J. ThornRezensionen

Structure! You needs it.

I really enjoyed the book, catch me right from the beginning.

Although it took me a few more chapters than usual for me to get into this particular work of J. Thorn, I ended up really getting pulled into the characters and the world here. It's a dark book, partly because the collapsed societies and what's left are frighteningly believable in a way that's hard to dismiss; the discomfort of reading is elevated by the twisted logic of the villains as well, and the fact that it's slightly too easy to imagine how the world we know could crumble into what's depicted here, given the right catalysts.

I will say that this doesn't feel like a first book in a series--it feels complete and ended, to the extent that I'm curious how the series will continue, or even what character it will follow, so while elements of the book felt somewhat predictable (though, not many), the series itself is already turning out to be something of a surprise for me. One way or another, I expect to read the next one in the series, and although I've got mixed feelings about the ending here, I find that I'm actually really anxious to see where this storyline gets taken next.

With the collaboration of Zach Bohannon, Lindsay Buroker and J.F. Penn

If you are a fan of horror, dark fantasy, mystery or paranormal suspense and love a plot that is fairly simple to grasp you will be pleased with this novella. It is quite an adventure taking us into a make believe world through 134 pages of chilling horror.

The authors meshed beautifully their part each taking the role of a character and blending their story into an eerie tale of demons, portals and gateways. Sonya (Thorn), Blake(Bohannon), Aiko( Buroker), Sebastian (Penn) board an Amtrak train from Chicago to New Orleans for 19 hours that will change their lives.

The train is the backdrop and where all the spooky action takes place. Demons escapes, body count rises and some will have to pay the ultimate sacrifice. The plot is definitely creative with no shortage of descriptive scenes: blood and guts, humans versus demons….ouf… this was one exhausting quick read.

I admit this is not my favourite kind of book although for a good part of the book I was deep into it till the action started to be too creepy for my taste. I lost a bit of interest yet I still stayed captivated till the end. I would say this is imagination at its best (or worse): so scary, so out of this world and definitely unbelievable ….. Thank goodness “Sacrifice” is a fantasy….

I received a review copy of this book from J.F. Penn

Although it took me a few chapters to really get interested, with the early passages feeling heavier on atmosphere and mystery than a clear story, that disengagement changed quickly. And once I did get engaged... well, I couldn't stand to put it down. As the plot started to evolve and the characters had some time to pull me in, this book really began to remind me, very simply, of why I love horror so much. Yes, there's a dark story here, with suspense and terror to go around, but there's also that balance of the real and the unreal that is, so often, what I think makes a horror such a fantastic world to explore through books and movies.

Absolutely, I'd recommend this to horror readers, and I'll be picking up the next book in the series sooner than later...½

Just couldn't get into this book. While I'm not a fan of info dumps, and would rather be left with questions at the start of a story, this story never seemed to give me enough to grasp what was going on or why I should care about these characters. I couldn't find a point to focus on. I think. I'm not even sure what the problem was, but that itself says enough.

Most boring thing I've read in a very long while. I started all 3 of the main novels to see if any caught my interest, but none could.
Could not relate/did not like any of the characters, did not care what happened to them, did not even mind where the story was going and it was so boring that I even got tired of skipping to reach the end and see if anything of interest happened there.

Also did not like the repetitive way in which people's faces were described. ("His eyes sat (...)", "His hairline sat (...) ")

Don't get me wrong, I can see where a certain crowd would like it, but I'm clearly not part of it.

Let me start by saying I liked this book. My review may be a bit jaded, but bear with me. This book is a dark book and it is intended to be a dark, gory, kind of raunchy book. The book turned me off when Drew was talking to Brian and has a chauvinistic dialogue. Actually, Drew is a chauvinistic pig and he is the narrator for most of the book. I'm thinking that this author has an intended audience, and that audience is male. It didn't stop me from reading to the climax (no pun intended), and I enjoyed the story. The characters were pretty fleshed out, and the story had some good twists and turns. I would not recommend this book for a school library, but certainly for a public library. I'd promote it like crazy to the male patron that needs a good book.

Originally posted at Bunny's Review


If I had a nickel for every book I have ever read I would be rich, instead I am rich in literature and personally think that is worth more than any amount of money. Starting this book I felt an immediate connection from another famous author I greatly admire. Keep reading because I will not state who until the end.

This is not your average horror, fantasy but more of a dark fantasy. Granted I am not big on fantasy unless it is by one specific author. I will only read his work but this book really pulled me it. I enjoyed being able to find an author that write a genre that I would normally turn up my nose at instead of even trying to read. To say I stepped out of my comfort zone with this one would not be a lie.

After I finished this book I reflected because it really made me think. See Samuel has died and is in a world that is nothing but a waste land. A waste land that is slowly dissolving away and he needs to find a way to either stop this from happening or slide into a different world. As always there are obstacles in the way. Obstacles that do not want him slide to another world, obstacles that want to eat him.

While Samuel is running he encounters a few other people. During this time he does not realize how these people might help him. Until the end Samuel is clueless about these people and how he might of played a part in their life. When reflecting back Samuel is consumed with guilt.

Honestly if a person really reads this book it will leave the reader looking back at their own life wondering if we have made any type of impact on others. Did we say the wrong thing to someone and they end up hurting themselves? Did we forget to tell someone something important and that person leave our life?

Reading this book will leave readers questions parts of your life.

If you enjoyed The Dark Tower series or The Stand by Stephen King then I highly suggest this book.

The bunnies and I give this book carrots.

I purchased this book at Amazon 2014.

This is a genre overflowing with books, new books published daily. This collection of 7 different zombie books and writers in one book piqued my interest and I decided to take a chance. Unfortunately, there is no summary available for any of the books in the package which caused me to start reading a title that I had absolutely no idea of what to expect. As it were, if the first couple chapters didn't grab my attention or interest I moved on to the next story in the collection. Some reviewers offered rave reviews to certain books and admit they had clumsy or slow starts...unfortunately, these were books that didn't grab me from the start and I never finished them. I did find four of the stories enjoyable: Affliction Z, Earthfall, Contamination Prequal and Slow Burn, which all deserve 4 and 5 star ratings. Their stories are much different from the majority of books in the genre...there is an apocalypse, of course, but the survivors and victims are much different The price of the entire collection is a pittance to what you might spend to purchase them individually - this book is guaranteed to keep your attention for several hours or more. A couple of those books I finished are book-one of a series - I do plan on adding them to my collection. Thank you for the opportunity to read through this collection. Highly recommended!

John Podlaski, author
Cherries - A Vietnam War Novel

THE SEVENTH SEAL is a good example of the overuse of adjectives, adverbs and descriptive writing.

The use of descriptive writing sets the mood, but when it is used excessively in every sentence, it stilts the plot and makes scenes unclear. In one scene the author writes "...John's vision came into focus. The black cape of a vampire fanned out across the floor with a pool of dark liquid shimmering under his chest." Where did a vampire come from? John knew there was a Halloween party (however the reader does not know), why not just say it? It made me stop and look back to see what I had missed. We find out later these are costumes.

The paragraph continues with "The hardy flies that survived the bitter day buzzed above the corpse." Seriously? John discovers a dead body and this went through his mind?

And it continues "The Bee Lady slumped..." The Bee Lady? Who is that? Where did she come from? Is she a vampire too? "Mascara ran down her face and smudges of black lipstick caressed her chin." A supoosedly dead body (we are to assume from the dead vampire that she is dead) has lipstick that is caressing her? "Three ragged holes desecrated her chest." Okay, now I guess she's supposed to be dead. Desecratedly dead.

John walks into a bedroom. Mind you he has been unconcious in the basement for three days. He get upstairs, steps over some dead partygoers and raids the refrigerator and eats a ham. Then cooks some beans and eats those. Meanwhile "The stove rattled and popped, following the lead of the house in attempting to expel the intruder." The House was expelling him? He's an intruder now? I thought he was part of the party from three days ago.

So John eats and NOW he searches the house (I guess he was afraid of being expelled).
..."The faces of others sunk in sickening pools of life's essence." Did you mean they were facedown in blood?
"Black holes crawled down from the ceiling to the wall and escaped by shattering the two windows overlooking South Belvoir Road." What? What?
"John recognized the growl of an internal combustion chamber."

John is running from some Army guys, a "blinding beam of light cut through the sheer curtains..." John dives for the floor. In the next paragraph he climbs into a bed and goes to sleep. Okay, maybe he does. He doesn't seem too concerned over a houseful of dead friends. Maybe he can sleep with dudes just outside the window.

I think that is enough to show how slow the plot runs and how indifferent the first character we meet seems to act. The book reads like someone wrote it then went back and added everything they could think of to try and impress the reader with the author's literary knowledge and skill. Unfortunately, J. Thorn fails in the worst way and makes the same mistakes one would expect from a high school student. Thorn makes the plot plodding, confusing, and boring.

I love a descriptive novel. However, the use of description must be judicious and in the proper place. There is nothing wrong with setting a scene, but then stop it! Move the story along and put away the thesaurus!

I recommend this book only as an example of how not to write.

Book Info: Genre: Horror
Reading Level: Adult
Recommended for: people who enjoy dark horror, liked Preta's Realm
Trigger Warnings: murder, (implied) rape, sexual assault, assault and beatings (man on woman), torture

Disclosure: I edited this book for J. Thorn. I do not receive any remuneration based upon sales.

My Thoughts: This was a very difficult book to read, very dark and with ugly themes. It is a continuation of the story begun in Preta's Realm (my review linked here) and I strongly urge you to read that book before trying this one, as otherwise a lot of the information will go right over your head.

Some people might find the sometimes-recursive nature of this story frustrating, as the same story is told from multiple points of view: first by Ravna, then by Karen, then by Jasper. Each time a little new information is provided, increasing the creepiness and tension. I felt it was an effective way to build tension while providing additional information, and since it is chunks, there is no feel of head-hopping involved.

There is no technical issue that reduced my rating to four stars, it was just a question of my personal enjoyment of the story, and since it was so dark and ugly... If you liked Preta's Realm and you like horror, you won't want to miss out on this new book by J. Thorn. Check it out.

My Synopsis: After Drew disappeared at the end of Preta's Realm, Ravna moved on with his life. He has started dating the lovely Karen, and they are heading out on a road trip to let Karen have a break from her hectic and demanding job. But while Ravna has moved on and stopped thinking about Gaki, Gaki has not forgotten about Ravna...

Disclosure: This short story was included in a free edition of two of J. Thorn's novellas, in which it was called "Retrograde". I read it in the Preta's Realm novella, review linked here.

Synopsis: A short story featuring a vampire, a little girl, savages and what happens when two worlds collide.

My thoughts: Bonus Short Story Retrograde: Chilling, beautifully evocative, with an ending that made me say "uh-oh." Wonderful.

Short but sweet - highly recommended.

Book Info: Genre: Horror Reading Level: Adult Recommended for: Fans of horror

Trigger Warnings: Murder, rape, adultery, betrayal by a best friend, demons

Disclosure: I received a free copy of this ebook from the author in exchange for an honest review, which I provided in October, 2012. In February 2013 I edited this book for re-release.

Synopsis (from the flap): Drew works hard, pays his taxes, and loves his family. But when a visit from the spirit of his deceased grandfather coincides with the violent murder of two co-workers, Drew falls into a desperate spiral of delusion and betrayal as the demons of the past drag him into Preta's Realm.

My Thoughts: I had a couple of books by this author I’d picked up on my own about the same time he noticed me and offered me this one, which is why the sudden J. Thorn-fest in my review log. It seems his work wanders all over the place: different genres, different ideas. Which I think is great, of course. No sense pegging yourself into a single hole and getting stuck there, right?

There were aspects of this story that reminded me somewhat of The Shining; not to say that this story is anything like The Shining, just that there were aspects that make me think of it, where Drew, who has had a previous breakdown, suddenly starts to sort of snap, get weird, and hear voices. It led to a sort of creeping horror that was very effective.

I was interested to learn that a Preta is a demon of sorts in Hindu mythology. These sorts of stories particularly interest me, especially with the tie-in to the Japanese gakil. I wish we have been given additional information on the Preta, but I suppose adding more would have made it an infodump. I will simply have to take the time and do the research myself. Anyway, I was particularly interested in the different points of view of the story told by Drew’s grandfather and by Mashoka.

I also enjoyed the minor tie-in with The Seventh Seal (link to review here if you’re reading this where links work), and the bit of meta-fiction where Thorn writes himself in as the singer in a rock-and-roll band. Well, I think it’s actually supposed to be a grunge or heavy-metal band, but you know what I mean. Edit: J. Thorn actually does sing with the band Threefold Law; how cool is that?

If you like horror, be sure to pick up this book (and The Seventh Seal). I don’t believe you need to read the two books in any particular order, but they do tie together. Now, keep reading for my comments on the bonus short story!

Bonus Short Story Retrograde: A short story featuring a vampire, a little girl, savages and what happens when two worlds collide. Chilling, beautifully evocative, with an ending that made me say “uh-oh.” Wonderful. Watch for my review of Reversion: Portal Arcane I later this weekend.

Please note: To actually so the links, you'll need to visit Goodreads.

Review Repost: to fix some errors, and let folks know I'm holding a giveaway for this book on my blog from 4/29 through 5/7, 2013, which you can enter by clicking this link. I've also embedded some music into the post, so you can listen while you read! Go!

Book Info: Genre: Dark Fantasy
Reading Level: Adult
Recommended for: Fans of Stephen King, especially his more esoteric stuff

My Thoughts: Imagine an infinite number of realities, all vibrating at different speeds. Some are steady. Some are picking up speed. Some are slowing down. Some... are about to stop. Samuel has apparently stepped from one reality into another – this movement between realities seems to happen just prior to the point of death.

In some ways, this story reminds me of Stephen King’s short story “The Langoliers”: mainly the creeping cloud o’ doom that leaves... nothingness in its wake. There is also a sense of recursiveness - especially toward the end - that reminded me of the Dark Tower series. So, basically what I’m saying is that this book reminded me a lot of Stephen King. It’s all about the journey, about the creeping horror of individual moments, the long wait, the brief moments of terror, and then more waiting. It was... a fascinating read, and I will definitely be interested in following this series. If this sounds like something that would appeal to you, don’t wait – go and pick it up.

Disclosure: I received a free advance copy of this ebook from the author. He specifically absolved me of any responsibility for a review, but I am happy to provide an honest one anyway. In February 2013 I edited the book for re-release. All opinions are my own.

Synopsis (from the flap): With a noose around his neck, Samuel arrives in a forest littered with caution tape and artifacts of the deceased. He struggles to regain his memory while fending off a pack of wolves and the mysterious visitors who seem to know more about this dying world than he does. Major, Kole, and Mara, his new companions also trapped in the strange locality, accompany Samuel and attempt to outrace its destruction, to outrun the Reversion.

Book Info: Genre: Dark Urban Fantasy
Reading Level: Adult
Recommended for: fans of Apocalyptic fiction
Read: First read 9/29 - 30/2012. Edited 10/15 - 16/2012

Disclosure: I picked up a copy of this book when I found it free on Amazon; I am under no particular obligation to anyone, but am happy to provide an honest review. Later the author asked me to help him by providing a polishing edit, which I began on 10/15/12.

Synopsis: John awakes from a Halloween party with a hangover and a dead cell phone, on the first day of the End of Days. He's desperate, on the run, and fighting for his life.

My Thoughts: Wow, this book is quite a ride, in which a man named John gets caught between fanatical Catholics that have decided to cleanse the world of “Infidels” and a motorcycle gang that calls itself the Keepers of Wormwood, while his wife Jana ends up with another group of survivors, and they both have strange dreams involving Father, the fanatical leader of the Covenant.

Thorn has a real gift for description. Consider this passage: “The cold November sun sent weak rays onto the floor of the old house. The floor beneath snickered, trying hard to hold back snaps of bawdy laughter. The temperature dropped with ease.” There are some spelling mix-ups, such as “thirty odd six” for “thirty-aught six”, but overall the pace is too fast to really stop and notice these sorts of things.

It’s a terrific coincidence that I originally posted this review on International Blasphemy Day at the end of September, since in many ways this story deals with faith, redemption, fanaticism, belief, being an outsider vs. conforming to the conqueror (We welcome our new insect overlords), and the End of Days. Strong themes, and overall, strongly presented. The only real problem I had with the story was how characters were introduced – they would just appear, with their name, and that was the introduction. It made it a little hard to feel comfortable with them: “Hey, who's this Alex dude?” But they were eventually described, and the reader just had to keep up.

I think folks who enjoy apocalyptic fiction will like this story. It’s intense, it’s not pretty, and it was a good story. Definitely check it out.

Horror can be many things. It can be shocking or terrifying but it can also be creepy and atmospheric like Portal Arcane 1 Reversion by J Thorn. The story begins in another world with a man name Samuel who has amnesia and a noose around his neck. He doesn't have much time to think before a pack of wolves finds him. Samuel escapes into a tree and is saved by a man called Major. He then finds out that the wolves were the least of his worries. The world he's in is being destroyed by a giant cloud which is preceded by an undead army. Samuel and three others must find a way to escape.

J Thorn does a great job of bringing his story to life by describing everything in great detail. The opening scene is excellent with Samuel waking up and looking around at the forest. He is happy to be alive but the mood changes quickly as he hears the howls in the background. I like how J Thorn doesn't set up the story right away. He puts his main character in a dire situation and you get to see the tension build. The opening scene was almost like the author was painting a picture. I liked how the wolves stalking Samuel were described along with the terror as he realizes he can't fight them off forever. At this point you don't know what is going on, but you see Samuel's situation and you are forced to root for him.

I also liked the description of the army of zombies that comes before the cloud and the reason why they are there. The use of flashbacks in the story was well done. Your not sure what you're going to get in the beginning of the story, it's almost like Portal Arcane 1: Reversion starts in the middle. J Thorn hooks you in with some eerie moments of terror and then delivers a good tale of dark fantasy.

Portal Arcane: Reversion is very reminiscent of Stephen King's Langoliers. The characters aren't really alive but there not dead either. Little by little you learn why they are here but where is here? Throughout the book there is a feeling of dread and the atmosphere is one of impending doom. Despite the story being very dark, I felt compelled to read on because I liked its theme of redemption and I wanted to see if the characters could make amends with what brought them here.

If you do decide to read this book pay close attention, because everything in the story is a metaphor for something, such as the Reversion cloud, personal objects that disappear and reappear and how nothing looks quite like it should. You could compare this story to a Twilight Zone episode because you have to pay attention to get the most out of it, in fact you might want to read it twice. Things aren't exactly what they seem and its very much a tail about morality. My only complaint about the story was the way it ended. There are some unresolved questions but I wondered if that was by design. This is the first of a series and the second book is available. Portal Arcane 1: Reversion is a great read if you like psychological horror.

I wasn't too sure where this was going when it started and I wasn't really sure that I was going to like it. But, I had promised the author a review and I rarely quit reading something once I've started anyway so I stuck with it and I'm glad that I did.

Preta's Realm isn't the best thing that I've ever come across, but it's a tale that grabs you once it gets going and if it doesn't really pour on the frightening moments, it definitely delivers on gore and tension. Not for the weak of stomach, J. Thorn has filled this short novel to the brim with nauseating, disgusting imagary, brutal murders and sexual encounters, and an unhealthy dosage of violence. Everything that a good shock novel should have.

My main problem with the novel is that I truly disliked the main character from the beginning. I thought that he was an ass from page one on, so I really didn't feel any sympathy towards him when the crap (almost literally) began to hit the fan.

Overall, I found this to be an entertaining, fast-paced read and would give further material from J. Thorn a shot in the future.½