psychic

I chose a book that waited a while on my shelf for my next read of 2023, Stephen King’s “The Institute”.

I’m a King fanboy; everyone who knows me knows that. So let me cut right to the chase: this book is brilliant. It is absurd that the man is still pumping out books of this calibre at this stage in his career. King has written so many classics that he could get away with phoning it in at 75. But that’s not King’s style. Instead, he has added another masterpiece to his long list of masterpieces.

The book follows two characters. The first is a shamed policeman on the search for something new. The second—and most important—is a boy, kidnapped in the middle of the night and taken to a detention centre in Maine. Where else would King set it?

It’s, of course, less horror than some of King’s other works. But it recalls his other pieces, such as “Firestarter”. If you’re a fan of his kids-with-psychic-powers books, you’ll adore “The Institute”. Hell, even if you’re not, I’d still recommend it. It’s that good.

I’ve said it before, and I’ll repeat it, King is king.

S. A. Hoag’s Backlash is my eighth read of the year.

I wanted to review the works of other indie authors, and Hoag is the first. Backlash follows three characters after a great war has devastated the land. They volunteer to protect the last vestiges of humanity from the new world’s dangers. These three share eerie psychic abilities because they are genetically enhanced.

The setting is fascinating. As a horror and sci-fi nerd, apocalyptic tales always pique my interest. (After all, Fallout is one of my favourite video games.) Yet, Hoag wastes no time or energy on long-winded expositions and infodumps. Instead, she places the reader in the middle of the characters and trusts you are smart enough to figure it out.

The story moves at a breakneck pace, and Hoag keeps descriptions bare bones. This approach lets the story race past, uncluttered and streamlined. I’ve read short stories a tenth of Backlash‘s length that took me longer—I devoured it in two days.

Give Hoag’s work a shot; it won’t disappoint.

Tag: psychic

Book Review: “The Institute” by Stephen King

Book Review: “Backlash” by S. A. Hoag