The Horror! Peripheral Vision by Timothy Hammer and Courtney Zito

Do you ever get the feeling, at times, that you have jumped out of the fire and into the frying pan?

Well, you're not alone.

Last week, I shared my new appreciation for Author Mary Downing Hahn and reviewed her urban legend based book, Took. This week, I'm taking on an even greater step into the world of horror and vampires with Timothy Hammer's and Courtney Zito's book, Peripheral Vision.

This supernatural thriller is living up to its name of pure spookiness, and I'm afraid to even dive into this review for fear of leaving anything out. For those of you who love the grit and terror of the unknown, then you might enjoy this tale of unexpected twists and turns into the life of the main character and her family.

When we begin, the readers are introduced to Elizabeth Bayard and her family. What seems like a normal family moment turns into something much more devastating. The beginning of a family curse, an unknown aunt, and the inheritance of her family's home bring us into the life of Sarah.

With her parents dead, Sarah is adopted, but not by the aunt she had hoped to visit the day her mother and father were killed in a car accident. Inheriting the family home, recently released from her job, and suffering from nightmare visions, Sarah knows she needs a change and embarks on the journey from LA to Homewood, Nebraska.

Once there, Sarah dives into learning more about her aunt and family, meets a willing new friend, and navigates her continuing nightmares. Her visions remind her of the house she's now staying at, a house she's never visited before, and if she thought life was a bit screwed-up before, she quickly understands that it's about to get even worse.

To be honest, I'm not a horror fan. I think I made that clear in my last review. Spooky stories aren't my cup of tea. In fact, I'm not that big of a fan of vampire stories either. Between these two points, you'd be right in asking yourself, why did you pick that book up in the first place, girl?

Several reasons come to mind. I wanted to support fellow Indie authors. At first glance, I assumed this book was more of a supernatural mystery and not a vampire-horror party. (That will teach me to read the categories at the bottom!) I was intrigued by the synopsis and the book cover. All great reasons to dive into a new story.

However, I quickly found out my mistake. Yet, I kept reading. 

Why?

Because I was hooked.

I wanted to know what the visions were about, if it was her aunt in the visions, and why she was having visions about an aunt she'd never met. Was the aunt trying to tell her something from the great beyond? Had her aunt been murdered? And where in the world do these vampires come into play? I haven't seen one.

Basically, this wasn't your typical vampire story. It wasn't obvious. They didn't come out at night to hunt you down. They didn't sparkle in the sunlight. Wesley Snipes didn't appear out of nowhere to kick some blood-sucking corpse butt, but the subtle inferences to what was happening were brilliant in themselves.

Eventually, the plot unfurls, and questions are answered. All the pieces of the puzzle are put together, and this fifteen chapter story ends with an unexpected twist. It leaves you hanging onto what might happen next, but it certainly feeds your imagination at the same time.

So, how would I rate this book? Would I suggest it for other horror or vampire lovers? How would I navigate my feelings of "nope, nope, nope" with the true genius of the story itself?

Well, I decided to break it down. Here are the essential parts of the story that helped me think about the overall review and rating I was about to bring to the table. All points are out of 5, as standard on Amazon and Goodreads.


Numeric Breakdown:

1: didn't like it
2: it was okay
3. liked it
4. really liked it
5. it was amazing


1. Writing Style: 5/5

This story hooks you right from the beginning. The scene set-up with the family is intense, and you don't know how it's going to end. It also gives you your first glimpse of Elizabeth, the aunt. You think this story is going to be all about her and what's just happened, but it leads you to the next chapter and gets you there too. What's going on? You scream at the book. However, you have to keep reading to find out more. The author has a fluid writing style, sells the intensity of the story, and keeps giving you those hooks to ensure you read another chapter.

2. Overall Plot: 5/5

Original, fresh, and scary, this plot keeps going. Even when I wanted to put the book down, I couldn't. I had to find out what was going to happen next to Sarah. I've never read a book quite like this one. You might argue, "That's because you don't read horror, Becky." You're right, but still, this was a new approach to an old story. If you enjoy the supernatural, vampires, and not the bright and shiny ones made popular in today's writing, then this is a book you will enjoy!

3. Characters (how you relate and/or enjoy them): 4/5

I feel as if I liked the main character, Sarah. I could relate to her in some ways. I found her endearing and funny at certain times. She kept me involved in her story, and I wanted to know more. However, I felt there was only a certain level of understanding and connection that I was able to ascertain before she stopped being as 3D as I would have liked. However, her visions, new journey in life, and where she found herself personally in life were all areas I could relate to on one level or another. I liked her character and felt she was someone to continue the reading journey with.


4. Unexpected thrills: 5/5

This story had plenty of unexpected twists, and if you like the hair-raising and spine-tingling turns, you will enjoy this story. Although, to admit honestly, this story had me gagging a few times because of the twists it took, I can honestly say it kept my interest because I had to find out how Sarah came out of it. There was always something going on, and it was a fast read which kept me involved to the very end.


5. Hooks/Attention-kept: 5/5

Yep. I couldn't put it down. Even when I wanted to, and that's always a mark of a great tale. The authors keep the hooks coming, and you don't want to quit until you know what really happened and how it's going to turn out in the end.


6. Overall enjoyment of the story based on the genre: 3/5

Yeah. I know. Becky, what's this about? I enjoyed the story as far as the hooks, unexpected thrills, characters, overall plot, and writing skill. If this was a story I'd pick up again after confirming the categories/genres: No. Despite my opening up to the scarier side of writing and finding Mary Downing Hahn a good writer, I can't say that I'm going to dive into this type of story in the future and on a consistent basis. Horror just isn't for me, and while I was happy to give it a chance, and I enjoy the author's writing style, I can't commit to reading another story like this at this time. You could even say that this rating is more about my personal opinion/interest in the genre itself and doesn't have as much to do with the book itself or the author's writing.


7. Overall enjoyment of the story based on the storyline: 4/5

This is a bit different. It isn't based on how I felt about it genre-wise and whether I enjoyed it as a story I would normally pick up and read, but it's based on the storyline itself. How did the plot keep me involved? Did this story intrigue me enough to keep reading? Did I enjoy the book enough to finish it? Did I enjoy the story enough to share it or recommend it to others? Did I feel it was a good representitive of its genre, whether I like that genre or not?

Well, then, the answer to those questions would be yes. It was a good story and good enough writing and originality to keep me involved and reading. I wasn't going to quit, even though I was a bit freaked out. In fact, if we're basing this rating on my fear and how the story activated it in terms of being a good horror story, then I think this one's a winner. Therefore, it's a 4/5 based on that premise.


8. Revealing of Facts: 4/5

The slow reveal of what was happening kept me reading. It wasn't an all or nothing report of the information. The last three chapters were cool in terms of learning more about the other characters in the story. I suppose I could suggest those chapters being more intertwined within the book itself. The reveal was kept to the end, which is great when you want to be surprised and be kept guessing. Instead of it being a 5/5, I think that's just me wishing it had been revealed a little more at a time instead of all at the end (I think this is in terms of the last 3 chapters specifically, and you'll have to read it to see what I mean!). However, I'm not unhappy with how it was plotted and found it captured my interest and kept me involved in the story -- which is what any writer wants!


9. The Ending: 5/5

For me, this ending was perfect. I want to know what will happen next. It didn't give any exact resolution, if you will, but gives the reader the opportunity to draw their own conclusions based on what's just happened. It's a frightening ending, and it leaves the reader curious as to where the story could go next. It allows us a small glimpse into the other main characters, and we have the opportunity to understand what's going on from their points of view. Very well done!!


10. Overall Story Rating: 5/5

Overall, to sum up my reading experience, I would whole-heartedly give Peripheral Vision a 5/5 rating. The writing style or voice of the author was creative, independent, and painted a vivid picture. The plot was consistently progressive, had continuous action, and set-up an unexpected ending. As the story progressed it gave us new hooks and unexpected thrills. The overall story was well-written, intriguing, chilling, and gave the reader a fresh, original, and unforeseen conclusion.

Despite my own reservations with the genre itself, I would recommend this story to those who enjoy paranormal thrillers, aren't scared of ghosts, and prefer their vampires to be scary and not sparkly with an underlying obsession for teenagers. The authors have done well presenting readers with a unique plot and setting the story up for a sequel (if they choose).

However, I will contend to my last breath that the ending is perfect and could be left alone to keep readers on their toes and with their lights on after reading it.


Kudos to the authors, Timothy Hammer and Courtney Zito, for making this anti-horror reader a fan.

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If you have trouble with the above link, try this one to the YouTube video.

Until next time, thanks for joining me. I hope you've found a new author and a new book to read.

As always, Happy Reading!

~Rebecca Reddell