Review: THEY COME AT NIGHT!
Rating: 5 out of 5
Date: 11 15, 2012
Michael McBride is one of heckuva a writer. It doesn't matter what he writes because it seems he is incapable of disappointment.  Personally,  I think he is a master at the novella form and Snowblind show that in spades. Bill and three of his lifelong college buddies get together for their annual hunting trek up in the mountains(they've been doing so since their college days and they're now middle aged). As fate would have it one of them breaks their leg crossing a river. As a result, the group gets lost in no man's land and have to hole up in a rundown shack/cabin until they can figure how to get out of there and send one of them to get help for there injured friend.But something else has plans for them. It will hunt them. It will trap them. It will play games with them. It is smart. It is hungry. It is deadly. The isolation and despair McBride evokes in this novella is razor sharp: On a snow-covered mountain, lost in the middle of nowhere with something out of your worst nightmare hunting and taunting you while a blizzard is freezing you to death and there's no one to help. I really liked that he didn't drop the creature(s) on us from the get go and let us know what it is. Instead it's kind of a slow burn to the point where he reveals little by little what is hunting them. You probably won't be able to figure out what the creature(s) is before it's fully revealed towards the end, even with the excellent bits of descriptions he gives us about them. McBride's knowledge of anatomy seems to be pretty solid with the various descriptions he gives of injuries. All I'll say about this particular creature(s) is that it seems to be rather popular in fiction right now. I've read 3 stories based on it in the last couple of months.... one from a fairly big publisher. And, no, it's not zombies!I also very much liked that the group of friends find a secret(maybe not a secret but a discovery) in the cabin that is related to the beastie(s) hunting them(hint: it's not the beasties' first rodeo;). I would have like to of seen a little extra added depth with this secret.... maybe expanded upon later on(there actually is a very small part to it later but not enough for my taste). I hate to say too much b/c I really want this to be a joy and a surprise to read for horror fans. The characterizations and dialogue are first rate for this size of story. In other words, it's lean and mean without being bogged down by too much wordiness, but you get still get a good feel for the characters and their lives. This novellla is bit unusual for McBride in that it's pretty much straight horror and if you're familiar with his work know that's not his typical M.O. He's more of a hybrid writer mixing sci-fi, horror, and dark fantasy.This was a superb story with a pretty cool ending that I would recommend to any horror fan. I've read pretty much all of McBride's work and so far Snowblind is my favorite. It's pure straightforward unrelenting horror that goes for the throat(pun intended). Pick up a copy and I dare you not to have a great time reading it! Three bucks is a steal!