andrealynn524's review
dark
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
the_evergrowing_library's review
4.0
In the words of the great George Takei “Oh my!”. As first chapters go, you’re going to be hard pushed to beat this one!
Luckily it keeps that momentum throughout the book too. This was a great read. There were some elements of tropes we see from horror novels, but they had their own spin on them so much so that it really didn’t liken itself to anything else.
There was a rich variety of characters here and they all had their own thoughts and feelings as well as backstory. The plot went places that you couldn’t see coming and it absolutely kept me on my toes. The writing was detailed and descriptive and for the horror fan, plenty of lovely descriptions of some elements.
I enjoyed how filled out this novel was. Nobody felt just thrown in and one dimensional and the story was start to finish fully realised.
Luckily it keeps that momentum throughout the book too. This was a great read. There were some elements of tropes we see from horror novels, but they had their own spin on them so much so that it really didn’t liken itself to anything else.
There was a rich variety of characters here and they all had their own thoughts and feelings as well as backstory. The plot went places that you couldn’t see coming and it absolutely kept me on my toes. The writing was detailed and descriptive and for the horror fan, plenty of lovely descriptions of some elements.
I enjoyed how filled out this novel was. Nobody felt just thrown in and one dimensional and the story was start to finish fully realised.
emziethebookworm's review
5.0
Hellspring was Definately a weird one for me a mean when a came across this book on netgallery I actually thought it was gonna be weird due to the title, but all am gonna say is I really really liked it once a got fully into it, the creature Definately gave me the shivers at some parts of the book as a wasn't expecting some of the parts in it.
The plot was amazing from start to finish, the characters were all different in there own personal way but they didn't deserve what had come there way but there was nothing to do anyway once it was done in the end.
Even though this is my first novel hy isaac Thorne, all I can say it will Definately not be my last as I will read the other books by him.
The plot was amazing from start to finish, the characters were all different in there own personal way but they didn't deserve what had come there way but there was nothing to do anyway once it was done in the end.
Even though this is my first novel hy isaac Thorne, all I can say it will Definately not be my last as I will read the other books by him.
donnyeatsbooks's review
challenging
dark
emotional
hopeful
reflective
sad
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? N/A
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
“𝑻𝒉𝒆 𝒕𝒉𝒊𝒏𝒈 𝒂𝒃𝒐𝒖𝒕 𝒔𝒉𝒂𝒎𝒆 𝒂𝒏𝒅 𝒂𝒏𝒙𝒊𝒆𝒕𝒚 𝒊𝒔 𝒕𝒉𝒂𝒕 𝒕𝒉𝒆𝒚'𝒓𝒆 𝒄𝒚𝒄𝒍𝒊𝒄𝒂𝒍. 𝒀𝒐𝒖 𝒄𝒍𝒊𝒎𝒃 𝒕𝒉𝒆𝒊𝒓 𝒎𝒐𝒖𝒏𝒕𝒂𝒊𝒏, 𝒇𝒊𝒈𝒉𝒕𝒊𝒏𝒈 𝒕𝒉𝒆 𝒂𝒃𝒖𝒔𝒆 𝒕𝒉𝒆𝒚 𝒉𝒆𝒂𝒑 𝒖𝒑𝒐𝒏 𝒚𝒐𝒖. 𝑻𝒉𝒆𝒏, 𝒋𝒖𝒔𝒕 𝒘𝒉𝒆𝒏 𝒚𝒐𝒖 𝒕𝒉𝒊𝒏𝒌 𝒚𝒐𝒖'𝒗𝒆 𝒐𝒗𝒆𝒓𝒄𝒐𝒎𝒆 𝒕𝒉𝒆𝒎 𝒃𝒚 𝒓𝒆𝒂𝒄𝒉𝒊𝒏𝒈 𝒕𝒉𝒆 𝒔𝒖𝒎𝒎𝒊𝒕, 𝒚𝒐𝒖 𝒅𝒊𝒔𝒄𝒐𝒗𝒆𝒓 𝒕𝒉𝒂𝒕 𝒚𝒐𝒖 𝒘𝒆𝒓𝒆𝒏'𝒕 𝒄𝒍𝒊𝒎𝒃𝒊𝒏𝒈 𝒂 𝒎𝒐𝒖𝒏𝒕𝒂𝒊𝒏 𝒂𝒕 𝒂𝒍𝒍. 𝒀𝒐𝒖 𝒘𝒆𝒓𝒆 𝒋𝒖𝒔𝒕 𝒘𝒂𝒍𝒌𝒊𝒏𝒈 𝒂𝒍𝒐𝒏𝒈 𝒕𝒉𝒆 𝒓𝒊𝒎 𝒐𝒇 𝒂 𝒘𝒉𝒆𝒆𝒍 𝒕𝒉𝒆 𝒘𝒉𝒐𝒍𝒆 𝒕𝒊𝒎𝒆.”
When Isaac Thorne offered to send me a copy of his novel, 𝐇𝐞𝐥𝐥 𝐒𝐩𝐫𝐢𝐧𝐠, to review, I accepted with admittedly low expectations. The premise was certainly interesting (a group of people holed up in a general store are preyed upon by a demon taking the form of Marilyn Monroe), but it was so far-fetched that I wasn’t sure how it could possibly be executed. (To good effect, anyway.) But lo and behold, I finished the book with fresh, hot tears streaming down my face.
From giant phalluses spewing acidic cum, to hellhounds shape-shifting into Old Hollywood starlets, 𝐇𝐞𝐥𝐥 𝐒𝐩𝐫𝐢𝐧𝐠 is a deluge of bizarre horrors. But it’s also a shockingly moving exploration of redemption, self-atonement, and religious trauma that particularly resonated with me, as a gay man from the south.
If you’re looking for your next horror fix, I implore you to check out this little doozy! It’s breezily paced and remarkably well-written, with a cast of sympathetic and morally complex characters, and a healthy amount of scares that are sure to satisfy fans of Stephen King, such as myself.
When Isaac Thorne offered to send me a copy of his novel, 𝐇𝐞𝐥𝐥 𝐒𝐩𝐫𝐢𝐧𝐠, to review, I accepted with admittedly low expectations. The premise was certainly interesting (a group of people holed up in a general store are preyed upon by a demon taking the form of Marilyn Monroe), but it was so far-fetched that I wasn’t sure how it could possibly be executed. (To good effect, anyway.) But lo and behold, I finished the book with fresh, hot tears streaming down my face.
From giant phalluses spewing acidic cum, to hellhounds shape-shifting into Old Hollywood starlets, 𝐇𝐞𝐥𝐥 𝐒𝐩𝐫𝐢𝐧𝐠 is a deluge of bizarre horrors. But it’s also a shockingly moving exploration of redemption, self-atonement, and religious trauma that particularly resonated with me, as a gay man from the south.
If you’re looking for your next horror fix, I implore you to check out this little doozy! It’s breezily paced and remarkably well-written, with a cast of sympathetic and morally complex characters, and a healthy amount of scares that are sure to satisfy fans of Stephen King, such as myself.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Blood, Body horror, Homophobia, Injury/Injury detail, Murder, Physical abuse, Religious bigotry, and Self harm
Minor: Child death
spookybookylonnie's review
4.0
I received this e-book from Isaac Thorne in exchange for an honest review.
This book did not mess around. It starts off with some super spicy demon stuff, which was unsettling and off-putting (in a way that drew me in immediately with intrigue and gross fascination.) As the storm hits, one of the demons finds themselves on Earth in the small town of Lost Hollow, ravenous for new souls. She comes across Peter, a man plagued with enough sin in his soul to fuel her until she can find her next victim.
A story exploring:
- Religious guilt
- The supernatural
- Natural disaster devastation
- Human resilience
I definitely got Grady Hendrix vibes. Hell Spring was disturbing, amusing with a surprisingly heart-breaking ending. I wasn't sure how I felt about it at first as the humour and crude honesty took some getting used to, but once I did, wow. Thank you so much for sending me this. I look forward to reading much more of your work in the future!
This book did not mess around. It starts off with some super spicy demon stuff, which was unsettling and off-putting (in a way that drew me in immediately with intrigue and gross fascination.) As the storm hits, one of the demons finds themselves on Earth in the small town of Lost Hollow, ravenous for new souls. She comes across Peter, a man plagued with enough sin in his soul to fuel her until she can find her next victim.
A story exploring:
- Religious guilt
- The supernatural
- Natural disaster devastation
- Human resilience
I definitely got Grady Hendrix vibes. Hell Spring was disturbing, amusing with a surprisingly heart-breaking ending. I wasn't sure how I felt about it at first as the humour and crude honesty took some getting used to, but once I did, wow. Thank you so much for sending me this. I look forward to reading much more of your work in the future!
doctorbradford's review
3.0
Hell Spring by Isaac Thorne
I want to first of all thank the author for providing me this book in return for an honest review.
When I write reviews I like to take into account how much I enjoyed the book along with the quality of writing and whatnot. This causes a rift at times when reviewing, as it did with this book.
This book was well done, with well thought out characters, and an original story. The author did a great job of bringing the reader into the 50s in this period piece.The writing style for me was reminiscent of Stephen King which some people love. King's books are hit or miss for me. This story was wordy at times for me and I felt certain subjects were focused on longer than necessary. I think I would have enjoyed this more as a novella or short story.
There were a variety of characters with different backgrounds who you got to know very well. About the first quarter the book is dedicated to background info on the characters. I personally didn't connect with any of them which impacted my enjoyment of the book. I realize that a connection to a character is highly individualized. While writing this review I kept this in mind.
Not every book is for every person, you can't please everyone. This book was original, different, and descriptive it just was not for me. I'm giving this book a 3⭐️ taking into account that even though I didn't enjoy it, the book was by no means bad or poorly written.
I want to first of all thank the author for providing me this book in return for an honest review.
When I write reviews I like to take into account how much I enjoyed the book along with the quality of writing and whatnot. This causes a rift at times when reviewing, as it did with this book.
This book was well done, with well thought out characters, and an original story. The author did a great job of bringing the reader into the 50s in this period piece.The writing style for me was reminiscent of Stephen King which some people love. King's books are hit or miss for me. This story was wordy at times for me and I felt certain subjects were focused on longer than necessary. I think I would have enjoyed this more as a novella or short story.
There were a variety of characters with different backgrounds who you got to know very well. About the first quarter the book is dedicated to background info on the characters. I personally didn't connect with any of them which impacted my enjoyment of the book. I realize that a connection to a character is highly individualized. While writing this review I kept this in mind.
Not every book is for every person, you can't please everyone. This book was original, different, and descriptive it just was not for me. I'm giving this book a 3⭐️ taking into account that even though I didn't enjoy it, the book was by no means bad or poorly written.
aquinn87's review
dark
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5
ghostinthepages's review
dark
reflective
tense
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.0
I was gifted a review copy directly from the author
I actually really enjoyed this story! The opening scene definitely paints a picture I'll not get out of my head for a while. Thorne has a great writing style that kept me engaged in the story the whole time. Though it did take a few sitting for me to read because of life, I really didn't want to put it down. I wanted to know what was going to happen next and Thorne really does have a way of describing scenes that definitely made me react with my face. I look forward to reading more of Thorne's work in the future!
I actually really enjoyed this story! The opening scene definitely paints a picture I'll not get out of my head for a while. Thorne has a great writing style that kept me engaged in the story the whole time. Though it did take a few sitting for me to read because of life, I really didn't want to put it down. I wanted to know what was going to happen next and Thorne really does have a way of describing scenes that definitely made me react with my face. I look forward to reading more of Thorne's work in the future!
atinybookcorner's review
adventurous
dark
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
stephaniieemoon's review
4.0
I like the writing and the characters. Each character has their own personality and I can definitely see the characters as existing in small, close-knit towns. Thorne’s writing really works for me because he doesn’t “tell” you the story. Also, there are zero grammatical errors. (At least that I could see