What originally drew me to The Nightmare Man was the creepy scarecrow vibes. I grew up next to corn fields and in the era of Children of the Corn. So I'm always down for books about creepy scarecrows and weird small towns. All the things I thought this book would be.
And, it was both of those things. New Haven gives off Gotham City vibes, and there is a killer scarecrow on the loose.
At some point, I read the plot of this book. It's been all over this blog, and it was one of my anticipated reads of 2023. But between all of that, I forgot about the creepy library. Why? Because this cover distracts me every time. The cover is the reason I even noticed the book.
I was so excited about the murderous scarecrow that I forgot everything else.
This is ironic considering this book is all about lost memories, or at least unreliable ones.
The first half of this book is absolutely wild. Just in the first hundred pages so much happens. Explaining this plot sounds crazy because I never felt like I was doing it justice. Yes, it sounds convoluted and like it should work. But, I swore it did.
In fact, having so many plot points in the air to juggle is why I kept reading the book. Markert made it work. It never felt like feel like too much because you know each piece had to fit together. Like they should all feet together.
You know you're not getting the whole story, but I couldn't quite figure out what some of the pieces that were missing were. But, I had a thousand theories I kept reading. Every chance I got. My thirty-minute bus ride to and from work, my small waits for my bus, and right before bed.
I have had some of the trippest dreams while reading this book. Because it screws with your head. I finished this book on Monday, and I'm still thinking about it. About how Markert used all this different lore from all over the world to weave this weird and wild story. I loved the mix of magic and realism as well. There's a balance that needs to be held.
And, when you finally start connecting the dots. That's when I had a hard time putting this book down.
Was it scary? Personally, I didn't think so. At least not in sleep with the lights on kind of scary. However, it is a mind-meld kind of book. It's gross and icky as well. Those are two different things, if you know, you know.
While the book was super gross at parts what with them solving murders. It never felt like too much for the type of book I was reading. As for the ick, those were just mentioned not played out. Which personal I'm thankful for.
Cause, no, no thank you.
My only issue is the last few pages of the ending felt a little rushed. I didn't hate the idea of how the showdown happened. Or, even when it happened. It's just all this build-up, and then that's all we got. Though, the twist with Mr. Dream was solid. I really enjoyed that.
But, yeah I wished we had just a few more pages with The Nightmare Man himself. Just a little more meat on his bones.
That being said I do that we got a small flash forward. A small little look to see where everyone was a few years later. I also like that it was more of an open ending. There could be more books in the future, but there doesn't need to be more. This story is over, but there is so much more we learn about this world. Even a prequel would be cool, but really not needed.
I also would love to see this book picked up as a mini-series. Personally, I just feel like it was translated really well. It's spooky enough and twisted enough that it would pull viewers in!
So yeah, a solid book, and I'll definitely have to pick more books up by this author. I really liked what he did with The Nightmare Man.
HAPPY READING!!
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