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Fiction Review by The Gravedigger
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03.25.05
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WHAT ROUGH BEAST is unique from other recently released Leisure books in that it's a period piece-and an old-fashioned supernatural mystery. Imagine X-Files but instead of Scully and Mulder you have Sir Arthur Conan Doyle (creator of Sherlock Holmes) and Harry Houdini. It's 1903 London and a monstrous evil is loosed on the city when the two unwittingly unleash the Greek god Dionysus upon the populace. They had set out to debunk Maximillian Cairo who is a famous-and pompous-occultist. Instead of finding trickery, however, they discover he does indeed wield supernatural powers. In the middle of a demonstration in front of a group, he conjures a creature. Not believing it to be real, they interrupt-and it escapes into the night.What it does is possess individuals, at first giving them a creative spurt and then loosening their inhibitions. This happens to everyone who was in the group, to embarrassing results, particularly for Houdini. It has also taken possession of one of them, transforming them into a hideous monster that starts a killing spree. They not only have to find this out before it kills them but also a way to stop the spread of insanity, which would contaminate the world.Amidst all of this they have to prove the innocence of one of their friends, who is accused of murdering his brother. It was the creature's doing-but is the creature him? Or is it one of them?This is an immensely entertaining book. It makes me look forward to the possibility of more team-ups with Conan Doyle and celebrities of his time, not to mention future novels by H.R. Knight.Check out www.dorchesterpub.com and www.hrknight.com for more info.
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Rating: nan out of 10.0 - votes cast total
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