Melody Writes

Jack and his brother, Dan, have had a difficult life. Both of their parents died and the brothers were placed with foster parents, who aren’t cruel, but tend to be absent. This has driven them to rely primarily on each other to navigate life. That’s why when Jack starts noticing supernatural monsters in their small town, he turns to his brother, even though Dan is a skeptic and dismisses his fears. But even skeptics can’t ignore everything. Dan can’t resist being sucked into this mystery and the strange happenings around town.  That’s how I felt as a reader. At first, I was a bit apprehensive of the story. Jack is a unique teenager. A bit of an old soul and I wasn’t sure what to make of him. But as the story progressed, the creepiness of the creatures in their town, the mystery of a killer draining people of Vitamin D, and the detailed descriptions pulled me in.  Thomas gives the reader an engaging mystery with excellent atmosphere, and a strong bond between two brothers. I was able to

Another post from my old "Read Stephen King in Order project":   Original review written December 18, 2014: There is an old joke I've heard plenty of times - that Stephen King just picks a random object and then writes about it being scary. It's not a very funny one and I think it's supposed to imply that he's formulaic, but I never really understood it until now after just finishing Night Shift. I had not read any of these stories before and I can't say I was overly enthralled by most of them. A good number of the stories here fit "what if this normal thing was suddenly scary?" premise including items such as trucks, toy soldiers, a ledge, corn, and a lawnmower. The truck story and the one about the lawnmower are especially bizarre. A nice feature of the book is three stories that tie into some of King's other works - the two that bookend 'Salem's Lot and another that offers a little taste of the world The Stand. I liked the foll

  Happy April Fools - and a reminder to be careful of those pranks.    The Party    Abby knew the invitation was fake, but she went anyway. Three years of invisibility at this school, and suddenly,  the popular girls want to be friends?     Sure.     Lurking outside the window, Abby can hear their laughter and mockery.     “When is Flabby Abby getting here?”     “Is the camera ready?”     They were the authors of the viral humiliation series called “The April Fools”. Abby had seen them all.  When her invitation came, she invited the victims along. Together, they circled the house, ensuring all the exits were blocked.     Ensuring that when Abby started the fire, no one would be able to escape.     Originally published in April Horrors by Raven and Drake Publishing