Book Review – Disappearance at Devil’s Rock: A Novel by Paul Tremblay

It’s a long time since a book has made my skin crawl and my eyes well with tears of terror, but this one did just that. It totally creeped me out, especially as I couldn’t put it down and ended up reading it in the middle of the night when the house was dark and everyone else was asleep. I found myself peering over my kindle into the darkness looking for unnatural or unfamiliar shadows and edging closer and closer to the comforting warmth of my husband’s sleeping form beside me.

Tommy, a thirteen-year-old boy, disappears in mysterious circumstances that become increasingly disturbing as the story progresses and his mother discovers more and more about her son and the events leading up to his disappearance. The book hints at a number of possible explanations ranging from a tragic accident or suicide to the possible involvement of evil monsters and demons or other sinister and paranormal forces.

For me, the power of the book lies in the economic subtlety of the writing, the wonderfully authentic characterisation, the widely varying and different perspectives, the mix of vehicles the author uses to provide us with insight and information, the disquieting visual images, the slow and terrifying reveal, the shocking climax, and the ambiguity that haunts the reader long after the book is finished.

A brilliant read! I read it in two spine-tingling late-night sessions. I couldn’t recommend it more – unless of course you are of a nervous disposition!