Curse of the Ladderman by Angela Archer #BookReview

Three friends. One game. Who will survive?

After surviving a knife attack in London, Rik Slater moves with his pregnant wife, Becky, to what he hopes is the safety of Little Winchcombe.

A simple game of rock, paper, scissors changes Rik’s life forever as he and two friends unwittingly unleash the curse of the Ladderman.

Haunted by his past, terrified by his future, becoming the next victim means fighting for his life. Rik has to decide whether to put his faith in the police, who failed to protect him in the past, or to flee with his wife, putting them both in danger.

The game has begun. The question is: Will life prevail or will death succeed?

Title: Curse of the Ladderman | Author: Angela Archer | Publisher: TYG Publishing | Pub. Date: 30th of May, 2019 | Pages: 72 | ASIN: B07SHFPXGB | Genre: Horror | Language: English | Triggers: None | Rating: 5 out of 5 | Source: Received a copy from the author for review consideration

Curse of the Ladderman Review

I really liked Curse of the Ladderman. For such a short story it had great description, likeable characters and a decently laid out curse. Curse of the Ladderman starts out with an action packed and intriguing first mini chapter. Even though it’s bent toward a supernatural cause it’s still not really clear until the third or fourth chapter on whether or not it’s human or not. I like that.

The author does a very good job with the characters. With the brief time we have getting to know them,they are fleshed out well. Well enough so that when things start going downhill we really care about them. The only characters that felt a bit stereotypical were the detectives. But, in such a short story, it felt acceptable.

I really liked the dialect and dialogue. The dialect set the scene very well and the dialogue flowed naturally. Rik, Will and Kevin all felt like friends from the get-go. Becky, Rik’s wife, also felt like a fully developed character, as well.

I also liked how Rik’s previous experiences affected his decisions and interactions with the police. It didn’t feel like useless backstory. It also isn’t over-explained to the point of dragging the story down. It’s a very quick read with no slow spots. It keeps an even pace throughout.

I would definitely recommend Curse of the Ladderman and I’m very interested in checking out other works by the same author.

You can find Curse of the Ladderman at many retailers via clicking the Goodreads link. However, in the spirit of supporting literacy programs, you may also be able to purchase this book through Better World Books.