Ghoul

This was my first book by Mr. Keene and won’t be my last! This coming of age story of three boys, Barry, Doug and Timmy are out for the summer, 12 years old in the glorious 1980’s. Timmy looks forward to adventure and fun with his best friends when something awakens in the graveyard where they like to play. This ghoul is not playing.. it’s out for new domination of its territory. The background is grim as two of the boys suffer horrible abuse by their parents, tied together by a bond of friendship only the young can manage. They face the unspeakable of not of only the supernatural horror but of of watching childhood innocence crumble around them. No spoilers. The action was non-stop, the characters were real as well as the monsters.. human and not. I’ll be piling up on my TBR with more by Mr. Keene. Read immediately!!

GHOUL by Brian Keene centers on three boys at the beginning of their summer break: Timmy, Doug and Barry. People are going missing, the cemetery is falling apart, and summer is becoming one long nightmare. Timmy makes several horrific discoveries, and he thinks something evil living underneath the graveyard. Unfortunately, the adults won't listen to a twelve year old kid, and the other two boys have their own monsters to deal with.The author delivers more than one monster in this novel, and the creature devouring corpses is not the most sinister threat. For a kid, being violated by the people you are supposed to be able to trust is worse than a demon from folklore. Keene uses suspense and family drama to bury readers in hopeless terror.This is a great story to get in the mood for Halloween, and the perfect gift for a horror fan.

This book has long been in my top 3 favorites by Mr. Keene. It's a true coming of age tale, where three boys realize that not only are there human monsters, some in the form of their own parents, but real monsters who they will have to also battle against. What made this such a great book for me, was the friendship between these boys, and how much they truly care about each other. They're funny, gross, and wonderfully naive at times. It very much reminded me of how I was at that age. I was very much a tom-boy, and did everything these kids did...except fighting ghouls! Highly recommended.

Being new to Brian Keene's books, I was recommended Ghoul by my mother who is an avid horror reader as being a "MUST READ". Usually she's right but man was did this book take me by surprise. It's one part Stand by Me, one part IT, mixed in with a fully fleshed out story that feels authentic and visceral. The contrast from childhood innocence and true horrors (those both human and other alike) truly make this book worth investing in. The characters are believable and genuine, and the "monsters" things made from nightmares. I won't give anything away, but I must say that this was a well worth read and I can't wait to see what other treasures Mr. Keene has in his collection.

Having only read The Complex previously, I'm becoming a Brian Keene fan more and more after reading Ghoul. His words flow like a film projection and his ability to tell a story is top notch.The characters Timmy, Barry, and Doug are just like the kids I grew up with. Although the ghoul is a mythical monster, Keene writes the monster and story with much realism. I enjoyed every minute of this story and gobbled it up in a few days, much like I did with The Complex.

I enjoyed the coming-of-age elements of this story better than the monster element. I think the book is stronger for it, and it sets up a gut-punch of an ending.

This feels like Keene's homage to coming-of-age literature, and reads like it, too. I kept thinking about "Stand By Me" as I read this novel. The characters, in their 12 year-old like ways felt very real to me, and I was disturbed with the different occurrences that happen to them during the course of this book. I am a Brian Keene fan, and in my quest to read all of his books this is just another check-off in the list. But I have to say that I greatly enjoyed this one, especially in it's change of pace from the author's other stuff. It was a fun read, quick, but also so very entertaining. I can't wait to read another one!

I liked this books plot, very creepy. Love the cemetery setting, and of course loved the ending! The only things I didn't enjoy: It seemed like there was a lot of writing that wasn't needed in the middle of the book (a lot of stuff that didn't mean anything about the story line, but being a brian keene fan I had to finish it, and I'm happy I did. Other unpleasant thing: The animal abuse, I had to skip that section, but that's just me.