Sunday, October 19, 2014

Brood-Chase Novak

Brood
Chase Novak
Little, Brown/Mulholland, Oct 7 2014, $26.00
ISBN 9780316228008

Manhattan residents Alex and Leslie Twisden lived a great lifestyle until they went to Slovenia for illegal fertility treatments.  The procedure worked and they had twins Alice and Adam, but also turned the nice couple into malevolent ogres (see Breed).

Moving into the renovated Upper East Side townhouse that Alex and Leslie turned into a monstrosity, antiques dealer Cynthia Kramer becomes guardian to her troubled niece and nephew.  She hopes to nurture them into a good mental state through love.  However, the youngsters fear puberty will make them a chip off the cannibalistic block and especially do not want to harm their caring aunt.  Alice and Adam flee to Central Park where evil greets them with a scheme to use the siblings.

The efforts to prevent what seems inevitable turn this sequel into an exciting urban horror though Mother Cynthia’s constant anxiety panic attacks detract from an otherwise electrifying family drama.  With a stunning climax to an overall tense tale (mainly when the twins rule the storyline), this is a winning read particularly when the Twisden brother and sister invade Central Park.


Harriet Klausner

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