Book Review: Curse of the Reaper by Brian McAuley
Genre: Horror
Age: Adult
Format: Audiobook
This was quite an interesting read, not the kind that pulls the rug out and totally surprises you in the third act, but one that’s a bit more quiet with the horror, more psychological as Howard Browning – star of the franchise ‘Night of the Reaper’ – deals with the series getting a reboot, with former child-star Trevor Mane, recovering from a recent stint in rehab, taking on Browning’s most famous role.
We get both Howard and Trevor’s POVs telling us the story, and McAuley does a brilliant job of making them distinctive, each with their own voices, and allowing us to really get into their heads to understand what they’re both dealing with. While Howard deals with his aging mind, he finds he’s not the only one in his head, with the character he created gradually taking over. There’s a question hanging over Howard, on whether or not he is slowly being possessed by the Reaper, or if it’s his own mind gradually getting worse. The uncertainty keeps the tension high.
I really love Hollywood based novels, across different genres, but there’s something extra special about Hollywood Horror, and Curse of the Reaper explores both ends of the Hollywood actor age spectrum – the aging star who can do little but survive off signing autographs and attending dwindling horror cons, and the former child star looking to relaunch his career. The role is important to both of them, for very different reasons, and as we switch between the two there are real moments of sadness, of a sense that if they weren’t competing for this particular role, they could have become friends. Trevor clearly (initially) has a lot of respect for Howard, but to Howard, Trevor is nothing but a threat.
The dynamic works, and McAuley strikes a good balance between the pair, as well as a knack of carefully plotting out the overall tension. A good read, and one I think many horror fans will enjoy.
I read Curse of the Reaper for the ‘Don’t Fear – ‘Reaper’ in the title’ prompt in our DHR Reading Challenge – check out our Challenge page to find out more and see how you can take part.
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Review by Elle Turpitt
Twitter: @elleturpitt
Bluesky: @elleturpitt.bsky.social
I purchased this audiobook.
