Seven Story Publishing

1. Title: St. Patrick’s Slay
2. Author: Christopher Flowers
3. Genre: Horror
4. Summary: The appearance of a perfectly formed rainbow on Saint Patrick’s Day mesmerized the residents of Richview, North Carolina. When a local couple catches sight of the anomaly, they’re startled to discover that the terminus of the vibrant phenomenon leads into a nearby cornfield. What begins as an unbelievably lucky encounter that could change their fortunes forever devolves into a hellish fight for survival when an ancient entity emerges to act on a centuries-old curse.
5. Publisher: Independently Published
6. Publication Date: March 4, 2024
7. Page Count: 22

General Review

1. Description and Imagery: This author does a great job using the words and actions of characters to convey their personalities and traits. The author also uses just the right amount of description to bring the story alive without making it longer than necessary which is tricky to do with short stories.
2. Relatability of MC: The story read like traditional horror and, personally, I don’t think anyone relates to characters in horror movies or shows as the decisions those characters make would just get everyone killed in real life.
3. Pacing: The story is well paced and easy to read which makes it flow. The story maintains a consistent rhythm that’s not easily interrupted which keeps the magical spell the author cast alive. Well done by this author in this area.
4. Perspective: The third person perspective is the right one to use for a story like this. Although the first person view would place the reader in the thick of the story, the third person view lets the reader see everything and encompass the world around the story which brings it to life and elicits that movie feel.
5. Vibe Check: I would totally read this story to my kids to scare them on St. Patrick’s Day. It just gives me that type of feeling.

Personal Review

The story maintained a great pace from start to finish. All the description and detail proved to be essential with no extra fat. it was a lean and mean story and I thoroughly enjoyed the read.

The description of the creature corresponded with the cover of the story and helped me better envision the monster which brought the story to life even more. Personally, I think this story would be better if read at night as horror loses much of its sting in the day time.

Don’t get me wrong, some scary stuff still happens in the day time. It just looks like plain murder when you can clearly see everything that’s going on though. . .

At night, the fear of the unknown compounded with the certainty of death really gets the juices flowing with any horror story. The author understood that and leveraged that concept very well in this work.

I would definitely recommend reading this story for anyone who wants a quick adrenaline rush without weeks of nightmares to follow.

About Christopher Flowers

Christopher Flowers is an English professor and educational consultant in the Charlotte, NC area. His poetry has been published in a number of journals, including Main Street Rag, Dark Sky Magazine, and Iodine. His first novel, Salt of the Earth, was published in 2011.

Amazon Author Page: https://www.amazon.com/stores/author/B00EJR2NGE?ingress=0&visitId=9d24f89e-e1c6-4874-b221-cbf7c318ae1f