come inside.
Interview with the Author
Q: Why should anyone read this?
A: It's a great story that's marinated in my head for over twenty years. I've attempted to let the characters develop in a way that's interesting while still moving the plot along. The story takes place primarily in a factory and a farm, but it's really about families: the ones you were born into and the ones you create and how we fight to preserve them.
Q: Why write a book as novellas?
A: Fear. Fifty pages in, I doubted I would ever finish. Maybe if enough readers asked for the next book, I'd be forced to finish it. Or if it wasn’t any good, I wouldn’t have invested too much time to find out. I'd seen others do it and thought it was perfect.
Readers love quality. The novella format reinforced that. Paraphrasing Joe Hill, every sentence had to fight for existence. So I edited over and over. My mother is really my first reader. There's not a lot she misses. She said that several passages were boring, so I spent seven months doing a rewrite. It produced a much better product.
Q: What have you done that you hope readers will enjoy?
A: My early readers placed a premium on the language. The feedback was the books they read over and over were stories where the journey of reading was more pleasurable than the destination. I’ve read most of Stephen King’s novels, especially the early stuff. I read, “All The Light We Cannot See” by Anthony Doerr probably four or five times, back to back. The same with "NOS4A2" by Joe Hill and "Wizard and Glass" by Stephen King. The plot twists were only a surprise the first time. Experiencing the language was something I did over and over again. What hooked me as a reader was the magic trick of how he created the effect right under my nose. I thought maybe I could do something like that for someone else.
Q: Where did you get the idea for the series?
A: Well I'm an Army veteran and when I got out, it seemed like we were everywhere, this diaspora of ex-military members, an invisible society within society. What if it really was a secret society? And then, what if those same people were summarily discarded? The historical parallel would be the ronin, masterless samurai during the Japanese feudal period, who lost their lord but retained the bushido code of honor. The Tom Cruise movie, "The Last Samurai." had already done the heavy lifting of explaining the idea for me. Reading Tim Powers' dynamic novel of magical realism, "Three Days to Never" highlighted the possibility of creating an American secret history, based on this new information. Stephen King's dark fantasy novels had created a precedent of character development and world building in the horror and occult genres. Why not give it a try?
Kindle Edition
Published February 1, 2020
29 people are currently reading
90 people want to read
About the author
Reed Blitzerman
28 books5 followersReed is a married army veteran with three kids, two dogs, and two cats. He suspects the cats of planning a coup.
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Displaying 1 - 17 of 17 reviews
June 8, 2020
The moment the author releases the book into the world it's up to every reader to take its meaning and make it his/her own. There's no other way of reading a book!
I may be wrong, most times than I can count, but my meaning is my own.
You pick up the book. You read the title. It seems intriguing. You start reading, going through the pages. You settle for the one character, the only one who resonates with you. You start following around. You see what he sees, you hear what he hears, you think what he thinks. You get so wrapped up in the story, it’s a challenge, at times, to break away. You sit there, quietly and read on, wishing, hoping it turns out the way you wish.
Yet, it’s difficult to settle for only one.
You enter their lives, not as a witness, but as an actor, taking part in their destiny. The characters seem so far away, yet, so near.
Now you’re a little boy, afraid of knowing the truth, yet, craving it more than breathing. You’re the lover who seeks to define his life near his love. You’re fighting prejudice and despair. You’re too young to go through life’s hardships, but you’re too grateful for having grown before your time.
They become part of your world, and it’s too late to back down now. You have to see what happens. You cannot wait another day. You are too deep to back down now. You want to tell them what to feel, what to do, but you can’t. You get to sit there, wondering, hoping, wishing. The end seems to near, yet, so far away.
“Revolt of the Rats” cannot be only about its characters, sitting there, waiting for you to turn the page and unfold their lives. It’s about your feelings, your thoughts, your hopes and your desires. It’s about:
“There, but for the grace of God, go I!”
I may be wrong, most times than I can count, but my meaning is my own.
You pick up the book. You read the title. It seems intriguing. You start reading, going through the pages. You settle for the one character, the only one who resonates with you. You start following around. You see what he sees, you hear what he hears, you think what he thinks. You get so wrapped up in the story, it’s a challenge, at times, to break away. You sit there, quietly and read on, wishing, hoping it turns out the way you wish.
Yet, it’s difficult to settle for only one.
You enter their lives, not as a witness, but as an actor, taking part in their destiny. The characters seem so far away, yet, so near.
Now you’re a little boy, afraid of knowing the truth, yet, craving it more than breathing. You’re the lover who seeks to define his life near his love. You’re fighting prejudice and despair. You’re too young to go through life’s hardships, but you’re too grateful for having grown before your time.
They become part of your world, and it’s too late to back down now. You have to see what happens. You cannot wait another day. You are too deep to back down now. You want to tell them what to feel, what to do, but you can’t. You get to sit there, wondering, hoping, wishing. The end seems to near, yet, so far away.
“Revolt of the Rats” cannot be only about its characters, sitting there, waiting for you to turn the page and unfold their lives. It’s about your feelings, your thoughts, your hopes and your desires. It’s about:
“There, but for the grace of God, go I!”
August 10, 2020
First, I have to mention that I received a free copy of this book through “Voracious Readers Only”.
I really enjoyed reading this book.😃😆
The time jumping does get a bit getting used to; once I got into the rhythm of the book, I found it (time-jumps) okay and followed the storyline more easily.
There’s a bonus surprise at the end of book 1 .... a preview of the 2nd book.
I’m looking forward to reading the other books in this series. 😀
I really enjoyed reading this book.😃😆
The time jumping does get a bit getting used to; once I got into the rhythm of the book, I found it (time-jumps) okay and followed the storyline more easily.
There’s a bonus surprise at the end of book 1 .... a preview of the 2nd book.
I’m looking forward to reading the other books in this series. 😀
July 31, 2020
I read this in one sitting, I couldn't put it down. I thoroughly enjoyed every minute of it.
Very well written with two great story lines. I look forward to reading the other books in the series.
(I received a complimentary copy of this book from the author through Voracious Readers Only and that had no affect on my review
Very well written with two great story lines. I look forward to reading the other books in the series.
(I received a complimentary copy of this book from the author through Voracious Readers Only and that had no affect on my review
September 2, 2020
I received this book through Voracious Readers. I read it in one sitting. It was easy to get pulled in to the story and the characters. All trying to survive in their own worlds. The end left me wanting more which will be delivered in the form of Book 2, of which I was able to read a preview. It promises to not disappoint. I can't wait.
July 31, 2020
(I received a free copy of this book through Voracious Readers Only
November 3, 2020
The plot was captivating. The character were well-developed and you really get to see their struggles. The details were described perfectly and it was enjoyable to read.
August 5, 2020
Content warnings for themes explored within the book (not discussed in this review): Suicide, illness (physical and mental), strong language
Note: This book was sent to me by the author via Voracious Readers Only.
First, a confession. When I picked this book up, the only thing I saw was the front cover. The rat with a briefcase. The black and red cover. The title crying out "Revolt of the Rats". Perfect I thought. A book about rats and work sounds like my sort of thing.
Well about that, yes it is about rats and work but....not the sort of rats on the cover. It's a metaphor.
Regardless, I continued to read and got transported to a world where factory rats work hard in factories for little satisfaction and war is on the horizon. Just not in the same timelines.
Book one of a four-part dark fantasy series, Revolt of the Rats is very much the start and set up book for the rest of the series. We are introduced to the cast of characters across which I suspect will feature heavily in the rest of the series. Lines are drawn, actions are placed in motion and we are catapulted between dual timelines, pre World War II and the late 90s...
Pre World War II takes us to the Steiner family, a struggling household with a farm going under and troubles abound.
The late 90s takes us to Kahle's world, a man stuck in a factory and obsessed with chasing the love and affection of a woman who seemingly does not share the same opinion of him...
As this is a plot-driven book and I can not go into detail without spoilers, I will summarise my thoughts on the book in general below:
There's something about Reed Blitzerman's writing style which I just like. The way the story feels cinematic, the descriptions of various scenes. It's not overly detailed but that suits the fast-paced nature of the story.
Although the plot was little confusing at first, I eventually did get to grip. I found the different threads intriguing and overall liked how the narrative proceeded; it never stayed on one plot thread or section too long so it never felt like any particular section dragged on. I also liked how different chapters within the same timeline would at times focus on different characters. This gave a more well-rounded view of what was happening and allows us as readers to get thoughts and feelings from most involved, not just a select couple as with some books.
I did however have issues with the book, which led to my overall rating.
At first, the time jumps did confuse me. I found it hard to keep up with the various storylines and ended up resorting to writing things down. But once I reread the beginning and made notes, the timelines did make sense. It isn't clear at this point how one of the storylines relates to the rest, but I suspect this will be addressed in future books. That and I do have my theories on how it does fit into the overall narrative.
As this feels more like a plot-driven story, it makes some sense that the characters are more shallow. However, I would have loved to have known a bit more about all of the characters. I felt it was hard to connect with any of them as I didn't get to know them. The plot I got. Some of the characters...not so much.
Also, is this dark fantasy? I'm not so sure. Whilst it does have whimsical elements in it, this is back seat to the realism in the story, to the point of currently, this seems more like magical realism than fantasy. Maybe this will change in later books and this will be a point I will revisit.
Overall, I will admit, I am intrigued enough to continue with the series at some point. Is this the sort of book I usually would pick up? No. But do I regret reading it? Also no.
Note: This book was sent to me by the author via Voracious Readers Only.
First, a confession. When I picked this book up, the only thing I saw was the front cover. The rat with a briefcase. The black and red cover. The title crying out "Revolt of the Rats". Perfect I thought. A book about rats and work sounds like my sort of thing.
Well about that, yes it is about rats and work but....not the sort of rats on the cover. It's a metaphor.
Regardless, I continued to read and got transported to a world where factory rats work hard in factories for little satisfaction and war is on the horizon. Just not in the same timelines.
Book one of a four-part dark fantasy series, Revolt of the Rats is very much the start and set up book for the rest of the series. We are introduced to the cast of characters across which I suspect will feature heavily in the rest of the series. Lines are drawn, actions are placed in motion and we are catapulted between dual timelines, pre World War II and the late 90s...
Pre World War II takes us to the Steiner family, a struggling household with a farm going under and troubles abound.
The late 90s takes us to Kahle's world, a man stuck in a factory and obsessed with chasing the love and affection of a woman who seemingly does not share the same opinion of him...
As this is a plot-driven book and I can not go into detail without spoilers, I will summarise my thoughts on the book in general below:
There's something about Reed Blitzerman's writing style which I just like. The way the story feels cinematic, the descriptions of various scenes. It's not overly detailed but that suits the fast-paced nature of the story.
Although the plot was little confusing at first, I eventually did get to grip. I found the different threads intriguing and overall liked how the narrative proceeded; it never stayed on one plot thread or section too long so it never felt like any particular section dragged on. I also liked how different chapters within the same timeline would at times focus on different characters. This gave a more well-rounded view of what was happening and allows us as readers to get thoughts and feelings from most involved, not just a select couple as with some books.
I did however have issues with the book, which led to my overall rating.
At first, the time jumps did confuse me. I found it hard to keep up with the various storylines and ended up resorting to writing things down. But once I reread the beginning and made notes, the timelines did make sense. It isn't clear at this point how one of the storylines relates to the rest, but I suspect this will be addressed in future books. That and I do have my theories on how it does fit into the overall narrative.
As this feels more like a plot-driven story, it makes some sense that the characters are more shallow. However, I would have loved to have known a bit more about all of the characters. I felt it was hard to connect with any of them as I didn't get to know them. The plot I got. Some of the characters...not so much.
Also, is this dark fantasy? I'm not so sure. Whilst it does have whimsical elements in it, this is back seat to the realism in the story, to the point of currently, this seems more like magical realism than fantasy. Maybe this will change in later books and this will be a point I will revisit.
Overall, I will admit, I am intrigued enough to continue with the series at some point. Is this the sort of book I usually would pick up? No. But do I regret reading it? Also no.
August 14, 2020
When I took this book to read and saw the cover photo first thing I thought was that this book is all about rats and their revolt about something.
Well I was wrong. Yes it talks about rats but not the kind of rats that is on the cover. The author has used a metaphor here. It talks about factory rats who work for hard in factories with little to no satisfaction and also about war in the horizon, not in the same timelines.
This is the first part of the four-part dark fantasy series, so this book is just the setup or like an trailer for the rest of the series. We are introduced to so many characters and introductions but not all of them have part in this book. I suppose we get to read more of them in the upcoming series. This book takes us to two different timelines, pre World War II and the late 90's.
The pre- world war is about Steiner family whose main work is on the farm and how troubles bound them.
Late 90's talks about Kahle's world, who can sense the aura of danger and death from childhood and after service in Bosnia leaves the Army and takes up a job in a factory just to be near the woman he's obsessed with and want to gain her love and affection who doesn't exactly share his feelings.
I liked the narration and description of characters which was not too dragged but I thought characters were a little shallow. Although the plot was little confusing at first few pages I did understand the story later on. As I said earlier this is just the first part of the series, the author has introduced so many characters but not much information about them and I found it little difficult to connect with them.
The timelines does confuse the readers and you can't really keep up with various stories that's going on. There is no connection between different storylines but I guess we will get know about it in the upcoming series.
Overall a good read.
Disclaimer : I received a free copy of this book in exchange for an honest review. So the above is my honest opinion of what I felt while reading the book and I am doing it voluntarily.
Well I was wrong. Yes it talks about rats but not the kind of rats that is on the cover. The author has used a metaphor here. It talks about factory rats who work for hard in factories with little to no satisfaction and also about war in the horizon, not in the same timelines.
This is the first part of the four-part dark fantasy series, so this book is just the setup or like an trailer for the rest of the series. We are introduced to so many characters and introductions but not all of them have part in this book. I suppose we get to read more of them in the upcoming series. This book takes us to two different timelines, pre World War II and the late 90's.
The pre- world war is about Steiner family whose main work is on the farm and how troubles bound them.
Late 90's talks about Kahle's world, who can sense the aura of danger and death from childhood and after service in Bosnia leaves the Army and takes up a job in a factory just to be near the woman he's obsessed with and want to gain her love and affection who doesn't exactly share his feelings.
I liked the narration and description of characters which was not too dragged but I thought characters were a little shallow. Although the plot was little confusing at first few pages I did understand the story later on. As I said earlier this is just the first part of the series, the author has introduced so many characters but not much information about them and I found it little difficult to connect with them.
The timelines does confuse the readers and you can't really keep up with various stories that's going on. There is no connection between different storylines but I guess we will get know about it in the upcoming series.
Overall a good read.
Disclaimer : I received a free copy of this book in exchange for an honest review. So the above is my honest opinion of what I felt while reading the book and I am doing it voluntarily.
April 22, 2023
(I received a free copy of this via Voracious Readers Only in exchange for an honest review)
From reading the books description, this wasn't what I thought it was going to be at all. To put it bluntly, I found it rather boring. Majority of the time, I didn't understand what was happening and the jumps forwards and backwards in time got a bit confusing when trying to follow the 'story' and keeping track of the characters that all seemed to blend together. Some of the characters have interesting elements in regards to the dreams and the auras, but these aspects seem to have no benefit for the story anyway because of how little they're included. It's just a lot of business talk, and I don't see how it fits into the dark fantasy genre at all.
I'm going to give it the benefit of the doubt and read the second book (which I also recieved for free) in hopes that the story picks up, but I currently don't have high hopes.
From reading the books description, this wasn't what I thought it was going to be at all. To put it bluntly, I found it rather boring. Majority of the time, I didn't understand what was happening and the jumps forwards and backwards in time got a bit confusing when trying to follow the 'story' and keeping track of the characters that all seemed to blend together. Some of the characters have interesting elements in regards to the dreams and the auras, but these aspects seem to have no benefit for the story anyway because of how little they're included. It's just a lot of business talk, and I don't see how it fits into the dark fantasy genre at all.
I'm going to give it the benefit of the doubt and read the second book (which I also recieved for free) in hopes that the story picks up, but I currently don't have high hopes.
January 6, 2021
*Note: I received a free copy from the author through Voracious Readers in exchange for an honest review*
I found this book really confusing and hard to follow. There are several timelines and the story is told from several viewpoints, but it's not always made clear when the timeline and viewpoint is changing. I found I could barely remember what was happening when I came back to each timeline. The only reason I finished the book is because it's short.
I found this book really confusing and hard to follow. There are several timelines and the story is told from several viewpoints, but it's not always made clear when the timeline and viewpoint is changing. I found I could barely remember what was happening when I came back to each timeline. The only reason I finished the book is because it's short.
February 26, 2023
It was an ok enough read but I couldn't fully get into it. It didn't seem all that apparent how the timelines were connected but I thought that would become clearer as it went on, I guess it was setting up for a future installment though. It ended quite unresolved and I think to hook someone into reading more of the series, there needed to be more in this book than just the set up (if that's how it was intended).
May 4, 2021
Judging by the title you’d think this book is about rodents - it’s about troubling relationships in different plot lines. I wanted to like this “dark” novel, but besides many grammatical errors (especially skipped/missing words) it never really clicked for me. Separate story lines didn’t seem connected for me...but in concept it was unique.
November 15, 2021
The title can be misleading
This book was misleading and title it is not about rats as in four-legged creatures this is about two individuals decades apart who go through trials tribulations with some aspects unknown auras. Because this is part one I do not want to treat it as an individual story it is best to be treated as a series.
This book was misleading and title it is not about rats as in four-legged creatures this is about two individuals decades apart who go through trials tribulations with some aspects unknown auras. Because this is part one I do not want to treat it as an individual story it is best to be treated as a series.
January 18, 2021
I was given a copy of this book for an impartial review. I didn't understand most of it. There were several inconsistencies and poor editing. I wanted to like it so much. There was potential just poorly executed. Get a better editor and I'll read your next 9ne.
February 13, 2022
While the writing was good, even beautifully dark at times, I did not finish this novel. I read 50% before I tapped out. I just didn't feel interested in the characters and generally wasn't sure what was going on. The plot didn't have a clear direction.
January 13, 2017
Kahle Desireau and Eli Steiner, two military veterans separated by seventy years and several wars; one acting out of love and the other out of desperation; are men whose lives are heading for a fateful intersection.
Kahle has the ability to see the auras of the dead and dying, and after service in Bosnia leaves the army and takes a dead end factory job to be near the woman he’s obsessed with. Eli, a veteran of World War I, has spent his life after the military helping others, but his family farm is threatened by the Great Depression.
What both men have in common is the will to survive.
Revolt of the Rats by Reed Bitzerman swings back and forth between the two as they struggle to cope with the mind-numbing effect of being part of the legion of ‘factory rats,’ workers consigned to jobs they hate with little future to look forward to.
The story is a bit confusing as it doesn’t make clear the eras the men exist in until very late, and some parts have been poorly edited, with uneven spacing of lines that are disturbing. The ending is also unresolved, leaving the reader to wonder what happens with Kahle and the love of his life.
I give this one three stars. It’s an ambitious effort; showing the individual against the system; but it could use better editing.
Kahle has the ability to see the auras of the dead and dying, and after service in Bosnia leaves the army and takes a dead end factory job to be near the woman he’s obsessed with. Eli, a veteran of World War I, has spent his life after the military helping others, but his family farm is threatened by the Great Depression.
What both men have in common is the will to survive.
Revolt of the Rats by Reed Bitzerman swings back and forth between the two as they struggle to cope with the mind-numbing effect of being part of the legion of ‘factory rats,’ workers consigned to jobs they hate with little future to look forward to.
The story is a bit confusing as it doesn’t make clear the eras the men exist in until very late, and some parts have been poorly edited, with uneven spacing of lines that are disturbing. The ending is also unresolved, leaving the reader to wonder what happens with Kahle and the love of his life.
I give this one three stars. It’s an ambitious effort; showing the individual against the system; but it could use better editing.
dnf
August 14, 2018And I just DNFed this book on page 36.
Started reading it last night and found it interesting if really confusing and with flat and uninteresting characters. When I tried reading a chapter today, I didn't remember anything about the earlier story, which is a bad sign, and I gave it up.
Started reading it last night and found it interesting if really confusing and with flat and uninteresting characters. When I tried reading a chapter today, I didn't remember anything about the earlier story, which is a bad sign, and I gave it up.
Displaying 1 - 17 of 17 reviews