Highway Twenty by Michael J Moore

An engineer from out of town disappears. Then Conor Mitchell’s girlfriend. Then his parents. The townspeople of Sedrow Woolley, Washington, are vanishing at a horrifying rate. But they come back. They all come back days later, and they’re different: Hungry. Insectile. Creatures posing as humans. Because Conor knows the truth, and because the entire police force has already been changed, and because there’s nowhere to run from an evil that only wants to spread, his sole option is to fight. But they have no intention of letting him leave town.

I don’t read a lot of horror (I read crime fiction mainly, as readers of my reviews will know) not out of any dislike for the genre, but mainly because I'm a big scaredy-cat. When I do read horror, it’s more often what might be termed the “softer” edge of the genre. I don’t go in for demonic possession, I’m not much for what used to be called “torture porn”. I do like the Aliens movie franchise, and my favourite two films are the original version of The Thing and The Parallax View (the latter not a horror, but a political thriller). So I’m tender when it comes to horror (emotionally tender, I'm scared basically), and while I loved The Thing, actually that’s an exception. I generally am averse to creepy stuff. My horror taste is much closer to dystopia really. This isn't a criticism of the genre, just an explanation that I’m a big wuss.

So, when I was offered the chance to read Highway Twenty by the publishers, and then got hold of the book, I have to confess that the description gave me goosebumps. It scared me a little. It was foreboding and gave me the chills. I dipped into the book and this perception was reinforced. I don’t mind admitting that I was kinda worried as to what I had signed up for.

Now I’ve finally read the whole book and these perceptions were correct. It’s very well written, the story is compelling, the tension ratchets up nicely. The characters are very well drawn. This is a real creature feature, but of the creepier kind and I have to admit that it kind of freaked me out. It’s scary in that creepy sort of way that some horror is and I found this a very unnerving read. But it's a very good book, and for fans of the genre, and for those who just want to try something new, they could do way worse. 

I don’t want to give away too many spoilers, to be honest, the description in the first paragraph (taken from the book blurb) does the title justice. This is a good, solid effort and if horror is your thing, and you don’t mind being kept awake at night, then this might well be for you.

4 out of 5 stars