This deliciously dark and different read is equally eerie and thrilling. When Mina finds herself stranded in a forest, she welcomes the safety of a bunker as darkness falls and the screams begin. A. M. Shine has devised a world that sits on the edge of nightmares, unbelievable slips into the believable with sly ease creating a tension that remains until the end. The prologue creates a moment in time, and snippets of knowledge escaped into my thoughts as I waited for the first chapter to begin. This awareness stayed with me as I read, and I explored my thoughts as the Watchers moved alongside me through the pages. The horror here is one of chilling intensity, it exists in the unknown, in what might be. I particularly enjoyed the sections within the forest where the suspense is heightened. The atmosphere within the bunker and surrounding woods bites with a concentrated energy. The ending felt entirely appropriate for both the plot and genre. The Watchers is an oh-so readable debut horror skirting that wonderful clifftop edge of believable terror.
This forest isn't charted on any map. Every car breaks down at its treeline. Mina's is no different. Left stranded, she is forced into the dark woodland only to find a woman shouting, urging Mina to run to a concrete bunker. As the door slams behind her, the building is besieged by screams.
Mina finds herself in a room with a wall of glass, and an electric light that activates at nightfall, when the Watchers come above ground. These creatures emerge to observe their captive humans and terrible things happen to anyone who doesn't reach the bunker in time.
Afraid and trapped among strangers, Mina is desperate for answers. Who are the Watchers, and why are they keeping the humans imprisoned, keen to watch their every move?
A spine-chilling debut horror adventure set in the remote and sinister forests of Ireland, from critically acclaimed Irish writer A.M. Shine.
Watch Ishana Night Shyamalan reads an extract from 'The Watchers' by A.M. Shine.
Watch the official Warner Bros Teaser Trailer for The Watched.
Readers get an intimate glimpse into the fraying edges of each character's psyches, the constant hunger, the paranoia, the loss of hope, and far worse... A combination of supernatural and psychological horror, The Watchers will appeal to fans of Kealan Patrick Burke, Josh Malerman, and Scott Smith -- A.E. Siraki, Booklist
This book has such atmosphere, and creepiness, and is an ideal read for the Halloween season, or any time you want some spookiness in your life! - Beauty and Lace
Intense and thrilling, The Watchers is a great debut and solid addition to the survival horror sub-genre - Read By Dusk
A brisk, at times scary but thoroughly enjoyable read - Bloody Flicks
A clever, highly original story beautifully written - The Untidy Bookshelf
The Watchers was a punch to the jugular... The author pulled out the rug from under me on more than one occasion. A must-read for the spooky season! - The Coy Caterpillar Reads
Author
About A.M. Shine
A.M. Shine writes in the Gothic horror tradition. Born in Galway, Ireland, he received his Master's Degree in History there before sharpening his quill and pursuing all things literary and macabre. His stories have won the Word Hut and Bookers Corner prizes and he is a member of the Irish Writers Centre. His debut novel, The Watchers, has been critically acclaimed. The Creeper is his second full-length novel.
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