Pressure

De: Jeff Strand

Narrado por: Scott Thomas

"Marvelously creepy...the horror in this tale of twisted friendship is relentless." (Publishers Weekly)

Alex stared at the red pocketknife shown to him by his daughter. A pocketknife owned by somebody he hadn't seen in years.

Children

They met first in boarding school at age 12. Alex Fletcher, shy and scared. Darren Rust, always furiously scribbling away in a private journal. It was not an immediate friendship, but then one night Darren convinced his roommate to sneak off school grounds to see something glorious. There was a sleazy strip club, you see, and every once in a while the back door opened just long enough to maybe catch a quick glimpse.

Though a bond was formed from their prepubescent interest in naked women, Darren had another interest. A morbid curiosity about death. A curiosity that turned into something much more sinister.

Friends

They crossed paths again in college and became the best of friends. But Darren wasn't just looking for a friend. He had dark, ghastly urges squirming around in his head, and he believed he saw the same things - the urge to hurt, the urge to kill - in Alex. He was looking for somebody who understood. A partner.

But Alex could never become a monster. Not even when Darren tried to bring out his friend's most deeply buried feelings of rage. Not even when Darren tried to show him the euphoria of having that much power over another human being. It just couldn't happen...right?

Enemies

Now Alex has a wife and a daughter. And Darren is back. He's hiding. He's patient. His mind is twisted in the worst possible way.

And he's seeking a soul mate.

©2005 Jeff Strand (P)2016 Scott Thomas

Torturous "Pressure" -indeed, pretty good

Where does Pressure rank among all the audiobooks you’ve listened to so far?

middle of the road, gruesome, well performed

Would you be willing to try another book from Jeff Strand? Why or why not?

yes, good writing, he ran the gammet of someones mind, but story seemed familiar

Which scene was your favorite?

When Darren took Alex to lunch right after they met up again

If you were to make a film of this book, what would the tag line be?

"Don't be that guys friend"

Any additional comments?

I am torn! It was partly predictable, partly torturous, partly hard to swallow but held my attention like a Train wreck. Alex seemed very smart sometimes and very dumb sometimes so it was hard to fathom all that he did. I did like how the author described the characters inner thoughts so well, that made for some humorous and ghastly experience. This audiobook was given by the author, narrator, or publisher at no cost in exchange for an unbiased review via Audiobook Boom.”.

Best Novel in forever!

Jeff Strand is the man. The banter between the characters makes me laugh. The plotting is amazing. Please write more. Big fan here dude!

Twisted!

Jeff Strand writes some absolutely twisted stories. And I mean that in the best way possible. After a childhood infraction, Alex Fletcher’s parents send him off to boarding school…where he meets his three roommates, one of whom ends haunting him, showing up again and again throughout his life, bring with him terror and misery.

It always feels odd, almost wrong, to say I enjoyed a horror novel, even though horror is one of my favorite genres. I mean is it appropriate to ‘enjoy’ something so twisted? And that is exactly what Darren (the kid that becomes Alex’s nemesis) is, very sick and very twisted whose actions are abhorrent, and yet Jeff Strand’s Pressure was totally engaging, dang near mesmerizing…and if I’m honest also mentally exhausting (in a good way). I don’t want to include any spoilers here, but Jeff does a great job of messing with your emotions. And Scott Thomas does a phenomenal job with the narration.

Different from most of his others

I really liked it tho some parts were bit disturbing and quite sad. Was really hoping for different outcome in some parts but it all came together in the end. If you like strand’s work I definitely recommend giving it try. You won’t be disappointed. I was given this audio in exchange for honest and voluntary review.

Amazing!

I was so surprised by how incredible Pressure is, especially because I was hesitant at first to pick this book. I burned through it in a matter of days. It is so well written and captivating right from the start, and it certainly has re-listen value.

The protagonist, Alex, is very relatable because he is just so normal. Darren, the psychopath that relentlessly preys on Alex, is a very disturbing and callous character, and there is a real uneasiness evoked throughout Pressure especially in regards to Darren. I do not want to give any spoilers, but what I can say is that if you love psychological thrillers and stories involving brutal psychopaths, then you should not hesitate to pick up this book. However, Pressure is definitely not for the faint of heart!

As for the narration, I can’t even express how flawless it is. The performance is absolutely outstanding, and I am now a huge fan of Scott Thomas after listening to this one title!

This audiobook was given by the author, narrator, or publisher at no cost in exchange for an unbiased review via Audiobook Boom- Thank you so much! I am sincerely overjoyed to have have had the opportunity to discover this brilliant author along with a remarkably talented narrator!

An Interesting and Intense Fast Paced Read..

Any additional comments?

I thought that this book was supposed to be a Mystery but it is more.. Horror with a Psychotic Thriller, undertone.

Alex, one of the leads, meets Darren at the Branford Academy boarding school at a young age.

Darren develops a strange obsession with Alex and follows him from childhood into his
adult personal life as well.

Darren becomes more and more manipulative and violent over the course of their "friendship".

At times, Alex seemed at a loss as to what to do about Darren.

Alex is Pushed and "Pressured" throughout the entire story.

And, there were times or rather certain scenes that made me a bit uncomfortable.

Overall, this story was an Interesting and Intense Fast Paced Read.

I just wish that the author would have showed the reader more of Darren's thoughts.


Scott Thomas did well with the narration, his voice was clear and steady.

Note:
"This audio book was provided by the author, narrator, or publisher at no cost in exchange for an unbiased review."

OMG

I got so invested in the great story I kinda lost track of the intro so I was upset at the mid ending. this guy is a great author, but might have a head in his closet. I want more Mayhem story's. I haven't looked but if this doesn't have a sequel I'm jokingly taking a star off.

So dark but so fun!

I lived all of it! No complaints. Funny, sad, great characters. Unexpected and unpredictable. Fast paced, engaging and entertaining. Was thrilled to find out there’s a sequel. Love Jeff Strand and the narrator is phenomenal!! Definitely recommend!

Completely messed up story, and I loved it!

This is like Stand By Me gone so wrong. This story and its characters kept my attention and made me have to know what came next the whole way through. I was grossed out, pissed off, outraged and made to laugh numerous times throughout the duration. I wanted to shake Alex and say" no, don't let him do you like that", I wanted to kill Darren and I wanted to weep for Melanie and Tracy. The progression of storyline from kids, to college students to adults was fantastic and I thought the timing for those transitions was perfect. This book certainly has some very intense violence and very dark times but it was right up my alley. This book was gifted to me by the author for an unbiased review and it was certainly a gift that I enjoyed. I will undoubtedly listen to this one again and keep it in my library. If you're into dark, violent, creepy, sad and somewhat funny stories, this book is for you, it was most definitely for me!!!!!

One of my favourites from Jeff Strand.

"This audiobook was provided by the author, narrator, or publisher at no cost in exchange for an unbiased review courtesy of Audiobook Blast."

Oh dear, Jeff Strand does it again, I'll probably get nightly panic attacks for a few weeks now because of this book.
I've read a lot of his books and this is one of my favourites. The relentlessness of Darren is quite frightening and reminds me of a few acquaintances I've had personally over the years that had me wondering about their mental stability. That makes this book even more frightening for me. Near the end of the book I felt so sad for Alex, it put a lump in my heart, this book is that good. If you like creepy thrilling horror you must read this book.