A great cover but a story that never grabbed me. Two brothers, polar opposites. Dylan is goth and introverted, angry and judgmental. Kane is out-going and friendly but also runs his mouth and is a bit self-centered. You are intro'd on a night of the parent's anniversary. They hit a thrift shop and then drop the kids back home while they head out to dinner.

The story takes off from there. I didn't mind the gods, messengers, talismans, and spells. I liked Dylan's interested in it and the way it both brought together and drove the boys apart. But the story definitely got bogged down in the details for me. I didn't need to read Willie's scathing remarks every other sentence and I didn't need every emotion that the boys felt. It was just a bit too much for me and kept me from really getting invested in the story. There were also quite a few characters and I got a bit lost a few times. I found the story interesting but sadly I never found myself invested.

A huge thank you to the author and publisher for providing an e-ARC via Netgalley. This does not affect my opinion regarding the book.

Dark farm - dean raven

I don’t even remember requesting this title but nonetheless it expired before getting a chance read read and give an accurate review, sorry

This book wasn't for me. I'm not sure if it was the writing style, but I just found myself not being able to engage life I had wanted to.

I loved reading this book, it reminded me of old Lovecraftian horror, the story was so well done and I enjoyed going through this book.

I have not read a book of this genre before but was tempted by both the cover and the description.

I did not enjoy the initial chapter and nearly gave up on the book but things improved from this point onwards. The characters are well drawn and develop throughout the book, the situations are well described, however the plot had few surprises.

At times I nearly gave up, but on each occasion the story drew me back in and I completed the novel, however I found some of the prose and particularly the dialogue a little uninspiring.

It’s a long book and feels like it could do with a little more editing to reduce the length and remove some of the repetition and weaker prose.

That said the good bits were exciting and conjured up lucid images, therefore I think you should read this novel and form your own opinion

DARK FARM is a wild world of bizarre horrors, magic, myths, and legends. Tackling so many elements correctly is a daunting challenge but Dean Raven harnesses the chaos well, twisting all the way way tentacles into an enjoyable story.

Grotesques horrors pop off the pages, propelling the story through some of its dragging moments. I’ve read about zombies and ghouls and monsters so often that they sometimes blend into the background, their images overshadowed by popular, media renditions until they’re generic creatures in my head. That doesn’t happen here. Rotten flesh and blood and viscera come together to creature splendidly disgusting creatures in a world that feels fell thought out and alive.

At the heart of the story are brothers Kane and Dylan, and while their relationship teeters on the predictable (outcast vs. perfect son), watching them fight to reclaim their relationship and save each other drives the story forward while also grounding the horror and fantasy into reality. The tension between brothers does tip into melodramatics, along with the dialogue, making things feel a little theatrical at times, but Raven pulls back before theatrics drive the story into the ground.

Dark Farm is an enjoyable ride, especially for those looking for something a little dark, a little twisted, and a lot off the beaten path. It’s a little muddled, a little messy, but when you’re in the midst of lovcraftian horror, a pending apocalypse, and nightmarish lore, it’s an easy thing to deal with.

This was a pretty good book. It caught my interest fast and held on. This was one of those books you get lost in and completely lose track of time.

I really enjoyed reading this book, thank you for sending me an ARC of it :) I'm getting more into horror and I'm glad I read this to get me back into reading horror.

This book was a roller-coaster ride of family tragedy, wizards, zombies, and destructive gods. The pacing was often pretty intense despite the book being over 400 pages. I kept wanting to turn the page to see what would happen next. The plot was interesting and left me with a lot of questions and excitement about the next book. The story was ambitious and attempted to cover a lot of ground in one book, but, overall, I thought the author did a great job weaving the parts of the story together to create a gripping, cohesive narrative with fascinating world-building and engaging twists that kept me on the edge of my seat. That being said, parts of the story were repetitive at times, and I think there may have been a less circuitous way to reach the same outcome by streamlining the story some. I also would have liked to see the events of the first third of the book have more of a direct tie-in to the ending given how long was devoted to the family tragedy faced by the main characters at the beginning of the book.

I loved so many of the characters. The two brothers, Kane and Dylan, were both well-developed, and their backstory was explored in great depth. I enjoyed seeing their distinct personalities at play as they both coped with family tragedy in different ways. They also both experienced tremendous character growth throughout the story, which felt organic and true to the nature of each boy's characteristics, as well as the situations in which they found themselves. The wizards in this story were also some of my favorite characters simply because they were so deliciously evil. I enjoyed every part of the story that had them in it because their perspectives were just so outrageously villainous. There weren't any characters I didn't like, but there were some secondary characters who had what should have been impactful moments, if only they had been utilized and developed more before that point.

The level of horror and grotesque imagery utilized in this book was superb. The author was able to help me create truly repugnant pictures in my head of the zombies and monsters, and I had a lot of fun doing it. I've seen elsewhere that the gods and monsters in this book are based on Lovecraft's writing, but I did not need to read any of his work to understand or enjoy this story. It stands well on its own, and the reader learns about the gods, magic, and history of the world alongside the main characters at a steady pace as the book progresses.

Overall, I enjoyed this book a lot. The characters and villains were fantastic, and the setting seems deep in lore, which is barely scratched by this first book. Therefore, I rate this book 4 out of 5 stars, and I cannot wait to get my hands on future installments.

This is the first book of this genre I've read and whilst it wasn't exactly my thing I can appreciate that it was very well written. The characters were well thought out and I thought the pace of the book was great, nothing seemed rushed or dragged out for too long.

If you like dark magic and creepy monsters this book is for you!

Over all rating - 4 stars

From what I can tell, this is a new author on the scene of Cthulhu Mythos/Lovecraftian fiction and I am here for it. This book is a mashup of a couple of Lovecraft stories but Dean Raven has managed to give his own unique spin. There’s definitely old school fun to be found, with new Great Old Ones, ancient sorcerers, and armies of the undead…. And other less seemly things. The classics are mentioned as well, such as Yog-Sothoth and Cthulhu, which is always fun for a Lovecraft fan like me.

My favorite parts of the story might actually have been the interactions between the villains, the ancient sorcerers, and I was always excited when we would switch to their viewpoints. There’s a sense of dark humor throughout Dark Farm and that was always on excellent display with the evil wizards.

This is a very well done first book in a new series, with a cast of characters who all feel distinct and fleshed out, good pacing, and an escalation of events that leads to an epic climax.
I am excited to see more from Dean Raven and what he has in store for the Gates brothers and the cult of Kragn.

A Lovecraftian horror thrill ride complete with wizards, body snatching, zombies, and yes, Cthulhu and friends. The zombies were a fun touch - and how many times it seemed resolved, but ramped up in a different direction. A bit of everything, with likeable protagonists, and long seated evil conspiracies. Was a little wordy here and there, but didn't spoil the fun. <spoiler> The end didn't end - so maybe the first of a series?

Lovecraft inspired horror story involving family drama. Lots of long speeches by the characters. For me, I felt the characters were a bit two dimensional.

I really wanted to like this but overall felt underwhelmed.

I think this tried too hard to feel Lovecraftian that it left something more to be desired. It was trying to be one thing, but really was not doing that thing at all.

When a family of campers are slaughtered Sam Morgan from the government’s National Security Office is scouring the Six Hills for the killers. Kane, Is dealing with family issues of his own and hasn't come to terms with them yet. But now he has to battle sinister Wilfred Waite who is trying to corrupt young brother and reckless havoc on earth.
The horrors lurking beneath the Dark farm will bring the feuding brothers together and begin a chain of events that will threaten not only Dylan, not only our planet, but existence itself.

What a book! This I would put under dark magic. Its crazy, Dark, beautifully written. Really enjoyed this fun read!