The Dark by Jeremy Robinson (book review).

There are a handful of authors I will read, regardless of what their new book is about. I see their name and go ahead and request or buy the book, confident I will enjoy it. In fact, I almost prefer going in blind, not knowing what the book is about. It’s a thrilling way to read, you should try it sometime. Reading Jeremy Robinson is always a little bit like that.

He never seems to write the same genre twice in one year. You could almost subsist on a diet of only his books and always remain thoroughly entertained. So, when I am offered the opportunity to read one of his upcoming releases, my answer is always yes.

The Dark’ is unlike anything I’ve read from Robinson before and I loved it all the more for this reason. Before I talk about what else I loved, though, let me tell you a little about the story.

For the first part, I’ll share the cover copy because I couldn’t sum it up any more succinctly:

Miah Gray is a twenty-seven-year-old, former Army soldier living in rural New Hampshire with his sister, mother, and her boyfriend. He is plagued by PTSD, finding solace, but not redemption, with the aid of prescribed cannabis. All he wants to do is get high, relax with a good sandwich, and watch a meteor shower with his neighborhood crush–Jen.

Because this is a Robinson book, we all know Miah won’t get to sit around chewing gummies and watching stars for very long. In fact, he gets one night. Half a night, really. And then he falls asleep on the roof of his house, Jen nestled beside him. When he wakes up – it’s still night. And according to the doom rag he noticed in the supermarket the afternoon before, the same paper now resting on the kitchen table, it’s going to be dark for three days and nights and if they open the windows, they’ll drop dead. Oh, and there will be demons and then there’s the bit about Hell on Earth.

As much as Miah and his family don’t want to take the prophesy seriously, they nevertheless start covering the windows and securing the doors. Better safe than sorry, eh? But someone always has to open the door. Well, Miah has to open the door. And when he closes it again, he’s got a rune etched into his forehead.

The next time someone opens the door, they’re sucked screaming out into the night. Soon, it’s just Miah, Jen, the kids, and the weird old guy who lives at the back of the neighborhood. The one with all the guns.

And that’s about when things start to get really, really weird.

A few things I loved about The Dark:

• Miah’s wardrobe choices
• This exchange:

“Give it to me,” I say, waving Bree over.

“But it’s mine,” she says. “I found it.”

“Just…” How do I tell a seven-year-old she’s holding Satan’s horn in her and that he might come back for it?

• The neighborhood posse
• That I laughed, often
• I also cried
• The truth behind the three days of darkness
• The epilogue chapter

One of the hardest parts about reviewing a book you really enjoyed is figuring out what to share and what has to remain under the cone of spoiler silence. I was already having a good time with ‘The Dark’ when the truth was revealed, and then I just loved the book more. I probably bounced in my chair and may have even squealed a little. It’s that much fun. I wish I could tell you why.

The big reveal is also kind of scary in an ironically biblical way. It’s exactly why I read speculative fiction, and why I’ll keep reading it and recommending it to others. Because there’s not a thing in this world we can’t turn upside down for a good look at the bottom, as though we were looking for where it was made. Nothing we can’t question.

That’s the job of a good writer, after all, to ask those questions and then answer them. ‘The Dark’, by Jeremy Robinson, does just that, and the answer is all sorts of entertaining.

Awesome plot aside, though, what pulls this book together is Miah. His ragtag band of kids, yes, but mostly Miah. At the beginning of the story, he’s damaged goods and not at all sure he’s up for the challenge of saving the neighborhood, let alone (possibly) the world. But by the end, he’s found purpose and not just because he did what was expected of him. He was able to find a peace within himself. To remember and embrace who he is.

I very much hope his story is continued as the epilogue suggests.

Kelly Jensen
July 2021

(pub: Breakneck Media, 2021. 315 page hardback, audio and ebook. Hardcover price: $28.99 (US) £23.99 (UK). ISBN: 978-1-94153-961-3. Ebook: $ 4.99 (US) £ 3.99 (UK))

check out website: https://bewareofmonsters.com/