Micah Hall's Reviews > Worse Angels

Worse Angels by Laird Barron
Rate this book
Clear rating

by
62216141
's review

really liked it
bookshelves: all-time-favorites, 2021

4.25/5

I am almost completely finished with Laird Barron's entire catalog (only lacking a handful of short stories and 2 novellas). He's cemented himself as one of my favorite authors, originally starting as a weird horror writer but has show to be very versatile, mastering genres such as crime fiction, sci-fi, and fantasy as well. It's like he's just a damn good writer or something....

His latest novel, the third in his Isaiah Coleridge series, further dips a crime fiction foot into the proverbial horror pool. This makes for an ideal combination in my mind as the two genres lend a lot to each type. In this one, we're talking particle colliders, alternate earths, cults, and Lovecraftian nods. There are also tons of callbacks to his Old Leech mythos, firmly planting Coleridge into that universe...long time readers will definitely be rewarded.

As always, Barron has poetic prose reinforced with burnt chrome. I love how liquid his prose is; it's not flowery but remains beautiful and succinct. Not to mention, his wrtiting is tailor-made for me with callbacks to old myths (Hercules, Odysseus, Thor), pulp action heroes, action films, and comic books. At the end of the day, Coleridge is a send up to these characters, synthesizing them into one "ultimate" adventurer.

Coleridge is a standout but the side characters are no slouches either. I particularly have a lot of love for Coleridge's partner in crime, Lionel. He's the perfect friend for Coleridge, providing humor and heart along with being very capable.

I think there are more books planned in this series and they will be day one buys. I can't wait for more in this world and I hope the genre crossover of crime and horror continues.
4 likes · flag

Sign into Goodreads to see if any of your friends have read Worse Angels.
Sign In »

Reading Progress

January 1, 2021 – Shelved as: to-read
January 1, 2021 – Shelved
February 17, 2021 – Started Reading
February 21, 2021 – Finished Reading
May 16, 2021 – Shelved as: all-time-favorites
September 8, 2024 – Shelved as: 2021

No comments have been added yet.