What Sleeps Beneath: John Quick
Reviewed By Steve Stred
Big thanks to Pete at Bloodshot books for sending this one my way.
This is my second John Quick book after ‘Consequences‘ and so far both books have delivered.
I didn’t actually read the synopsis for this one! Pete sent a selection to read and review and I’m familiar with John’s name. So it was a no brainer for me to just dive in.
What I liked: I mentioned I didn’t read the synopsis prior, so I was a bit dismayed to realize soon into the book that it was in fact, a vampire novel. I’ve lost my love of vampires, but will always give a book a chance. (Oddly, when I read this, another book I was reading was also a vampire novel!) The story is really well done. Two teens need to grab something from the abandoned asylum on the edge of town to become friends with some cool kids. Something happens and one of the kids makes contact with a vampire discarded in the basement. What I really loved with this book was the relationship between our main character and the vampire. As both grew to trust each other and become friends. Of course, things are not all fun and games and when kids begin to disappear and turn up dead, we get to see Quick ratchet up the action.
Much like the other vamp book I had on the go, this one features a teen love story and once again, I was really drawn to it. Seeing these two connect and be connected with the other going’s on was a high point.
What I didn’t like: Some of this book felt all too familiar. That’s sometimes the problem with vampire books, there’s not a lot of new ground to cover and not a lot of ability to steer to new directions.
Why you should buy it: Quick can write a fantastic story and both of the two books I’ve read from him were coming-of-age gems, so if that’s your bread and butter, by all means – don’t pass this one up. The action is great, the vampire is a very strong character, which was a nice change, seeing him as human versus monster and the ending will have you distraught.
What Sleeps Beneath
All Ryan wanted from life was to be cool enough for the girl of his dreams to notice him. If that meant he had to break into the town’s abandoned asylum and steal a trophy for the school bullies, so be it.
What he didn’t expect was to find a corpse in the basement. An old, withered corpse with a wooden stake in its heart…
A stake he accidentally knocked free…
Prompted to return by a strange dream, he discovers that some legends are real, and finds himself face to face with an actual vampire. It’s a truly mind-blowing experience, and he can’t even share it with his best friend, Hunter. But when Hunter goes missing—the first in a trio of disappearances that rock the small town—Ryan discovers that the cause is even more monstrous than his new “friend.”
Whatever happens next, Ryan knows his life will never be the same again—provided he survives…
WHAT SLEEPS BENEATH
You can buy What Sleeps Beneath from Amazon UK & Amazon US
Steve Stred
Steve Stred writes dark, bleak horror fiction.
Steve is the author of three novels, a number of novellas and four collections.
He is proud to work with the Ladies of Horror Fiction to facilitate the Annual LOHF Writers Grant.
Steve is also a voracious reader, reviewing everything he reads and submitting the majority of his reviews to be featured on Kendall Reviews.
Steve Stred is based in Edmonton, AB, Canada and lives with his wife, his son and their dog OJ.
You can follow Steve on Twitter @stevestred
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