“If you haven't, then "These Strange Lays" is a good place to start. It is not only a wonderful story, it is a perfect example of why Tom is such a great writer. Tom knows how to make characters live in breathe. In this story, he brings to life a character who's already dead and doesn't even appear in the story. Holder's late father could have been nothing more than a character's memory, but Tom wouldn't be satisfied with that. Instead, he brings to life a character who is only a part of someone...'s past. Holder's father is vivid and memorable, and only a number of lines refer to him. I'm not even quite sure how Tom did it, but the dead father lived in my imagination while I was reading as clearly and with as much focus as the living characters who do appear in the story. Tom does not confine his writing to the horror genre -- he's too good to be held down by only one -- but we fans are infinitely lucky that he does write horror fiction.MoreLessRead More Read Less
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