supernatural horror

Brian Hodge’s “Oasis”

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Though his second published novel, Hodge’s 1989 Oasis was his first written, and his impressive debut takes readers back to nascent adulthood, pitting its protagonist with a bevy of hard choices, these made all the more impossible as everything he loves is torn apart.

I often catch myself mentally branding authors with a sort of character sheet and traits I find consistently at work with writers I read a lot. For Hodge, three stand out with everything of his I have read: an ability to characterize suffering and loss poignantly and with masterful human behavioral observation, protean and ever-evolving premises engaged in his stories, and, to put it succinctly, he’s never boring.

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Ronald Malfi’s “Snow”

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Malfi excels in creating likable protagonists with enviable speed, and for anyone who has ever been stranded in an airport (or anywhere else for that matter), they’ll likely feel drawn to the novel’s relatable and well-rendered protagonists. With a Christmas promise and a strained divorced/custody situation on the line, Todd shares the last 4-wheel drive rental with Kate, another stranded passenger, along with a senior couple who also feel the need to move. There’s care for uniting the protagonists, and much like the rest of Malfi’s work I’ve read, the story proceeds at terrific pace to getting our travelers into trouble as fast as possible.

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