Pages

Thursday 17 January 2013

Beyond by Graham McNamee

review by Maryom

Jane has always had a shadowy figure lurking at the back of her mind, encouraging her to do stupid things that have brought her close to death several times. Although dismissed by her parents and doctors as accidents, Jane knows that her 'shadow' is controlling her actions and forcing her to do these things. Now in her teens, Jane has decided that enough is enough; that she will end up dead if she can't free herself from the ghostly presence. With her friend, Lexi, she tries to find out who or what may be haunting her mind but they end up on the trail of a far more substantial serial killer -  and in danger of a very different kind.

Beyond is an excellent gripping supernatural thriller, playing on our fears of what may lie in wait after death, with the added 'bonus' of a real-life killer thrown in as well.  It's wonderfully atmospheric - conjuring up both the shadowy half-world of Jane's mind and the real Canadian Raincoast setting of dark forest cloaked in almost perpetual rain where events are played out.  I complain that a lot of ghost or horror stories miss their mark for me - possibly by trying too hard - but this one hit it.
Although aimed at the teen/YA age group, I'm sure this will appeal to older readers who like a scary read with less gore than some adult horror.

Maryom's review - 4.5 stars
Publisher - Hodder Children's Books
Genre -
Teen/YA, horror, supernatural, thriller
 

Buy Beyond from Amazon


Other reviews; The Overflowing Library

No comments:

Post a Comment