Ok, this is the second time that I have attempted to read this book. I maybe got a little bit further this time around but not much. Although, I found Kanga and Bobby interesting it was not enough for me to stick with this book. Especially when I was expecting an horror story. Ok, to be honest, maybe the horror does come in later but I stuck with this book for 13 chapters and there was nothing but a lot of talk. Not even talk about the halfway house, expect for that brief mention of it on the last page of chapter 11, which was 96 pages into the story. Whatever secrets the house holds I will never know. This could have been a good book but there needed to be more mention of the house and the evil it held in the early chapters to keep me intrigued. ( )

I'm not quite sure what to say - I enjoyed the supernatural aspects, the sense of community among the characters... I think the Elvis thing threw me, and not in a good way. Also, I did find I wished that (spoiler) could have saved everybody. It just seemed the book went the default route at the end. ( )

This is the tale of an adult orphan (the possible son of famed Rock and Roll legend Elvis), who has made his was to San Pedro, a suburb of LA. In LA he takes up residence with an old surfer, Kanga, falls in love with Kanga's daughter, and gets mixed up with a violent gang war between Mexicans and El Salvadorian gangs. Then of course is the paranormal plot line--turns out this old witch (who once stopped a Japanese attack on the continental US) is collecting all of the souls of the residents of San Pedro and keeping them in a purgatory of the Halfway House. This is where she gains her power and how she continues.


If it sounds like there is a little too much going on, it's because there is.

i really wanted to like this book--and by the looks of the other reviewers, many did. I think that for me there is just too much going on to fully develop everything. It was a little too fantastical for me, but it may be just right for you. There are some good moments and glimpses into the characters that make it a worthy read. ( )

I like to read, but this book couldn't hold my attention. It had too much going on and it made it a bit A.D.D. I like the writing just wished the plot had stayed on track and not wandered. ( )

The description of this book made it seem interesting - an epileptic loner out to see if he really is the son of The King of Rock and Roll (Elvis), but unfortunately the author's writing style was not one I liked. The story was ok, but I wouldn't read anything else by Ochse, he's just not for me; however, others could find he's their favorite author. ( )