Hunter Miller sees demons. The terrifying shadows engulf him and everyone he knows—yet nobody else notices their presence.Hunter can’t escape them, so he sets out to understand them. Why do they follow him? What are they trying to tell him?In this first installment of the Master of Perceptions series, pre-teen Hunter discovers that every sensation the demons produce—whether it be sight, sound, … be sight, sound, texture, flavor, or smell—has a different meaning. And that by breaking this code, he just might be able to harness their power.
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“…that the best solution to a problem often masqueraded as the simplest one.”
Hunter, the only child of two PhDs, presented with such difficult issues, his Mother had been forced into a long term hiatus from her work as a geneticist to care for him. Only after work forced her to return did Hunter begin to develop into his own person. Still primarily non-verbal, his awareness scores way above the rest of the members of his “class”. And his frustration grows, causing some harm to himself until someone hands him a key, which opens both his abilities and his understanding.
Hunter gets bullied and the result sends him across the country to spend the summer with his mother’s father; a medical doctor. There is such a connection and Hunter begins to learn more about how development happens, and, with that, begins his journey to “revenge” on the ones who bullied him.
This book was a daunting task. The story of Hunter Miller and his battles with himself started out so sad! Mis(?)diagnosed on the nonverbal end of the Autism Spectrum, everyone treated him as a kid with special needs. Little did they know…. Does he like doing this? My guess is no. Hunter is a gentle soul who “gets it”. Will you root for him? Probably. Does he believe in himself? He learns how to. My thought is that the author, Darin C.Brown, has left the ending wide open to see how Hunter uses his demons in the future. Highly Recommended 5/5
Trigger warnings: bullying and it’s response
[disclaimer: I received this book from the publisher and voluntarily reviewed it]
I am normally not into this kind of stories but this one surprised me. It was not over the top as most of the stories with people that are different are. It caught me from first to last chapter. I read it in one setting because I had to know what happened next.
Well written and with nice storyline and plot. The characters are well described and they develop nicely through the story. The theme about an autistic boy is amazing. It is unique but also handles the issue in a way that was intriguing and exceptional. It is writing with mystery, development, finding yourself and emotions.
Absolutely recommendable to others.
The Sight of Demons is an exemplary story about a boy named Hunter. Hunter is an autistic pre-teen who sees demons all around him that no one else can see. In this story, the reader gets to watch Hunter as he comes out into the world and discovers he has a power to see that others don’t and how to harness it. The story is unlike anything I have ever read before. It is hard to describe the way in which the author, Dr. Darin C. Brown, writes from the perspective of a little boy struggling with his world and the ups and downs he takes on his journey. Brown is an excellent writer, and the language is intricate and mesmerizing. I loved reading about Hunter and found him a sympathetic character that I became quickly fond of. This is a wonderful story, and I cannot wait to see more!
In the beginning I had a hard time getting into the story and following Hunter’s experiences with demons, but as I continued to read the story, I found it intriguing. The book is a well-written story of a boy diagnosed with an extreme form of autism who see demons all around him and has hard time understanding why no one else does. The story started to reveal childhood trauma, it opened my eyes to the power of self will. I began to see the character as a super-hero, as you watch Hunter come into the world and discovers he has powers others don’t have. This is an excellent book for the pre-teen, teen population as well as adults. It provides a detailed look at the world of an autistic boy and how he learns to deal with his disabilities and harness his strength and power.
This book started out slow in the beginning and started its momentum later when I grasped its overall concept. It is the story of an autistic young boy by the name of Hunter Miller who has a strange but interesting “condition (or gift?)” of seeing color-coordinated demons on him and other people who don’t even notice them at all. Hunter’s story starts from when he was in his early childhood years to the time he becomes a middle-grader who gets bullied by mean kids slightly older than him and his own group of friends. Hunter’s parents are always away and they hire people to come and look after Henry, in case he gets into accidents and such. I guess the enjoyable part of this book is the whole demons-around-humans notion. That everybody including Henry himself has these colors, auras, and supernatural beings around them that Hunter eventually discovers to be associated with their thoughts, feelings, and so and so.
The reason why for the 4 stars in my review is due to a few elements about Henry’s thoughts (this book is entirely narrated by him) and how they come off as psychotic and a bit weird. One example is when he desperately searches for a sharp tool in his home to open a bottle of pills that his mental health doctor prescribed for him in order to alleviate his bizarre ability of demon-viewing. I mean, just reading this bloody scene made me want to vomit and throw my innocent kindle across the room and think happy, safe thoughts. I don’t know, you be the judge yourself when you buy this interesting book. I am just a squirmy bookworm and perhaps you are way stronger than me, haha!
All in all, I will say again that despite that minute complaint of mine, this book was charming. I think any middle-grader, teen, and adult lover of YA fiction will love it and its main character. Don’t let the strange frontcover and title fool you. It’s not a horror story, it’s more like a science fiction tale and it has a good ending. It is also the first part of author Dr. Darin C. Brown’s Master of Perceptions series. Later!
Young Hunter is not your average pre-teen. He has been diagnosed with autism, but he is much more than this diagnosis. Hunter is a remarkable boy, yet he feels like he is trapped in his own head by visions of demons – is this just how this particular autistic boy deals with the world, shutting out what is difficult to engage in, or is there more to Hunter’s visions?
With ‘The Sight of Demons’ Dr, Darin C Brown has brought us into Hunter’s world and showed us that everyone has the potential to be remarkable, and that each person is special, whilst also smashing preconceptions about autism. He is so empathetic towards his protagonists and you can’t help but root for him from the very first chapter. The story is a joy to read and it is really rewarding to see Hunter come out of his shell and realise just how powerful he can be…a great read!
Interesting and fascinating reading! I want to share my impressions after reading The Sight of Demons by Darin Brown. I really liked to read that book, because the book was written in nice language, and I was able to read it in two days, because my interest with each page raised more and more. It is simply impossible to stop reading.
This book is about an autistic boy with unusual abilities. I believe that in this way the author wanted show a reader how it is to live with such a diagnosis, and the reader could look through the eyes of the boy at the everyday world and understand that it’s different. I liked the author’s style and the characters he described. Highly recommended!
This is the first time I’ve ever read anything from Brown, and I must say I’m more impressed with a first book in a series than I have been in a while.
The story unfolds as a mystery does, bit by bit and revealing more answers while raising more questions.
We watch the main character, an autistic kid, grow and flourish into who he really is.
With that being said, the story does start a bit slow. It took a bit to get into the swing of it, but once Brown settled in he took us for the ride we hoped for. The writing is skillful, but could be paced more evenly throughout. Keep with the story, though, it’s well worth your patience once you get past the first bit.
It did take me a little to get into the Sight of Demons, but that might be because I was unsure what it would all be about as I began. It reminded me a little of Dean Koontz’s Odd books, and I enjoyed them so that’s a positive for me. But this is no cheap imitation and Sight of Demons stands proudly as an original work on its own. Plus even after I thought I had got my head around just what was happening there were still secrets to be revealed. No spoilers, but I do recommend giving this one a go for yourself.
New Hampshire author Darin C. Brown earned a bachelor degree in engineering physics, a master’s degree in biomedical engineering from Cornell, and a PhD in biophysics from the University of Illinois. He has been an ER doctor, but now devotes his time to writing, acting, and directing theater as well as to an active and honored sports life.
Darin makes his debut with volume one of The Master of Perceptions series. If THE SIGHT OF DEMONS is indicative of the depth of character development and the unique line of story we can expect in subsequent books, then it is all the more important to read this volume carefully.
The primary character of this story is an autistic child, Hunter Miller, who sees demons that no one else can see. In the moving Prologue Darin describes the visions – ‘The gigantic blue demon swims around me, engulfing my entire body with its long tentacles. Other demons of varying colors sparkle beyond, but the horrifying blue apparition occupies all my attention. I open my eyes, hoping the sights of the everyday world will make it go away, but it still slithers around me, unwilling to loosen its grip. In a panic, I jump back into the nothingness, certain I’m fortunate to escape with my life… I keep my eyes closed, but it doesn’t help. They’re here. I still see the sparkling colors. My empty hands feel textures. I smell odors and taste flavors even though my mouth is empty. I can’t stop any of it. If I open my eyes, the sensations superimpose themselves on the sights all around me. The demons. They’re out to get me. But I never let them; as soon as they get close enough, I retreat inside myself, where they can’t follow. Safety awaits me in the emptiness, and I go there whenever the fear grips me. I visit this world— the one outside myself— infrequently, because the demons are always there, ready to pounce. They bombard me with their myriad of unwanted sensations. Falling off into my own private universe happens automatically.’
While some would discard this ‘gift’ as part of a mental disarrangement, Darin makes the demons represent the challenges facing an autistic child and how Hunter grapples with what he perceives as real he gradually learns to accept them as particular abilities. The manner in which this occurs is not only a credible story but also a flag to readers to reconsider the mind of autistic children – or even a study of how childhood trauma affects the mental development of many children today. Exceptionally well written, this book makes us eager for the next volume to appear. Highly Recommended on many levels.