Torn with guilt that he may be responsible, returns home to discover that his wife, Tori, has disappeared. Frantic, follows her trail to Rostov, a remote town in Texas famous for a massive astronomical observatory, a long-abandoned military base, and unexplained nighttime phenomena that draw onlookers from every corner of the globe. Many of these gawkers—Tori among them—are compelled to visit this tiny community to witness the mysterious Rostov Lights. A bloodbath ensues, and events quickly spiral out of control, setting the stage for even greater violence and death.
must solve the mystery of the Rostov Lights to save his wife.
In the process, he learns that the decaying military base may not be abandoned at all, and that the government may have known about the lights for decades. Could these phenomena be more dangerous than anyone could have possibly imagined?
I can see how he would be considered a great thriller writer. Unfortunately, I suspect that The Shimmer is not an example of his best work, which is extremely disappointing because it has such great potential.
Hardback editions
The premise itself is intriguing. Mysterious, unexplained lights hold some interest for me because there is a location north of Houston, Texas that has a similar phenomenon. My husband took me to see these particular lights when we were first dating. The Rostov lights are based on the real-life Marfa lights in West Texas, also unexplained and mysterious.
In fact, Mr. Morrell mentions that many of the events that occur in the book are based on experiences that occurred around the Marfa lights. It all makes for a lot of potential for the book. My disappointment with the book has to do more the with pacing of the plot and the lack of character development.
I never felt sympathy with any of the main characters, never understood why they chose certain actions, never feared for their safety. As for the plot, it moved so quickly that I never got a chance to absorb what was happening.
Paperback editions
By the time I got to the climax of the story, I was so confused that it took me a day to understand it. Another point of disappointment was how Mr. Morrell chose to explain the mysteries. The answers were the only reason that I kept turning the s — I did want to find out the reasons why for all of the situations. Unfortunately, I was disappointed here as well. In fact, the explanations left a particularly sour taste in my mouth and a definite WTH moment. I understand that Mr. Morrell was working with real-life unexplained phenomenon, but The shimmer by david morrell feel that he could have explained them a bit more satisfactorily.
It kept me reading as I wanted to find out what happened and how the lights were to be explained.
See a problem?
I can definitely see this being made into a decent movie. I know many others are going to really enjoy The Shimmer. All affiliate income is used to support the blog.
It's a shame it wasn't as good as you expected. The premise does sound promising. Thanks, Literary Feline! It is always disappointing to me when a book doesn't live up to its potential. I read another review of this one earlier today that pretty much touched on the same points.
That's too bad this one didn't live up to its potential.
Shimmer, the by david morrell - ed first edition book
Great review, Michelle! Creations by Laurel-Rain Snow — Some depth of character is necessary. Like I said, these were more like caricatures than anything. A friend recommended Morrell's Creepers to me.
Review – the shimmer by david morrell
I'm going to give it a try later on this month and see if it is all Morrell books. Thanks for an honest review. I've never been a fan of Morrell, so I will have no trouble passing this one by. I like to understand my characters' motivations and know them well enough to care what happens.
Sounds like the author missed in that department.
This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed. Address. All content on this blog is protected under US copyright by Michelle Shannon. All content is original and cannot be copied without permission. Like this: Like Loading Stephanie on September 9, at AM. I haven't read any Morrell either.
Michelle on September 8, at PM. Literary Feline on September 8, at PM. Michelle on September 7, at PM. Diane — Thanks! Just okay does a great job of summing up my feelings! Diane on September 7, at PM.
Great review I read this one this week as well, and I was not too impressed It was just okay!
The shimmer
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