Land of the Hoosier Dawn: October, 1993. Police chief Linton Derr was living in a tiny river town in Southern Indiana when a fog cloud rose out of the noxious Ohio River and laid siege to it. For a few quick moments, some of the townsfolk were trapped inside its ominous mist, writhing in violent pain, before it rolled past and dissolved.
The next day, those people awoke to a new dawn and their lives would be forever changed. They had emerged as sentient beings in rapidly changing bodies and the town of Fogstow, Indiana became ground zero for the new Hoosier Dawn.
It ended at dusk. – Goodreads
–S&S–
Land of the Hoosier Dawn Review
Land of the Hoosier Dawn has the potential to be a really well done horror novel. It starts off well enough. Nick Younker does a great job of laying out the small town atmosphere. He takes his time with it, but does it in such a way that it is genuinely an interesting read. Like watching an experienced painter set the foundation for a Rockwell-esque piece. Even itching for the ‘good stuff’ to start, you can’t help but appreciate the thought that went into Fogstow’s creation. And, from someone who lives near the Ohio River, yeah, you don’t want to swim in it. The Ohio River has gotten “Most polluted river in the United States” seven years in a row.
It has the potential, but it’s not there yet. There’s just too many story-lines going on in the book. It feels like the author didn’t spend nearly enough time on what should have been the main focus of his story. Instead we get a seedy mother/daughter thing, a bit about a serial killer, a diatribe about rich yuppies and how they get what’s coming to them, etc. It felt like it had a bit of an identity crisis honestly. Plus, whenever there was an important point the author wanted to make, he’d repeat it three times. It was a different line each time, so he wasn’t literally repeating himself word for word. Still, that quirk wasn’t something I enjoyed.
I really enjoyed the idea of the ‘monsters’ in Land of the Hoosier Dawn. They were just unique enough to perk my interest. The first feeding scene turned my stomach. Wonderfully disgusting. Definitely a step away from the normal zombies you typically see in this type of horror novel. I would have loved to have seen them explored a bit more. Especially a bit more of the battle between their human side, instead of the almost easy conversion.
This is the first book in a series. The ending makes that very clear.
Overall, Land of the Hoosier Dawn is an okay read. The action, once it gets going, is fast-paced. There’s characters you can find yourself caring about. Lots of people are probably really going to like it. I would if a few things were tightened up. The book was an easy read, and at times a fun one. If you’d like to check it out yourself, it’s available on Amazon.
Title: Land of the Hoosier Dawn | Series: Events from the Hoosier Dawn #1 | Author: Nick Younker (site) | Publisher: Fogstow-Jamison Press | ASIN: B01D47VTXW | Genre: Horror | Language: English | Triggers: Child death, M/F rape, M/M rape | Rating: 3 out of 5 | Date Read: 2016-8-28 | Source: Received a copy from the author free in exchange for an honest review | Cover materials and any quotes used are for review purposes only.
