Rating: 8.5/10
Synopsis
1979. Somebody has been abducting children in Fairbanks, Alaska. One of the victims was fourteen-year-old Curtis Black’s best friend Todd.
Curtis saw it happen. He knows exactly who did it.
But he can’t prove that it was his neighbor Gerald Martin. The authorities find no evidence of the crime. There’s nothing they can do.
So he’s going to confront Mr. Martin himself.
And this is just the beginning of the terrifying story…
From the author of PRESSURE and MY PRETTIES comes a nerve-wracking coming-of-age thriller.
Review
Thanks to Fireside Horror, the author, and the narrator for a listening copy of Autumn Bleeds Into Winter for review consideration. This did not influence my thoughts or opinions.
Autumn Bleeds Into Winter is a coming-of-age, anxiety-riddled thrill-ride that only Strand could write. He has a penchant for taking something horrific, finding humor in it, and then writing a completely engrossing story about it.
Strand is still a new-ish writer to me as I have only read a few of his works. Having said that, I have always been entertained, had a chuckle where it feels dirty or wrong to do so, and ended up really enjoying the story he put on paper. His prose is pretty straightforward, the stories themselves are typically short, but he has a way of dragging you kicking and screaming into his words that is just uncanny.
Autumn Bleeds Into Winter is no different. Curtis Black is front and center from the very beginning, and the opening chapter completely sells the reader on joining him for his revenge plot. Thing is, like most revenge plots by fourteen-year-olds, there is a ton of bull-headedness, idiocy, and pure negligence that makes you scratch your head quite a few times. But the way Strand develops the story is like none I’ve ever seen, and to tell you why would spoil a majority of the story.
This is a great serial killer/cat and mouse thriller that will put a smile on your face all the same. Just make sure you tie up any loose ends before you go diving head first.
Credit to Joe Hempel for the narration as he is always flawless.
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