While facing the ghosts and horrors of the past, Dick comes to the realization that the frozen hell he survived generations before is a battleground he can never leave. Tortured by the ghost of a fallen Marine, he is faced with the truth, that it may be too late for not only himself but those he loves. Hell is cold, and Death stands at the end of his road, the Korean Road.
Korean Road: A Horror Novella
By brianscutt
Korean Road is a stunning character study and a story both tragic and haunting. An unforgettable read.
This was a deeply dark story that dealt with some serious issues. It read fast but there is a lot in there. I loved the descriptions; so real and creepy. Well done!
I would imagine that different readers will see this story differently. Some may find a horror story that uses and old veteran’s PTSD as its vehicle. A clever approach. Others, like me, will find a disturbing story of wartime demons brought to life. I experienced Dick’s PTSD-induced pain through Scutt’s vivid imagery. This novella is a very imaginable way to present PTSD and make it more understandable to those of us who have no idea. Either way, you will find a quick read from an excellent writer that you will find difficult to put down till you get all the way to the harrowing end. Well done!
This is a horror story. It’s not the kind that Stephen King writes. It’s about real horror, the kind that’s both history and the living present. It’s about the scars a human can take with him from a time and place of horror and pass them on to the future. Blood, death, hatred and fear. This is not an escapist novel. I must say I might have not finished reading this book, except for the fact that Brian Scutt is a hell of a good writer. I hope to see more of him. If I think I can handle it.
This short book will definitely stay with me for a long, long time. Dick is a Korean War veteran, still fighting the demons that followed him home. Alan is a young Boy Scout, just looking to earn a merit badge by getting a story from Dick. In order to get his story, Alan helps Dick escape the Home where he is living out his last days.
This story looks at the horrors of war, PTSD, and the demons that can haunt people. The author has written the book in such a way that sometimes you aren’t sure what is real and what is inside Dick’s head. Dick has obviously done some things that are truly horrific and early on in the story, you just know that things aren’t going to end well!
S.W. Salzman narrates the Audible version of this book and does his usual fantastic job. His voice is perfect as the elderly, curmudgeonly Dick. The emotions that are conveyed by his narration is perfect and horrifying at the same time.
It would be hard to actually classify this book, but it definitely falls within the horror category. I find that the scariest and most horrific things are usually those caused by human nature, not something supernatural. But, then again, how much of this story is real and how much only exists in Dick’s mind? The author does a great job of holding the reader’s attention with his graphic descriptions of Dick’s time in Korea. You can almost feel the cold that comes every time that Dick’s fellow Marine, Ronald, is mentioned.
I was given the chance to listen to the audiobook version of this book by the author/publisher/narrator and chose to review it.
This is a brutal psychological look at PTSD and the ramifications that can result from the ravages of war going unchecked.
I’ve seen this novella on a few different social media sites, and the reviews have been fantastic, so I snagged this one a while back.
The story starts out basic enough. Alan is a sheltered 16 year old kid, whose mother wants him to spend some time with a war vet, to earn his last scout badge. What Alan doesn’t know, is he gets paired up with Dick, a Korean War vet who himself is running from demons left unchecked.
The writing is great, the story moves along nicely, and the horrifying plot lines introduced work really well to compliment Dick’s back story.
Definitely suggest you give this a read!