Sour Candy Paperback – Import, 6 November 2017

Fast read, that draws you in. Thoroughly enjoyable.

The cover and title of this novella caught my attention right away -- the searing red, the deer-skulled being, and the title almost ridiculously at odds with the apparent horror content within. And this being October, it seemed like the perfect opportunity to read something on the frightening side. "Sour Candy" is a short read, but it's definitely menacing, showing how one person's life can go so catastrophically wrong and giving us a taste of Lovecraftian horror alongside one of the creepiest children I've ever met in literature.An ordinary trip to the grocery store turns Phil's life into a nightmare after he encounters a disturbing child... and said child latches onto him in the worst way. Now everyone on Phil's life is convinced that the child is his, despite the fact that he's never met the child before today. The boy dominates Phil's life, demanding all his attention, even dictating his diet of sour candy... and giving him glimpses of a terrifying world beyond our own. If Phil is to stop this nightmare world from touching ours -- and the boy from destroying his life -- he may have to do the unthinkable...Kealan writes well, maintaining a clean and uncluttered writing style that focuses on crafting a plot and characters rather than flowery description and wordplay. I love beautiful description and wordplay, but in a story like this it would just interfere with the story and the buildup of tension. Some of the events feel a little clunky and forced, but for the most part the story flows well and builds up to a chilling climax.It helps that Phil, the main character, is a well-done character, an everyman of sorts who isn't perfect but is still a decent enough human being that we can empathize with him. Adam, the child character, is pretty much every creepy child cliche wrapped up in one and no personality beyond that, but given that he's more of a plot device than a character, that's understandable."Sour Candy" is a short read, but a chilling one, and Keanan Burke is shaping up to be a strong name in the horror genre. If you love your horror with a splash of cosmic influence and creepy children, give this a read.

From outward appearances, Phil and his son Adam are like any ordinary family doing ordinary things. But Phil is a prisoner and up until a couple of weeks ago, he didn’t have a son. A chance encounter at a Walmart has left Phil questioning his sanity. Who or what exactly is Adam?At under 100 pages, this was such a fun and creepy read. I loved the concept and lets face it, creepy kids add that extra bit of terror. I can still eat sour candy but I will certainly run the other direction from a screaming kid in a candy isle!

Eu não conhecia a obra de Kealan Patrick Burke e confesso que foi uma ótima surpresa. Neste livro ele traz um suspense bastante inspirado no horror cósmico de Lovecraft. O principal ponto positivo é como o autor consegue nos passar uma sensação angustiante por meio do uso competente do aspecto subjetivo do personagem.Nesta obra o personagem principal tem sua vida mudada quando encontra uma criança sinistra em um mercado. A partir dali a criança se insere em sua vida e começa a alterar a realidade ao redor... das piores maneiras possíveis. Recomendo.

This short story threw me through a wringer, and made me feel so incredibly anxious throughout, I LOVED it - perfect short horror!