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paperbackstash's review against another edition
4.0
Better than the second, almost as good as the first. This one didn't have LeHorn's Hollow, but takes place in another small town with the same of one of the thirteen entities (Or his revenants in this case). The action starts right away without mystery, and the five villains are beyond wicked in their creepiness. A flock of crows is called a murder....quoted in the book and true in this case. Plenty of death and eerie moments, a supernatural and creative battle, some characters who comes alive in different ways (love the Spiderman bedroom slippers, come on, who wouldn't.) Creepy and atmospheric, Levi grew on me more as a battle-weary soldier of the Lord who dabbles in all sorts of magic and still has a lot of secrets up his sleeve.
gwimo's review against another edition
5.0
I don't think I'm going to grow tired of Brian Keene. In fact, because this is the third book featuring the character Levi Stoltzfus, I'm now on the hunt for the other two -Ghost Walk and Dark Hollow.
Now I've read a few things by Keene, including Dead Sea, Darkness on the Edge of Town and a zombie short story from The New Dead, still I can tell you that the man is a genius. On the back cover of A Gathering of Crows, his latest, The Horror Review calls him "the next Stephen King," which might be going too far because Keene hasn't disappointed me yet.
Starting off with five crows gathering of five crows right outside of the small town of Brinkley Springs, the book leads you down the winding path that invokes the Lovecraftian Cthulhu Mythos mixed in with the wit and wisdom of Brian Keene's writing. The five crows, who serve one of the Thirteen - which Keene also invokes in Darkness on the Edge of Town - by the name of Meeble. Keene also uses his knowledge of American history by using the unsolved mystery of Roanoke Colony, explaining the origins of the shape-shifting crows.
As usual, Keene offers up the horror that we all know and love, mixing it with the human nature - both light and darkness that cloud us - and adds in a little bit of religious tolerance. It's a page turner and a good book to have in your tote during these last week of dog days. Make good use of it. Go to the beach and read away.
Now I've read a few things by Keene, including Dead Sea, Darkness on the Edge of Town and a zombie short story from The New Dead, still I can tell you that the man is a genius. On the back cover of A Gathering of Crows, his latest, The Horror Review calls him "the next Stephen King," which might be going too far because Keene hasn't disappointed me yet.
Starting off with five crows gathering of five crows right outside of the small town of Brinkley Springs, the book leads you down the winding path that invokes the Lovecraftian Cthulhu Mythos mixed in with the wit and wisdom of Brian Keene's writing. The five crows, who serve one of the Thirteen - which Keene also invokes in Darkness on the Edge of Town - by the name of Meeble. Keene also uses his knowledge of American history by using the unsolved mystery of Roanoke Colony, explaining the origins of the shape-shifting crows.
As usual, Keene offers up the horror that we all know and love, mixing it with the human nature - both light and darkness that cloud us - and adds in a little bit of religious tolerance. It's a page turner and a good book to have in your tote during these last week of dog days. Make good use of it. Go to the beach and read away.
acknud's review against another edition
5.0
Very good read. I love Keene. He has a great ability to make you see what he is seeing. This blends horror, violence, inter-dimensional travel and a little history (with the story of Roanoke Island). I don't have time to sit down and marathon read right now but this would have been easy with this book.
op_ivey's review against another edition
2.0
My least favorite Keene book to date. It's okay, though - he's way more hit than miss.
howifeelaboutbooks's review
3.0
This isn't my usual type of book, but I really enjoyed it. I prefer Keene's short stories, but the concept of this book was interesting. A small town is visited by five mysterious crows, who can turn into mystical men when they feel the need. These crows close the town off from everything, making it impossible to leave. Then they start killing citizens, one by one. But they didn't count on Levi, another mystical man, passing through town at just the right moment to try and fight back.
francomega's review
2.0
I've been meaning to read Keene for awhile as he is always at the top of the list of new horror writers. Unfortunately, I was underwhelmed by this book. The set-up is solid, but it reads like King lite. I found the dialogue stilted and the main character (who has appeared in previous titles) uninspiring. Maybe there was just too much reliance on magic as a plot device (okay, the whole plot) and that's not really a favorite of mine. Too bad.
mikekaz's review
5.0
One of the nice things about long plane rides is plenty of time to read a book. I was on a flight back from London when I was able to speed through this book. To be honest though, I think that this would have been a "stay up late, can't put down" type of book even if I was reading it at home. The story grasps you quickly and pulls you into the chaos.
Brinkley Springs is a small town that is slowly dying. There are no industries or major companies there and people are gradually leaving. One night, five mysterious and powerful entities come to Brinkley Springs to speed up the process by slaughtering every living creature and feasting on their soul. Fortunately, Levi Stoltzfus is within the town when the creatures arrive. What follows is mayhem, death, and tons of Keene's Labyrinth mythos.
The story itself is not overly complex: supernatural being comes to a small town to destroy it and must face someone who has the power to stop them. At the same time though, Keene has woven so many different elements into the story that it becomes so much more. The amount of research completed for the book is obvious: tons. I was able to recognize much of the mythology and religions and supernatural events that were described but there was also a lot I didn't know. Was that real stuff I didn't know? Was it made up by Keene for the book? It would take hours for me to figure out. In the end it doesn't matter because it makes the story more real. Then there are the usual characters that you would expect in a small-town horror story, made richer by Keene's constantly well-written prose. By the time I was finished, I was well pleased and satisfied. It makes me yearn even harder for more of the Labyrinth mythos.
Brinkley Springs is a small town that is slowly dying. There are no industries or major companies there and people are gradually leaving. One night, five mysterious and powerful entities come to Brinkley Springs to speed up the process by slaughtering every living creature and feasting on their soul. Fortunately, Levi Stoltzfus is within the town when the creatures arrive. What follows is mayhem, death, and tons of Keene's Labyrinth mythos.
The story itself is not overly complex: supernatural being comes to a small town to destroy it and must face someone who has the power to stop them. At the same time though, Keene has woven so many different elements into the story that it becomes so much more. The amount of research completed for the book is obvious: tons. I was able to recognize much of the mythology and religions and supernatural events that were described but there was also a lot I didn't know. Was that real stuff I didn't know? Was it made up by Keene for the book? It would take hours for me to figure out. In the end it doesn't matter because it makes the story more real. Then there are the usual characters that you would expect in a small-town horror story, made richer by Keene's constantly well-written prose. By the time I was finished, I was well pleased and satisfied. It makes me yearn even harder for more of the Labyrinth mythos.
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