Apocalypse Island

By: Mark Edward Hall

Narrated by: Andrew Troth

Length: 12 hrs and 38 mins

Publisher's summary

A small Maine city has turned into a killing ground. Is it a serial killer, someone with a penchant for the macabre and a need to destroy?

Or is it a darker force, an ancient legend from a mysterious Island come ashore to wreak havoc upon the unsuspecting?

Amid the backdrop of Portland’s burgeoning night scene, Police Lieutenant Rick Jennings discovers that no one is safe, and that evil has many faces.

Extended Description:

Danny Wolf, a gifted musician with alcohol problems is witnessing brutal murder in his dreams. Someone is carving a cross on each of the young female victims before crucifying them.

Newly released from prison for a crime he did not commit, Wolf is having trouble adjusting to civilian life. He believes the dreams are a symptom of his adjustment until he discovers that they are real and that the victims are his own groupies. He soon begins to doubt his sanity. Could he be a homicidal madman?

Wolf has no memory of his early childhood but discovers that he spent his first eight years in a Catholic orphanage on a mysterious island off the coast of Maine. Is it possible that his early life and the murders are somehow connected?

Soon the killings become more bold and gruesome, as members of the church begin to die.

Enter Police Lieutenant Rick Jennings and his young assistant Laura Higgins. They discover a government conspiracy involving the Catholic Church, and a cold war CIA mind control program known as MK-Ultra where children were used as test subjects.

Danny Wolf becomes the number one suspect in the murders, but no one, not even Wolf, is prepared for what they discover on Apocalypse Island, a mind blowing secret that was supposed to stay hidden forever.

Apocalypse Island is a fast-paced thriller that will keep you guessing until the shocking conclusion.

©2012 Mark Edward Hall (P)2012 Mark Edward Hall

Critic reviews

“Mark Edward Hall writes like a master. Stephen King, yes, but also like Stoker, Poe, and Bradbury, yeah, even Shakespeare...all those good guys we’veforgotten. His prose is hypnotic and seductive, visceral, and edgy. He’s the real thing.” (Kiana Davenport, New York Times Bestselling Author of Cannibal Nights and House of Skin)

“Poetic and eerily seductive, Hall pushes you to the edge, until you get lost in the beautiful madness of his creations.” ( Midwest Book Review)

“Hall has an uncanny knack for blending vivid, almost poetic prose with visceral images of jaw-dropping horror to great effect.” (Bram Stoker AwardWinning Editor, Vince Liaguno)

Apocalypse island

This was a really good book! I want to read more books by this author. It was full of action and mysteries.

First Book in the Blue Light Series

I liked this first book in the Blue Light Series featuring Danny Wolf. He was a likable character even though you're never quite sure if he is or is not committing the gruesome murders. The carving of crosses on the young female victims is particularly graphic and the Author has a knack for letting you see the bodies through his word pictures. Being a Stephen King fan (and although Hall's novels are nothing like King's) I found this part particularly well done.

This book introduces Rick Jennings who will appear in the second book in the series along with a few new characters. The first book is fast-paced and keeps you wondering what is happening but take notice because you will need all those clues to enjoy the second book, Soul Thief. Even though these books can be read on their own, I believe it was better to read them one after the other.

OK Story made good by readers voices

Would you listen to Apocalypse Island again? Why?

I struggled to get through this one, but in the end I did enjoy it. I don't tend to listen to books again, so I don't think I will be revisiting this one.

Would you recommend Apocalypse Island to your friends? Why or why not?

I thought Andrews voices were great. The story was a little overdramatic and were more fantasy than the horror that I think the author was going for.

Awesome story

Excellent plot, suspense and narration.
The characters were very well developed and the story was very well designed.
Highly recommend!

Great story idea, character dialogue is stilted

The idea of the story is very good but the dialogue between characters in the book seems a little stilted. I just can't imagine people in the real world talking to each other like that. Also, there seems to be some production quality issues early on in the recording. I swear I can hear some background noises like pages being turned in the first hour.

Despite all that this was a very enjoyable listen. While listening I kept imagining this book as a movie like The Crow. I look forward to listening to some other Mark Edward Hall books.

Good Story, just took a minute to understand it

Would you recommend this audiobook to a friend? If so, why?

Yes I would recommend this book. It did take me a few chapters to figure out what was going on and what the direction of the story was. Once I figured it out, I really liked it.

Did the plot keep you on the edge of your seat? How?

Some points kept me on the edge of my seat. It had a slight sci-fi feeling to it, which I'm typically not into, but the way this was written was a perfect blend.

What about Andrew Troth’s performance did you like?

Unlike some of the other reviews, I actually liked the performance. I thought the narration was good and I liked the variation between characters.

Terrible narration. dnf

I wish I could have finished this book but the narration was so bad I couldn't.

Who what and why is the Blue Light?

The story was intriguing and I had to finish the book to see how it ended. I would have been much more impressed with the story line if I wasn't wincing every other word (ok a bit of an exaggeration). The f-bomb and the other cursing were just more than I can take. The bad guys were plentiful and made no bones about it. The good guys were few and far between. There's lots of twists and turns and a good moral lesson here; "trust no one Mr. Mulder"

If you don't mind the low language, this book might be for you. I am off to get my money back.

Not quite apocalyptic

Would you recommend this book to a friend? Why or why not?

No. The story idea was interesting. The dialog often made me roll my eyes. I'm not against using words like "bitch" in a story, but the use of it here seemed kind of creepy and inappropriate when that couldn't have been the intention. Much of the dialog and personas were cliche and predictable. That said, I still listened until the end. It wasn't terrible. It just didn't make me want to look for another from this author or narrator.

What was your reaction to the ending? (No spoilers please!)

Meh. Predictable.

Who would you have cast as narrator instead of Andrew Troth?

My favorite narrator so far is Luke Daniels. Andrew Troth often sounded as if he thought of sentences as list items meant to be read quickly and then ticked off when completed. I wanted to tell him to just relax and enjoy creating the ambience. I think he has it in him. I just didn't enjoy this reading.

Could you see Apocalypse Island being made into a movie or a TV series? Who should the stars be?

No...well, not a good one. I'm sure the sexual magnetism of Danny Wolf and the pathetic and desperate sexuality of his Goth groupies would sell.