Review: A unique and entertaining addition to the horror genre.
Rating: 4 out of 5
Date: 11 15, 2012
This was one of those books that caught me completely off guard. I downloaded it for free from amazon and wasn't really sure what so expect because freebies can be hit or miss for quality. Lucky for me this one ended up being awesome- it was well written and had a captivating storyline with an original and intriguing plot. Reading it was a nice reminder that there are some great new horror authors' to be discovered in the independently published market, and they are giving the big names a run for their money.So, the basic summation of "The Nightmare Within" is this- As a kid Maury ends up horribly burnt in an apartment fire he was responsible for. From this incident he discovers he has the gift of pulling things (including horrifying nightmare things) from people's dreams and bringing them to life. As an adult Maury creates a museum (essentially a "dream zoo") with glass cages to house these dreams and nightmares "come to life" for public viewing. Along the way his story intertwines with that of Kevin, a boy who after witnessing a horrific event (that he blames himself for) is subsequently tortured with a repeating nightmare containing a monster that feeds on fear/terror and can peer into Kevin's mind to find what haunts him. He is called "Mr. Freakshow" and Maury helps "cure" Kevin of him by pulling him from Kevin's nightmare and locking him in the Nightmare section of the Dream Museum. Things go downhill fast however, when Mr. Freakshow decides his time would be better spent tracking Kevin, whom if he kills as his maker would grant Mr. Freakshow immortality, versus staying in a glass display box.