Horror has always been my go-to genre when it comes to reading, and exploring different authors is a fun way for me to do it. That helps me de-stress. I had heard the name 'Paul Tremblay' many times and thought I would start with this book that I picked up.
The Barretts are a typical New England suburban family. While John, the father, loses his job, the elder daughter, Marjorie, starts showing signs of mental illness. John starts becoming religious, and he believes that Marjorie is possessed. As they encounter financial problems, the Barretts get into an agreement with a TV company to document and relay it as a reality show and tragedy strikes. What transpired forms the story through the eyes of Merry, the youngest daughter.
To start with, an interesting premise at hand. The story is a mish-mash of 'The Exorcist' meets 'Paranormal Activity'. The story confused me at first, and it took 5 or 6 pages for the tempo to set in. The characters are well written, especially the relationship between the two sisters. This book seems like a homage to horror movies with references like The Yellow Wallpaper, The Exorcist, Poltergeist, The Possession, Paranormal Activity, etc. The story talks about the importance of mental health and how it was mistook as possession. The story described in the words of a small kid makes us see the story from a different angle. There is a sense of ambiguity due to this. The book can be creepy. The ending was totally unexpected, and it was quite a shocker for me.
To sum it all up, a good read that can give quite a scary experience. This does not come near a Stephen King experience for me, but still an engaging read.
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