Reviews

A dedication to H. P. Lovecraft opens Strieber's ( Unholy Fire ) latest tale, paving the way for fantastical and grisly visions. In fact, Strieber borrows liberally from his malignant muse, adapting that author's concept of a monstrous alternate dimension and even giving Lovecraft's ubiquitous whippoorwills a cameo appearance. Not long after physicist Brian Kelly and his pregnant wife hear human screams coming from within a dirt mound, inhabitants of their upstate New York town are attacked by wasp-like fireflies, women transformed into grub-like creatures are dug from the earth and an otherworldly being terrorizes motorists from its Dodge Viper. Brian theorizes that somehow the space-time fabric has been breached, and before long he and a few companions are engaged in a classic battle with an army of ancient demons. Strieber's updates and additions to Lovecraft's original ideas--for instance, the sexual component of gruesome death scenes--provide ample suspense and gore, even if the final battle has few fresh twists. Horror enthusiasts will find his central concept chilling, a primal force beyond human comprehension or control. Literary Guild and Doubleday Book Club selections. (July)

A small town in the Adirondacks becomes a beachhead for an invasion of large, insect-like creatures that first seduce and then sadistically absorb the native population. Brian and Loi Kelly become aware of the unearthly invasion and take the lead in fighting the creatures and warning their neighbors. Brian feels responsible for the death and destruction because his physics research laid the groundwork for the onslaught. This audiobook is a work of graphic and sensationalized (however imaginative) violence bereft of any logical or believable context. Reader Buck Schirner's tendency to overdramatize, especially during the most violent passages, exacerbates the ludicrous text. This is not Strieber's best work. Not recommended.-- Kristen L. Smith, Loras Coll. Lib., Dubuque, Ia.