The children of the Dark Man lurked in the shadows.Okay. This is pretty eerie.I think one of the challenges when writing macabre tales about the grotesque or fantastical is to make the reader believe. Even when there is a scientific element to the story, it is easy for this kind of thing to veer off into contrived territory, as opposed to scary. Even though Darkness skirts pretty near this particular border, Saul manages to keep it on the right side, i.e. he does manage to keep things believable for the most part. Believe me, in the context of this particular novel (which could easily have gone either way), this is no mean feat, and pretty important. Somewhere out there, hidden in the tall saw grass, or concealed behind a clump of palmetto, they were watching him. The children, fixing him with their empty eyes, saying nothing.Is it just me or is Horror fiction in any format just twice as crawly when there are children involved? In the bright light of a perfect summer morning, when she should have been feeling good about everything, she felt only a dark terror.A terror she realized might never leave her.This book isn’t explicitly gory, not by a long shot, but the subject matter makes for (sometimes) harrowing reading. That said, I wouldn’t be surprised if opinion over the book is divided. There was something specific that I thought was a just bit iffy. I won’t go into spoilers but it has to do with “reclaiming what’s theirs” (for those of you who have already read the novel). The way this is done is just frankly a bit yucky and preposterous. But this is a Horror novel, so…For he knew what they wanted from him.They wanted what was theirs.Despite my one complaint (which will likely not be a complaint to others) I actually really enjoyed Darkness. It’s fairly tightly plotted, too. Saul doesn’t go into a lot of meaningless exposition or irrelevant background histories. Everything seems to have a point, and the underlying mystery is quite interesting. It’s just a good old eerie story with a fair bit of psychological wallop.A soft, scratching sound, as if someone had crept onto his front porch.
This was the first book I read from John Saul.I bought this book a million years ago at a yard sale for like 25 cents haha. It was a beat up book but the back had me interested. I swear this had to bought back when Scott and I first got married and that was 19 years ago! I even still have this book.John Saul is a great horror author. Out of all the books I've read by him I have more than enjoyed. He gives you that creep factor as well in some that out of this world, that would never happen factor. But at the end of the day he will scare you!These type of books aren't for everyone and I haven't read anything from him in some time. Though I do pick them up and read the backs, I just don't buy them any more. Maybe it's my old age and becoming a mom but since so many involve children it kinda freaks me out some. But if you don't mind that type of stuff then by all means please read his stuff.
What do You think about Darkness (1992)?
This was the first John Saul book I've read, and I wasn't too impressed. The story is a little hard to follow, since the perspective jumps around. Each character knows something that the others don't so when it switches to a different character, you're reading about something brand new. One chapter you're reading about some of the victims, and then suddenly you're reading about the bad guy from one his follower's point of view. Then, as you start to get farther into the story, it begins switching perspective after only a few paragraphs.Though the storyline itself is hard to follow, John Saul is a pretty good author. He really captures the many characters in the book, from a 16 year old girl, to the 60-something year old bad guys, to a 90-something year old woman. Though I was constantly confused by the plot, I couldn't stop reading due to his exceptional writing. Overall, the plot was pretty good, if slightly confusing, and the writing was wonderful. I would recommend this book to anyone who can follow a twisting plot line, and I'd recommend this writer to anyone.
—Janelle R.
I loved this book so much it is one of my favorites.It always leaves you on the edge of your chair.The more you read into the book the better it gets. although i did get confused towards the middle of the book i caught on the next chapter.I also could relate to some of the characters in some ways so it left me suspenseful every step they took, also if i stopped reading for a while i would try to think about what i would do myself to solve the situation.at some of the parts in the book it does get a little scary but that is what made me like it even more.
—KelsieM
The small town of Villajeune, Florida is privy to a deep, dark secret. Babies die, children disappear and those that don't are haunted by nightmares of The Dark Man, who invades their thoughts, controls their minds and steals their souls. So begins "Darkness" from John Saul. While not necessarily a typical horror story, or typical John Saul, I find the story to be engrossing and very quickly got hooked. I found that the first half of the book was much better than the second, when too much was revealed too soon. Once the "truth" about The Dark Man and the town's "secret" came out, some of the mystery disappeared as well. While perhaps the story itself was highly unrealistic and the descriptions of the swamp and rundown shacks got a bit repetitive, I found the story good, entertaining fun. A solid read.
—Lori
