Harrison Demchick

Harrison Demchick's The Listeners is a novel which, in this reviewer's opinion, could have been great, breaking all borders of genre. Alas, it falls short, due I believe to lack of good developmental editing. Certainly Demchick demonstrates he is a literary adept, with several passages that are breath-taking in their impact, and his concept is a new perspective on the much-overdone zombie apocalypse trope, enough so it kept this somewhat jaded reviewer reading. That says a great deal.

The story revolves, for the most part, around a young boy, Daniel Raymond, who finds himself adrift in a locked-down American city borough. There is the impression, through the boy's actions, he might be autistic, but that is never realized, so the reader is left to assume the boy is instead suffering from extreme shock. Simply put, the plot sees Daniel adopted by a quasi-religious male cult in which all followers, but for the leader, are relieved of their right ears so they might better hear the truth, or lies, we're not sure which because the lines become very blurred after awhile.

While the plague that destroys the city revolves around a zombie-creating virus, the real story is one of brutal survival and the bestiality of humankind, and ultimately becomes a vignette of gun-culture, jingoistic America. All very gritty and powerful stuff.

The actualisation, however, of the story is a confused and conflicting timeline that jumps so rapidly between past and present, without any linear landmarks in either period, that the story falters, stutters and several times comes very close to termination. Demichick's attempt to echo the protagonist's confusion and isolation through this timeline device is laudable, and with even a little guidance from Bancroft Press' editors would have been brilliant.

And while I'm greatly attracted to ambiguous endings because they often reflect life, Demchick's ending defies understanding and seems to completely contradict his protagonist's motivation. It's almost as though having gone on for too long (the story does tend to drag on after awhile), Demchick threw up his metaphorical hands and said, the hell with it, plucked an ending out of the air and tacked it on to his manuscript.

Having said all that, Demchick demonstrates clear promise as a writer, and I hope, with better editorial guidance, he will realize his full potential.… (mehr)

Read This Review & More Like It At Ageless Pages Reviews

I'm sitting here with my hand over my mouth trying to process one of the most incredibly poetic, haunting novels I have read. And it's about a zombie plague. Try and picture that for a moment. Harrison Demchick has written a beautiful and disgusting, wonderful and horrifying book with a strong voice and lyrical quality and it's about the Apocalypse.

14-year-old Daniel is living in an unnamed borough, (it's Manhattan,) that has recently become victim of a plague that causes the victim to rot inside and out. Outwardly, the disease manifests as red, pus-filled boils. Inwardly, with a violent dementia and decline in mental faculties. So it's zombies, but not the way you generally think of them. These "sickos" can talk, use weapons, even be reasoned with...right up until they can't. Right off the bat, that's a whole lot scarier than the usual genre.

I'd like to start out that this review is purposefully vague, because The Listeners is hard to describe. It's far less about the plot, (although there is a good, solid one,) and more about a slow decent into insanity. Large portions take place entirely in imagination and Demchick lets Daniel's mental state dictate the actual writing. As the Listeners exert control and the horror of the situation beats him down, the pace gets frantic with repeated words, asides, and violent imagery. This style will be very polarizing, but I found it effective and affecting. A scene when Daniel is inducted into the Listeners is particularly beautiful while being utterly tragic.

Daniel's mom goes out for supplies and never comes home. Three days later, corrupt cops show up to extort him for anything of value in the house in exchange for protection and a promise of food. They are followed by the Listeners, a cult that wants to take the city back from the police. They convince Daniel to come with them and join their ranks.

The Listeners are fishy from the start. Their prophet, Adam, is the only one with two ears. Everyone else cuts off their right in an initiation ceremony, to better hear the truth and not hear the lies. The live in an underground bunker that someone built under a supermarket. Like most cults, their morals are black and white, and they regard all cops as evil enemies to be destroyed. Daniel is conflicted, as his best friend Katie's father is in the police and he trusts him. Through isolation and manipulation, the Listeners convince Daniel, only 14 remember, that theirs is the only right way.

This is NOT a happy book. Just when you think you have the ending pinned down, another twist is thrown out. People die, graphically, and the people left don't have anyone else's best interests at heart. Maybe the people gone didn't either. The story is broken into two parts, each with a gut-wrenching climax. Part one is Daniel's ascension to Listener, with little in the way of action and sickos. Part two is more on daily life in the city, as he goes on patrol and searches for answers raised in part one. These parts are punctuated with "respites", chapters following other characters around the city. They give a welcome depth to the world. Despite following a vast range of people: a business man outside the quarantine, a family man inside, two police officers, an infected brother, an abandoned nurse, and a mother/reporter, all the respites explore the same themes of insanity and survival.

I have two issues with the book, though they're not enough to downrate it. First, on an island of a million people, even after a deadly plague, everyone seems to come together too nicely. Any character introduced, Daniel will run into later. On one hand, it adds to the isolated feeling. On the other, of course the newspaper writer mentioned in the first respite, the baby, and the homeless man, will all end up at the same place 20 chapters later. It's convenient. My second issue is I HAVE SO MANY QUESTIONS and the author doesn't say if this is a planned series or a one off! If it is a one off, I will be so mad, because I need to know:

Is the homeless man the business exec from the first respite and how did he make it across the quarantine?
How did the newspaper/prophet jingle make it in? The military's obviously not letting people through this is the twist ending. Don't spoil it for yourself! Really, don't do it. even though THE OTHER SIDE OF THE QUARANTINE IS INFECTED!
Why is the baby zombie repellent? Does the government know about her or was the "someone the sick avoid" line a throw away?
Speaking of, why does the military man look familiar? Long lost father? TV personality?
Did Ant make it through the sewers?
ADAM AND DEREK WERE COPS, WTF?!

The Listeners is moving and powerful in a way I've never known a horror story to be. It's not traditionally scary, building far more on dread than boos, but I found it creeping into my thoughts after dark. It brings up a lot of questions regarding who the monsters are and the morality of survival. It must be experienced.… (mehr)

Review:

Sometimes no matter how hard you try to like something it might just never click with you. Unfortunately this was my problem with The Listeners. I tried longer than I usually do to "get" this book. I wanted to see what people were raving about, I wanted to be part of this mind blowing experience and yet try as hard as I might I never was privy to it.

The Listeners is about 14 year Old Daniel who is struggling to survive Quarantine after a horrific epidemic breaks out. This plague is nasty not only does it have symptoms very close to the Bubonic plague (pus filled buboes) but it takes the disease a step farther by having the infected not only go crazy but also rot inside and out. This plague was by far the most fascinating aspect of the book and I wish could of followed the disease more and The Listeners less.

Daniel left all alone after his mother goes missing during a supply run eventually meets up with a gang called The Listeners. All members have only one ear (the right is cut off) and claim this is to better hear the truth and not hear the lies. Their leader Adam is the only one with two ears but being the "Prophet" it's OK and is justified. Here is my problem with The Listeners. They actually sounded crazy and all I kept thinking was it's a cult how can you not see that?!?! I didn't like that after all Daniel went through he became a part of them. I'd hope he would be smart enough to realize they were dangerous. I guess that's how cults work though they suck you in through friendship, safety, food and shelter and then one day Blam they have you suckered into believing their ways and cutting off body parts in allegiance.

Once Daniel is an Official member of The Listeners things go from bad to worse. I won't give away what happens but let's just say that it doesn't ever really get better. No happy, neatly packaged ending here, so be prepared to be left with lots of unanswered questions.

Overall The Listeners is a decent attempt to show what it might be like to slowly slip into insanity. The pacing flowed nicely and I could see great potential in the writing. While this book didn't work for me, I would recommend giving it a shot and seeing for yourself. I did like the Plague aspect of the story and because of the Author's attention to detail I did find myself feeling squeamish during certain scenes. All that combined would make me at least borrow a copy of the next book if it ever happens as I'm curious to see how things end up once those left realize things aren't exactly as Black and White as they thought. In the end I will be rating The Listeners ★★★.… (mehr)