Bob, Paul, Dave, Jeff, Ken, and Marc have been best friends
since 6th grade -- known as the dirty half dozen. We first
meet them the end of their senior year of high school when
the boys are in the midst of a crazy prank that has far
reaching ramifications. Together, the six boys face down
an evil that has stalked the children of their New England
town for over 200 years.
Thirty years later Bob calls the dirty half dozen home --
asking the guys to come for a reunion over Labor Day
weekend.
When everyone arrives from around the country, they find
Bob
passed away earlier in the week, but he has left them with
several clues regarding a possible recurrence of the
situation they faced their senior year. The rest of the
group has their own issues to face in addition to following
the trail Bob has left for them. Is the evil back? What
sacrifices will the dirty half dozen make to keep the
children of Sagebrook safe?
SACRIFICE is a straight-up thrill ride. Fast-paced writing
with unexpected twists left me on the edge of my seat
through-out much of the book. I actually found myself
comparing Russell James style to Stephen King in several
places -- which is high praise coming from me. With the
boys, he has created a core group of protagonists that we
can't help but cheer for, the quintessential underdogs. I
initially found the writing style of slipping from past to
present and back again a bit distracting, but it quickly
grew on me and by the end of the book, I couldn't imagine
the story being told any other way.
Thirty years ago, six high school friends banded together to
confront the Woodsman, a murderous specter whose prey was
children. None of the friends will ever forget the horror of
those weeks…or blood chilling image of the Woodsman.
Now the six have returned to town for a long overdue
reunion. Except the Woodsman hasn’t finished with them yet.
As a new nightmare unfolds, ripping open old scars and
inflicting fresh terror, what will each of them have to
sacrifice this time to keep the children safe and the
Woodsman at bay?