REVIEW: 3 Gates of the Dead

PLOT: Sometimes, the most evil things come from the most holy… Conflicted with his faith in God and the hypocrisy of the church, Aidan Schaeffer, a young assistant pastor, is in a constant state of spiritual turmoil. When Aidan learns that his ex-fiancée is the first victim in a string of ritualistic killings, he finds himself in the middle of an even deeper fight. Tormented by demonic threats and haunted by spirits, Aidan throws himself into investigating Amanda’s death; all the while supernatural forces have begun to attack the people around him. The more questions he asks, the more he is drawn into the world of a mysterious Anglican priest, a paranormal investigation group and a rogue female detective investigating the murders. As the gruesome rituals escalate, ancient hidden secrets and an evil long buried threaten to rip Aidan’s world apart.

REVIEW: I for one, was not expecting at all what I read in 3 Gates of the Dead. Usually with first time authors, you tend not to expect so much in terms of a complex story or writing style. At least, in my amateur experience as a professional reader, I've never come across something so well written in a debut book. However, Jonathan Ryan sets out to prove me wrong, and I'm sure countless others, by writing a superb tale of the supernatural. Aidan Schaeffer is a doubting, but unconsciously faithful pastor who we find at one of the worst times of his life. Automatically, Aidan is a character that almost any reader can identify with because of the questions he asks about life, religious or not. After going through a lot prior to the story, our main character finds out that there is much more that he has yet to learn.

What I found so unbelievable about this book was how well the main character was written. Constantly throughout the book, I found myself relating to Aidan and understanding his inner turmoil with God. This book focuses a lot on Aidan's relationship with a higher power, obviously because he is a pastor. But he's a pastor with questions, to which the answers only cloud his beliefs further. I feel that no matter what side of the religious debate you're on, there is something endearing about a person struggling to figure out where they stand on life. Not only that, but to continuously push themselves into finding their true self a midst a handful of issues that would cause most to fold under pressure. Even though we find our protagonist at a crossroads in his life, as soon as the book starts, Mr. Ryan immediately hooks the reader into caring about Aidan and his troubles. It also was neat to read a book that takes place not that far from home for me, and has a lot of material that I can relate to personally (like the argument over whether Ohio State is a good football team or not).

There are obviously a lot of reasons I would like this book. The horror elements like ghosts, the supernatural, and the occult. Also, the mystery elements like shocking twists and a reason for our character to further torment, and examine his outlook on the world. But the reason I could not put this book down was because of Ryan's excellent writing. I was astounded that this was his first book, and as I was reading I kept asking myself "how is this possible?" Sure you could say that maybe I wasn't expecting much so I was more easily impressed, but I think I could easily compare this to some of the greater works of horror fiction. The characterization is on point from Aidan to Mike, his troubled partner at the church, to Jennifer, the girl he finds himself swooning over, and right down to the dead people at the bottom of the credits. 3 Gates of the Dead is damn near as perfect of a first book that one could read, and certainly leaves me wanting more.

I would hope to see that if this book is turned into a movie, which I read is a possibility, that the filmmakers take good care of this subject material. It's such an amazing story on the page, that it would be a shame to see it go to waste on B-movie talent and more than likely focus on the supernatural, and not the human aspects of it. It's a perfect story about the main character Aidan, and his journey through reality and the supernatural, in finding his true beliefs and opinions of the world and greater. This book is so much more than a ghost story, and it's so much more than a murder mystery. This is a grade A novel of suspense, intrigue, and self-discovery that will leave any reader, no matter what preference, asking for book two as soon as possible. Bravo Jonathan Ryan, you have gained a loyal fan and I'm sure countless others, who are eagerly awaiting more of your wonderfully crafted tales. As a human constantly learning for himself what it means to be on this planet, I can certainly appreciate a fictional story that you almost believe is real until you hit the last page... or is it?

RATED : ( PG-13 )

WRITING : ( 9 / 10 )

STORY : ( 10 / 10 )

COVER : ( 8 / 10 )

AWESOME : ( 10 / 10 )

FINAL RATING : ( 9 / 10 )

REVIEW: Joyland

PLOT: College student Devin Jones took the summer job at Joyland hoping to forget the girl who broke his heart. But he wound up facing something far more terrible: the legacy of a vicious murder, the fate of a dying child, and dark truths about life—and what comes after—that would change his world forever.

REVIEW: I'll start by saying I have never read a book of Stephen King's. It's very surprising that I've gone all of this time as a reader and I have never read one of his books. When I was teenager I read most of his collection of short stories called Everything's Eventual but I don't count it as really reading some King work. I have however, seen a lot of the movies that have been based off of his novels so I feel that I know his work somewhat familiarly. Joyland did not strike me as something that would be typical King, and it looked like it was going to be more of a straight up mystery despite the description on the back really leading you to believe it would be some sort of horror story. I was pleasantly surprised that this was like a version of The Shining that didn't have all of the terrifying elements and had a lot more heart in it.

Devin takes a summer job at the amusement park Joyland, and with that comes a large life experience that seemingly makes Devin the person he is today. I really enjoyed how the story was told from the perspective of an older Devin, reflecting on his experiences at Joyland. It really gives the novel that King-feel, and shows why he is still one of the most prominent story tellers still writing today. There's a shroud of mystery surrounding the story, and it makes it seem very mystical when being told this way. His encounters with the workers of Joyland, those

in the town, and himself really weave a shockingly heart-warming story about the joys of life, the mysteries of our existence, and the meaning or purpose of why we're here. There's a lot to speculate on in the book, and I'd love to discuss these points in the future once more people have read the book.

Instead of going into full detail, I will just say that the last 50-70 pages is where the book starts to climax and wrap itself up. Joyland really builds and builds until the last page, and packs a wallop on the last 10 pages. Devin tells an amazing story of love and mystery, and it's really epic depending on how you see the events leading up to it. I could definitely see this novel being made into a film if it becomes a bestselling hit in 2013. It would be one of King's non-horror, more drama-like films but of course that always comes with a little bit of mysticism in the story. I'd highly recommend this for any fans of Stephen King, and mystery novels as well. This can even pass as a ghost story, and there is a ghost involved from early on in the book but it's not particularly the focus of the story.

RATED : ( PG-13 ) 

WRITING : ( 10 / 10 )

STORY : ( 8 / 10 )

COVER : ( 10 / 10 )

AWESOME : ( 7 / 10 )

FINAL RATING: ( 8 / 10 )

REVIEW: Hellblazer, Volume Two: The Devil You Know

PLOT: To Hell and Back. It's been a long and difficult road for John Constantine – one that's left him with demon's blood in his veins and dead friends' voices in his head. Still, with his sharp tongue and unequaled shrewdness, the sorcerer from Liverpool has manged to raise himself to a position as rarefied as it is dangerous: being the magician of last resort for a world under constant siege from the forces of chaos and evil. That same rough path has also sharpened his mind, and taught him a thing or two about ruthlessness. Now, with the outcome of an ancient prophecy hanging on his actions, it's time for Constantine to bring the scales of justice back into balance – at Hell's expense.

REVIEW: After having read the first volume of the New Editions of Hellblazer, I wasn't really expecting too much from this second volume. The problem that I had with the first reoccurred here, because again I found myself struggling to make much sense of what was going on. I definitely understand that this comic is supposed to be fucked up, and it's supposed to be gross and terrifying and Hellish. But this comic is proof that shock value doesn't always equate to quality, and Constantine's narrative really lacks direction at times. I'd both love and hate to get inside the mind of Jamie Delano for 5 minutes, and 5 minutes only. Where Hellblazer lacks a real major arc, there are some good stories in here. The 2 Horrorist issues were fantastic, as was the art in them. I wasn't much of a fan of the middle story with the weird old people wizards or whatever they were. The first issue of the volume was definitely the most messed up of all though. I really want to like these because they are what one could consider "horror comics" but I think this lacks in places that today a horror comic would really thrive. Reading these New Editions really just makes me really want to get my hands on some New 52 Constantine. The artwork in these Hellblazer comics is also outstanding, reminiscent of some Sandman work. But I continue to struggle with the undeniably depressing, dark and disorienting stories of Mr. John Constantine.

WRITING : ( 6 / 10 )

ARTWORK : ( 9 / 10 )

STORY : ( 4 / 10 )

COVERS : ( 8 / 10 )

AWESOME : ( 7 / 10 )

FINAL RATING : ( 6 / 10 )