kidcolorado's review against another edition
2.0
I'm conflicted about posting a negative review here - the author made his books available for free during the COVID-19 quarantine, and that's very generous and awesome of him. So I'm posting this in the spirit of constructive criticism, I guess.
The positives: the premise is very interesting, and there was something in there that kept me reading to the end, so the bones of a good story are in there. The fact that I wanted to see what happened despite my criticism below is what I gave the second star for.
But other than that, I feel like I'm taking crazy pills reading all the glowing 5-star reviews here that declare it an amazing book. I found the characters to be one-dimensional, the dialogue to be absurdly unrealistic, and I definitely echo the reviewers below who complain that the "demons" are really just zombies with a different name.
And the ending - come on. No resolution whatsoever. We just stopped after a POV chapter from a guy only briefly mentioned earlier in the book. Makes me think the series was written as one long story and then the author just broke it up every X number of pages.
Because of the reviews here and on Reddit, where I found the link to the giveaway, I may try a different book by the author outside of this series, but man, this one did not do it for me.
The positives: the premise is very interesting, and there was something in there that kept me reading to the end, so the bones of a good story are in there. The fact that I wanted to see what happened despite my criticism below is what I gave the second star for.
But other than that, I feel like I'm taking crazy pills reading all the glowing 5-star reviews here that declare it an amazing book. I found the characters to be one-dimensional, the dialogue to be absurdly unrealistic, and I definitely echo the reviewers below who complain that the "demons" are really just zombies with a different name.
Spoiler
Especially towards the end where we have bartenders and accountants fighting the hordes with kitchen knives. The same creatures that decimated the British Army earlier in the book? It was pure Walking Dead silliness at that point.And the ending - come on. No resolution whatsoever. We just stopped after a POV chapter from a guy only briefly mentioned earlier in the book. Makes me think the series was written as one long story and then the author just broke it up every X number of pages.
Because of the reviews here and on Reddit, where I found the link to the giveaway, I may try a different book by the author outside of this series, but man, this one did not do it for me.
dippdogg2002's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
5.0
gatun's review against another edition
4.0
The Gates has a very fresh concept for apocalyptic horror. No zombies or lethal diseases. The Gates first appear as strange large rocks that seem to materialize from nowhere. They appear all over the world in a short time period. The cannot be moved. Individuals who touch them die, horribly. Then the stones change, strange symbols are revealed by a glowing light from within. As people gather to watch this phenomenon, the stones become gates, allowing monsters to move from Hell onto the earth.
The book follows several different groups of people. There are civilians, soldiers, reporters, parents, and children. Each group has an encounter with the entities that come through the gates. While all are different, the commonality is that they want to survive. The action is fast paced. It is not predictable. For the most part the characters are likable, there is one in particular I disliked but I believe he was written to be disliked. My only problem with the book was at times I had trouble remembering which characters thread was being followed. That may be user error on my part and not on the part of the author The Gates is the first book in a series so the ending does not have complete closure. I am adding the next book to my "to read" list.
Nigel Patterson does an excellent job narrating. I have enjoyed other books narrated by him and this one was no exception. I hope he continues to narrate this series.
I received a copy of the audio book in exchange for an honest review.
The book follows several different groups of people. There are civilians, soldiers, reporters, parents, and children. Each group has an encounter with the entities that come through the gates. While all are different, the commonality is that they want to survive. The action is fast paced. It is not predictable. For the most part the characters are likable, there is one in particular I disliked but I believe he was written to be disliked. My only problem with the book was at times I had trouble remembering which characters thread was being followed. That may be user error on my part and not on the part of the author The Gates is the first book in a series so the ending does not have complete closure. I am adding the next book to my "to read" list.
Nigel Patterson does an excellent job narrating. I have enjoyed other books narrated by him and this one was no exception. I hope he continues to narrate this series.
I received a copy of the audio book in exchange for an honest review.
pinkiepie81's review against another edition
3.0
I don't usually like Heaven vs Hell books
I actually liked this book. It wasn't overly religious and I liked following the different character arcs...the ending didn't feel right..but I liked it overall.
I actually liked this book. It wasn't overly religious and I liked following the different character arcs...the ending didn't feel right..but I liked it overall.
norma_cenva's review against another edition
3.0
Quite underwhelming, especially by the end, but entertaining and well written.
mudmule's review against another edition
4.0
This is my first book by Mr. Wright and I must say I truly enjoyed it and have already placed my order for the next one. I had no trouble loving all the characters and really getting in their skin. The story moves along at a good clip but you are never left behind. This was a nice different read on the end of the world. This is story (very similar) my very religious Grandparents told me about. Makes you really consider is your soul safe...
I'm giving it 4 stars out of 5 because of the book and the Kindle edition. I have them both and when I read I like to read the actual book during daylight and then for night time reading I use my iPad. The physical book ends on page 337, the Kindle edition has a few more chapters introducing new characters to the story. The physicial book wasn't formatted correctly. I too am indie author and making sure your paperback looks professional is important. This did not. The justification and word wrap as well as font changes from top to bottoms of pages make it look elementary. The Kindle edition about 300 pages in is as if the editing stopped. Spelling errors, extra words, etc. were everywhere.
No doubt Mr. Wright is an AWESOME horror author, but I'm not thrilled with the publishing and differences between the two books. They were rushed and new editions were pushed out without edits only for one format.
I'm giving it 4 stars out of 5 because of the book and the Kindle edition. I have them both and when I read I like to read the actual book during daylight and then for night time reading I use my iPad. The physical book ends on page 337, the Kindle edition has a few more chapters introducing new characters to the story. The physicial book wasn't formatted correctly. I too am indie author and making sure your paperback looks professional is important. This did not. The justification and word wrap as well as font changes from top to bottoms of pages make it look elementary. The Kindle edition about 300 pages in is as if the editing stopped. Spelling errors, extra words, etc. were everywhere.
No doubt Mr. Wright is an AWESOME horror author, but I'm not thrilled with the publishing and differences between the two books. They were rushed and new editions were pushed out without edits only for one format.
burbanbabe2214's review against another edition
1.0
Horror novels usually aren't my forte but I have been trying to branch out to different genres. I have read horror novels before but this was definitely not for me. I think all this book was trying to get to was the gross factor. The writing was sloppy and mismatched as if more than one person was writing the book at a time. I struggled to finish this hot mess and when it came to bonus short stories at the end I just plain gave up. Definitely not sure where the 4 star reviews came from.
catsy2022's review
dark
mysterious
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
2.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death, Gore, Blood, and Violence
Moderate: Racial slurs and Child death
syphonuk's review against another edition
2.0
The concept of this book is interesting but the execution is bad. The dialogue is awful and unauthentic - no one talks the way the characters in this book do. The writing is generally poor and the characters are bland and entirely forgettable. The fact that characters central to the story can just be killed off without consequence says it all. In the ultimate sin, the book doesn't actually end but just stops and tells you to buy the next in the series. Not good.
whatmeworry's review against another edition
3.0
This horror novel doesn't really do anything that interesting with its premise (the gates of hell open up and demons invade Earth) but it's still a fun read.