Book Review: The Blackstone Chronicles by John Saul
John Saul's novel, The Blackstone Chronicle, was originally published in serial form, in six parts, similar to Stephen King's The Green Mile, which apparently inspired Saul. While Saul's prose has never been as rich as his friend and mentor King's (whom Saul notes in his Afterword gave him advice and encouragement in writing this novel), Saul's writing is similarly fast paced and entertaining. He makes it hard to put a book down.
Since I've already spent a long time in Blackstone, reading it in its original serial form-spacing it out over a few weeks, I'm going to make this review brief and in list form. I'm ready to leave its world behind for a while.
Spoiler alert, so if you haven't read Blackstone Chronicles and are planning to, stop here. Unless you just like spoilers, in which case, continue on, weirdo. Here are the most notable points I'd like to make:
1. The first two books were probably my favorite. The characters were likable, but I wasn't so attached to them that I found any deaths to be upsetting.
2. In regards to my first note, when I found out that Elizabeth McGuire was creepy little Elizabeth Conger from Saul's first novel, Suffer the Children, I ceased to feel sorry for her. Somehow I missed that when I initially read Part 1 of Chronicles, but Saul mentions it in his afterward. And I agree with what Saul says there; finally, she got what was coming to her!
3. I could not stand Martha Ward or Germaine and Clara Wagner. On one hand, I enjoyed when they got their just desserts. On the other hand, sometimes they seemed so cruel and obnoxious that it was unrealistic. It made their segments harder to connect too.
4. The final two parts were my least favorites. I can't stomach animals being hurt or killed, so Riley dying in Part 5 really upset me. And in Part 6, it was really hard to read about Oliver's abuse at the hands of his father. It was stomach churning on a level that nothing else in the book really came near to.
5. The ending seemed a little rushed. Edna Burnham, a character only briefly mentioned in earlier parts of the novel, suddenly played a pivotal part in the epilogue, which came kind of out of left field.
6. Also, in regard to the ending, some aspects from the earlier novels still weren't really resolved. Megan Maguire, Elizabeth's daughter, still has the doll from Part 1. This is the doll that led her to kill her mother and still seems to affect Megan's behavior. Is Megan just going to be possessed by the doll for the rest of her life? Or is her behavior just a sign that she takes after her mother in the psychotic department? I felt unsatisfied that it was just left up in the air.
All in all, I enjoyed Blackstone Chronicles. Saul is not a writer I've had a lot of experience with, and this is the first of his books I've read in years, but I enjoyed these, even if I wasn't blown away by them. He's not the most literary of horror novelists, but if you're looking for a quick read to pass the time, you could do a lot worse.
Since I've already spent a long time in Blackstone, reading it in its original serial form-spacing it out over a few weeks, I'm going to make this review brief and in list form. I'm ready to leave its world behind for a while.
Spoiler alert, so if you haven't read Blackstone Chronicles and are planning to, stop here. Unless you just like spoilers, in which case, continue on, weirdo. Here are the most notable points I'd like to make:
1. The first two books were probably my favorite. The characters were likable, but I wasn't so attached to them that I found any deaths to be upsetting.
2. In regards to my first note, when I found out that Elizabeth McGuire was creepy little Elizabeth Conger from Saul's first novel, Suffer the Children, I ceased to feel sorry for her. Somehow I missed that when I initially read Part 1 of Chronicles, but Saul mentions it in his afterward. And I agree with what Saul says there; finally, she got what was coming to her!
3. I could not stand Martha Ward or Germaine and Clara Wagner. On one hand, I enjoyed when they got their just desserts. On the other hand, sometimes they seemed so cruel and obnoxious that it was unrealistic. It made their segments harder to connect too.
4. The final two parts were my least favorites. I can't stomach animals being hurt or killed, so Riley dying in Part 5 really upset me. And in Part 6, it was really hard to read about Oliver's abuse at the hands of his father. It was stomach churning on a level that nothing else in the book really came near to.
5. The ending seemed a little rushed. Edna Burnham, a character only briefly mentioned in earlier parts of the novel, suddenly played a pivotal part in the epilogue, which came kind of out of left field.
6. Also, in regard to the ending, some aspects from the earlier novels still weren't really resolved. Megan Maguire, Elizabeth's daughter, still has the doll from Part 1. This is the doll that led her to kill her mother and still seems to affect Megan's behavior. Is Megan just going to be possessed by the doll for the rest of her life? Or is her behavior just a sign that she takes after her mother in the psychotic department? I felt unsatisfied that it was just left up in the air.
All in all, I enjoyed Blackstone Chronicles. Saul is not a writer I've had a lot of experience with, and this is the first of his books I've read in years, but I enjoyed these, even if I wasn't blown away by them. He's not the most literary of horror novelists, but if you're looking for a quick read to pass the time, you could do a lot worse.
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