At roughly 600 pages, it’s safe to say you’re in for a haul when you pick this one up. Good news, though! Wyrmwood’s got a lot of interesting things to say, so long as you’re okay with many of those things involving incredible, gut-wrenching violence, primarily against women. All this violence serves as damning commentary over the way mainstream society continues to treat women. Rather than using brutality and misogyny as a means to an end, Wyrmwood’s peeled back the fine covering of the polite niceties many use to conceal darker urges, showcasing the unrestrained Id of those who have unfettered power and very few telling them how to use it.
The novel begins in 1917 and leapfrogs all the way to 2016 after the prologue, where this time jump is met by an array of diverse characters. Meredith, a bombshell in both figure and explosive temper, heads up the crew as my favorite by far, both for her attitude and unrelenting perseverance. Then there’s Cherise, the horror blogger known online as Little Miss Stake, with a phonetic reading there that adds another layer to the significance she brings. There are far more, of course, but I don’t want to spoil anything.
Beyond a host of good figures to read about, the novel has a few interweaving plot lines, combining with steady pacing to create an adventure that, excepting a few necessary slow downs to dole out exposition and explanation, hold the reader’s attention for the entirety of the book.
There are a few instances of misused words or incorrect detailing, such as two different characters explaining the difference between sociopath and psychopath. They both give the same incorrect explanation, which suggests more of an editorial/writer fault. One character getting wrong, I would’ve assumed it was just that one character being mistaken. However, these moments are few and far between, so in a work of this size, they’re forgivable and usually forgettable.
Overall, the massive trove of rich characters, main or supporting, be they Dave, Mike, Steve, Hiram, Warren, or any of the others, all hold their own, and are given plenty of time and plot points to be fully fleshed out in this novel about inhuman depravity (all puns intended–you’ll understand them when you read it!). So long as you have the patience to read a story of this length, I can assure you, you’ll find it enjoyable.
