Christopher Golden, the Bram Stoker Award-winning author of 2017’s Ararat, typically roots his horrific tales in isolation. The settings in his books like Road of Bones and Snowblind add a layer of dread to his already haunting stories.
However, in his new novel, titled All Hallows, Golden drops the reader directly into the crowded 1980s suburbs of Massachusetts and gives the reader some nostalgic teen horror from his Buffy the Vampire Slayer novelization days.
Though the book is set during Autumn and may be more suited to read during the spooky season, the novel was released in January 2023 from St. Martin’s Press.
All Hallows follows the residents of Parmenter Road, a quiet, ordinary drive in Coventry, Massachusetts, on Halloween night in 1984. The story features a plethora of characters that includes (but is not limited to) Tony Barbosa, a proud husband, and father of two, who, even though he’s going through a financial crisis, sets up his haunted woods attraction one more time for the neighborhood, or Vanessa and Steve, two best friends in love with the same girl, and Ruth and Zack Burgess, the newer members of the community who seem to be hiding something.
As the characters begin their different festivities for Halloween, costumed children begin appearing throughout the neighborhood and claim to be running from “The Cunning Man”. As Trick or Treat and Halloween parties begin, a dark entity lurks in the woods behind the neighborhood’s houses.
Unlike a lot of similarly formatted books, All Hallows benefits from the anthological style because of Golden’s incredible ability to develop a group of supporting characters in a short amount of page time.
There isn’t a main character in this book (although Tony is close), yet each chapter focuses on a different character and their isolated, surrounding story and is brilliantly connected to the other characters’ stories.
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Much of the horror tale comes more from the everyday drama and lives of humans in the suburbs than it does the actual overarching threat happening right under their noses. It’s the classic question of whether humans are the true monsters.
The little bits of backstory and the descriptions the reader is given of each individual character are just enough to let us know who to root for, and who to hate.
This comes as a bit of a double-edged sword, because while I’m a huge fan of character study and development, the inclusion of a supernatural aspect also has me incredibly curious about that angle, which I don’t feel had enough backstory or exploration in the overall tale.
Regardless, both aspects were terrifying, as Golden has a talent for making the reader feel isolated, even in a setting as simple as a wooded path from one house to another.
Setting the story in 1984 does a great deal for cutting out today’s technology that could make so many issues much more solvable than they were 40 years ago.
The story direction was unique as well. It’s always a plus when the supernatural aspect of a horror book takes a different path than I’m used to, and while I wish a little more was explained to me (in a sequel, maybe?), the story threw me off the scent of thinking things were going to go just as I expected them. Major kudos to Christopher Golden for that.
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With the setting being in 1984, you can expect a lot of ‘80s dialogue, including phrases and, of course, insulting slurs for the time. All Hallows has an inclusive cast of characters, but with that inclusivity comes the natural (and time period-heavy) intolerance from the other side.
If you can get past that and some real-life horrific themes from a few of the characters, you’ll probably love the book.
As a millennial who spent a large part of my childhood in the suburbs, in a very similar neighborhood, the nostalgia for All Hallows was real. Separating into groups and finding the fastest routes to the rich houses with the best candy was a must, and seeing things like that explored brought me back. All Hallows invoked Halloween memories in me that picked me up and plopped me right into the story.
While I do think the book would be more effective to read in September or October, I still enjoyed it, even in the Spring. My recommendation is to pick it up and save it for this year’s Fall reads, as it’s a riveting Halloween tale and accompanies the spooky season flawlessly.