By Niall McKay

Cover Blurb:

Twelve strangers wake up in a strange house with no memory of how they got there, and barely any recollection of who they are. They quickly learn that there is no way out, scarcely enough food and water to go around, and eerie music plays constantly in the background of every room. There is nothing to explain their mysterious incarceration except for a few scattered clues, a strange clock with twenty-four numbers and one single hour hand, and a leather-bound sheet of rules that makes their situation all the more fatal. The House Rules: Rule one: No escape. You can’t leave, plain and simple. Try to escape and you won’t like what you find on the other side. Rule two: Make what you have last. Whatever food and water you currently find in the house is all that you will be provided with during your stay. No more will be given to you under any circumstance. Rule three: When the music stops, someone must die. The music you can all hear in the background will cease between the hour of twenty-three and twenty-four; when this happens someone must die. Failure to comply with this rule will result in everyone’s death. Rule four: Only one, and only when the music stops! One death, and only one death, must occur in the allotted time between the hour of twenty-three and twenty-four. Again, failure to comply with this rule will result in everyone’s death. We hope you have a pleasant stay, and don’t forget: Redemption is the key to escape.

House of Twelve by Author Sean Davies – Book Review

The House of Twelve written by Author Sean Davies falls within the horror genre, and centres around 12 characters, all from very different backgrounds. Each character awakens in an uninspiring house with a fairly decent dose of amnesia.

Not quite sure how they got there, they quickly realise that the way out is barred, with doors locked, and windows bricked up. In true Big Brother style, they next receive rather worrying instructions that to survive, one of them must die, and at a specific time each night. Fans of pulp horror will certainly enjoy this read, which follows similar dynamics to the Saw Movie series, although without the more intricate devices.

The opening is to a certain extent chaotic, and whilst this is inevitable, as the author attempts to bring each character quickly into play, it does seem to work.

I initially found the characters to appear quite cliched at the start of the book, however this quickly changes as you read on, and learn more about their backgrounds. This is quite a clever approach by the author, and really adds an element of surprise that makes the reader want to discover more about them.

The dialogue is authentic, and compliments the book well, moving the story forward, and improving the readers connection to each character.

The action is well paced, and makes you want to continue turning the pages over, and as the turmoil amongst the group members grows, with each day that passes, the reader experiences these emotions too.

There are several twists and turns as the story progresses, which certainly keeps the reader guessing as to what happens next.

Overall this is a well constructed, and well written story, that draws the reader further into the story with each chapter read, until it reaches its climax. I have awarded this novel 4 stars and certainly this is one for fans of psychological horror.

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