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Dark Journey
Like Stephen King's 'Salem's Lot, the town of Ewerton, Wisconsin is a bad place -- a VERY bad place! Whatever malignant spirit governs this little burg lost in the middle of bloody nowhere, it doesn't much like the people who live there. No one ever TRULY leaves Ewerton--not really! As Ardath Mayhar says, "The horror Morlan evokes is not so much occult as uniquely human--the worst of human traits are her stock in trade."
- GenresHorrorHistorical Fiction
596 pages, Mass Market Paperback
First published January 1, 1991
About the author
A.R. Morlan
71 books7 followersA. R. Morlan is the pseudonym of Ana Morlan. Other pseudonyms she used are Karl Rene Moore and Renee M. Charles.
Her fiction—both under her own name and her hard-core erotica-only Renee pen name—has either appeared in or is scheduled to appear in over 130 magazines and anthologies, including BEST AMERICAN EROTICA, THE YEAR'S BEST FANTASY & HORROR 1991, 1993 & 1994, F&SF, FULL SPECTRUM IV, THE ULTIMATE ZOMBIE, THE HOT BLOOD SERIES, LOVE IN VEIN, GRUE, 2 AM, TWILIGHT ZONE MAGAZINE and many, many others. Her non-fiction has appeared in OMNI, SPACE & TIME, WRITER'S DIGEST, CEMETERY DANCE, TWILIGHT ZONE and THE HORROR SHOW. Her erotic short stories have appeared previously in several Circlet Press anthologies. She also has two novels published by Bantam Books and reprinted by Borgo Press, THE AMULET and DARK JOURNEY.
She lived in the Midwest, with a houseful (literally) of cats, some of whom have appeared in her novels and short fiction.
She died in January 2016, prior to the 8th.
Her fiction—both under her own name and her hard-core erotica-only Renee pen name—has either appeared in or is scheduled to appear in over 130 magazines and anthologies, including BEST AMERICAN EROTICA, THE YEAR'S BEST FANTASY & HORROR 1991, 1993 & 1994, F&SF, FULL SPECTRUM IV, THE ULTIMATE ZOMBIE, THE HOT BLOOD SERIES, LOVE IN VEIN, GRUE, 2 AM, TWILIGHT ZONE MAGAZINE and many, many others. Her non-fiction has appeared in OMNI, SPACE & TIME, WRITER'S DIGEST, CEMETERY DANCE, TWILIGHT ZONE and THE HORROR SHOW. Her erotic short stories have appeared previously in several Circlet Press anthologies. She also has two novels published by Bantam Books and reprinted by Borgo Press, THE AMULET and DARK JOURNEY.
She lived in the Midwest, with a houseful (literally) of cats, some of whom have appeared in her novels and short fiction.
She died in January 2016, prior to the 8th.
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Displaying 1 - 8 of 8 reviews
February 12, 2023
A rather strange and surreal epic by Morlan to be sure, mixing excitement and tedium in almost equal measures. Dark Journey consists of almost 600 small font pages, with multiple POVs and time frames, oscillating largely between 1940 and 1988, although the prologue is in 1913. The center of the story is the small Wisconsin town of Ewerton, which by 1988 is pretty ramshackle; the 'glory days' before the Great Depression long past. The prologue features a small carnival which came to Ewerton in 1913 and introduces six couples, the 'elite' of the town, as they tour the show; some 'bad vibes' become apparent, however, as both the Tarot card reader and the 'mentalist' see black clouds hanging over the six...
Flash forward to 1988 when the novel starts proper with Brent and his wife Zoe driving toe Ewerton from the 'cities' for her 10 anniversary high school reunion. Brent's parents were from Ewerton, but moves away long ago; Zoe he met in the 'cities' and they have been married for 6 years. Brent still has an uncle in town, however, and that is their destination. The first night there ends in tragedy, however, as Zoe slits her wrists and dies on her uncle's bed. Why? It takes a long time to find out.
Brent's uncle Palmer, and his best buddy Palmer (yes, they share a name), are the 'old coots' who hand out downtown on park benches shooting the breeze. They are both decedents of the 'six couples' featured in the prologue (their grandparents) and share some secrets. While Brent can be considered the main protagonist, Both Palmers play a major role in the story. After spending some time in 1988, the story quickly goes back to the late 1930s, featuring the Palmers. During the summer of 1940, both Palmers had some trials and tribulations that would shape their lives, haunting them almost 50 years later...
The depiction of carny life was one of the highlights of the book, and carny's play a major role in the story. This is a major slow burn, however, despite occasional bizarre and strange events tossed in here and there. Not sure what exactly Morlan was aiming for here; epic in scope and scale to be sure, but this is no War and Peace either. The family sagas are interesting and the horror aspects novel and unique. Reminded quite a bit of Straub's work. Still not quite sure whether I should praise this or pan it, so I will go with 3 carny stars.
Flash forward to 1988 when the novel starts proper with Brent and his wife Zoe driving toe Ewerton from the 'cities' for her 10 anniversary high school reunion. Brent's parents were from Ewerton, but moves away long ago; Zoe he met in the 'cities' and they have been married for 6 years. Brent still has an uncle in town, however, and that is their destination. The first night there ends in tragedy, however, as Zoe slits her wrists and dies on her uncle's bed. Why? It takes a long time to find out.
Brent's uncle Palmer, and his best buddy Palmer (yes, they share a name), are the 'old coots' who hand out downtown on park benches shooting the breeze. They are both decedents of the 'six couples' featured in the prologue (their grandparents) and share some secrets. While Brent can be considered the main protagonist, Both Palmers play a major role in the story. After spending some time in 1988, the story quickly goes back to the late 1930s, featuring the Palmers. During the summer of 1940, both Palmers had some trials and tribulations that would shape their lives, haunting them almost 50 years later...
The depiction of carny life was one of the highlights of the book, and carny's play a major role in the story. This is a major slow burn, however, despite occasional bizarre and strange events tossed in here and there. Not sure what exactly Morlan was aiming for here; epic in scope and scale to be sure, but this is no War and Peace either. The family sagas are interesting and the horror aspects novel and unique. Reminded quite a bit of Straub's work. Still not quite sure whether I should praise this or pan it, so I will go with 3 carny stars.
April 23, 2021
Talk about discovering a marvelous book/writer by happenstance. Picked this up at a used bookstore in Michigan, simply because the synopsis sounded compelling. Turns out A. R. Morlan was a highly regarded horror writer (who lived a sad life, apparently), and now I'll be tracking down all her other horror works.
This a lush, sprawling, meticulously-crafted epic small town gothic tale. It's not a fast-paced beach-read. Though the prose isn't purple over overwrought by any means, this is a multi-layered, complex story story with interweaving plot-lines that stretch back and forth across multiple generations. This will take a patient reading, so if you want something breezy, it's not for you.
I couldn't help but be reminded of Peter Straub's GHOST STORY, in regards to the novel's depiction of a stain passed down through subsequent generations. Morlan's prose isn't as lyrical as Straub's, but the plotting certainly is on par. Highly, highly recommended.
This a lush, sprawling, meticulously-crafted epic small town gothic tale. It's not a fast-paced beach-read. Though the prose isn't purple over overwrought by any means, this is a multi-layered, complex story story with interweaving plot-lines that stretch back and forth across multiple generations. This will take a patient reading, so if you want something breezy, it's not for you.
I couldn't help but be reminded of Peter Straub's GHOST STORY, in regards to the novel's depiction of a stain passed down through subsequent generations. Morlan's prose isn't as lyrical as Straub's, but the plotting certainly is on par. Highly, highly recommended.
October 1, 2022
I first read Dark Journey about 15 years ago and it made a lasting impression. It went on my keeper shelf but unfortunately by the time I finally got around to re-reading it the print had shrunk! Imagine my surprise when I found the book had been released for kindle!
Dark Journey is a hidden gem for lovers of slow building, atmospheric horror. I suppose it could be classified as a "ghost story" but not in the traditional sense; and the real horror here is really ordinary, mundane horror: the evil that lurks in the hearts of men.
Dark Journey is a very "involved" story that spans 8 decades and 3 generations. It is populated by a varied cast of characters and full enjoyment of the story is dependent upon keeping track of who is who, their relation to each other and subsequent generations. It starts out following the 6 "cream couples" responsible for the foundering and flourishing of the town of Ewerton (although the REAL story really begins 10 years earlier) and weaves back and forth between the 1920's, 1940's, 1980's and ending in the 1990's. All of the characters are flawed individuals, some more so than others, some irreparably so. The wonder of Dark Journey is that the cast of characters are so well developed, one can empathize with and even wish a happy ending for some characters of frankly questionable moral fiber.
It can be a somewhat convoluted tale. I found that part of the enjoyment was not just wondering what would happen next, but the feeling of almost collecting pieces of a puzzle and putting it all together to form an understandable gestalt.
The kindle version presents 2 "missing chapters" from the original prologue which the author tells us were removed by the editor because they were redundant. Not so. I've read both versions. Take advantage of the availability of the additional prologue material, it is not only not redundant but highly relevant to the understanding and clarification of significant events.
A final note: there are typos, perhaps a moderate amount. The most noticeable involve swapping one letter for another. "b"'s for "h"'s for example, and "m" for "rn". It did not detract from my enjoyment of the story. I "noticed" but I knew what was meant and it flowed. If however this is the sort of thing that would annoy you, head's up.
Dark Journey is a hidden gem for lovers of slow building, atmospheric horror. I suppose it could be classified as a "ghost story" but not in the traditional sense; and the real horror here is really ordinary, mundane horror: the evil that lurks in the hearts of men.
Dark Journey is a very "involved" story that spans 8 decades and 3 generations. It is populated by a varied cast of characters and full enjoyment of the story is dependent upon keeping track of who is who, their relation to each other and subsequent generations. It starts out following the 6 "cream couples" responsible for the foundering and flourishing of the town of Ewerton (although the REAL story really begins 10 years earlier) and weaves back and forth between the 1920's, 1940's, 1980's and ending in the 1990's. All of the characters are flawed individuals, some more so than others, some irreparably so. The wonder of Dark Journey is that the cast of characters are so well developed, one can empathize with and even wish a happy ending for some characters of frankly questionable moral fiber.
It can be a somewhat convoluted tale. I found that part of the enjoyment was not just wondering what would happen next, but the feeling of almost collecting pieces of a puzzle and putting it all together to form an understandable gestalt.
The kindle version presents 2 "missing chapters" from the original prologue which the author tells us were removed by the editor because they were redundant. Not so. I've read both versions. Take advantage of the availability of the additional prologue material, it is not only not redundant but highly relevant to the understanding and clarification of significant events.
A final note: there are typos, perhaps a moderate amount. The most noticeable involve swapping one letter for another. "b"'s for "h"'s for example, and "m" for "rn". It did not detract from my enjoyment of the story. I "noticed" but I knew what was meant and it flowed. If however this is the sort of thing that would annoy you, head's up.
November 15, 2018
My video review of this book can be found here: https://youtu.be/cnwxwzr17-A
This was a very interesting and odd little horror novel. Following a fairly large cast of characters, this book tells the story of a small town in Wisconsin and the mystical force that's entwined through three generations of its history. The storytelling almost had a Stephen King feel in the sense that the book spends a lot of time on the interpersonal and intergenerational relationships among the characters. At times, there are some very wide spaces between paranormal events. However, I never felt my interest in the story wane, and the horror wasn't limited to the strictly supernatural. There were some very disturbing moments that were completely anchored in realism (speaking of which, huge trigger warning for suicide on this one).
I will mention that this book takes a little time to get going. If I were the type of reader that judges books based on their openings, I would have never made it past the prologue with this one. Said prologue takes place much earlier than most of the events of the rest of the story and had a more purple feel to its prose, at least when I was reading it initially. It also introduces us to an almost impossible number of characters all at once--six couples, plus the people observing them. I couldn't keep them straight. Once the first real chapter begins and you're placed more firmly in the "now" of the story, it becomes easier to follow, however, so please don't give up just based on the prologue alone.
That said, I do think that this book suffered a little bit from the drawn out way that the author tried to supply us with information. The prologue is a good example of this. We learn more about all those couples in the prologue later on, and at that point it's easier to keep track of who they are because they are anchored to other events and characters in the story. However, during the prologue, it really feels like we're privy to information we simply aren't equipped to appreciate. By the time I got to the point in the story where I would have appreciated the information I got in the prologue, I couldn't really remember it in complete detail. This sort of thing happened a few times throughout the book, where I was introduced to a character or concept that then disappeared for so long before it became relevant that I kind of forgot about it.
Along a similar vein, the author also had the tendency to describe things (particularly scenes of horror) very vaguely at first, then go back and fill in the blanks later. This happens a whole handful of times; the character would see something and in that moment, you would get only the most vague descriptors of the scene, almost as though you were viewing it through a smudged window and couldn't tell what you were actually looking at. Then, later, the character would see the sight again or relive the moment after the fact, and THEN you would get to find out what you were actually supposed to be looking at. I think some readers would probably really enjoy this (and I probably wouldn't have thought twice about it if it were only done once or twice in the book), but with as frequently as it happened, I found myself thinking, "Just TELL me what I'm looking at already!"
My other warning for this book is that it is, as one might expect from a horror novel, filled with horrible things. Most of the characters in this book aren't great people, so if you're the kind of person who needs to read books that reflect morals and set standards for the audience to follow, you're going to need to steer clear of this one. Now, much of the book is based around the guilt one of the main characters feels for his horrible actions, but that doesn't take away the fact that they are there, and that a lot of other disturbing things are happening in the story, as well. It also read as oddly misogynistic at times for a book that was written by a woman; by that, I mean that, with a couple notable exceptions, most of the female characters are either annoying, nagging wives that are simply put up with or are just in the story for sex. I don't think it was meant to portray women in any specific light one way or another, but the fact that only a few of the female characters were complex and interesting as compared to most of the male ones surprised me a bit coming from a female author.
That said, for a horror novel, it did exactly what I wanted it to do. It managed to disturb me and actually make me feel uncomfortable at times, which is honestly something that isn't too terribly easy to do anymore. I also appreciated the ending; while the first ending (pre-epilogue) might have been preferable in many ways, the epilogue really brought home the "unexpected but inevitable" quality that all good endings should have.
All in all, I would recommend this book to horror readers who are looking for a sometimes grisly character-based story about a town of flawed and messed up people (especially readers who like a touch of carnival horror).
This was a very interesting and odd little horror novel. Following a fairly large cast of characters, this book tells the story of a small town in Wisconsin and the mystical force that's entwined through three generations of its history. The storytelling almost had a Stephen King feel in the sense that the book spends a lot of time on the interpersonal and intergenerational relationships among the characters. At times, there are some very wide spaces between paranormal events. However, I never felt my interest in the story wane, and the horror wasn't limited to the strictly supernatural. There were some very disturbing moments that were completely anchored in realism (speaking of which, huge trigger warning for suicide on this one).
I will mention that this book takes a little time to get going. If I were the type of reader that judges books based on their openings, I would have never made it past the prologue with this one. Said prologue takes place much earlier than most of the events of the rest of the story and had a more purple feel to its prose, at least when I was reading it initially. It also introduces us to an almost impossible number of characters all at once--six couples, plus the people observing them. I couldn't keep them straight. Once the first real chapter begins and you're placed more firmly in the "now" of the story, it becomes easier to follow, however, so please don't give up just based on the prologue alone.
That said, I do think that this book suffered a little bit from the drawn out way that the author tried to supply us with information. The prologue is a good example of this. We learn more about all those couples in the prologue later on, and at that point it's easier to keep track of who they are because they are anchored to other events and characters in the story. However, during the prologue, it really feels like we're privy to information we simply aren't equipped to appreciate. By the time I got to the point in the story where I would have appreciated the information I got in the prologue, I couldn't really remember it in complete detail. This sort of thing happened a few times throughout the book, where I was introduced to a character or concept that then disappeared for so long before it became relevant that I kind of forgot about it.
Along a similar vein, the author also had the tendency to describe things (particularly scenes of horror) very vaguely at first, then go back and fill in the blanks later. This happens a whole handful of times; the character would see something and in that moment, you would get only the most vague descriptors of the scene, almost as though you were viewing it through a smudged window and couldn't tell what you were actually looking at. Then, later, the character would see the sight again or relive the moment after the fact, and THEN you would get to find out what you were actually supposed to be looking at. I think some readers would probably really enjoy this (and I probably wouldn't have thought twice about it if it were only done once or twice in the book), but with as frequently as it happened, I found myself thinking, "Just TELL me what I'm looking at already!"
My other warning for this book is that it is, as one might expect from a horror novel, filled with horrible things. Most of the characters in this book aren't great people, so if you're the kind of person who needs to read books that reflect morals and set standards for the audience to follow, you're going to need to steer clear of this one. Now, much of the book is based around the guilt one of the main characters feels for his horrible actions, but that doesn't take away the fact that they are there, and that a lot of other disturbing things are happening in the story, as well. It also read as oddly misogynistic at times for a book that was written by a woman; by that, I mean that, with a couple notable exceptions, most of the female characters are either annoying, nagging wives that are simply put up with or are just in the story for sex. I don't think it was meant to portray women in any specific light one way or another, but the fact that only a few of the female characters were complex and interesting as compared to most of the male ones surprised me a bit coming from a female author.
That said, for a horror novel, it did exactly what I wanted it to do. It managed to disturb me and actually make me feel uncomfortable at times, which is honestly something that isn't too terribly easy to do anymore. I also appreciated the ending; while the first ending (pre-epilogue) might have been preferable in many ways, the epilogue really brought home the "unexpected but inevitable" quality that all good endings should have.
All in all, I would recommend this book to horror readers who are looking for a sometimes grisly character-based story about a town of flawed and messed up people (especially readers who like a touch of carnival horror).
October 8, 2015
This one was a little tough to get through with all the flip flopping between time periods and different people... But is was a good story none the less
November 1, 2017
good book overall, good story line. I did find it confusing keeping all the characters straight and, because it was set in the past and present. The plot was very imaginative and kept me wanting more. If you really pay attention, you will enjoy the book as well.
August 2, 2023
A wild ride, certainly creative in its approach. But more often than not, it's frustrating, convoluted, stilted, and absurdly drawn out.
December 2, 2015
Sorry I didn't read it sooner. Revenge with a weird twist, kind of creepy too.
Displaying 1 - 8 of 8 reviews