There is something about holiday horror that I get so giddy about. The holiday season is always about all the twinkling lights, and all that is bright and good in the world...but horror doesn't disappear on the holidays....it's still there, lurking in the shadows of Christmas trees.
In The Visitor, a group of strangers are stranded in an Indiana diner in the middle of a brutal snowstorm. They relegate themselves to the fact that they aren't going anywhere anytime soon, and just as they all start to become friendly, the power goes out, and a sixth mysterious visitor shows up. This white Christmas soon turns red, and those seeking refuge in the diner find themselves running and fighting to survive against the elements and the sinister visitor.
One thing that Gomez does well, and did not disappoint with in this novella, is writing gore that is bloody and juicy but also so descriptive and engrossing. When I read the kill scenes in this book, I could hear every crunch, spray, squish and ooze as if I were there witnessing the mayhem and murder. Well done, Sergio! I would have liked to have known a little more about what the alien was planning to do with his harvest that he kept in his little case, but I also enjoyed speculating myself as to the alien's mission on Earth.
4.5/5- Seriously the only reason I would take off a half star for this marvelous story is because I kept thinking about how crazy it was that Kaito said that it must be an alien terrorizing the diner, everyone just went along with it and said..."oh yeah, it's an alien." I feel like if I was in this situation, I would have been a little more apprehensive when jumping to the alien conclusion. However, this is a damn good book that EVERYONE and their brother, sister, and mother should pick up for your bloody holiday horror reading pleasure.
Amanda @spooky.octopus.reads
Review of “The Visitor by Sergio Gomez” releases Dec. 15th! You can order from Sergio Gomez's website and get an @astrangerdream bookmark with a bundle order. Go do it now! The bookmark is so cute!
ALIENS!!! I feel like aliens don’t get enough action in horror. I literally love watching alien movies. They are so mysterious and intriguing. I was super pumped to get to read “The Visitor” by Sergio Gomez. I’ve only read his book “Camp Slaughter” and I just love how easy it is to slip into his writing. I could get lost for hours and be done before I even know it. It’s Christmas Day, the roads are icing over and a storm is cutting out any visibility of the road. The weather leaves some drivers stranded with only a diner nearby. The weather isn’t the only thing they should be worried about. Instead of a jolly white Christmas let’s have a RED one! The mood and scene setting is perfect. The best thing up north are the diners and I just felt transported there. The story doesn’t dwell heavily on the details and is quick to set up the characters. I was a little worried about connecting with the characters with such a quick set up but in the span of 83 pages I found deeper connections than I ever thought possible. Each chapter leaves you anticipating what would come next and I was riddled with anxiety with each turn of the page. Everything was touched on and executed with great precision; mood, setting, pacing, and character connection. This is surely to be a Christmas treat! I gave this 5 ⭐️.
Richelle @shereadshorror