Sidetracked Sunday #3 - A Long Overdue Horror Read

So up this month is a horror book I've wanted to read for years.  So a few weeks ago, I located it at my local library and took it home.  Once I picked it up, I couldn't put it down.  I've not heard a lot about it but know quite a few people who have mentioned they would like to read it.  All I can say is YES!  Do it!

TITLE: Snowblind
AUTHOR: Christopher Golden
PUBLISHER: St. Martin's Press
PUBLISHING DATE: January 21, 2014

FROM GOODREADS: The small New England town of Coventry had weathered a thousand blizzards...but never one like this. Icy figures danced in the wind and gazed through children's windows with soul-chilling eyes. People wandered into the whiteout and were never seen again. Families were torn apart, and the town would never be the same.

Now, as a new storm approaches twelve years later, the folks of Coventry are haunted by the memories of that dreadful blizzard and those who were lost in the snow. Photographer Jake Schapiro mourns his little brother, Isaac, even as-tonight-another little boy is missing. Mechanic and part-time thief Doug Manning's life has been forever scarred by the mysterious death of his wife, Cherie, and now he’s starting over with another woman and more ambitious crimes. Police detective Joe Keenan has never been the same since that night, when he failed to save the life of a young boy . . and the boy’s father vanished in the storm only feet away. And all the way on the other side of the country, Miri Ristani receives a phone call . . . from a man who died twelve years ago.

As old ghosts trickle back, this new storm will prove to be even more terrifying than the last.

MY THOUGHTS: So the book starts out with an incident that happened 12 years ago in Coventry where quite a few people died.  It occurred during a horrific snowstorm and the town never quite recovered.  Now every time there is a blizzard in the air everyone becomes tense.  When the story picks up 12 years later, the readers follows the lives of a few key characters.  Once again a blizzard is one its way, but this time strange things begin happening. A young boy is almost killed in an accident and wakes up very differently from before, a couple's preteen daughter suddenly starts acting much older than she is - like 50 years older, and an ex-girlfriend shows up wanting to rekindle a romance yet acts more like the man's dead wife than a past flame.

I need to say that Golden does a wonderful job creating a unique character - the snowstorm  itself.  If you love thrillers and horror novels with winter settings, look no further. The chilling weather made the chilling atmosphere much scarier and more unsettling.  I could almost hear the wind howling and the temperatures falling while curled up on my couch reading this.  I devoured this book quite quickly and had to learn more about the entities hiding within the storm.  I connected to many of the characters, even the thief, and rooted them on to safety.  I also felt the loss of those that weren't so lucky.

I'm glad I finally picked up "Snowblind" and it was just the horror read I needed this month.  It has gone to show me that I'm really glad I made the decision to pick up some older titles this year and maybe I can convince some of you to give this one a read too!

RATING:  5 Paws