Review: The Cypress House by Michael Koryta

The Cypress House by Michael Koryta

Copy courtesy of NetGalley and Hachette Book Group
Release Date: Jan 24, 2011

Arlen has visual premonitions of death to come. Unfortunately for him, noone ever believes his warnings until the person/people die of course. As he is traveling with a young mechanic he has taken a liking to, Paul, he sees death all around and manages to convince Paul to not get back on the train. This doesn't actually make the situation better as they somehow find themselves in a house - The Cypress House - where something is very wrong.

This is chock full of suspense. Nothing is resolved for a long time, and you can really feel the frustration of the main characters.

Paul is rather inexplicable at times, he gets notions in his head and seems all around naive, which gets somewhat annoying. The characters (including Paul) do have some growth as the story goes on, and the reader becomes more emotionally involved in the story. The earlier annoyance lessens.

There is sorrow and the ending is fitting. In general, the pacing could use some work. It felt like nothing happened at times especially without a lot of explanation for why things were happening although it was a suspense some things could be explained. Granted fans of books where answers are only to be had much much later in the book will appreciate this piece.

Star Rating: 1.5/5.0

For an explanation of the Star Rating go here.

Check out prices for Assassin's Quest at Amazon