by J. Daniel Stone
Publisher : Lethe Press
Publication Date : July 14, 2020
Stations of Shadow is such a dark story with well-defined characters and a very unique plot. Sebastian (Hydra Lerna) and his Adrian (Hera Wynn) are drag queens in New York City. The relationship between the two is complex. There is love, jealousy, lust, and appreciation. The book starts with a magnificent jaw-dropping underground performance by Sebastian as Hydra Lerna which makes Adrian envious about it and curious to know his friend’s secret. “Hydra Lerna faced the crowd, two extra heads now grown out of her neck, viper teeth and dragon scales glittering with gore as the last of her flesh costume was ripped away and plopped in a gummy heap on the stage”
The story takes place in different periods where we get to see the pasts of Sebastian, Adrian, and Lilith. This circle of friends has it all too. Both Lilith and Adrian are in love with Sebastian and they cannot stand each other. When the two are talking to each other their dialogue is witty and droll. I loved the characters’ personal stories a lot. They are not something unusual and I am sure many readers would relate to them. “What Lilith hated the most was that Adrian met Sebastian first, to which he used as sacred ammunition. He knew it was a trigger for her”’
Another big side of the story is Sebastian’s relationship with his psychiatric Dr. Veronica Pazzesca. As you read about his past you will understand his mental health issues and the split personality he had. At times as a reader, I was confused about what was real and what was not. Was this Hydra just one side and one of the personalities of Sebastian or was it this demon creature that was living inside him and came out whenever she wanted? I love it when a book plays tricks on my mind. I feel this was intentionally done this way by J. Daniel Stone and I have to say it is brilliant because like the protagonist you will also be confused as a reader and want to know more.
Despite how one might think that Sebastian was a complex and bossy character, I feel he was not. The guy had his problems but as he said at one point that everybody was thinking about him as a leader while in reality, he was just a guy who wanted to forget his past! He was considered a leader because he brought them all together. He acted like the glue that made them stick together
Stations of Shadow is not your regular cliche supernatural horror story. It has a lot more depth to it which needs you to be focused and concentrating on the events happening. The vivid scenes make the story comes alive before your eyes. Sometimes this can be scary because of the amount of darkness some of the scenes have. The dark horror and the complex LGBTQ characters combined together made this a wonderful reading experience. I don’t know if all J. Daniel Stone’s books have the same tone of depth, darkness, and complexity as this is the first book I read for him. I guess I will know that when I read more of his work.
“She was the shade of end times, the color of blaspheme; she was the pigment of plaque”
Many thanks to the author for providing me a free copy of this book in exchange for this honest and unbiased review.
Themes:
- Horror
- LGBTQ
- Drag Queens
- Mental Health
- Drug Use
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