Review – Worms by James Montague

I received a free audio copy of the book from the author. In no way does this alter my review.

Worms is a horror story, something in the vain of Clive Barker goes to Emmerdale Farm, a tale of normal folk thrown into a bizarre situation.

James Hildebrand is a normal man – a wife, a job, struggling to get by – and so forth. On a holiday to Norfolk, James decides he’d like to move there, but his equally unhappy wife refuses. An accident leads to her death, but James makes some money from her estate and buys his dream home. That’s when he starts to see the worms, causing him to question his sanity. As strange things happen and his guilt and mental state are further threatened, James struggles to keep it all together. When the government start building a nuclear power place nearby, things…well, when did nuclear power and creepy crawlies ever end well?

Worldbuilding

It’s Norfolk, so there’s hardly a need to create a “world.” That being said, the author captures the bleak windswept marshlands well. Also, everything that belongs there, everywhere they eat, live and so forth reflects the world James has fallen into. The worms are creepy a singular force of nature that reflects our “hero’s” fraying sanity.. 

Score – 4/5 

Characters 

James is the main character and tells us his tale. He is likable, despite his obvious flaws, and he manages to maintain a sense of humour throughout, even as he loses his faculties. He manages to make us root for him, despite his incredibly poor life choices, and he gives an often hilarious narrative of the story. The rest of the cast could step out of any rural British soap opera on the surface, but the author, through the medium of James, shows some layers of depth that are often overlooked in side characters in horror.These aren’t your average country bumpkins.

Score – 4.5/5

Plot

Dang, the plot is stellar. If one could imagine a plot rattling along at a glacial pace, then this is the one. Don’t let this put you off though. The story throughout is tight, and almost every word pushes you towards the final payoff, which you probably won’t see coming. Even the power plant addition, which at first doesn’t seem to make a lot of sense, ties in nicely with the rest of the novel.

Score – 5/5

Writing

Very nicely written, with apt descriptions of people, places and things, capturing the essence of the locale and its denizens. As mentioned already, there is plenty of humour, of which I am a fan, and the moments with the worms are portrayed with more of a nod to creeping dread than cheap thrills and frights .  

Score – 4.5/5

Personal Enjoyment

I enjoyed this one immensely, and found it hard to pick out many flaws. The narrator (the real one, not James) might have been the finest part of the whole experience, breathing life into the characters ( and annelids) and I’m not sure if there is a better narrator on the planet when it comes to conveying fear through the word “worms.” 

Score – 5/5

Verdict

A gentle, slow-burning horror that is well worth your time.

Total Score – 23/25