Bloody Bloody Apple

By: Howard Odentz

Narrated by: Jon Oak

Apple, Massachusetts, is rotten to the core.

Every fall, when the orchards ripen and the leaves begin to die, there are murders. We know it, and we accept it. It's the price we pay for living in Apple. Families mourn, but no one is ever caught. Now, there's a body in the woods, and the cycle is starting again. People bruise easily in Apple.

Finding a murdered and mutilated girl plunges Jackson Gill into the middle of a decades-old horror. For Jackson, the newest murders become personal. His mentally ill sister knows far more about the murders than anyone restrained in a basement room should know.

When one by one, her sick, cryptic predictions prove true, Jackson will have to believe the unthinkable and stop what no one has been able to stop in 60 years.

He has no choice. He lives in bloody, bloody Apple.

©2014 Howard Odentz (P)2019 Bell Bridge Books

Surprised All the Way Through

I am not the biggest fan of horrour, but I really enjoyed this book. So much so, I have already recommended it to a few friends.

The synopsis is what had me hooked. I thought it was really creepy, but I never felt super scared. I quite liked that. The characters and town are great. The idea of the story of everything being apple related was super well done. I wasn't rolling my eyes about it at any point.

Jon Oak does a great job with the narration.

I kept thinking I had it figured out and then I didn't. I loved that. The last line of the book is perfection! I want to read what comes next!

I received this audio book at my request and have voluntarily left an honest review.

An Intriguing Story

In Apple, where everyone knows your name and the small-town friends you have are for life is a great place most of the time, except in the fall. In the fall, during harvest time when death lingers through November dead bodies turn up in the most gruesome ways. But that’s ok, it’s Apple.

Jackson Gill is a teenager now and the killer is killing again; his mentally ill sister knows who the killer is and what is going to happen. Jackson has to stop the killer before someone he loves dies.

Howard Odentz, author, builds an intriguing story that relates to his listeners. We were all teenagers at one time who tended to poke around where we shouldn’t. The dialog between characters is natural and flows well. The character development is solid with just enough doubt around certain characters to make them more mysterious.

The narrator, John Oak, provides an entertaining listen where he further moves the story through his talented reading. Between Oak and Odentz, I was thoroughly enmeshed in the tale. Oak was smooth and professional in reading but let just enough creep slide in for some characters. There were no issues with the quality of the audio production. It was crisp and clear.

Loved!

I loved this story! While it was extremely depressing because of the situations the kids found themselves in, the story was so gripping that it pulled me in and held onto me very tightly. It was also interesting to realize that the murders weren’t necessarily the worst things to happen in Apple, unfortunately. Needless to say, I didn’t want the story to end.

One comment:

I wasn’t a fan of the ending. I was confused actually, was Jackson taking over for his grandfather or was there another killer in Apple?

Two questions:

Why were no higher forces (like the FBI) were ever involved if the murders were on a schedule?

It was decided that Mr. Burg would have to stay away from his daughter after Mrs. Burg was killed. Why wouldn’t someone have done something sooner?

The narrator had a great voice for this type of story. His female voices were a little cheesy sounding at times but, overall, he did a great job. He definitely added to the mystery and the spookiness aspect of the story based on way certain characters talked, specifically Becky.

Great story

I have to admit, I am pretty good at guessing an ending, but this one totally got me. The story kept me listening with great characters. Then the ending. BAM.
Excellent.

Loved it

Lots of twists and an ending that I didn’t see coming. The narrator is excellent and kept me interested and wanting more. I highly recommend this book if you like horror stories.

I received this book at no charge and my review is my own.