Review: "The Ocean at the End of the Lane," by Neil Gaiman

I'm not sure how to aptly describe this short creepy tale! Neil Gaiman paints a beautiful word picture of a man returning to his childhood home (which has been demolished) and having flashbacks of the girl who lived next door, Lettie. When he was just seven, he and Lettie faced down a demon so dark that it used the boy's father to attempt to murder him, attaches itself to the boy's heart in an attempt to use him as a gateway, and nearly kills him in the process. But Lettie and her mother and grandmother are powerful in their own right. They know what to say and do when facing demons of this nature. So terrifying and realistic are these flashbacks that the boy, now a man, can't understand why he didn't remember until he set foot back on his childhood land. This book is an adult fairy tale worthy of a Grimm brother's approval.

Mrs. Denney's Rating: ***

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