Ghost Road Blues

Summertime for me means diving into some fun reads. It's when I put away the "scholarly stuff" and tear through a bone chilling horror or a smutty romance or a fluffy feel-good drama. I figured I'd write a little bit about my current read because it's by a local author, and I feel like giving props.

To those of you who don't know, I went through a HUGE Stephen King phase in middle school. I have read something like 15 Stephen King books and have another 5 or 6 on my bookshelves I never got to. I'm mentioning this because the book I'm in the middle of reminds me a lot of old Stephen King... like Pet Sematary and the Shining days. It has that slowly building climax that will have you jumping at shadows and features just the right amount of weird without taking it too far (think Hearts in Atlantis).

The book is called "Ghost Road Blues", by Jonathan Maberry. It's set in the fictional town of Pine Deep, PA, a town whose economy comprises of farming activities, tourism, and Halloween. Weird events begin to transpire one harvest, reminiscent of the events of the Black Harvest that took place 30 years prior. Pine Deep begins to record a body count, and all sorts of monsters begin to fester and take form - some from outside, some that were resting in the citizens of the town. A book that progresses slowly through the first half, by the time you pass the midway point, you won't want to put it down until you've devoured every chilling moment.

Okay, so I'm no professional book critic... any maybe I'm hyping it up a little... ;-)

But really, this book is pretty good and you can pick it up cheap at various places. So if you're like me, and beach weather means indulging in some less-than-academic reading, I recommend picking it up. And if you do, let me know what you think.

(I also started the Sookie Stackhouse series this summer, and read The Labyrinth by Kate Mosse - both of which I recommend)