Review of Halloween Land by Kevin J Kennedy
A.E. Jackson Review Score: 3 / 5 Ravens
How was this review scored?
Halloween Land: A Coming of Age Novella from Kevin J. Kennedy is a fun romp through familiar classic horror tropes that - while not taking itself too seriously - manages to entertain from beginning to end.
There is a good character arc developed for the two main protagonists. As is often the case, moving from close friendship to love can prove disastrous for young people. Kennedy gives Zak and Wendy an extra dose of dread by thrusting them into the jaws of a deadly carnival.
Halloween Land is an action-packed, coming-of-age horror tale, full of twists, turns, and unexpected adventures. Kennedy introduces readers to Zak and Wendy - a pair of horror buffs who love Halloween. Their sleepy town is visited by a one-night-only special attraction. The traveling carnival makes its debut on Halloween night. The two friends must think and act fast to defeat the evil threatening their town - and this time, it’s nothing like in the movies!
Needless to say, the two are ripped apart by the Halloween Land carnival. Before they can put their own demons to rest the pair must revisit the sinister sideshow as adults to resolve all their woes - including the unresolved relationship of their youth.
Halloween Land pulls from multiple classic genres to assemble a carnival of tropes. As witnessed through the eyes of teenage horror fans, the novella will have many readers’ hearts reminiscing as much as racing with dread.
There are some great references to classic films like ‘Carnival of Souls’ and ‘Something Wicked This Way Comes.’ The flight from the frightening funhouse may even remind readers of Nathaniel Hawthorne’s Legend of Sleepy Hollow and Ichabod Crane’s race across the rickety covered bridge.
Read more from Kevin J. Kennedy at https://www.kevinjkennedy.co.uk and find his social media profiles at Facebook(@authorkevinjkennedy) and Twitter(@kevinjkennedy01).