We often hear how our young years are the formative years
and yet many have a youth of distress and horror and must delve and find deep
within themselves the strength to move up and overcome the pain of their past.
At the same time, others are not so able to find the inner resistance and
continue on a path that was not their own choosing in the beginning.
In Black Machetes by Ryan K. Howard, we follow the life and exploits
of Benjamin Wilder, a kid who escaped his abusive home life with a daily dose
of close friends. A group of kids very like him with their own problems,
although most were not as dire as his own. Yet it was here that he felt the
comfort and camaraderie as did his friends. To seal their adventures and to
form a stronger bond they formed the group and named themselves the Black
Machetes. The bond became everything, and home was just a painful memory only
to become a nightmare as the day was done and reality intruded.
After one such painful reality Benjamin finds the strength
to run away. His stepfather, known as Rabid Dog, and his friend have been
capable of some horrible and heinous things including a rape which Ben had inadvertently
witnessed. He even had the audacity of sneaking into the cabin and rescuing the
new born baby that became of result of the torture and eventual killing of this
young woman. Leaving the new baby at the hospital entrance, he knew that he had
to get away—and now. Yet Ben was very sure there was more, many young women
were disappearing and he felt his Stepfather might well be a part of the
problem. Without proof he knew his only
safety was in leaving everything he knew and disappearing before he too disappeared
in another way.
Finding himself in a small town, appropriately named hope,
he stumbles onto the right man who seems to understand his fear. Morgan River
had seen a lot of things in his time on earth and he knew immediately when he
saw a soul in need of saving. Finding this youngster in need of hope and
courage, he took him under his wing, and they began an unlikely family, but
family all the same. Soon father and son in the eyes of all that matters it
appears as though finally, all would be right with the world again.
Yet the past can never be truly extinguished, and the anger
and rage he engendered by leaving became a palpable thing. Unbeknownst to
himself he had also put his closest friends, The Black Machetes in jeopardy in
his jump to freedom. Inexorably the past would follow him, could he survive the
hit.
Howard has given us a suspense filled story of
possibilities and change. His characterizations of the protagonists are both
horror filled and often desperate. Yet there is a discipline to the danger and
madness that permeates and holds. As Benjamin grow, learns and evolves, we are
with him every step of the way. We hurt for his friends and his memories, and
begin to take his problems on as personally as though they were our own. It is
difficult to separate Ben into the two very differing lives that shape him and
yet they are why he is who he is. The timeline and continued intrusion of Rabid
Dog’s exploits, creates a chill as you wonder where it will all go wrong.
If you like suspense, romance and friendship stories you
will find this a very satisfying read with a chill of terror that occasionally
rears its head.
This would be a great find for a book club or reading group,
with numerous issues of the day to discuss.
Rating 5/5
This book was received free from the author, all opinions are my own based off my reading and understanding of the material.
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