Publisher's Synopsis
Late at night, a man is driving home through a hellish storm on a dark, secluded forest road. He's a vocalist and has just recorded his first ever album. It seems as if his life is finally about to turn around for the better...
Until a creature lunges out in front of his car and he strikes it a glancing blow... Braking hard, the driver ventures into the rain to try to help the wounded beast. Yet the creature is no deer or other normal animal, it is a grotesque monstrosity. Pain sends the beast into a murderous rage... A nerve-shredding drama of pursuit, violence and suffering begins as the accident victim seeks revenge. The driver is unarmed and alone, rain-sodden and terrified. Can he survive this wrathful monster? 'Glancing Blow' is the first in the series of Short Horror Tales - quick reads written to captivate readers with thrills, chills and unexpected twists... So why not take a passenger seat in a car headed towards nightmarish terror? Reviews from this author's horror releases: "...thoroughly spooky, enticing and well written from start to finish.""...great... I could feel the fear..."
(Glancing Blow - Short Horror Tales #1)
"Great short story..."
(Ignition Source - Short Horror Tales #4)
"...well-written, descriptive and enthralling page-turner, that's not for the faint-hearted... The twists and turns kept me on the edge of my seat..."
(God Of War)
"...extremely well written and very dark. The author did a great job of creating a palpable sense of doom that surrounds the main character from the beginning, and then creating more tension and horror as the story went on..."
(Into The Hole) Review from 'Home Grown Horror Reviews': Glancing Blow introduces us to a vocalist who's just made his big-ish break. After recording his first ever album, he's making the 300 mile drive back home. It's late at night, and the rain is coming down hard. Suddenly, something darts in front of his car, and he clips it with his bumper. Going back to check on the poor animal, he inadvertently throws himself into a frantic and brutal struggle for survival. Thompson shows true mastery of the short horror story. There is enough buildup to ensure that we actually care about the character and the situation, but the action begins quickly and lasts the duration of the story. The story is told in first person past tense, leading you to believe that our hero survives the ordeal. The narration can come across as a bit clinical at times, especially in certain descriptions. The overall vibe that the prose gives off is that the character is recounting his story for the record, after the fact. The panic and desperation felt in the moment sometimes bleeds through that detached tone, adding to the emotion of certain moments. Thompson has crafted a wildly imaginative antagonist unlike anything I've read before. The character's descriptions are very clear, leaving not much to the imagination. This could be construed as a good thing or a bad thing, depending on your own opinion. I think that the clear description adds to the idea that perhaps the main character is recording his story for law enforcement after the fact. Ian Thompson delivers exactly what he has promised- a quick, captivating read full of horror and thrills. The tense action and suspense of Glancing Blow make it incredibly hard to put down. Chances are, you'll run through this one in a single sitting. Thompson starts his Short Horror Tales series strongly, and I'm looking forward to continuing with the next story. (for full review refer: hghorror.wordpress.com/category/authors/thompson-ian/)
