Gothghul Hollow by Anna Stephens. Another entry into Warhammer horror, that is equal parts horror and mystery. Featuring the return of a fan favourite that I did not see coming.

 

Gothgul Hollow by Anna Stephens. A review.

    This was my first time reading anything by Anna Stephens, and I was glad I gave this entry into Warhammer horror a chance. This new sub-genre within the Black Library is rapidly proving to be my favourite, though I'm somewhat biased as Horror has always been a favourite for me. Having read a number of them now, I had a level of expectation, an idea of what to expect from future entries. Though there is a familiar formula to this book, the story proved exceptionally well written with a surprising twist towards the end. I am looking forward to what Anna Stephens will write next after this one. Hopefully, they will keep her on these characters and further the narrative. I am definitely interested in seeing what other stories the Games Workshop crew has in store.

    This story is a horror of multiple themes. We have a monster story, a haunting, a curse of sorts, and a mystery. It centers around four main protagonists and is set in the realm of Shyish during the Age of Sigmar. There is a fifth character that plays an important role, but I don't want to give too much away. The main gist of this story focuses on the history of the Gothgul family. Father and daughter stand at the heart of it all, their relationship strained by time and loss. The Hollow is under attack by some strange bloodthirsty creature, a curse upon the town and its people. As the ruling nobles, they seek to protect those within their ancestral lands though they have had little success. As the story begins, we find the creature stalking a wayward townsperson foolishly outside when the howls signal its approach. Things do not go well for him, his life ends painfully, but we are introduced to the first of our protagonists through the opening. Runar has been hired to hunt this beast down, he has brought his people with him, and they have, so far, done little more than find the bodies. The body is taken to the castle, to the awaiting Gothguls. There, along with Tiberius Grim Aaric's best friend, and Edrea's uncle, they begin the study of the corpse. A corpse that is found to be drained of blood, like all the others. Something that should be impossible, given the freshly slain nature of the corpse. There is a supernatural nature to this creature, when fired upon and injured, it seems to be unaffected by the damage inflicted upon it. Edrea theories that it is feeding on each kill, that the blood is giving it strength. This theory proves to be partly correct, but there is more to the creature than any of them have realized.

    All that is happening in this tale is related to events in the past. Events that Edrea is unaware of but are tied to her. There is much that Aaric has not told her about her mother, Hephzibah. Edrea is adamant that her father is lying to her about something, something about her mother. Before we discover what that is, Runar has taken to hunting the creature down. It is a hunt that goes badly for Runar and his companions. Some discoveries are made through his interaction with the entity.  Those discoveries come at the cost of those Runar holds dear, however. It almost costs the hunter his life also. The timely arrival of Edrea and her father saves Runar from meeting his demise and reveals more of the entity's nature. The next part of the story plays out in the castle, Runar waking to a strange vision that leads to a blood binding coming to each of the four protagonists. After this occurs, the story of the events leading to Hephzibah's death is revealed, along with some family secrets. 

    After discovering what happened to her family before her birth, Edrea is more determined to bring this event to a close. The events spiral into a conclusion of desperate battle as they enact a final gambit. Stephens does a great job of taking this in a direction I did not see coming, revealing a character I had not read in years. This reintroduction is startling, a message brought with them that tells of far greater danger to come. This is a much-changed version to the one I knew, and there is enough revealed to make me each for the next outing. With this being a horror/mystery tale, I have done my best not to spoil anything, hopefully, the above covers enough to pique your interest. 

    This is an easy 8 out of 10 stars. It is a well-written book with great action sequences and amazingly fleshed-out characters. I would recommend this book to any fan of horror novels, mystery novels, and the Age of Sigmar books. Give it a look if you're looking for anything new and are interested in one of the best stories from Warhammer Horror novels.

The House of Night and Chain by David Annandale, a review. A great Haunted House novel in the Warhammer 40k universe, takes some of the great tropes and twists them to their own brand of horror.

 

The House of Night and Chain by David Annandale. A review.

    
    After reading several Warhammer Horror novels, I have come to expect solid writing from each of their authors. David Annandale does not fail to meet that expectation. This book proved to be better than I had expected, using the familiar tropes of Haunted House stories and yet managing to incorporate them to fit into the Warhammer universe setting. I was so impressed that I immediately dived into another of his works, The Deacon of Wounds, which I am part way through. Being familiar with the Warhammer 40k universe and horror in general I went into the story with certain expectations. The story took turns that I did not see coming and followed a narrative that ensured you are never sure how it will play out. 

    A great Haunted House story works well as a mystery. You are drawn into the mystery of the house along with the protagonist, spiralling down with them and unable to pull yourself away. This book does that brilliantly, at least in my opinion. I couldn't put the book down, and considering I read it whilst off sick with the flu, that is quite an impressive feat. The story follows Colonel Maeson Strock as he returns to the planet Solus and takes his position as Planetary Governor. This is a man that has been broken by events of war and personal loss, he is holding himself together, but it is a tentative hold. He has been given the duty of seeking out corruption within the council, informed that the tithes from the planet have fallen below what they should be. Upon returning to Solus, and the city of Valgaast, Maeson is to take up residence in the ancestral mansion of Malveil. It is Malveil that his uncle ruled from, and Malveil where his wife resided once she took up a council seat in his stead. The place where she died whilst he continued to serve off-world. Maeson is a man wracked with guilt, both for the death of his troops and the part, he believes, he played in his wife's suicide. In many ways, he is a man on the edge, but he holds tightly to his duty, firm in his belief that he can root out this corruption. He is also attempting to reunite with his estranged children, children he hasn't seen in close to thirty years. This inner turmoil and his desire to reconnect to his family make him a compelling character, though it makes him open to the manipulations of the dark forces of Malveil.

    From the outset, the mansion begins to work on him. It attacks his certainty in his reality, showing him things that threaten to disassociate him from the present and those around him. It begins subtly at first, infiltrating his dreams as the horrors of the war work on him, digging deeper into his psyche over time. It is difficult to tell what is real and what is imagined. Maeson's ability to tell the two apart falters over time as the essence of the mansion works on his fractured mind. He often believes that his children are in the mansion seeking his protection, seeing them as young children rather than the adults they have become. Over time, Maeson sees his dead wife, following her throughout the house. She leads him to her journal in the Librarium, and he finds himself compelled to read it, convinced she is trying to communicate with him. This belief becomes his dominant thought. So consumed by it that it fractures his hold on reality. 

    Maeson's mission to seek out corruption brings him into direct opposition with the head of the council and the descendent of his family's ancient rivals, Veth Montfor. She is at the root of the corruption. She controls the other council members but is far too insulated for Maeson to make a move directly. He needs to find a way to weaken her position, and he has only a few allies to call upon. One of those is Adrianna Veiss, a friend of old, and without her, he would flounder in his attempts to bring the other council members to heel. The political situation and his duty to bring the tithes back to where they had been during his uncle's tenure, added more pressure to the new Governor. A pressure that pushes at his already fragile mind. It often seems that he is being assaulted from many different angles, and it isn't until further into the story that we discover how they are all interconnected. Nothing in this story is as simple as it first appears.

    This book is simply brilliant. It kept me hooked from the get-go, and the mystery behind the house and the family connected to it was enough to keep me reeled into it throughout.  I highly recommend this book to any fan of horror, and that goes double for those that enjoy Haunted House stories specifically. The slow decay of Maeson's grip on reality is done fantastically, the depth of his madness is only revealed to him in the closing pages. This is a story where no one comes out unscathed, where the House wins, and only a sort of stalemate is reached. It is a dark tale where the light is unable to push back the night for long.

    This book is an easy 9 out of 10 stars. It is a great read and will keep you hooked right until the end. Give this book a go, you won't be disappointed.

Rebel's Creed by Daniel B Greene, a review. The second instalment by the Dishevelled Goblin and a marked improvement on the Novella. Deepening the lore and expanding the world of the Almighty and the Anointed.

 

Rebel's Creed, a review.

    The first outing by Daniel, Breach of Peace, was a novella. It had been his intention for the next to be one also. That changed with the writing of Rebel's Creed. This outing is a novel over 350 pages in length with a deeper story and far more lore than the first book. It is also a direct continuation from where the novella finished, picking up with Khlid in dire straits and in the hands of the Anointed. In this book, we learn more about the Empire and the Anointed herself, more about what the Empire's plans are, and those that stand against them.

    Khlid is bound and trapped, her body experimented upon by her captors. Flooded with the Drip, she is already being changed by it, the first real success beyond what had happened to Chapman before his death at the Anointed's hand. We get a little more as the experiments continue, and the story changes to the new protagonist of this story. Holden is a mess, he believes none of the accusations against his former mentors, and here we see how manipulative the Anointed can be. She uses her position, power, and her obvious charisma to spin a tale that the grief-stricken Holden will hold onto. It is an obvious play, one seen in many novels, but here it is done well enough that Holden is never entirely taken in by her but is invested enough to go along with what he is told. It is an interesting back and to between them, and it gives some insight into both characters at this moment in time. This is just the setup for what is to come, the story taking a turn I did not expect.

    We learn more of what happened to Chapman leading up to the murders and everything that then, subsequently, followed. It was nice to get more backstory to the abrasive Chapman, who in the earlier novella felt like he needed some fleshing out. Here Daniel does that well, showing how Chapman became involved with the rebellion and his true place within its structure. Sure, there are some cliches, but there are some interesting turns, and we see just how much of an arse Chapman can be, whilst also seeing some of his struggles, humanizing him in a way that had not been done previously. In a twist I was not expecting, we see just how undermanned the rebellion is, just how small a force is set up against the mass of this formidable Empire. I would have liked to have spent more time with Chapman, but we get enough here to see how his direct involvement led to everything in the novella and the events occurring in the present story. At least now we understand a little more about the Drip and its study.

    Back to the present day and we see a much-changed Holden. No longer is he part of the Seventh, that precinct has now been left to rot, having been moved to the Eleventh Precinct, where life is proving far from easy. We catch up with him as he is being beaten by several of his fellow officers. Holden had made the mistake of reporting officers from the Fifteenth Precinct to his sergeant, a man he had believed he could trust. Gone is the prospect of him becoming an Inspector. He has been placed in the Eleventh to keep him out of trouble and out of sight. A place where there is little support and no real chance of him making himself a nuisance for those in power. He isn't entirely broken, but he isn't far from that point. Throughout this time, he has held on to his belief in Khlid and Samuel, that they were innocent and all blame lay at Chapman's feet. Though beaten down and increasingly jaded, there remains a fire in Holden, a need to discover the truth of the events at the Seventh. When the chance comes to truly learn what happened to Khlid and the Seventh, Holden will stop at nothing to get those answers. Once he discovers she is alive, he will not stop until he frees her from her captors.

    The book's pace remains quite fast, at no point did I feel like the story was stuck in place or there was too much filler. Holden, and his relationships, felt real and none too forced. Though, I have to note that some of the dialogue didn't quite work for me. I think that issue is down to Daniel's style and could well work for others, it just didn't for me. In the scene between Flip and the Anointed, Avi Cormick, I felt like the interplay was a little off. The chess-playing broke up the scene more than I would have liked, but I could see what Daniel was striving for as he described the scene. I enjoyed the slow evolution of Khlid, the development of her new form, and the power she now possesses. Even those experimenting upon the former Inspector are unsure as to what effect the Drip was truly having. More than anything I enjoyed seeing Avi unleashed. Seeing how dangerous and powerful the Anointed truly is, raised things up a notch for me. Rebel's Creed is a marked improvement on The Breach of Peace, Daniel's writing is becoming stronger, and I hope to see that develop further with his next entry into the series.

    I'd give this book a solid four out of five stars. There is room for improvement, but it is a very solid entry. I can't wait to see what comes next as we sail for the land beyond the Endless Ocean. I'd recommend any fan of the first entry to give this book a look, and for any fan of fantasy to give this book a read.

The Reverie, by Peter Fehervari. A review. A Warhammer Horror Novel that centres on the Angels Resplendent Chapter and the rot at the core of their world.

 

The Reverie, by Peter Fehervari. A review.

    I have read several of the recent Warhammer Horror novels, and I have been mildly impressed so far. It helps that this universe lends itself so well to horror stories, in my opinion. The book features the Angel's Resplendent Chapter, a Space Marines chapter that I had first seen in Requiem Infernal, another novel written by Fehervari. In that novel, something had felt off about this chapter. Their ethos and manners reminded me more of the followers of Slaanesh than loyalist chapters. I have no idea if this was Fehervari's intent, but I read that book waiting for the reveal to come. In this novel, we learn that the chapter is a successor chapter of the Blood Angels, who have found a way to manage the curse in their blood. Nothing comes without a price, though.

    The story begins with a band of survivors hiding from some great horror that has been unleashed upon their town. The story follows the pov of the Ghost boy, an outcast that can feel the presence of the creature in his mind along with the thoughts of those around him. Though he has led them to temporary safety, he is not one of them, and they give him nothing but disdain for his efforts. Events play out and lead them to the temple at the center of the town, where the scene plays out, and we leave just as they push into the interior. This opening plays into the greater overall arc of the story, so it is worth keeping note of the players here. The mystery within the story is one of the highlights of the book, and so I'll do my best not to spoil too much. 

    The next part of the story begins with the Traveller. The man pushes into the wilderness as he attempts to find something, the story flashing back to his past as we learn that he is seeking the Reverie and the Angels Resplendent. This journey has brought him far from his own world, the journey one as much of the spiritual as the physical. Often he flashes back to the events that brought him to this world, striding through a place that presents more danger than he is first aware of. It is in this place that he comes across the massive form of Satori, saved by the Angel Resplendent. Satori has his own reasons for venturing into this dangerous place, but we do not discover that until later in the book. The unusual aspect of this realm is an intriguing device, as we're never entirely sure how much of it is real and how much belongs outside the world of the material. Something of this place follows them both, no matter how far they roam from it.

    We are introduced to more characters as we move from the Reverie, more of the Angels' Resplendent and those that serve with, and under them. I liked the use of the names given to them after they become fully-fledged Astartes, names such as Caravaggio and Borges. It gave them a very distinctive feel, a uniqueness to the chapter, that made them stand out well against the majority of other loyalist chapters. That is not an easy thing to do, given the variety of Space Marine chapters that exist in the 40k universe. The history of this chapter is somewhat murky, and the story alludes to some great change within their hierarchy as they sought to deal with the twin curses of the Red Thirst and the Black Rage. This event left a mark upon the chapter and created the Mirrored Path, but there is more to it than many know. It left a wound that some have sought a way to heal before it can cause damage to the chapter that cannot be undone. With Knight Exemplar Czervantes returning to the world of Malperitus, we get someone that is dealing with his doubts regarding his position of leadership, forced to take that place after the fall of his predecessor. Again there is more here than just the surface level of the story implies, layers that feed into the overall mystery at the heart of this book.

    The story's key elements center around the Reverie, hence the name, and what had been born there. Each of the protagonists plays a role in how the story unfolds and how it will impact the Angel's Resplendent as a whole. I liked the use of corruption, of taking decadence too far and becoming something darker. It all hinted that the very core of the world and those upon it had begun a fall of some kind whilst never being too overt with it. Fehervari kept the pace and tension well throughout the book, never giving too much away. The story's conclusion works well enough that I am hoping to see more by Fehervari in the future, along with the Angel's Resplendent.

    In all, The Reverie is a great book, a solid read that works well right up until the end, and it leaves enough mystery to keep a healthy interest in what may come next. The inclusion of Warhammer Horror means that the Games workshop company continues to branch out in the literary world, and this is a great addition to what has already been released. I am always keeping an eye out for what is to come, and there are several new releases that I am looking forward to reading.

    The Reverie is a great read for fans of horror and Warhammer. I give it a 4 out of 5 stars. I highly recommend it as an introduction to Warhammer Horror and a great representation of Fehervari's work. A great read for Sci-fi and horror fans in general. 

Hogfather by Terry Pratchett, a review. One of the best novels by one of the greatest absurdist authors, ever. A feature with my favourite character in the entirety of Discworld, Death himself.

 

Hogfather by Terry Pratchett, a review.

    I've read Pratchett since my teens, and yet it has taken me until now to read Hogfather. How that happened, I have no idea, but thankfully, I finally got around to enjoying this masterpiece of Pratchett's Discworld. Death has always been one of the best characters in this series of books, in fact, I would say it is probably his best-known character overall. Death's outlook on life, his fixation with humanity, and his literal take on many aspects of living are brilliantly done by Pratchett. He took what should be a terrifying character and made him kind and funny with a unique outlook on what occurs around him. In this book, he is very much one of the centralized characters, and it works so well because of the part he plays in the storyline. 

    Hogfather follows the premise of belief. It focuses on how belief can bring things to life, how the belief of so many can empower something beyond what it began as. The story starts out with the assassin Teatime, pronounced 'Teh-ah-tim-eh,' having been hired to kill someone at the behest of Lord Downey of the Assassin's guild.  Teatime is chosen for this task as this kill should be impossible, but Teatime is known for his 'unique' outlook and ability to achieve that which others could not. Pratchett's level of description of his characters has always amazed me. You don't just get what they look like but a deep look into the core of who, and what, they are. The level of insight is staggering, and I haven't read many authors that can replicate this feat with such ease. Pratchett's easy humor and his ability to use absurdism to highlight reflections of the real world makes him an author that can drag the reader into his world and immerses them in it completely. As the story continues we are introduced to Susan, another of the main protagonists, and the normal life she is trying to live. She lives as a governess, chasing away bogeymen and other nasties that only her young charges can see. Susan is not as normal as she would like, and she has to deal with these nasties rather directly, with a poker most often. We learn far more about Susan as the story unfolds and the cause of her unusual nature, something that directly ties her to all that occurs. It is not a spoiler to say that Death is currently masquerading as the Hogfather on Hogswatch eve, though the why is not revealed until later once Susan is thoroughly involved. It is fair to say that the visual is quite amusing, considering the natural slender build of the grim reaper, that and the general lack of flesh. He is going about the business of the Hogfather, giving out presents to children, though his lack of understanding of the particulars of the holiday is amusing. His trusty helper Albert does his best to keep Death steered in the right direction, but the Grim Reaper often does things he probably shouldn't. This leads to several amusing incidents, one that leads to a rather unique use of boots and shooing of a King attempting some late-night Hogswatch charity. As this is all playing out, Teatime has hired some help and is working on completing the contract given to him by Lord Downey. The reader is left somewhat confused about his thinking, but the Assassin has gathered himself a motley crew, and he has a plan. Teatime is a singular character, deadly, focused, and quite possibly insane. If anyone can take out the Fat Man, it is him. As Death's escapades continue and Susan is dragged further into this mystery, events taking stranger and stranger turns. My personal favorite thing in this book is the inclusion of the 'oh god' of Hangovers. He, who suffers the hangovers of the god of Wine. 

    The book is filled with many of the familiar characters that make up Discworld. The Archchancellor and many of the wizards of the Unseen University feature prominently, along with one or two others that fans of Pratchett will recognize. The Unseen University has a special place in my heart, Rincewind was my introduction into this world, and it featured heavily in the first books I dived into. Not to mention that I spent time there in the Discworld PC game, way back in the nineties. I enjoyed how Susan does her best to hold on to her 'normal' life, and yet she delves back further into the other part of her life, that part that she has inherited, in a fashion. Anyone that has read much of Pratchett's work will find it easy to follow his tangents and strange twists. The way the tale, seemingly, wanders, to me, always added so much more to the narrative. It is only as the book moves on, that you realize how each part plays into the overall story, how each part is important, and nothing is without import, no matter how small and inconsequential it may seem. That is the magic of Pratchett's writing, nothing is wasted, nothing is there for the sake of being there. It has always seemed, to me, that even his side characters are full of life. That they possess a degree of agency that some main characters lack in other works of fiction.

    As the story continues, Susan delves deeper into the mystery, eventually solving it. It turns out that things aren't quite as simple as it appears, though dealing with Teatime is not a simple task in itself, and she is forced to deal with the architects of this entire debacle. She does have a little help from her Grandfather, the Death of Rats, and a very talkative Raven throughout. The book does come to a satisfactory conclusion, in my opinion. It is a thorough look at belief and the power it has for good and for ill. Pratchett does a wonderful job of using aspects of comedy to show the absurdity of much of the elements of his work, and so many things ring true of what is said here within this brilliantly written book.

    Hogfather is a brilliant representation of Terry Pratchett's work in general. The man was a genius, and I think it will be many years before we see an author who does this kind of fiction so well. I highly recommend that any fan of fantasy gives this book a read. I would recommend any book by Pratchett, but this is a highlight of his library of work. Pratchett's use of comedy in this book is second-to-none, and his characters come to life on every page.

    This is an easy 5 out of 5. Rarely do I enjoy a book so much, and I find myself eager to delve back into Discworld at the first opportunity. Let me know what you think of this book, and any work of Pratchett's that you would recommend.

    

    

Stephen King's Storm of the Century. A film that looks at what price will we pay for safety, and an evil that has walked the world for centuries.

 

A review of the mini-series Storm of the Century, a screenplay written by Stephen King.

    I watched this mini-series for the first time just after leaving school. Being from Wales means I was nearing my eighteenth year and enjoying college. It is safe to say it left an impression. I've rewatched it several times since then, and it remains one of those films I can just put on and never get bored of. It is not a light watch, and there are things that you will miss in the first viewing. Like most of King's work, it follows everyday folk dealing with the unexplained and forces beyond their understanding. Unlike a lot of his work, this was not a book at any point. To my surprise, King wrote this screenplay purely for television, and it took me a while to discover that fact. The events unfold on the island of Little Tall off the coast of Maine, an entirely fictional place, by the way. Like many of King's works, it seems that he likes Maine as the setting for his story, and it is one that I am used to reading about over the course of his career. As the title implies, a storm is moving in on the island, and the people there will have far more to endure than just nature's wrath.

    The film opens up with a monologue from our main protagonist, Michael Anderson, a snow-covered town on the screen, as he speaks. He relays to us his philosophy on life and the cost of the events on the island without giving too much detail. The speaker is an older, wiser version of the man we are about to meet, the townsfolk going about their business as the threat of the storm looms closer. But before we can meet our protagonist, our antagonist is introduced. A man by the name of Andre Linoge. His first act is to strike down an old woman as she answers the door to him. This will not be the last death at his hands, though it is the most direct. Making himself comfortable in her house, he waits for others to find him, and we are left to wonder at this cold killing. As Linoge, Colm Feore is chilling, his every word is spoken with a ruthless mockery, and his knowledge of the townsfolk is unsettling. His counterpart is Mike Anderson, played by Tim Daly, and we meet him in the town market as the townsfolk prepare for the storm, buying what groceries they think they'll need. Daly is good at portraying a good, decent man that is caught up in something beyond his comprehension. Daly does a good job at holding his own in light of Feore's performance though the other always remains the center of attention when onscreen. 

    Mike is brought home to deal with a minor dilemma, even as Linoge is discovered, sat comfortably in Martha Clarendon's armchair. Young Davie Hopewell will be sent running from the house, terrified by the seated Linoge. Davie flees to the center of town, running into Robbie Beals, the town manager, as he rushes out to calm the panicked youth. Davie relays his story causing Robbie to go and investigate on his own. As Mike continues to get the town ready for the incoming storm, Robbie wanders into the house where Linoge sits in wait. Here we get a taste of the strange power of Linoge, the stranger telling Robbie of his mother's passing and where he was during it, speaking of things he should not know. Finally, he tells Robbie that his mother waits for him in hell, that she's turned cannibal, and Beals flees the house. Calling for Anderson, Mike being the town constable, Robbie pulls in others to this strange encounter. Throughout it all, Linoge sits in place, waiting for them to arrive, the storm continuing to move in around them, snow falling heavily down as they gather. Arriving at the house, Mike finds Robbie holding his pistol and looking towards the house, a thick blanket of snow covering the ground as they prepare to move in and deal with this threat. Leaving a shaken Beals behind them, Mike and Hatch enter the house and find the body of its deceased owner. They find Linoge in the chair, though neither spots him at first, and he remains calmly seated as they move in. Throughout this encounter, Linoge seems unafraid, though guns are pointed at him. He is calm, his tone lightly mocking, and he acts as if everything is playing out the way it is meant to. There is an air to this man that makes Hatch and Mike deeply uncomfortable, yet he comes with them willingly, putting on the handcuffs and being led out into the storm. As they leave the house, Mike asks the stranger his name, and Linoge answers him, saying little else before they move through the falling snow to their truck. From this moment onwards, things will only get worse for the people of Little Tall.

    From this moment on I'll give a brief overview of the film, as giving too much information away would possibly ruin a potential viewing by any of you would-be readers of this blog. As Linoge is taken to the town jail, the storm grows worse, and Linoge begins to iterate that if they give him what he wants, then he'll go away. This is something that is repeated throughout the mini-series. Frustratingly, he gives little else away as he is moved into the cell after some drama and strangeness within the market. It is here that we get another hint of this man's unnatural nature, that he is far more than just some random stranger that has come to their town. He has a purpose here, though he does not tell Mike what that is. Linoge just smiles and lets Mike place him in the cell. They believe he is safely held there and draw up a shift to watch over him, several of the townsmen joining Mike and Hatch in keeping watch. It is shown that Linoge's influence can reach further than any of them could imagine. All the while, the storm rages around them, the snow falling down in such intensity that it becomes a blizzard. As the night draws on, two of the men commit suicide, Linoge somehow influencing them to commit the acts, each of them writing notes that state, 'if you give me what I want, then I'll go away.' Mike is investigating the house as this occurs, seeing things within the house that shake him. I enjoy the brief flashes of Linoge's mask slipping, the eyes turning red, the fangs, and the way he moves and talks to those around him. You can feel his contempt for the townsfolk as he speaks of their secrets, seeing only the bad in them, the moments where they let their darker selves influence their choices. More deaths occur as Linoge influences a murder and another suicide. Even from his cell, he is killing the townsfolk with ease.  It isn't long before the storm reaches its peak, and Linoge finally shows them what he is. The tension of these two events leaves the townsfolk shaken and afraid, but he is far from done with them.

    The first night leads into dark dreams, the entire town dreaming the same dream, Linoge showing them what may happen if they don't give them what he wants. He tells them of Roanoke, of the word Croatoan, and the history of that place. He threatens that the same thing will happen to the people of Little Tall. All awake, shaken, and it isn't long before more events begin to occur. The day plays out, and as the Lighthouse is about to be swept away, the townsfolk go out into the storm to watch, something that seemed strange to me even in my first viewing. As they watch, several of them vanish, pulled back by some unseen force, before they all flee back to the town hall, panic overtaking them. From this moment, the series moves quicker, the tension building and strange things happening around the children. Soon we discover what Linoge wants, and this is where the series begins to look at how fear shapes our decisions. This is what works best, the threat of death, against another horrible choice that no one would want to make. This premise works so well, as you have a character that sees this as caving into the bully, capitulating to fear, and allowing evil to live on past what it should be able to. Mike stands alone against Linoge as he puts his case forward, revealing what he is to them and making his demand. As good as his arguments are, Mike is fighting against their fear, and there is little chance that he will succeed in making them see beyond that fear. It is easy to see their reasoning, but they seem to lack the foresight of what they are truly doing. Mike seems the only one to see how inherently wrong one decision is. I won't spoil what that choice and decision are, but this is the moral center of the series and a look at what people will do to ensure their safety. I could spout off about the moralistic dilemma, but I would risk ruining the end of the series.

    This is a good mini-series to watch if you like things by Stephen King. It has King's patented layers of tension and mystery, the evil that is otherworldly and far beyond those that it comes against. For me, it is the performances that carry the series they could have easily have become too camp or overdone. Colm Feore is brilliantly chilling throughout. He has an easy menace to him that is made even more disturbing when he smiles. All the actors do a great job, though the accuracy of the Boston accent varies greatly. Give this a watch if you can, and recommend any others of similar vein if you have any suggestions.

    The series is an easy 4.5 out of 5 for me. Available on youtube for those in any region.