Review: "Freaky", "chilling" and "dark" don't even begin to cover it!
Rating: 3 out of 5
Date: 02 27, 2012
First, this is a stand-alone story and not "a collection of five tales" as is suggested by a review in the product description.This little novella is based on the premise that the protagonist, at some point in time, will encounter a black man named Johnny Devine at an abandoned gas station in the middle of nowhere, and that he will receive a "gift" from Johnny which might be helpful to him in the future.  That is all well and good, but for me...I had almost begun believing that the product description was wrong or that I was reading a different book by the time the gas station and Mr. Devine came into play.  That being said, things quickly go from bad to worse for our protagonist, and by the time all is said and done you are left sitting there staring at your kindle incredulously, thinking "no way"-- but yes..."way".This is a fairly well written novella, one which captures your fancy (after a bit) and then relentlessly and ruthlessly drags you and your psyche into a Hell of Biblical proportions, one which swallows you up before it regurgitates you back into your warm, cozy, safe little life...hope you're still breathing when you return.I really am torn on this one, as there were times the writing could have been clearer and, as mentioned above, I thought the progression of the book was a bit flawed.  Then again, it certainly met the qualifications of a supernatural thriller sooo... I am giving it 3  stars but suggest you read it and make up your own mind.