Dead Spots

By: Rhiannon Frater

Narrated by: Cassandra Campbell

Length: 14 hrs and 40 mins

Publisher's summary

New horror from Rhiannon Frater: in the dead spots, dreams become reality, terror knows your name, and nightmares can kill.

The stillbirth of Mackenzie's son destroyed her marriage. Grieving, Mac reluctantly heads for her childhood home to seek refuge with her mother, who constantly reminds her of life's dangers. Driving across Texas, Mac swerves to avoid hitting a deer... and winds up in a dead spot, a frightening place that lies between the worlds of the living and the dead. If they can control their imaginations, people can literally bring their dreams to life - but most are besieged by fears and nightmares which pursue them relentlessly.

Mackenzie's mother and husband haunt her, driving her to the brink of madness. Then she hears a child call for help and her maternal instincts kick into overdrive. Grant, Mac's ally in the dead spots, insists Johnny is a phantom, but the boy seems so real, so alive...

As the true horrors of the dead spots are slowly revealed, Mackenzie realizes that time is running out. But exits from the dead spots are nearly impossible to find, and defended by things almost beyond imagination.

©2015 Rhiannon Frater (P)2015 Audible Inc.

Didn't want it to end

What a fun fantasy/horror listen. Imagine what we could do just by thinking what we need, presto. Looked at other Frater books but seems this is the only one so far not focused on zombies and vampires. I can enjoy good vampire books but zombies? Nah......

So I'll try one of the vampire books and hope she'll return to something more along the lines of Dead Spots.

I love this author!

She never disappoints me; such a great imagination. Couldn't wait to what next happened next!

Worth a thousand credit

One of the most thrilling books I have listened ! Finished it in 2 days . So happy with the purchased .

Creepy Goodness!

Rhiannon Frater is not just another pretty face. The tales she weaves never leave me wanting. Dead spots was no exception. I'm a huge horror fan, have been since grade school. Listening to this audio book made me tuck my feet under the covers while I listened in bed at night and sent gleeful shivers down my spine even when listening during the daylight hours!

Brilliantly Twisty

Listened for Fun (Audible)
Overall Rating: 4.50
Story Rating: 4.75
Character Rating: 4.25

Audio Rating: 4.50 (not part of the overall rating)

First Thought when Finished: Dead Spots by Rhiannon Frater was everything I have come to expect (in a brilliant kind of way) when cracking open a book by her: emotional, twisted, and at the core a story about overcoming life circumstances. LOVED IT!

Overall Thoughts:

1: This was different, unique, awesome, twisty, and downright not what I was expecting (storywise) at all (and I read her damn books should have known better than to assume I could figure it out)
2: Characters were complex. Everyone was a shade of grey!
3: Twists, Turns, and WOAHS! They all happened
4: Action! It was there and kind of awesome!
5: The world just rocked! I have now decided that I will never stop at an abandoned building ever on a road trip!

Audio Thoughts:

Narrated By Cassandra Campbell / Length: 14 hrs and 40 mins / Publisher: Audible Studios


Cassandra has never let me down on narration and she simply knocked it out of the park with Dead Spots. In fact, I was really surprised that she did "bit" crazy as well as she did. It just worked for me on most levels!

Part of my Read It, File It, Done! Reviews

Good premise, perhaps not best executed

Would you try another book from Rhiannon Frater and/or Cassandra Campbell?

I am a big fan of Cambell's narration, and she did a very solid job here. As a first book by Frater, there were some really good moments. While certain parts felt telegraphed and some of the character development felt forced, there were scenes of genuine tension.

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

Personally, I was a bit disappointed. The ending felt rushed and the epilogue left me feeling slightly unsatisfied.

If this book were a movie would you go see it?

I think this has the potential to be either a good movie or a good series on a channel like HBO or Starz.

Good concept for a story that is badly portrayed.

The protagonist acts like a weak, daft character until she magically stops that after 3/4 of the book. I love the concept for this story but it did not accurately and efficiently seem any percentage believable: That characters seemed generic. I couldn't follow along with the protagonist's feelings because she had a gigantic problem mourning her son for a majority of the book and wouldn't act logical until around 11 hours in the audiobook. This book also felt very unbalanced. Her first two days were dragged out in large proportions, but her four days after that were quickly and very vaguely written. The ending seemed rushed. I wouldn't listen to this book again if I had the choice.