Epeolatry Book Review: Frost Bite by Angela Sylvaine
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Title: Frost Bite
Author: Angela Sylvaine
Publisher: Dark Matter INK
Genre: Horror, Cosmic Horror, Creature Feature, Outbreak
Release date: 10th October, 2023
Synopsis: Remember the ’90s? Well…the town of Demise, North Dakota doesn’t, and they’re living in the year 1997. That’s because an alien worm hitched a ride on a comet, crash landed in the town’s trailer park, and is now infecting animals with a memory-loss-inducing bite–and right before Christmas! Now it’s up to nineteen-year-old Realene and her best friend Nate to stop the spread and defeat the worms before the entire town loses its mind. The only things standing in the way are their troubled pasts, a doomsday cult, and an army of infected prairie dogs.
For those who like their cosmic horror a little quirky, Angela Sylvaine has presented that world with her new novel, Frost Bite. Imagine crossing HP Lovecraft’s two stories ‘The Color out of Space’ and ‘At the Mountains of Madness’ and throwing in a heaping helping of deranged prairie dogs. Then frame it all as an 80s style creature feature flick like Gremlins or Critters. This adds up to a great time for readers.
Realene resents her life. She feels stuck in small-town North Dakota while taking care of her ailing mother instead of following her college dreams. A meteor crashes outside of her trailer. She investigates and watches a mysterious goo sink into the ground. The next day the prairie dogs are out of hibernation and acting strangely aggressive. Her and her best friend Nate face the onslaught all while facing their own personal demons and dealing with an apocalyptic evangelical church-turned-cult.
Sylvaine explores themes of strained friendship, the transition from youth to adulthood, family trauma, and much more. Readers will fall for Realene and Nate while they root for them to survive against the ultra-rabid little beasts. Frost Bite does a wonderful job establishing the nostalgia of a time before the wide-spread use of cell phones. The author showcases that emotionally amplified period of life, the late teens and early twenties when most are truly discovering who they really are.
Readers will revel in the awesome of Frost Bite by Angela Sylvaine. Yes, this is a horror novel, with horrifying moments. But there are also funny and heart-warming moments. Frost Bite is like that late night horror flick you’ve always wanted. So, as soon as it’s on sale, buy a copy, microwave some butter popcorn, and settle in for a good time.
/5
- About the Author
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Joe lives with his wife and son in the Pacific Northwest where the Cascade Mountains meet the Salish Sea. He enjoys writing in the weird, horror, and fantasy genres.
Growing up he enjoyed R. L. Stine’s Goosebumps books as well as classics like Dune, and Lord of the Rings. In college he discovered Stephen King, and later Mark Danielewski’s House of Leaves and authors like Clive Barker and Laird Barron.
Joe’s short story, ‘Gustav Floats’, was published in Dim Shores Presents Volume 2. In the spring of 2021 his story, ‘The Pigeon Lied’ comes out in Howls From Hell.
You can follow Joe on the following social media sites:
Twitter, Good Reads, Facebook, and Instagram!
