Synopsis:
On the Seventh Webway planet of Exteron, an unprecedented disaster wipes out two-thirds of the terraforming colonists. Two teams are sent to the pre-terrestrial world on behalf of the Galactic Human Alliance, mankind’s centralized governing structure, and FLORA, the terraforming super-conglomerate whose technology allowed mankind to inhabit new worlds. The prospect of future Human dominion over Exteron, a world hellbent on rejecting mankind, rests on this investigatory slew of mercenaries, statesmen, and corporate catspaws.
Review:
Burkhardt is a master at Lovecraftian horror, so when I started Doril Song, I thought I knew what I was getting into. I only had an inkling. This tale, a futuristic science fiction horror, took me by surprise within the first few chapters. I thought I knew where it was going, but Burkhardt killed that notion early on.
Burkhardt creates his science fiction world in my favorite ways: snippets of information, dialogue, and description. He keeps it short and simple, giving only pertinent details without breaking the suspense.
Written in third-person, the horrific accounts are delivered by multiple characters. There are many instances of contact with the planet of Exteron, and each one is brutal and terrifying. Each character has their personal goal as to why they venture to the doomed world—politics, money, duty—and some moments reminded me of slasher films, where you are shouting at the screen for the character not to go investigate that sound in the woods, but of course they do anyway.
Exteron is inhabited by…something. The creatures are not just brutal and violent, they seem to have supernatural abilities that ensure the end of anyone who meets them.
Burkhardt’s descriptions of fatal moments are not just visceral and descriptive. At times, they are nearly poetic. Each demise was unique, and I felt that I was visualizing it in front of me.
Though Doril Song is a short read, Burkhardt offers backstories and banter to familiarize the reader with the characters. He provides reasons to root for the characters and relate to them. In horror, this is always bad, but as a reader who loves horror, I enjoyed the heartbreak. The version I read was the audiobook, narrated beautifully by Farah D. This came along with voice effects to mimic helmet comms and space transmissions. The creatures even had their own eerie vocalizations.
Burkhardt’s writing is always precise and sharp. Doril Song blends an eerie atmosphere with a horror that can never be escaped. This story will leave the mind wondering what horrors abide in deep space and haunt you like a lingering melody.
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