Walk the Sky

By: Robert Swartwood, David B. Silva

Narrated by: Matt Godfrey

Length: 3 hrs and 54 mins

Publisher's summary

Dean Koontz meets Louis L'amour in this weird Western by Robert Swartwood and David B. Silva

Things are bad for Clay Miller and George Hitchens. For starters, they're on the run from a posse out for blood. Then, as they ride through the Utah desert, the two come across the crumpled body of a young boy on the brink of death. The boy can't speak, but it's clear he's frightened of something nearby. When asked what's got him so scared, the terrified boy writes three letters in the dirt...DED.

By nightfall, Clay and George are tied up in jail. They can't move. They can't speak. They can do nothing but listen to the boy, outside, screaming for his life. Yes, things are bad for Clay and George. And they're only going to get worse.

©2013 Robert Swartwood (P)2018 Robert Swartwood

Walk the Sky

I will be honest, I didn't expect the way it progressed and ended, but that was not bad and I really enjoyed this book. I felt a lot of emotions about these characters. Everything from pure disdain for the antagonists to curious optimism for the outcome. It was a clean story that took the reader into a sinister hell and brought them back out looking for more. Just another reason not to go into the desert in my opinion.

This book was given to me for free at my request for my voluntary and unbiased review.

Great story, great listen

This is one of those stories that doesn’t have hidden meanings or rites of passage.
It’s a story that has a fun plot with great characters. It’s a story I didn’t want to stop listening until the end.
I think you will enjoy this one.
This audiobook was provided by the author, narrator, or publisher at no cost in exchange for an unbiased review courtesy of AudiobookBoom dot com.

Western + Horror = Yes

In its opening moments, George and Clay, a pair of men on the run from the law and fleeing through the desert, come across a small boy lying near-death beneath the hot sun. The boy is the sole survivor of a massacre that wiped out a nearby town and when they take it upon themselves to care for the boy and investigate, George and Clay find themselves captured by bandits and tied up in jail. The men are to be sacrifices for the inhuman evils roaming the desert, the nightmarish creatures that wiped out the town and demand blood, creatures that only come out at night.

Co-written by Robert Swartwood and David B. Silva, Walk the Sky is a very well-done work of western horror. It's also Silva's final piece of work, having passed away in 2013 mere weeks after the publication of this title as a limited edition hardcover by Thunderstorm Books. As such, Walk the Sky is dedicated to Silva, who, as an editor, author, and Bram Stoker Award winner, has a long, and very rich, legacy within the horror genre. Silva was not just a friend and mentor to Swartwood, but a co-author on one other title they penned together, At the Meade Bed & Breakfast. Listening to Walk the Sky in audio format, it's hard for me to tell where Swartwood's style separates from Silva's, and their prose blends together seamlessly. The end result is a perfectly engaging story filled with terrific characters, some of them quite smarmy, and a rich supernatural spine binding them all together.

On narrating duties is Matt Godfrey, whose soft, natural reading style is one I'm quickly becoming a fan of after listening previously to his smooth delivery of The Happy Man from Valancourt Books. His subdued Southern twang lends a certain richness and authenticity to this particular work, and his use of a rougher, gravelly voice for Clay lends to that character an air of American Western classicism that I quite enjoyed. All in all, this a polished and professional production.

Walk the Sky takes a number of Western genre tropes - outlaws on the run, gun-toting bandits, a town ruled by an iron fist - and twists them in a number of satisfying ways, with particular motives being wrenched in response to an ancient, mysterious force. Of the handful of supernatural historical horrors I've read thus far in 2018, Walk the Sky is easily my favorite, sitting tall in the saddle as the best of the bunch.

Audiobook was provided for review by the narrator.

Please find this complete review and many others at my review blog.

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Ain't nothing like western horror!

Ain't nothing like western horror! From Ambrose Bierce to Joe Lansdale, western horror is one of the genre mashups next to scifi horror. Silva and Swartwood hit out of the park with this RIP roaring adventure. Highly recommended

Great

Would you listen to Walk the Sky again? Why?

Yes I would listen to this again, if I had an unlimited supply of time. The voice was very easy to listen to

What was one of the most memorable moments of Walk the Sky?

Excellent interesting characters and a great story line.

Which scene was your favorite?

I don't know which scene would be my fave, as there are many great scenes in this book.

Did you have an extreme reaction to this book? Did it make you laugh or cry?

I just loved every bit of it because it always held my attention, which made me feel happy.

Wow

Wow! This was my favorite listen of 2018 when I heard it, and I listen to a lot of books. I have since picked up tons of other books narrated by Matt Godfrey. The book was wonderful and he did a fantastic job with the narration. Highest recommendation!

I received the book for free at my request and have voluntarily left this review.

Walk the Sky

I liked how the story unfolded. The supernatural elements were an added bonus. The narrator did a good job. I received this audiobook for free through Audiobook Boom for my unbiased review.

Weird Western Combined With Horror? Bring It On!

WALK THE SKY is a nice little weird western tale that put me in mind of the work of Joe Lansdale. Which is another way of saying this story is a lot of fun!

We start off with George and Clay traveling by horseback and coming across a young boy who is on the verge of death. As events unfold, the reader learns the boy has narrowly escaped something in a nearby town, (DED!), a town in which George and Clay must stop for supplies. Soon after their arrival, all three end up in jail and are introduced to the mad reverend and his posse. Will they get out of jail? What does the crazy reverend want from them? Will anyone survive? You'll have to read this book to find out!

I loved the western aspects of this story as well as the bits of native American folklore which were woven in. It was nice to read something different than the same old, same old. Even though some popular western tropes can be found here, the authors seamlessly pulled them together with some unique and original storytelling, much as Joe Lansdale does in his westerns. The only thing missing was that oddball humor of Lansdale's, but this wasn't meant to be a funny tale.

I listened to this on audio and as always, Matt Godfrey brings it home with a compelling style that only brings honor to the writing.

WALK THE SKY is one of those rare pieces of work that successfully straddles genres and brings to the reader a fine sense of satisfaction at the conclusion. Recommended to any fans of westerns, weird westerns, and to horror fans alike!

*I received the audio of this book free of charge from the narrator, in exchange for my honest feedback. This is it.*

A story of an ancient being wishing to be reincarnated

This is the first time I have read (or listened to) either author. While not a fan of the genre, I found this interesting and well written. The storyline was developed and kept to the story. Ancient curses and beliefs are fascinating for learning about cultural histories. I received this free and am writing an honest review.

Walk the sky

Being falsley accused in killing two people may not be the worst thing that could happen to Clay and his friend.I liked this story.Matt Gdofrey was an excellent narrator.I was given this book by the narrator,author or publisher free for an honest review.