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| Review
By Nancy Jackson The Ravenous By T.M. Gray ISBN 0974768057 KHP Industries www.khpinsdustries.com $20.00 250 pages Forget environment-friendly “save the trees” slogans. Once you venture into the realm of The Ravenous, you will find it’s about survival and obeying the laws of nature. T.M. Gray thrusts us into a supernatural journey complete with sacrifices, forest gods, cults and horrific imagery that will keep you up long into the night. In the small quiet town of Gotham Creek, Maine, rare trees grow to twice their normal size. In fact, just as rare is finding them on any map. Outsiders are not welcome. The resident doctor, known for more than just curing the sick, and delivering babies, is up to something far more sinister. It seems he will go to any length to protect the town and its dirty secrets. With a plethora of concoctions he calls medicine, many are kept unaware of the raw truth, and believe only what they are told. One boy in particular, holds a potent ability to hear the chants and calls of the trees. Plagued with headaches and ears that bleed, he may very well know too much. Specific sets of rules are followed in the town, or a heavy price is paid. Based on the ancient Druidism ways, every ten years a human is sacrificed to the sacred woods. The ritual is to be considered a privilege and high honor, not something to be feared. Once the name of the “chosen” is revealed, the fate of one is decided, and cannot be altered. With the Samhain festival on its way, mysterious things happen, deaths occur, and the trees begin their feast. Two men, strangers to Gotham Creek, venture into the forest and come up missing; adding to a list that has been steadily growing for a number of years. With a concern for unwanted publicity, the doctor takes a stand. The Ravenous creates an eerie ambience, and sets a pace that is a steady nail-biter. Each character is given a strong introduction, and it is their complexity that drives this story forward. There is far more here than the element of horror. Imagery of the trees, how they breathe and come to life, and what drives them to feast, all provide an experience that reaches far into the darkest crevices of your mind. Character dialogue, development, and visual description, bring this story validity and intelligence. T.M. Gray’s writing sweeps you in and invites you to stay, with words that will disturb and decay your mind. I consider her a valuable asset in the genre of horror and dark fiction, and look forward to reading many more of her published works. |
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