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Mr. Shivers Review

For reasons obvious once read, Mr. Shivers reminds me of The Blasters "Dark Night":

"Hot air hangs like a dead man
From an white oak tree..."

Mr. Shivers is an amazing novel. That it is a debut book makes it all the more impressive.

In the over stocked shelves of new fiction, Mr. Bennett stands out far above the rest; like an elephant charging at you through a field of wheat.

I was unsure if I wanted to buy this book until I started reading the first couple of pages. There is zero doubt that Mr. Bennett can write. His prose is crisp, original, vivid, poetic and terse. No wasted words. Every syllable is there for a reason.

The book just drags you down into the dark further and further. You hardly want to grab the sides of the tunnel you're sliding down (not that it would do any good anyway) but you welcome the plunge into the abyss.

In the late 80's and early 90's this would have been labeled "dark fantasy". If Cormic McCarthy had penned it they would label it "literature". Take your pick. I just call it great writing.

Grab a copy and enjoy. Bennett is a fresh voice worth listening to.

Mr. Shivers Feature

ISBN13: 9780316054690
Condition: New
Notes: BRAND NEW FROM PUBLISHER! BUY WITH CONFIDENCE, Over one million books sold! 98% Positive feedback. Compare our books, prices and service to the competition. 100% Satisfaction Guaranteed

Mr. Shivers Overview

It is the time of the Great Depression.

Thousands have left their homes looking for a better life, a new life. But Marcus Connelly is not one of them. He searches for one thing, and one thing only: Revenge.

Because out there, riding the rails, stalking the camps, is the scarred vagrant who murdered Connelly's daughter.

One man must face a dark truth and answer the question - how much is he willing to sacrifice for his satisfaction?

Mr. Shivers Specifications

Amazon Best Books of the Month, January 2010: With his debut novel, Mr. Shivers, Southern writer Robert Jackson Bennett presents a pulpy, Great Depression horror story where a mysterious killer "trails death behind him." After his daughter is brutally murdered, a revenge-seeking Marcus Connelly leaves Memphis on a hunt across America's hobo camps and ghost towns for the grotesquely scarred, ghostly figure known as "Mr. Shivers." On his quest Connelly teams up with a scrappy band of hobos recovering from their own brushes with "the gray man," and the body count increases as they ride the rails tracking their target. Connelly's spiraling bloodlust begins to rival Shivers's, threatening to take more than just his family and friends away from him. Sprinkled with hobo folklore, Bennett's supernatural dust storm of a debut offers a killer premise and may remind readers of vintage Stephen King. --Brad Thomas Parsons

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Customer Reviews

Chilling - Rie Sheridan Rose - Austin, Tx United States
I loved this book. I had serious trouble putting it down. The language was extremely poetic, and evocative, and that was one of the things I loved about it. Some reviewers have groused about the complexity and depth of characters, but to me, it was a dark fantasy allegory, and the characters were exactly as deep as they needed to be. Even the minor characters were painted with deft brushstrokes--they might not have been fully developed, but they were all memorable. Although there were few real surprises as far as the through-line of the plot went, the story moved at a swift pace, and kept me turning pages. All in all, this was an impressive debut, and I am looking forward to Bennett's next offering.

Loses Strength and Direction - Jeffrey Swystun - Ottawa & New York
Bennett's first novel is a fine effort that cannot sustain itself. Set during the Great Depression, he uses that backdrop to create a dark and disturbing landscape of a country and people battling economic hardship. Given the despair, many fall back on superstition and folk tales. Among those is the creepy Mr. Shivers who may or may not be a real man. Finding him and ultimately dealing with him is the quest of the main character Marcus Connelly who has had his life ruined by the scar-faced man.

It reminded me of The Odyssey or more accurately the Coen brothers movie treatment of the same, O Brother, Where Art Thou?. Connelly and his band of fellow victims track Mr. Shivers across dust bowl America and are confronted by a series of strange characters along the way. I would give the first half of the book a five star rating but unfortunately the last half falls apart due to both supernatural explanations and unnecessary plot devices. It seems the author lost his way along with Marcus and could not maintain the tone, suspense, and more engaging rationale that commenced the book.

Know What You're Getting Into - Jay-Z Fetish - Missoula, MT
Most of the bad reviews I read stated that they didn't initially understand that it would contain some supernatural elements, so they were lost when they got to that part. Having expected it, I really enjoyed it. I really enjoyed the characters, and while their histories weren't always entirely fleshed out, it was made clear that this was on purpose--the characters themselves were driven by the fact that their histories were something they were looking to avenge, but not talk about. There is also a slow spot just before the climax, where the main character Connelly is left reeling so the ending sort of sneaks up on you, but I actually kind of enjoyed that as well.

I definitely enjoyed the first full length novel from Jackson. Having been a fan of his previous work, it was nice to see something longer and more substantial, and I can't wait for more.

Creepy and Suspenseful - Jessica Tate - Texas
The story starts the reader off thinking that Connelly is after a serial killer. The plot is very suspenseful and keeps the reader wondering where the man out for vengeance will go next. It takes place during The Great Depression so traveling by train and meandering as a hobo was a constant part of the story. Connelly is a strong character with much depth. The reader feels his pain and relates to him in wanting to get revenge on Mr. Shivers.

The supporting characters were a little more shallow and not as developed. At times there were too many characters for the reader to keep up with.

All in all, this book was very well written. It creeped me out and that takes a lot for a book to do that to me. I will be looking into more books by this author.

*** Product Information and Prices Stored: Oct 24, 2010 02:30:06

Books Literature & Fiction

Sunday, October 24, 2010