Review of "Jericho Falls" by Christopher Hyde

[My rating on Goodreads: 2.5 stars.]

Jericho Falls is well-written, but there are many factors that come into play with my rating, so hopefully this review makes some sense.

The biological weapon/virus concept is very interesting and daunting—a lot of reality bleeds in, and that's what gives Jericho Falls its terrifying edge.

The small-town vibes are eerie, and claustrophobic, which is something you want given the content.

The only thing that tanked this novel for me is how the author found it necessary to be graphic when it came to the teenage-characters (two were around 15, and the other around 13) being intimate. I suppose there's a level of realism, with puberty and all, but I couldn't tell you how much "realism" is needed when these parts added little to nothing to the plot, and were uncomfortable to read.

I think the idea was to try and portray children acting too grown up, and being put into situations even adults couldn't handle well (also the hormones—which has something to do with the virus that I won't spoil). However, it appears Hyde forgot that they are STILL children. Implication is a tool that could have been used.

That being said, the gore (which was less uncomfortable to read than what I stated above 😂) was a favorite part of mine. I am aware I sound insane complaining about those scenes, while praising the horrific death scenes... I suppose we all have our limits.

Overall, Jericho Falls is a pretty good Horror read, but some things you just can't ignore—so I'm very much on the fence about whether or not I'd recommend it to someone if they asked.

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