Review: Camp Redwood: A Short Slasher Horror Novel

Camp Redwood: A Short Slasher Horror Novel by Nathan Galion
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

Review: CAMP REDWOOD by Nathan Galion
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There are good reasons why I refuse to camp. All of them come from horror fiction, horror films, and true crime. CAMP REDWOOD is an admirable reprise of the classic horror trope of camping danger + serial killer with an axe to grind (punning), but author Nathan Galion in his debut novel brings some enticing new elements into the trope. Yes, we have a small group of university students going camping, in celebration of two of their number just becoming engaged. Yes, we have a Serial Killer with a driving need to kill. Yes, the Serial Killer has good reasons to target this particular group. Yes, we have a past history of child abuse, manslaughter, and one stalwart friend.

Here's where the differences from the usual trope treatment arise: stalwart friend is a Witch. Yes, I am serious. Actually, in my consideration, she is not a Witch as much as she is an Occult Magickian, because it is Dark Arts she is practicing, not Herbal Medicine and White Magic. She practices Necromancy. That's Dark Arts, Gentle Readers. She (Tonya) is a 15-year-old camper at the illustrious and well-appointed Camp Redwood (in the South), who befriends the congenitally deformed twelve-year-old son of one of the camp counselors (a woman who possesses a plethora of psychological problems). Tonya is Dylan's only friend, because everyone else (including his mother) is too shallow to see beyond his obvious disfigurements and find a positive character and good intentions. When Dylan is bullied by a trio of elitist, “silver-spoon” campers, Tonya runs for help, but not in time, and Dylan dies tragically, due to manslaughter. Tonya doesn't stop there though, and her subsequent actions directly affect the locality of Camp Redwood and the nearby Lake Tulpa over the years. [I get quite a kick out of the Lake's name, since a Tulpa is a concept in Tibetan Mysticism, in which an Entity is created by Thought and functions independently.]

Dylan's killing and Tonya's subsequent decisions and actions occur in the Summer of 1983. The seven University students, all unknowing, camp near Lake Tulpa in 2013, 3 decades later. In many ways, their presence is no accident nor is it coincidence, as will be revealed later in the book.

I would have given CAMP REDWOOD 4 stars, as it is a fast and compelling read. I readily identified with the characters, and I appreciated the character evolution that occurs (both in some of the 1983 characters and also in some of the 2013 characters). The plot is twisty and the paranormal elements are fascinating. However, the lack of sufficient proofreading and the subsequent misplaced grammar (chiefly verb tense alterations and misuse of verbs) constantly tossed me out of the story and back into reality. Were that corrected in future, I would give the book a 4. I also hope that if there is a sequel, we would get to find out what happened to Tonya.

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