My Camo Colored Life: suspense

The Unseen by T.L. Hines

Have you ever felt like someone was watching you? Have you ever looked up or turned around and found no one there? Have you ever felt the eyes of someone who wasn’t there boring into you? T.L. Hines has brought new meaning to these feelings of paranoia.

Above ceiling tiles, behind closet doors, and atop elevators hides Lucas; watching. Lucas watches others while they work and interact. He creates histories and stories for these individuals. He takes a memento from each of his targets; a picture, a favored scarf, some precious object.

Raised in an orphanage outside the Washington D.C. area, Lucas discovered his love of watching others from the roof outside the windows of the orphanage. He watched as the children interacted and played. He watched as the caregivers searched for him. Always watching, never being. Lucas does not technically exist. However, the life Lucas has always known is about to change drastically and his existence will no longer be hidden. A chance encounter begins to unravel a world of deceit, conspiracy, and treachery that Lucas never believed could exist. Lucas discovers that he is not the only person who watches. He finds a group of people who have crossed the line and who must be stopped.

Lucas is quickly submerged into a world of lies, creepers, and murder. His existence is made extremely public. He has become the target. The deception peels away like layers of an onion and finally reveals a terrifying link to Lucas’s past.

When I started this book I couldn’t help but look up at my heating vents. I am thankful that I do not have tiles in my ceiling. The book began to drag in the middle but picked up shortly after I got bored. Once the tangle of lies began to be unknotted I could not put the book down. I also can’t stop thinking about it! I think everyone must read this book. Maybe these people are really out there.

To read this book is to look over your shoulder. Each turn of the page makes the reader feel less and less alone. Each new description of the “observation decks” created by these people instigates another bout of paranoia and raises questions. Am I being watched? Is someone there? Someone who wishes to remain…unseen?

Heart-Shaped Box by Joe Hill

This is the debut novel by the author Joe Hill. One of the worst kept secrets in publishing history is that Joe Hill is Stephen King’s son.

When I first finished the book, I was talking to my hubby about it. My first impression was: “eh, it’s pretty good, nothing to rave about, but not a complete waste of time either…” Now that I have had a few hours to think about it I believe my initial reaction was a little hasty. In the words of Treebeard “Don’t be hasty, Barrum.” Hahaha…I know, I’m a goofball. I mean, I did finish the book in two days…I couldn’t put it down. So that must say something about it, right?

I began reading this book because a few of my friends had been enthusiastic about it. One of my friends told me not to read it at night because it was so spooky. The book is about an aging Death Metal vocalist who likes to collect things that are…less than ordinary. He learns of a ghost for sale through the internet. He decides not to bid on it and simply buys it outright. The owner sends him a suit the spirit is claimed to be attached to. Well, he definitely got what he paid for and more…

The beginning of the book, when the main character-Jude, sees the ghost is a little creepy, but if you are looking for a scary book, you will have to look elsewhere. Although, Otty says I have been ruined for scary stories…This was a good ghost story though. The book contained a few ghosts, an Ouija board, and a number of possessions.

Jude was a sarcastic ass, so naturally, I loved him! The character development was good. The book was well written and edited (I did not find any grammatical errors or typos).

Music was impressed upon the reader throughout the entire book, including the acknowledgements. Music seemed to be its own character after a while. One of the main concepts is that music helps keep a person grounded and helps them to remember who they are.

There was one thing I did not like about the book. The author seemed to believe that the only reason for the girls in the story to be “Goth” is because of some childhood trauma such as molestation or abuse. He claims that the piercings these girls get are to hide the pain of the unendurable abuse that they cannot face. To me, this is a stereotypical view of a culture the author, obviously, does not comprehend.

All in all I would have to say it was an enjoyable read. If Joe Hill continues in this vein, I suspect we can expect remarkable horror stories from him.

Heart of Darkness by Joseph Conrad

The story is basically Marlow at a dinner party reminiscing about his first time at sea and is largely autobiographical. Marlow tells the tale about the ill-fated voyage to the East and the transportation of the ship’s cargo (coal). Though every bad thing that could have happened to this ship did, all the seamen survived and Marlow remained in good spirits through the entire journey—though that could have been misrepresented in the retelling due to the massive amounts of alcohol Marlow was consuming during the narrative.

I was a little disappointed in the Heart of Darkness. I think mostly because I was looking for a horror story, and this story definitely was not it.

The story is supposed to be disturbing. I told Otty that I did not find the tale to be unsettling and he reminded me that I need to remember when it was written. I am usually good at putting myself in the context of when the story was written, which this one was written in the late 1800’s. I think my problem with the story is that yes, the heart of darkness was a destination, but it was the people that made it so. The greed and desperation of man is what the heart of darkness truly contained. I believe I am unimpressed with this book because man has not changed in the last 100 years. Man is still just as greedy today and he was then, if not more so. Now, the deeds of men (the darkness of men) are normal practice. Maybe I am just terribly jaded.

I did not find inspiration from Joseph Conrad’s prose either. For the most part, I felt that his writing was somewhat flat and unimaginative. I did however; thoroughly enjoy what is called Conrad’s “delayed decoding.” Ian Watt describes this as “the verbal equivalent of the impressionist painter’s attempt to render visual sensation directly…present[ing] a sense impression and…withhold[ing] naming it or explaining its meaning until later.”

Though I was not thrilled with the book, I am still glad that I read it. The Heart of Darkness is one of the classic literature pieces that being able to say you have read is always respectable.

Blaze by Richard Bachman

You know how, when you meet an exceptional person, you feel honored to have been able to know them? You feel that you were lucky to have known them, to have been able to glimpse their life, to have been a part of it. Well, that is how I feel about Blaze. I feel honored to have known him for such a short time. I feel I was entrusted with the secrets of his past and his innermost thoughts, feelings, and fears.

Richard Bachman is one of Stephen King’s alter-ego’s I guess you could say. The story of Clayton Blaisdell Jr. (aka Blaze) was almost never published. The foreword of the book is by Stephen King himself, and it tells of how the manuscript had been sitting in a box since the 70’s. King would take it out on occasion, read it, and deem it worthless. Finally, he took it out, read it, and thought it was a pretty good story. I, for one, am glad he published this book.

The very first page of the book is a small excerpt from the story. It introduces you to Blaze. Actually, it is not as much about Blaze as it is about another kid, but it gives you a glimpse of the voyage you are about to embark on. After this small paragraph are the title page, copyright page, dedications, and foreword. Then, the real story begins…

The story is about Blaze, a simple-minded giant of a man with a heart bigger than thought capability. Blaze was not always this “dumb,” this was a gift from his drunken, abusive father. Blaze was never the leader in a group. He was never the thinker. He ran cons with guys who were smarter than him. However, when his friend George gets himself killed in a betting game, Blaze is left to think on his own. He decides to continue with George’s “one big con, and then out” scheme. He kidnaps the 6-month old baby of an extremely wealthy family. The idea is to get a large ransom for the child and then he can retire.

The book jumps from Blaze’s childhood to the present situation. As you are reading about his plans to kidnap the baby, you are learning how he came to this point.

I could not help but feel compassion for this big bear of a man. I found myself angry at the way he was treated by the adults in his life as he was growing up. I wanted this man to succeed. I knew throughout the book that kidnapping a baby was wrong, and I knew he would have to be caught…it would have to end. But I could not help wanting him to do well, to be okay.

Blaze was an amazing person (character). Again, I feel lucky to have accompanied him on his journey, however miserable it may have been.

There is a story at the end of this book. It is a glimpse of the next Stephen King book that will be published in 2008. I am choosing not to read this story. I do not want anything to take away from Blaze right now. I want to continue feeling close to him for the moment.