Junior Advisor's Review
Reviewed by JAB Member Katie Hillman
You wake up on the wrong side of the bed, smacking your nose
against the wall. Your little sister finished off the sugary
cereal, and you have to eat the powdered remains of the bran
flakes. You get a D on your geography test, you trip on your untied
shoe, you get an embarrassing rip through your pants, and it begins
to pour wildly outside just about the time when you realize that
you left your umbrella sitting under your desk at home. You are
having a bad day. When you read what a "bad day" means to the
unfortunate Grubbs Grady, budding hero of Lord Loss,
things will start to look practically peachy!
Grubbs was a normal teenaged boy. Besides having a particularly
morbid sense of humour, he generally acted like any other selfish,
sister-loathing lad… that is, until a vile demon lord took
everything near and dear to him away. Now, after nearly going
insane from the horrors he witnessed, he is entrusted to the care
of his Uncle Dervish; a curious fellow who, besides knowing all
about the occult, wants to help Grubbs know the truth about his
family, a curse, and the demon lord who won't stop until blood is
split… Lord Loss.
Along with his strange new friend Billy (er, 'Bill-E', as he
prefers), Grubbs finds himself heading deeper and deeper into a
world of demons, werewolves, and, in general, the type of beings
one doesn't want to meet in a dark alley (let alone in a sunshiny
field of flowers.) Lord Loss, which is the first novel in
'The Demonata' (a new series by famed horror author Darren
Shan), is a real nail-biter, and if you can handle a hefty splash
of gore and guts and blood (and other pleasant things of that
manner), you're in for a treat.
A macabre little tale, Lord Loss is just right for a
horror craving. With an almost stream of consciousness feel to the
writing, Darren Shan drags you right into his creepy realm, and you
can feel your little hairs rising as Grubbs does. As mentioned, if
you feel the queasiness coming on with the mention of words like
'entrails' and 'bloodletting', I would highly advise steering clear
of Lord Loss. I mean, the first chapter, aptly named 'Rat Guts',
should be proper warning. On the other hand, if you cackle
villainously at the thought, step right up! This isn't a sweet,
cheesy, sappy little story to tug at the heartstrings.
That being said, it weaves a great deal of emotion into the
action. Yes, there are tears with the explosions! Go figure! From
dealing with the brutal murder of his family to trying to survive
his nightmares, we truly feel for Grubbs Grady. While the main
purpose of the book may not be sentiment, it still manages to throw
some into the mix.
While Darren Shan has a knack for vividly describing the, er,
darker things in life (and death, for that matter), I would have
liked to see more character development. Some characters seemed
well fledged, while others simply seemed pasted in to fill up a
gap. Still, there were some memorable individuals (and evil demon
babies!), and some fantastic description.
Lord Loss may not be for the faint of heart, but if you
like a good scare, get your claws into it. In its own evil sort of
way, it's a lot of fun. You may never look at chess the same way
again, though. Just a warning.
From the Publisher
"The door feels red hot, as though a fire is burning behind it.
I press an ear to the wood - but there?s no crackle. No smoke. Just
deep, heavy breathing... and a curious dripping sound. My hand?s on
the door knob. Inside the room, somebody giggles - low, throaty,
sadistic. There?s a ripping sound, followed by snaps and
crunches.
My hand turns. The door opens. Hell is revealed."
When Grubbs Grady first encounters Lord Loss and his evil
minions, he learns three things:
the world is vicious,
magic is possible,
demons are real.
He thinks that he will never again witness such a terrible night
of death and darkness.
...He is wrong.
Mass Market Paperbound
272 Pages, 5.25 x 8.1 x 0.63 in
July 6, 2006
English
0007193203
9780007193202