Sparrow visits the cold mountain village of Lozere to tell stories, but with a funereal atmosphere hanging over the entire town, the people who live there don’t even seem to notice him.
People are buried with their eyes open. There are also cords in their coffins they can use to ring a bell just in case they’re not really dead. Not really dead? That such a mistake could be made is nightmarish in itself.
Children silently play tag or have snowball fights. Are normal children ever quiet when playing? Unless they are having a contest to see who can be the quietest, it isn’t normal for them.
And a wolf is stalking the inhabitants.
Every inhabitant has been suffering from nightmares. There’s enough strange stuff going on in the town that it’s really not surprising the children have nightmares.
The last performer who was there suggested ways to ease the nightmares in the children, but he ended up fleeing the town.
Sparrow is gifted with this guy’s trailer that was left behind as payment for telling the children a story. One of the items left in this magnificent wagon was a bunch of eyeless masks. These come in handy later though.
But no matter how unsettled the town leaves Sparrow, he keeps returning. And every time he visits, he collects more stories.
The mystery and suspense of this story will be sure to keep your interest. An ominous shadow lingers in the background on every page. I knew something strange was going on, but until it was revealed just what it was, I had no clue.
The author recommends you read one chapter a night from his book. I did not always do this. If time allowed, I read more than one chapter, but sometimes time only allowed for me to read part of a chapter.
I was sent a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review. If you would like to read about the strange village of Lozere where nightmares reign, I’ve provided an Amazon link for you below.
Amazon Link: Episodic Sleep Disorders
Favorite Sentences:
Although outwardly I tried to remain composed, the silence and inactivity of this town was definitely unnerving me.
Homes had doorbells for those who wished to enter; now tombs had doorbells for those who wished to leave.
I was honestly beginning to question whether I was in fact invisible to the denizens of this town.
Stiff strands of wheat slapped my face and stabbed at my eyes as I raced away from my unidentified hunter.
New Words Learned:
anomic aphasia – a language disorder that leads to trouble naming objects when speaking and writing. Brain damage caused by stroke, traumatic injury, or tumors can lead to anomic aphasia.
https://www.healthline.com/health/anomic-aphasia
ergotism – a condition caused by eating rye or some other grain that is infected with ergot fungus or by taking an overdose of a medicine containing ergot, characterized by cramps, spasms, and a form of gangrene.
indolence – laziness
tulpa – a magical creature that attains corporeal reality, having been originally merely imaginary
About the Author:
Ethan reads all the time, and writes so that you can read. He travels the world, ignoring the usual boundaries of space and time, collecting stories, which he loves to tell almost as much as Sparrow himself does.
Thanks for this excellent review!