Woom

By: Duncan Ralston

Narrated by: Craig Beck

Length: 3 hrs

Publisher's summary

The Lonely Motel holds many dark secrets and room six just might hold the worst of them all.

Angel knows a lot about pain. His mother died in this room. He's researched its history. He's come back today to end it, no matter the cost, once and for all.

Prostitute Shyla believes the stories Angel tells her can't be true. Secrets so vile, you won't want to let them inside you.

But the Lonely Motel doesn't forget. It doesn't forgive. And it always claims its victim.

©2016 Duncan Ralston (P)2016 Duncan Ralston

The Angel and Shyla Tales

Holy cow this was a twisted story. Having listened to other books by this author he is apparently trying to outdo himself with each new book. If you are not willing to listen to just an absolutely gruesome and disturbing story involving some of the most disgusting, pornographic, and sensitive topics this book is not for you. This type of story is definitely for a select group of people. I would have to imagine that the depraved mind of the author can’t get much worse than what was in this book. Looking forward to his next book to see. Much like his other books he is very descriptive and definitely paints a detailed picture of everything which puts you right there in that motel room with Angel and Shyla.
Really enjoyed the format of this book, almost a Canterbury Tales style with one story interwoven with other tales being told by two people in a lonely motel room. All of the stories are buttoned up nicely at the end, even though they seem random at the time. Isn’t too hard to catch what is going on but oh boy is there an endgame that nobody can see coming.
Craig Beck does a great job. I really like the tone of his voice and think it works well for this genre of story. His British accent and professionalism totally belongs in a genre that would never talk about prolapsing, but I’m glad he narrates these books too.
was voluntarily provided this free review copy audiobook by the author, narrator, or publisher.

I feared the worst, but enjoyed it anyway

I was offered this book for free in exchange for an honest review. Due to the warning on the cover, in the email and in some reviews, I dug around a bit to see just how bad it really was.

I don't know whether I should be proud of this or if it makes me a bad human being, but I felt the warnings were unwarranted. There's a few scenes that are disgusting, but we're not talking mentally-scarring. We're talking "oh man, that's gross". Maybe I'm just a bit desensitized, but if you're worried about wanting to puke or having nightmares from listening to this tale, I think you'll be fine.

On to the story. So there's a guy who summons an escort to a hotel room. Instead of getting down to business, he begins by telling her seemingly-random stories -- sizing her up for his end-game.

The stories he tells are where you'll find a bit of grossness, but again, there's nothing over the top or gratuitous. It's certainly not the focus of the story and it all fits nicely into the narrative. Stop worrying!

As our John makes his way through the tales, you begin to form an idea of where things are going. You're not sure, but you're getting there. The author does a good job of making sure you piece things together just as our in-story listening character does.

The end-game is a bit out there and perhaps slightly anti-climatic for all that came before, but it's still an enjoyable listen.

The narrator did a very good job all around, though I will say his shortcoming was female voices. Thankfully the cast of characters here is small-enough that it's not a huge problem.

If you like a bit of mystery with a topping of weird. Give a try!

Loved it

Brilliant extreme horror from two of the best
Angel hires an escort and they end up trading tragic stories
Excellent narration and shocking ending this is a must read for hardcore fans
I received a free review audiobook and voluntarily left this review

Not horror, just badly-written gory porn.

The "surprise ending" was obvious from the second chapter.
The voice actor was alright.
This could have been a lot better if the author had focused more on the psychological and less on the "erotic".
And for the love of all that is good and fluffy, Mr. Ralston, get a good editor/fact checker.

Ah to be born again

Would you consider the audio edition of Woom to be better than the print version?

After listening to the audiobook I signed up for Amazon Kindle Unlimited and found a lot of other works by the author. I listened and read the book at times at the same time and I must say that though I enjoyed the book listening to it was far better. I listened some stories I read again just for the difference and enjoyed it more.

What did you like best about this story?

I went into the story thinking it was going to be a haunted room but as it turns out it's far worse than that. The depravity that humans do in that room and the history it has was far better than what I expected.

What does Craig Beck bring to the story that you wouldn’t experience if you just read the book?

It made the story better, Craig Beck was a perfect choice for the narration. He brought Angel to life and there were times that the characters lisp would slip out and he did it perfectly, much better than what it was in my head.

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

Ah to be born again

Any additional comments?

I loved it, this book has opened up a new genre for me that I didn't even know existed. I have added more works from Duncan Ralston and Matt Shaw to my kindle and am looking forward to their next work.
"This audiobook was provided by the author, narrator, or publisher at no cost in exchange for an unbiased review courtesy of AudiobookBoom dot com."

Freaking Loved It

Any additional comments?

I LOVE a book that has stories within stories and this one was masterfully done. An intricate tale of a disturbing life that culminates in something beautiful - how Ralston accomplished this I do not know. It was fantastic. Beck did a brilliant job of narrating, his performance was just right at all times keeping me absolutely hooked throughout. This IS a gruesome horror tale and certainly not for the easily offended. I would recommend this book to anyone who enjoys some serious horror!

I was voluntarily provided this review copy audiobook at no charge by the author, publisher and/or narrator.

This is fantastic!

I wasn't sure what to expect when I bought this book but I can definitely say I am glad I did! Duncan Ralston was a new author to me and now I want to find more of his works. Reading the summary, I went into this thinking it was a haunted motel room or there was some sort of evil entity involved but I was not prepared for the truth.

The stories within the story were gruesome and great! I had an idea as the story progressed of what Angel's motive was but didn't see the end coming. I was actually bummed it was over.

Craig Beck narrated this perfectly! I listened at work and it made those 3 hours go by so quickly I was sad I still had 5 more hours of work to go. I found a few more Craig Beck narrated books I will have to get.

couldn't finish this book

one of the only books I have dnf'd, honestly it really wasnt for me

Horrible....

just cheap smutty but not in the way that would draw you in. inflection

Woom

Sexual awakening, pleasure, pain, guilt, shame and atrocities. A body and women's reproductive horror anthology told from the point of view of a man while he is widening the vagina of a prostitute. Trigger warnings for this "extreme horror".

Extremely Extreme.

For the audible version...

Why did I like this? I have no idea, because this kind of extreme horror is really not my bag at all. Well, I suppose I do like Jack Ketchum, but... maybe it's the sex and gore and, oh, I don't know, I'm not explaining myself very well, am I? Still sounds like Ketchum.
I guess it comes down to how it's all put together. I mean, this was done EXTREMELY well. (Terrible joke, I know.)
Look, what I'm trying to say is, I made a mistake going into this book not knowing what it was about. I just bought it because I liked GHOSTLAND.
Word of warning: This is nothing like Duncan Ralston's GHOSTLAND. Got that? Nothing like it.
Graphic, you ask? Um...
Let's put it this way: Imagine you're watching some kind of violent porno (just hear me out) and the audio descriptive option is switched on and you're listening to it with 7.1 surround sound Bluetooth headphones. You're completely immersed. And then you get up and try and walk away for a breather, but you can't, it's still there floating around your head.
That's what it's like. It's that kind of visual experience, the kind that sticks to you, and you feel disgusted because you want to know where it's all heading, but you know it's wrong, and yet...

I'm rambling...

I'll tell you something though, don't listen to this in the car like I did. I got one too many funny looks from cyclists.
Note to self: Remember to roll up the windows. Turn it down. And whatever you do, for God's sake don't acknowledge them with a nod and a smile.
Look, there's more to this than just being some kind of porno. It's a quality story. It's messed up in so many ways. It's brutal, it's disturbing, but it's a quality read. I haven't read anything like it. I don't think I'd want to again, being honest, but It's proper original, and nothing feels gratuitous. Not ever. Just be prepared, okay?
And go read someone else's review because I think I'm still in a bit of a shock, and I'm not explaining this very well at all.
Anyways, like I say, I enjoyed it. It just feels kind of wrong to say that I did.
For WOOM I'm giving this a big hard four stars...

See? Mind's still in the gutter.

Urghh. The shame.

That ending, though... WTF?

This twisted tale is gross and disturbing

WOOM will worm into your psyche and mind fuck whatever remaining brain cells weren't violated while reading this extreme horror book. Duncan Ralston takes reader's on a dark exploration into the depraved minds of two shady individuals which he uses as a framing mechanism for a series of sickening stories told in a motel room that has seen its share of utter repulsion. This twisted tale is gross and seriously disturbing but it serves a purpose in the overall story which is incredibly impressive.

terrible

probably one of the worst book's I've ever listened too. the story's are badly written with hardly any believe dialogue and scenario's that are so absurd and not in a fun way. I don't mind extreme fiction but this feels like it was written by someone did very little research if any on the topics he portrayed

Icky but a good short story

The first half was the hardest for me to get through engaging wise because I was trying to figure out what was going on, but I liked how everything came together at the end, disturbing but written well. I’d recommend.

3 hours of my life I'll never get back

I can't believe this passes for horror. The ending actually made me laugh. I want my audible credit back. I really wouldn't recommend this to anyone looking for a horror book.

Wild and well told

Not a story for everyone but if you like an extreme horror story then there is a lot to enjoy and be repulsed by in this one.

Very extreme but well written.

I like to go into books as blind as possible and was expecting a spooky supernatural tale much like 1408.
I could not have been more wrong - this book is extremely….extreme!
It is still a great story with great narration, but unlike me, be aware when starting this that it really pushes the limits of what you can handle.
Give it a try if you like your gore.

Great story: Trigger for miscarriage

Great story.
Makes you connect with the characters and feel pity for them even when you probably shouldn't.
Very vulgar and descriptive but if you can get past that it's a great listen and well written.
Very trigger warning for misscariage/death/drug use/sexual abuse.
It is an extreme horror as described.

A rather unique book!

Well, this is a book that have gotten a lot of attention lately. I understand why. all I have to say is that this is a great slice of fiction and Ralston have created an piece of fiction well worth reading.
The narration fits well with the story, really doubt anyone else would have managed to do it justice!

Body-horror vs Psycological horror

what to say- what to say, well, the narrator was good, he kept me engagde.. the story in itself is, weirdly unsetteling- yet i in my opinion, it was not enough to call it "extreme horror", but hey 3hours whent by fairly quickly so ive must have enjoied it, id say a Crisp 3/6..