Title: Kaleidoscopic Shades: Within Black Eternity
Author: David Neuman
Publisher: Gatekeeper Press
Genre: Horror, Supernatural mystery
First Publication: 2022
Language: English
Book Summary – Kaleidoscopic Shades: Within Black Eternity by David Neuman
Bob Triplow has found comfort in having escaped the horrors of childhood until he learns that he has merely passed them onto his ten year old son, Joshua.
Suddenly they are racing against an approaching storm like no other – for the horrors extend far beyond father and son, far beyond all that is imaginable.
They must abandon their suburban life within Corona, California, for a perilous journey into a dimension where unworldly chaos reigns amongst the depths of darkness.
Torn apart by horrific visions and memories, elements that should not be, that had no right to be, Bob will struggle for his sanity, while Joshua fights to seize the hands of time. To put an end to the madness that ripples across an endless vacuum, threatening to snuff out existence itself.
Book Review – Kaleidoscopic Shades: Within Black Eternity by David Neuman
Kaleidoscopic Shades is a spine-tinglingly horrific tale, yet it has absolutely nothing to do with creatures that go bump in the night. It’s the weird panic you get when strange dreams start making you feel frightened. And the scariest parts are the ones that aren’t explained, the ones that lurk between the lines and scare you to death when you finally comprehend what they mean. Though it contains elements of horror, Kaleidoscopic Shades is a literary coming of age story that just happens to take place in a small town where horrific events transpire.
It all starts with Bob Triplow and his wife Sue, an Australian couple who have just settled in Corona, California. The events of Bob’s past, on the other hand, continue to torment him and pose a danger not just to him but also to his son, Joshua. Strange occurrences start to take place in Corona, California, and as a result, the local children between the ages of six and sixteen start experiencing nightmares and are unable to sleep. The passage of time brings about an increase in the number of bizarre happenings, which, in turn, brings about an escalation in the pace at which the situation is deteriorating. The weirdest thing about it is that all children experience the same recurring nightmare about a “man in black.” Almost immediately after that, children in the town begin disappearing, including Joshua’s friend Sammy. Bob swiftly comes to the realisation that in order to save the future and, more likely, the world from the antagonist Patrick Nesmith, also known as the “man in black,” he will need to face his past.
The efforts of Bob Triplow and his son Joshua to put a stop to the nightmares that are afflicting their loved ones serve as the driving force behind the storyline. As a consequence of this, they find themselves on an odyssey through space and time that brings them to the verge of insanity while simultaneously transporting them to terrifying dimensions and pitting them against ancient creatures. The fate of their world and everyone in it rests in Bob and Joshua’s hands, and their choices will have dire consequences. What makes this book notorious, however, is the dreadful villain, Patrick Nesmith, at the heart of the story. Patrick Nesmith, or the Man in Black, is not as prevalent in the book as one might presume, given its classification as a horror novel, but any time he makes an appearance, the narrative drops readers into a dark scene where terrifying events unfold.
From the gloomy depths of the abyss emerges an incomprehensible narrative of enduring fear that is feverish, dissonant, and devious. Neuman uses meandering prose and colourful descriptions to dazzle, stupefy, and terrify readers to their very core by summoning their most primal fears, transmogrifying them, and giving them the form of the thing they dread most. With characters that feel like old friends and enough scares to keep readers up at night, David Neuman strikes a satisfying balance between literary writing and telling grim stories of violence and gore.
Kaleidoscopic Shades was quite long, but it was well worth the time it took to read the book. The author, David Neuman, never shies away from inflicting pain, depicting debauchery and mental aberrations, and showing gratuitous gore and violence. Stellar world-building and interesting characters with a lot of backstory pull us deeper into the strange town of Corona, where we look into the disappearance of several children, try to figure out the riddles, and cheer for the people we have become acquainted with.
