Rating: 
Summary: Not bad, but not great either.
Review: I have to admit,I went into reading this book with the same enthusiasm as i had Bentley's other book 'The Store' which blew me away, but after reading "The Town", i felt a little let down. Don't get me wrong, Bentley has a way of making you feel like you're right there in the town and there were some choice moments like, a breif reference to The Store and a woman gives birth to a cactus (you have to read it to belive it!) But the ending felt a little rushed and silly, making the book feel like something out of a cheap b-movie one would see on HBO or Cinemax. Although this one was a it of a disappointment, I'm sure the next one will be better and I'll be taking the time until then to go back and read his earlier works.
Rating: 
Summary: On the edge of of my seet
Review: I was never much of a reader, I picked out this book by the cover. When I read this book I enjoyed it very much, I am a fan of horror movies myself, and having never heard of Bentley Little I was amazed of the talent this author had. I have finished reading The Town, almost finished with The Store, Having my bookstore order Dominion, and would like to purchase The Revelation. I must say that Bentley Little was, and has been aninfluence for me to begin reading. The way he jumps from scene to scene, catches my attention, and keeps me "On the edge of my seet."
Rating:
Summary: Not Little's Best Work
Review: This novel (a reprint of the British novel Guests), is fun, but it's far from the best Bentley Little has to offer. Unlike University, The Store, The Mailman or The Ignored, there's no social commentary or deeper theme here, and unlike Dominion or The Revelation, there's just not a lot of shock value here, one or two scenes aside.Little's characters tend to be the typical Arizona town residents (see The Mailman or The Store for more of the same), with a little bit more of a dark side. His prose is as descriptive as ever, and his use of religion, both Christian and Native American, is a nice touch, but too much of what happens seems inexplicable -- given the nature of the evil (as an external, physically threatening force), there doesn't seem to be an explanation for some of the actions of the residents, or the way some of the minor characters are killed. Place this one in the same bin as The House and Evil Deeds -- it's a fun little novel, but not one of the Bentley Little books that's worth re-reading, and should only really enter your collection if you're already a Bentley Little fan.
Rating: 
Summary: The Shining on peyote.
Review: I was greatly disappointed by Bentley Little's novel "The Town". I wouldn't be the least bit surprised if readers walk away from this novel with a "been there, done that" feeling. It's horror novel déjà vu! We've already read (and viewed) the story lines that Mr. Little has "creatively borrowed" from. Gregory Tomasov wins the California lottery giving him the opportunity to relocate his wife, three children and his overtly religious (also mega-superstitious) mother to his childhood home of McGuane, Arizona. They move into a house that is rumored by the locals to be haunted. Maybe this rumor was started when the home's prior tenant killed his entire family there! But what do I know? The residents of McGuane are the same tired retreads one comes to expect from this type of story. Characters come and go, leaving us with very little to remember or care about. The regular town-folk are leery and suspicious of the Molokan Russians living there, and vice versa. Descriptively you can't fault Mr. Little. He describes the Arizona backdrop beautifully. It's a shame that the same can't be said for the overabundance of second-hand characters in McGuane. People we never really get a chance to know are being killed off in short vignettes that serve as breaks in a chapter or scene. The 2nd most ridiculous of which is the death of the Molokan priest, Jim Petrovin. This is hardly a spoiler as it takes place on page 91. He is dispatched by his own bible that has taken flight (with the covers flapping like wings) in his own church. What would be the 1st? Read the vignette on the bottom of page 58. Though an interesting scene, it was thoroughly ridiculous. Of all the members of the Tomasov family: Gregory, Julia, Sasha, Adam, Teo and their "Babunya" Agafia, the only one I found myself caring for was Adam. Like his siblings, he's been removed from a life he enjoyed without any input and forced to move with his family. All this takes place during a transition time for the boy. His thirteenth birthday. Regrettably, even this story line gets more than a little creepy with his sudden incestuous feelings for his older sister, Sasha. We are told many times throughout the novel that certain scenes and events were "like a horror movie" or "like a scene out of a horror novel". This is even made a point in the story from a thought by Adam himself on page 344. The sentence reads: "They were like stupid movie people, he realized." He's not kidding. My sincere hope is that "The Town" was one of those stories that Mr. Little simply had to get out of his head and onto paper, so that he might move on to a more entertaining story somewhere in the future. Diehards of his work will no doubt enjoy it. It does have it's moments, but those are too far and few between. I've enjoyed some of the other novels Bentley has written. I'm sorry to say that this was not one of them.
Rating: 
Summary: Not the Ultimate in Horror
Review: As an horror fan, I always give a chance to new rising artist, and frankly after reading this book I got disappointed in his writing. The author jumps from scene to scene without any connecting points to follow. Perhaps his other books will be better. As a person who usually finishes a book in one day, my raiting has to be low for this little book.
Rating:
Summary: Scary? Not!
Review: Having read Bentley Little's previous works and having been chilled to the bone by "The Store", it was with great anticipation that I started "The Town." I kept reading and, having paid good money for the book, kept on reading. And I kept wondering, when is something interesting going to happen? To any reader looking for a spooky, fast-paced horror story that will make you keep the lights on at night, I recommend that you choose another book. This one was just flat, lackluster and, ultimately, boring.
Rating:
Summary: Good Stuff!
Review: I had fun reading The Town. I don't know how factual it is on Molokan culture, since I know nothing of them, but I enjoyed it nonetheless. The Town is somewhat different than Little's other novels in that everything doesn't become madness as quickly as usual. I've usually enjoyed Little's writing except for the fact that it's often predictable. Some of the things that happen in this book are downright funny--wait till you meet Lurlene!--although I'd have liked more humor in it. Mom was a bit sappy, too. Dad was the most boring character, though. Go ahead and grab this one.
Rating:
Summary: Boring
Review: This is my second Bentley Little book, the first one was University which was a lot of fun. I am sorry to say that I found The Town incredibly boring, I had to struggle to finish the last pages.
Rating:
Summary: A compilation of horror novels, nothing orginal here.
Review: No wonder Stephen King likes Little's novels so much, they must remind them of his. The basic premis of this novel is a rip off of the Shining. In otherwords a family goes to a place and the father is taken over by evil. In the Shining it was a hotel here it was the evil spirt of a town. The parelle's don't end there in both novels the target of the father's rage is his family. The Town also borrowed from other authors. The idea that the town becomes evil after dark is reminscent of Phil Rickman's Curfew. Lastly the daughter feeding the home of the evil spirit is reminescent of the second Harry Potter novel. As if this weren't bad enough the parts of the novel that are orginal do not make it worth reading. None of the characters are likeable and none of their actions belivable. The mother and father move their family to the town after winning the lottery. The big question is why? The reason given is they want to be happy. How can the father expect to find happiness in a town where he grew up but was not really happy. The children behave like brat's. In the case of the oldest daughter, she was apparently the perfect child before the family moved but then become the child from hell in the town, oh please! Worse yet several relgions get mixed up in this mess of a novel, making an already confusing story more conviluded. Skip this book and read the Shining there is no comparision.
Rating:
Summary: more cultural than horror
Review: I like to read anything remotely scary. I didn't get the shocker I expected, like Sasha not really being Julia's daughter or Babunya having an affair with Jim. I learned alot about Russian background and beliefs so it was informative there. The past being brought up 2/3rds through the book was a disappointment. I will read more of his books, even SK writes one every once in a while that leaves me hungry for more story. There were a few mistakes in spelling, but I was entertained for a few days.
| 
