Anomaly Flats

By: Clayton Smith

Narrated by: Teri Schnaubelt

Length: 8 hrs and 17 mins

Publisher's Summary

Somewhere just off the interstate, in the heart of the American Midwest, there's a quaint, quirky town where the stars in the sky circle a hypnotic void...where magnetic fields play havoc with time and perception...where metallic rain and plasma rivers and tentacles in the plumbing are simply part of the unsettling charm.   

Mallory Jenkins is about to experience the unique properties of this place for herself - she'll have no choice, considering the collapsed bridge that rerouted her urgent and mysterious trip to Saskatchewan, forcing her straight into the heart of town, where her Impala has an inexplicable breakdown. She intends to stay overnight - just until the auto repair shop can make the fix in the morning and send her on her way. But Mallory will soon encounter Dr. Lewis Burnish, a scientist who's studied the town for a dozen years and knows more about its strangeness than even the locals do. And when she accidentally-on-purpose creates his evil clone, she'll set off a series of events that could unleash the ultimate evil upon the town and wreak havoc on the world at large. Life in a small town is like that sometimes.  

Welcome to Anomaly Flats. Have some waffles, meet the folks, and enjoy the scenery...and if you happen to be in Walmart, whatever you do, don't go down aisle eight. Don't ever go down aisle eight.

©2015 Clayton Smith (P)2019 Tantor

It was ok.

It was ok. Kind of like Welcome to Night Vale, but not as immersive or charming.

Disappointing

I stuck this one through to the end hoping for it to redeem itself but it never did. Not worth the time or the credit.

For Fans of Small, Bizarre Towns (Excellent Book!)

First off, I couldn't (figuratively) put this book down! absolutely loved it! It's compelling, interesting, funny and surprising in a very refreshing way.

Before moving on, let me address Welcome to Night Vale fans. If you aren't aware of Welcome to Night Vale, skip this section.

Night Vale fans:
As a fan of Welcome to Night Vale, I was concerned that this book would be derivative. While there are a few similarities, this is far from the truth! Anomaly Flats is a different beast entirely. Although, when I first started reading, something popped in my head...Imagine being in Night Vale, boots on the ground. No quirky radio announcer. Just the horrific tales of people getting killed randomly. Now imagine you aren't one of the citizens, and you are experiencing this horror. Well, welcome to Anomaly Flats.

People who may or may not be Night Vale fans:
This book is fun, weird and a bit spooky. More than anything, though, it is a story worth reading.

The Characters really pop, and the main character is both predictable within her set of values, but also unpredictable from a storytelling standpoint. Rarely do we get to see characters with the consistency shown in Anomaly Flats.

The narrator is FANTASTIC. I mean it. She really brings the characters and the story to life. She is dynamic and high energy. You'll love her.

The book subverts expectations, and is a really wonderful read. Buy it today!!

A bit dull. tries to hard force weirdness.

I would call it a poor man's Nightvale but Nightvale is free. It was not a bad listen but I don't think I will be returning.

Great story…but would have been better with a different narrator.

I love the story and really enjoyed the ended. However, I think the story would have been better told by someone else whose voice didn’t sound so monotone.

Disappointing in the extreme

I decided to try this based on some of the outlandish descriptions in the introduction. Unfortunately, the story doesn’t live up to its potential. The characters are not likable or relatable in the slightest, and the setting whips back and forth between dark and menacing to whimsical. The best way to describe this story is of the show Eureka and the Cthulhu mythos had a child with absolutely no redeeming qualities. Don’t waste a credit like I did.

If You Like Night Vale...

I really liked this book. It's very similar to welcome to Night Vale and feels slightly like either it could be a booney themed adjacent city or otherwise somehow part of that universe.

Like Welcome to Nightvale? You will LOVE this!

Even though our heroine is far from a sympathetic character, I thoroughly enjoyed the story!

Weird, fun and well-written

I bought this on a whim while browsing for the second WtNV book, and let's get this out of the way from the start - if you're a fan of WtNV, yes, this is basically the same genre and the comparisons are inevitable. It's not a clone however - WtNV doesn't have exclusive rights to the spooky, weird little town in the back of nowhere genre after all - and Anomaly Flats stands firmly on its own two feet.

The narrator is great, the characters are not predictable stereotypes, and there's a thread of humour throughout the whole thing that in places actually made me laugh out loud. The plot really did not go where I was expecting it to, and that alone makes me strongly recommend it. And that ending - very good! :D

I'm really looking forward to the next book in this series and will definitely be picking it up.

Starts well but descends into annoying ‘perkiness’

The start is fine but the story soon descends into what I can only describe as a kind of perky, self satisfied ridiculousness. It’s almost like slapstick. Reminded me a bit of Becky chambers’ writing but tips, for me, was worse.