Title: Between Light and Dark
Author: Rian McMurtry
Publisher: Author Reputation Press, LLC
ISBN: 1952250080
Pages: 144
Genre: Supernatural
Reviewed by: Liz Konkel
Hollywood Book Reviews
Angela was an ordinary teenager and a rising star on the football team, then a bus accident takes her ordinary life and turns her into a nightmare. Next thing she knows, she’s waking up on the bus and pressing charges against outsider Seth. If this didn’t make her life hectic enough, her daily life is suddenly twisted into a horror show with her being in the middle. She finds three cheerleaders dead, is attacked at a Halloween party, learns of a plague outbreak, and has to deal with dangerous hounds. She knows that Seth is somehow behind it all. She’s determined to prove it, but as she searches for answers, she learns of a shocking secret that those closest to her are keeping, and discovers the truth about what really happened during the bus accident.
This is a coming of age story set within the life of a normal teenager who has a bright and idealistic life as a popular jock with lots of friends. One accident later and her life turns into a supernatural horror show that has violence and darkness consume her life with dangerous beings trying to kill her. The violence is woven throughout are fitted to the tone of the world with several attacks on Angela and imagery of death which transpires through the bus accident, dead cheerleaders, dead boar, dangerous hounds, and attackers at a Halloween party. The bus accident sets off a chain of events which spirals her life into one of chaos, horror, and omens with an underlying mystery as Angela works to find the truth about the accident and about Seth.
Angela is an endearing lead with a strong will, talent, and an endearing personality that sets humor and strength within the tone of the story. She’s at the middle of all these events as she and Seth seem to be interlocked in a way she doesn’t understand. She becomes a target for attacks and discovery of the bodies which adds a layer of suspense that steadily grows as the story progresses around the mystery of Seth and her friends’ secret.
Author Rian McMurty gives a breath of originality that creates a fun atmosphere for those who love supernatural and horror stories, providing them a delightful story that they won’t be able to put down. Death imagery is blended throughout and seen within scenes of beheading, stakes, ripped out hearts, and violent attacks. The story weaves around Angela as she seeks out the truth about Seth and uncovers the secret her friends are keeping. Everyone knows what she doesn’t and about how she’s in the middle of these horrific events taking place which creates a driven factor for her to understand what her role is.
Various characters have unique abilities that are naturally woven into the world which is a modern setting that is twisted with the supernatural. The story has several winks to various mythologies and creatures which gives a little lightness with sports teams named Valkyries, Sirens, Amazons, and Unicorns, and costumes at Halloween of Osiris, Mother Nature, and Pan. Each of these plays into the larger plot of the story by hinting upon the theme and setting. Humor is lightly woven underneath the darker elements of the plot with subtly such as horses dressed with horns in the guise of unicorns. Between Light and Dark is the perfect read for supernatural, horror, and folklore fans who enjoy suspense, vampires, and action-packed moments.