Everyone has a hobby, an activity or interest they pursue for pleasure and/or relaxation. Michael’s mom has a hobby that is more than a bit unusual. Her hobby, the thing that gives her pleasure, is killing girls.
Full of blood and gore, child abduction, abuse, cannibalism, and more, this book will keep you turning the page to see what happens next. If you have a weak stomach, I would advise staying away from this one. I live on the outskirts of the Appalachians, and I know that there are some deviant people that live deep in these mountains. The Morrows, the family in this book, are at the top of that list. They are not the kind of people I would want as neighbors.
Raised by this family with a taste for blood, killing, and the taste of human meat, Michael doesn’t feel like he belongs. This family doesn’t have much, so the majority of their food doesn’t come from the grocery store. They hunt and kill it.
Michael longs to get away from them, to not hear the screams and pleas for help that come from these women as his mom and brother torment and kill them. When they yell for his help, it means that the victim has escaped, and Michael must chase after and catch her. Does he like doing this? No, but he does it to keep his family from getting in trouble.
His older brother, Reb, tells Michael that he must obey him and only him. Michael does as he says, but he never questions why. Maybe he should have. The one he gets along withand actually has feelings for is his sister, Misty. She also happens to be the one that is usually the target of his mom’s vicious temper and physical abuse.
Michael’s birthday, or at least the day the Morrows have chosen to be his birthday, is approaching. His brother is preparing a special birthday surprise for him, one that will answer all the questions that have been running through his mind. And this surprise horrifies him more than anything else he has experienced.
I received an ARC of this book from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review. If you would like a copy of this book to read on a dark night, I have provided an Amazon link for it below.
Amazon Link: Brother
Favorite Sentences:
I read an ARC of this awesome book. Below are some of my favorite sentences. Since they were taken from an advance copy of the book, these sentences may be different in the final edition of the book.
The girl staggered away from him, her bare feet bloody, dead leaves clinging to the sticky bottoms like makeshift shoes.
He felt like he’d swallowed a family of squirming eels, all of them collectively trying to gnaw their way out of his belly with tiny needle teeth.
If that house were alive, it would feed on happiness and breathe out nothing but screaming and hate.
It was a comic wisecrack, a dirty trick that was made that much more wicked because nobody knew it was being played.
New Word Learned:
redolent – strongly reminiscent or suggestive of something
About the Author:
Ania Ahlborn is the bestselling author of the horror thrillers The Pretty Ones, Within These Walls, The Bird Eater, The Shuddering, The Neighbors, and Seed. Born in Ciechanow, Poland, she lives in Portland, Oregon, with her husband and their dog. Visit http://www.aniaahlborn.com or follow the author on Facebook and Twitter.
