Poe and Claire had a life-changing experience in the woods when they were kids that sent them to the hospital. Not knowing what had happened destroyed their family and as adults they're still trying to live with the scars. But then one of them decides to take back the reins of their life and try to discover the truth behind the incident, a decision that will have many unexpected repercussions.

I found the premise intriguing and the story original and interesting, even if longer and less fast-paced and action-packed than I had initially expected.

The mystery made me want to keep reading but the focus on character interactions made me less inclined to pick the book, perhaps due to the quantity of characters introduced and how the story kept jumping from one to another, not making it easy for me to get really invested on what was happening to them.

The parts I enjoyed the most were those about Poe, which I found much more developed as a character than his sister, who I felt I didn't get to know at all.

I enjoyed how the story would sometimes jump to the past, letting me see how something had come to happen or why a character had ended being a certain way, because it would provide the historical info needed to put the plot in perspective without anyone having to stand in front of a white board and explain everything, but I would have loved suspense and a sense of danger for the characters in the main timeline as well. Also, I was left with the conviction they kept getting all the info they were after too easily!

I'll definitely be reading more books by the author.

The interaction between life and death…

An intense blinding light and a forceful sonic pulse that left no memories in two children also irrevocably altered their family. The childhood trauma suffered, the result of said unexplained phenomena, fourteen years later still haunts the brother and sister affected that day in the Montana wilderness. There were no concrete answers at the time just conspiracy theories yet a plane crash in the present begins the search for the truth all over again. Claire and Poe Huntley, estranged siblings separated by distance planned to meet but it is news of her brother’s plane crash that Claire receives after she writes his words of goodbye down on a blackboard in her classroom.

How is Claire to cope with Poe’s death when she feels an overwhelmingly strong connection to him or when she sees the child he once was in mirrors and channels words and drawings that are not her own? Are these the hallucinations of someone losing their mind from inconsolable grief or is there something more at play here? At the request of her father to join him Claire returns to where it all began, setting them forth on a journey of discovery that will upend belief systems and shock the world.

This intriguing, gripping story contains deep themes: unexplained phenomena, near-death experiences, it looks at the ultimate mystery of what truly is death, and how nefarious science played a part in the event's genesis, spiritual connections, the bonds of relationships familial and otherwise, how one random event can destroy a family and that family finally gets the answers they deserve.

Historical secrets come to light as the guardians of those secrets lose control of the containment of an experiment gone horribly wrong. It is the children who must atone for the sins of the fathers or in this case perpetuate concealment. The topics broached challenge preconceptions and this reader found the ideas posited thought-provoking. There are topics beyond human comprehension but it is in the thinking about those topics that enable growth and opens the door to possibilities whether real or imagined. Even if you’ve pondered the idea before or not, after reading this, you will give some thought to whether death is an ending or a beginning. This author has quite an intricate imagination.

This book is fast-paced paranormal action and suspense, the characters were well-developed; relatable to the situations they found themselves in. Knowing the depths of what they went through in the years after the event that changed their lives defined how they handled events in the present. This was the first time reading this author, though this reader has enjoyed his mother’s works for years.

An advanced reading copy was obtained from the publisher via NetGalley.

Decimate by Christopher Rice is a book that fits in different genres - science fiction, horror and general fiction.

"Claire and her brother, Poe, were on a camping trip with their father in the deep Montana woods when they were caught up in a great explosion of light. Was it aliens? Or a government project gone wrong?
Years later a plane crash gives a strange power to a young man with revenge on his mind. A group wants to stop him hoping that Claire's connection to Poe can help before it's too late.!"

Rice tells an original story about "near death experiences" and the connection between people after death. You have to pay attention because he's throwing things like "bloom" and "memory deck" at you.

This story is filled with characters wanting a second chance. Characters who are grieving for lost relationshipu. Characters who want to do the right thing no matter the personal cost.

Rice is great at thinking up wild scenarios and making the reader think "That might be possible" Fans of the Burning Girl trilogy should enjoy this one. Crazy story from Rice.

A camping trip turns into an extraordinary event that sends Claire and Poe to the hospital. Their father thinks it was aliens. Unfortunately a divorce divides the family, Claire goes with her mother and Poe with his father. Life goes on, the kids grow up. Another extraordinary event happens to Poe involving a plane crash. Then it gets weird. Really weird. This novel goes places you don’t expect it to. A thought provoking novel, Decimate by Christopher Rice, about near-death experiences. Thanks to NetGalley and Thomas & Mercer for the ARC.

Mind-Bending Scifi Action. This is one of those trippy books that has enough mystery up front to draw you in, a lot of exposition in the middle to make you understand what is coming, and a balls to the wall back third to show off all that you now know within the context of the original setup. At 440 ish pages, it may read a tad long to some, but I felt the length was pretty solid for all that it was doing here. And the ideas it discusses are intriguing in a vein similar to Marcus Sakey's Afterlife, where death... may only be the beginning. The backstory here was perhaps a well tapped a bit too often in the genre, particularly for anything of this form, and yet was still done well and was truly horrifying (though fortunately not too much of it actually "onscreen"). Overall the tale here was interesting and well told. Very much recommended.

Decimate was interesting - but not in a bad way, I actually really liked the book. It was interesting in a way that made me think about what happens after death or during a near death experience. This story told an intriguing idea of a possibility. I have enjoyed the books that I have read by Christopher Rice and this wasn't an exception. At times it was hard to put it down because I wanted to know what was going to happen next or wanted to know more about the characters or the story. Thank you NetGalley and Thomas & Mercer for a digital arc of this book.

Decimate is a very thoughtful imagination of death and what comes afterwards. It made me think about the ideas we have about death, aside from any religion based ones and I found the theory that drove the book quite interesting in the end. But yes, I am talking about a novel here! Purely fiction...

Clair and Poe Huntley take a camping trip in the mountains of Montana when they're kids. While their father is fast asleep in his tent, they go walk about trying to find a way to the "nearby" lake where they've been told they can see down to the depths of the planet because it's so clear. Claire is about to call it quits and drag her little brother Poe back to camp, when the ground shakes, an incredibly bright light blinds her, and the loud boom and sudden severity of the quaking ground toss both the kids around like tiny bean bags. She awakens in the hospital, her brother in another room. She can remember nothing of their ordeal. Nor can her brother. Her father's claims of ALIENS(!!) are met with disbelief and scorn as he had been drinking and was asleep when the calamity hit. No one else was witness to what happened. But what did really happen? Years and years later, Poe is coming to visit his sister for the first time since he got clean from drugs and alcohol. Claire is eager to welcome her little brother back, hopeful that this time it will all be okay and then... .another calamity. One that will change humanity.

After the opening chapters I was eager myself, to keep reading and find out the answers to what actually has happened! Decimate started at a good pace. Unfortunately for many people, it lost steam somewhere over the Rockies. The exposition of the Great Theory began. And kept going. Sadly, it wasn't until 60% of the book was done (according to my eReader) that the story launched back into action again. That is approximately 45% of a book to read where you're going to lose those who are not fully committed fans or reviewers determined to stick the landing so to speak. The last 40% of the book was action packed and moved at a nice clip, but it seemed, at that point, almost anticlimactic. Like I was just so glad the explanations were over that I would've welcomed a sudden sideways step into an old-fashioned Victorian tea party complete with ridiculous hats. The characters, apart from the kids' father and Claire herself, felt almost like sketches. Not fully fleshed out. There was some development, but not enough to keep me from thinking, "Who the heck do you think you are to do this, no matter what is going on?!" I think it might have worked better as a novella or essay contemplating death than an adventure/thriller type of novel about death and the hereafter.

Once I'd taken the time to parse my way through all the ideas of the book, I was glad I'd read it, and intrigued by the theory of the book. But I fear many won't take the time with it that it needs. It's not your typical horror, thriller or mystery at all.. Rice has put an awful lot of thought into his book. It deserves to have time taken with it. But I feel like it will not be given the time by any but his most ardent fans. I admit, I went into it as a first time reader of his work. And also as one who was looking for a fun ride. That is not what I got exactly. But in the end, it's a book worth reading. Just be ready for the explanations. I would love to say 'shorten them". But I am not sure that would be possible as what Rice describes is something that doesn't easily slide into the spaces created in our minds by early religious training (for many) or simply by cultural leanings. I'm glad I read the book. But I'm still not sure I liked it enough to buy it. I thought the ideas were good, but I'm not sure they work in a thriller type of tale (or a book being marketed as one).. Therefore, I'm forced to give it a 3 out of 5 rating. If, however, you do like Rice, and/or are willing to sit and think on what a book is talking about, and aren't in for just a quick thrilling read, by all means, get this book and read it! It is worth the reading and time taken on it. I do think it's not fully representative of the category of "thriller". I'd put it more in a literary fiction model myself, even though the thriller elements are present.

I do thank NetGalley and Thomas & Mercer for the Digital Review Copy of Decimate.

TDRC provided by Thomas & Mercer via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

The book was not for me. I just could not connect with the characters and the pacing was not my favourite.

In Decimate, Christopher Rice walks the path of the mysteries that lie beyond what we can only begin to understand about life and death. When twelve-year-old Claire Huntley and her ten-year-old Poe are camping out with their father at Glacier National Park, Poe decides to adventure through the forest, and Claire goes after him. While on their little expedition, they get swept off their feet by a sudden and strong pulse of energy and blinded by an extremely bright light. That’s the beginning of trouble for the Huntley family, who get torn apart when their dad starts insisting on talks of alien and preternatural experience.

As a consequence, Claire and Poe’s parents divorce and each child goes to live with one of them. And while Claire goes on to become a high-school History teacher addicted to psychotropics, Poe indulges himself in other drugs and an unruly lifestyle which almost gets him killed. Years after the events that tore them apart, Poe and Claire are about to get reunited when tragedy hits their family once again, and that’s when things start getting even weirder than before. What the Huntley family is about to discover isn’t something easily digested and may have even more disastrous consequences for them and the World as they know it.

Decimate was such an enthralling and gripping reading that each chapter kept me so hooked and nervous about what was to come next. Christopher Rice has an addictive writing which embraces the reader and just lets you go when everything is solved. Throughout the book, information is given just at the right amount needed to understand and propel you to the next page and next chapter.

Another extremely positive point in this book was the character's development. Not even a single character is shallow and all of them are so well-developed with such depth it just gives more appeal to this stunning story.

The tension is built with such mastery that, when we finally get to the conclusion, it’s almost hard to breathe due to all that’s about to happen.

A chilling novel depicting the intersection of life and death - maybe near-death experience, and what happened when an already horrible experiment goes even more wrong. This novel was thoroughly engrossing and sometimes violent. There was quite a bit of action and the story moved well. The author's imagination amazed me. I liked most of the characters and was drawn to their feelings during their experiences. You can read the blurb for the description of the story, so I won't go into that, but overall I enjoyed the book. I've read several of Christopher Rice's books and he has a great voice and I will continue to follow him. I first picked up one of his books because he was Anne Rice's son and I've always enjoyed her work, but I've found that Chrisopher's writings are varied and interesting in his own right.

Thanks to Thomas & Mercer through Netgalley for an advance copy. This book will be published on May 10, 2022.

That must be one of the strangest books I’ve read and, even though I don’t think I fully understood it all, I did actually enjoy it. I’m not even sure what box you’d put it in - maybe speculative fiction? It is a story about the intersection of life and death but it also a story about the power of love.

Twelve year old Claire Huntley and her ten year old brother, Poe, are camping out with their dad when Poe decides to go off and explore one night. Dad is passed out drunk so Claire chases after Poe to make sure he doesn’t get himself into trouble. But trouble does come. The two children are suddenly knocked off their feet by a tremendous pulse of energy and blinded by a bright light. They really don’t know what hit them but it seems to have somehow ‘connected’ them.

Fourteen years later after Poe has put his substance abuse issues behind him he is on a plane to meet up with his sister again when the plane goes down in the Colorado wilderness killing everyone on board. Why then does Claire seem to ‘see’ her brother in window panes and mirrors? Why does her arm move without her volition and draw images of things she’s never seen?

Claire’s father asks her to come to Montana to learn the truth about that night many years ago. What they learn is a closely guarded secret that has has the power to change the world.

Even though I can’t begin to describe what happens, it was riveting reading. The pulse is a source of enormous power, some of which has gotten into the hands of a deranged man bent in revenge. The guardians of this secret madly scramble to separate this man from the ‘bloom’, a physical manifestation of the power, before he wreaks havoc in seeking revenge on those who have wronged him. The story raced to a very exciting conclusion. Many thanks to Netgalley and Thomas & Mercer for the much appreciated arc which I reviewed voluntarily and honestly.

Claire and Poe were on a camping trip when an event changed their lives forever. Their family was torn apart and they were separated for years. Their father told everyone it was aliens. Their mother believes it was a bear. But no marks were left and the injury they did have was very strange. Now years later they are set to reunite and Poe has a lot he needs to tell his sister about what really happened. Unfortunately something mind blowing happens to him and changes their preconceptions forever. It's exciting, mind bending and emotional and I could not put it down!

Very much not for me, even as a massive Christopher Rice fan. I thought this was going to be about alien abduction or something, but it's much more strange and confusing and convoluted. Too many characters, too many subplots, too many perspectives... this just felt like it went on forever, meandering without much purpose or a clear ending. Because the whole idea is so ill-defined, the rules change and/or are never fully clear, so it just got more and more confusing as it went on. By the time the Nazis showed up, I was pretty checked out, and that was only about the halfway point.

I hope this is just a blip. The release of a new Christopher Rice book is always something I highly anticipate, and I remain hopeful for the next one.

Something big happened on a family camping trip that tears the family apart. Each parent takes a child and doesn't allow any contact with the other. After they are grown an unthinkable accident occurs. As the brother and sister work through trying to help each other they find out what happened as children. This is a mind bending book that will really make you think.

Let me preface this by the fact that I'm a huge Christopher Rice fan (and his mom's, of course). I was not expecting the dominant sci fit theme of this book however and struggled to get into it. I pushed through (and it was a lengthy 440 pages). Great characters but just didn't enjoy this one as I have his previous (yea, I know his mom wrote about vampires and witches and i soaked that up!)

Great suspense - excellent writing. I love that there's supernatural thrown in. One of the best thrillers I've read in a while. The characters were well developed and the book ended too soon. Great read.

Christopher Rice's newest novel is an action thriller with supernatural elements. DECIMATE centers on fraternal twins Claire and Poe, who had a strange encounter in the woods when they were children. That experiences impacts them on a fundamental level. As adults, they have been estranged but are nearing a reconciliation when Poe is in a fatal car crash. This leads Claire on a strange journey that unveils family secrets that the truth about what happened to her and Poe in the woods on that fatal night.

This is a fun thriller that will keep the pages turning. However, there is a lot to keep track of, and sometimes the action takes precedence over character. This is not necessarily a bad thing--this is a typical trope of the thriller genre. Overall,. Rice knows how to tell a good story., and I enjoyed reading this book.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for providing me with an ARC in exchange for my review.

Interesting but not really my cup of tea. Well written I just personally couldn’t get into the story. My fault for not truly knowing that’s the book would fully be about. Predictable and honestly it was a struggle to keep my interest. I received an advance review copy for free, and I am leaving this review voluntarily.

An incident in the woods when Claire and Poe are children starts off this excellent thriller. Loved the characters and found myself rooting for themPut this on your TBR list.
I received this book from the publishers via Netgalley for a review.

What a book! I just loved Decimate. It is one hell of a novel.

Claire and Poe are siblings who experienced some kind of bizarre event when they were camping with their Dad, an event that eventually led to the breakup of the family from divorce. Their Dad is convinced that they were the subjects of some kind of alien encounter, and he seemingly goes further off the deep end. As a result, Poe runs away from his Dad at age 15, falling into alcohol and drugs. Years later, he sobers up and wants to make amends with Claire, but his plane flight to meet his sister crashes in the Rockies. From that point, Decimate tears away at breakneck speed into a novel that’s a mix of sci-fi, and thriller, all thrown in with a mentally deranged villain, and questions about an afterlife. Absorbing, with well drawn characters.

While I loved reading Decimate, there were occasions where the writing felt a bit too pedestrian, but it was an overall great effort. Highly recommended.

Many thanks to Netgalley and Thomas & Mercer for providing an ARC in exchange for an honest review.