Dastardly Bastard [Kindle Edition]

Do you like fast-paced stories? Do you like getting to know characters, almost as if they are your friends? Do you like mysterious villains who are real bastards? Yeah? Well, then you're going to like this book.

A group of strangers come together for a hike around Waverly Chasm, a natural depression in the ground (think combination Mammoth Cave and Grand Canyon but smaller), but they fall into a trap of sorts laid by an evil that has been waiting for such an opportunity. Not all will survive the journey forced upon these characters, but those who do will be stronger and better for it. Wait? Did I say "survive?" Mwahahahahahahaha! Who's going to survive?

With plots and characters reminiscent of Stephen King, and a style of prose reminding one of Richard Laymon, the author Edward Lorn will be worth watching in the future.

This book is prefaced with a poem which begins, "The Dastardly Bastard of Waverly Chasm does gleefully scheme of malevolent things..." Thus is set the tense, suspenseful tone that the author manages to retain perfectly throughout this book, which follows seven people on a nightmarish journey to what should be a routine tourist destination.

The characters face real and imagined horrors, unable to distinguish between the two. Could there be a fate much more brutal than having to relive one's most terrible, devastating memories - sometimes cruelly altered to be even worse than the original event? Will the characters' memories be the key to their salvation, or to their doom? Who/what is the origin of the Monster? What sustains it? Who will succumb to it and who will survive? The reader is pulled into this tale as inexorably as the characters are pulled into the Dastardly Bastard's world.

The story is told from the perspective of the different characters, and these transitions are perfectly timed and add freshness and interest to the narrative. Most chapters end in cliffhanger fashion, making it almost impossible to put the book down. A very compelling read.

........our memories are the essence of our humanity. Seven strangers come face to face with some of there sweetest and bitterest memories as they hike a beautiful and mysterious place called Waverly Chasm.

Edward Lorn has created a eclectic group of people that are flawed and dealing with issues that they are forced to face when confronted with the "Dastardly Bastard". What is the bastard and why is he trying to destroy the people by distorting their past memories? As the group faces life or death situations they are headed to a direct conformation with the bastard. Who will survive and live to tell the secrets of the Waverly Chasm.

This was a very suspenseful story with lots of emotions from the characters as we learn of their past memories and actions that have make them into who they are today. As their memories are manipulated we see how their humanity is effected.

I really enjoyed the story but I think the characters gave it a more interesting perfective. Mark is a 500lb overweight male, Donald a dwarf, Justine and Tyler a mixed race couple and Marsha a recent widow with a young son trying to deal with their lost.

Another area that I think gave this book an interesting touch for me is that it was set in and around Bay's End, the setting for Edward Loren's first book. If you haven't read it, I high recommend it and be prepared for lots of thrills an unexpected ending. In my opinion, we a very good new author in the horror genre.

Thank you so much for the gift of this book and the opportunity to voice my opinion.