(4/16/2015)
I don't really like to compare authors, but I can't help but think that Brendan Duffy may be the next Stephen King. House of Echoes was drenched in the atmosphere of its setting, a sprawling house from the Colonial period located above a strange and unwelcoming village, bordered by an isolated forest and difficult-to-navigate mountain roads. The last place to exude such presence was perhaps King's Overlook Hotel from The Shining. Now, add to that sense of place a troubled marriage, mental illness, a child who follows something strange into the woods, and macabre items left for discovery, and there are all of the ingredients for a chilling novel of believable horror. I was transported back to the 1980's when I was a teen and sat on my bed reading "scary books" all day long. Keep an eye out for Brendan Duffy!