Weekend Read: The Damned
You may recall that I fell hard for Gone Girl a while back. While I thoroughly enjoyed the madness of that book, I was a little hesitant to get so wrapped up in yet another book with another insidious female character. There's only so much chaos you can handle at a time, right?
Nevertheless, I found myself picking up The Damned by Andrew Pyper earlier this week. Pyper is no stranger to telling horrifying tales (you may have read The Killing Circle) and The Damned looks just as good.
The Damned follows Danny Orchard, a shy young boy who grows into a quiet man, tortured by the death of his picture-perfect twin sister, Ashley. He's not tortured in the way you'd expect though. He's not still mourning her untimely demise because he misses her. Rather, she's actually torturing him: her malevolent spirit just won't leave him alone. Pyschotic Ash isn't very happy that she perished in a the fire that Danny just barely survived and she's hell-bent on making sure he knows it.
I've only just begun reading this, but Ashley's character is already building up to be a memorable one. While the blonde haired, blue eyed twin is the vision of perfection in public, her family knows better. Danny, in particular, is privy to her twisted thoughts because as her fraternal twin, he says, "you just know".
Danny knows other things too. He knows what's on the other side of death. When Ash died, Danny did too. But somehow, mysteriously, he made it back. Years later, he writes and publishes a book about his experience and becomes somewhat of a celebrity expert about the afterlife.
While Danny is glad he returned to to the land of the living, he's a little weary of who he may have accidentally brought along with him on his ride back…
So far, The Damned is a creepy read that explores the connections between siblings and how scary it can be to have a sociopath living right under your roof. Danny's mother and father, both acutely aware of their daughter's dangerous mind, spend most of their time trying to stay out of her way.
If you're looking for a dark read from a Toronto writer that knows how to weave a gripping story, try out The Damned with me. Already read it? Let me know what you think: is it a hit or miss? Would you recommend it to an avid reader of the creepy/horror/supernatural genre? Leave a comment to share!
One thought on “Weekend Read: The Damned”
I read The Damned a few months ago, loved the hell out of it! (pun intended) Even though I don’t believe in ghosts or a quantifiable afterlife, every bit of this book was believable. Andrew Pyper is really great, would definitely recommend.