The Litter by Kevin R Doyle

"A novel of dark suspense concerning a band of feral children terrorizing the residents of an inner city."

Description from Night to Dawn Magazine & Books website - http://bloodredshadow.com/

"They kept to the shadows so no one would know they existed, and preyed on the nameless who no one would miss. Where did they come from, and who was protecting them? In a city that had seen every kind of savagery, they were something new, something more than murderous. And one woman who had thought she had lost everything there was to lose in life would soon find that nothing could possibly prepare her for what would come when she entered their world."

300 pages

Expected publication: February 13th 2015 by Night to Dawn Magazine and Books

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I was sent a copy of this book by the author, prior to it being published, in return for an honest review. I have read and reviewed another of this author’s works - The Group - which I enjoyed but The Litter is very different.

The main premise of the story is about a band of feral children however, it could quite easily be about any gang terrorising any community and I feel, whether intended by the author or not, that it has a deeper message about the consequences of the breakdown of society and how those living on the fringes of society are outcasts and invisible to the majority of the population. I was saddened by the experiences of the young boy and know that young people all over the world are in similar, horrendous circumstances but this isn’t just a story about young, homeless people.

The Prologue set the scene and described the setting so well it could have been any rundown and impoverished area in any city or large town. The excellent descriptions of the people and places continued throughout the book and really brought it to life.

The main characters are well developed and interesting with the relationships between some of the characters providing another aspect and depth to the story. In the main, the characters are believable however I do think that one of the main characters, Karen, was a bit like one of those cliché actors in a horror movie who doesn’t respond as you would in normal life - like going into a scary, run down and dilapidated basement when you know damn well you wouldn’t do that in a million years! However, because her personality and makeup is so well told, the author just about gets away with it but I did find myself “tutting” at her a couple of times.

Overall, it is well written, has good suspense with some gruesome and stomach churning descriptions and generally a good read.