Review: Tom by Tobias Youngblood

I read this book as a judge for SFINCS4. However, these are my own views and do not necessarily reflect those of the judging team as a whole.

The Book:

Brighton township has a history of people disappearing. Blame falls to a coven of witches called “The Dark Hand.”

The evil goes unseen, and the guilty bear no mark. But the Good Lord always gives the name of one to join the others at the bottom of Lake Black. For the ritualistic drowning of a witch gives the people hope ... a respite from the devilry.

After witnessing this rite for the first time, twelve-year-old Peter Walcott’s mind is filled with disturbing thoughts. The local carnival offers a welcome distraction. In a back alley there, he finds a secret show—an eccentric animal trainer with unusual talents. The experience leaves Peter feeling mesmerized and inspired. A rare bright moment in dark times.

Soon after, a strange visitor arrives at his bedroom window. A creature that looks a little different every time he sees it. Deep down, he knows he shouldn’t trust it, but it makes him think of the animals from the carnival show. So Peter builds it a house and gives it a name ... Tom.

But Tom isn’t a pet.

And Peter may soon find himself serving a new master.

My Thoughts:

‘Tom’ is a chilling horror novella, quietly terrifying. The world we are immersed in is particularly well drawn, and the constant threat kept me on the edge of my seat. 

There is so much darkness in this world, and yet we see it through the eyes of Peter, a 12 year old boy, and the innocence of his world view makes the horrors surrounding him even more intense, as the reader sees more than he does. This aspect is particularly well done. I just wanted to grab Peter and take him away somewhere safe.

The world we are introduced to is a grim place, a community living in constant fear of the religious zealotry which controls their lives. It is a world of witch hunts and persecution, of people daring to defy and paying for it with their lives. A brooding threat that is never far away.

And then there is the witchcraft. Is it really just the persecutions carried out my religious fanatics or is there more to it than that? Something is very wrong with this world, and when Tom appears on the scene things really step up a level.

Peter thinks Tom is just a pet, but he is anything but, and before long Peter is on a trajectory from which there may be no return.

An excellent horror novella.