Elias Witherow

Suicide—Nick and Jess think it will end their suffering: “There wasn’t anything to be afraid of. The monsters were all on this side of life. What awaited us was blissful nothing, an unaware existence of absolute emptiness. No more worries…no more stress…everything would float away like sticks in a river.” But unfortunately (for them, and for us readers as well) the suffering is only now about to begin because they reawaken on the Black Farm, which is where God sends suicides to be punished.
    It’s fairly tepid stuff though, mostly: horror-fiction without the horror. There are lots (lots) of fight-sequences, and the relationship between Nick and Jess (axe-wielding hero and near-helpless damsel-in-distress) is cringe-inducing. Some of the wording is poor too and, overall, this reads like the sort of thing a teenager would write, then self-publish it and, years later, wish to the same God they hadn’t.… (mais)