Dark Harvest

Dark Harvest
by Norman Partridge

Dark Harvest
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Book Summary Information

Author: Norman Partridge
Edition: Paperback
Audio: English (Unknown); English (Original Language); English (Published)
Published: 2007-09-04
ISBN: 076531911X
Number of pages: 176
Publisher: Tor Books

Book Reviews of Dark Harvest

Book Review: Dark Night of the Scarecrow
Summary: 5 Stars

I have been anxious to read Norman Partridge for some time now, and DARK HARVEST was a great introduction to the author. This book takes no prisoners and will punch your ticket from the get-go.

As the reader, you get the impression from the book description that you're going to be set for a rather typical good vs. evil, boy vs. monster plot scenario. But what Partridge delivers is so much more and so much different than your average horror novel. This is the tale of the scarecrow creature known as the October Boy. Upon his resurrection each Halloween, the small town's teenage boys compete for the honor of being the first one to destroy old Sawtooth Jack. Because if a boy is crowned the winner of the "Run", it's his ticket out of town. In fact, it's the only way anyone ever escapes the cornfields and the never ending nothingness of this particular midwest 'burg. Pete McCormick is 16 years old, and he is determined to be this year's winner of the Run. He wants out of town, and the only way to get his wish is to stop the October Boy from making it to the town square church before midnight.

However, Partridge's trick along the way is a clever story twist to keep the reader guessing about who the victims really are and who the monsters really are. What is the history behind this macabre tradition that has the farm folk running rabid every Halloween night? Partridge does a wonderful job of setting you up for one type of story, then stopping you in your tracks, and finally putting his own unique spin on the plot flow to really keep you guessing. His pacing and prose are both switch-blade sharp and will take you for a ride like few other authors can.

When I read DARK HARVEST, it reminded me of another novel by Joe R. Lansdale called THE NIGHTRUNNERS, which is also measured by hard hitting action and violent characters. In addition, I see some parallels with Partridge and author Charlie Huston. Material by all of these writers is actually some of the best dark fantasy and pulp noir to be found anywhere today.

As for the title of this review, it's really a nod to another October Boy, the mysterious scarecrow character from the early 1970's TV movie, DARK NIGHT OF THE SCARECROW. The networks used to run it every fall, but I haven't seen it listed for many years now. It is still one of the best horror films ever to be offered by TV producers. Like the original NIGHT STALKER, this movie is very much in the same vein as the projects of Dan Curtis. I'm still waiting for someone to release it on DVD. In the meantime, read DARK HARVEST for an original Halloween treat. Almost as good as a carmeled apple or a popcorn ball......

Summary of Dark Harvest

Halloween, 1963. They call him the October Boy, or Ol? Hacksaw Face, or Sawtooth Jack. Whatever the name, everybody in this small Midwestern town knows who he is. How he rises from the cornfields every Halloween, a butcher knife in his hand, and makes his way toward town, where gangs of teenage boys eagerly await their chance to confront the legendary nightmare. Both the hunter and the hunted, the October Boy is the prize in an annual rite of life and death. 

Pete McCormick knows that killing the October Boy is his one chance to escape a dead-end future in this one-horse town. He?s willing to risk everything, including his life, to be a winner for once. But before the night is over, Pete will look into the saw-toothed face of horror--and discover the terrifying true secret of the October Boy . . .

Winner of the Stoker Award and named one of the 100 Best Novels of 2006 by Publishers Weekly, Dark Harvest is a powerhouse thrill-ride with all the resonance of Shirley Jackson?s "The Lottery."

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