Jacob Rayne ‘Becoming’ Review

Written by: Wesley Thomas

A mind-numbingly terrifying read. You’ll experience fear like no other as you delve dangerously deep into the mind of a psychopath. A new level of terror pops out of these pages with terrifyingly vivid descriptions. Fancy yourself an adrenaline junkie and true horror buff? Read at night. Trust me when I say you’ll experience fear in the first degree, undiluted and pure. This book makes ‘Nightmare On Elm Street’ look like a children’s movie. Jacob’s work backs up the belief that books are scarier than movies. This is because our brain projects the most hideous images that crawl into our sub-conscious and plague our psyche. ‘Becoming’ certainly achieves this!

Sick and twisted doesn’t even begin to cover the disturbing madness that is pretty much constant. Although you will feel tingles and chills, you’ll not be able to put it down. You’ll gasp through the sheer terror but need to know how the characters go on, do they survive? This novel seduces the inner-psychotic tendencies that lay within all of us. That old lady in the queue you want to push over, that spoilt brat you want to slap. However, it is not just a senseless bloodbath, there is clear method and agenda in the butchery. Realistic motives, and believable reasons for such anarchy, unnervingly so.

Luke, a young boy, suffers ultimate fear as a child, which he just barely survives. He works hard to distract himself from thinking about the nightmares that cling to every corner of his mind, dark shadows plaguing sanity and peace. Some people are lucky and can experience trauma, but after a few years can leave it behind and get on with their lives. Luke is not one of those people. His past soon comes back to haunt him in more ways than one, and he realises the only way to truly move on with his life, is to battle his worst nightmare. But can Luke rise to the challenge? Or will his crippling fear consume him?

Massacre seems tame when explaining the slaughter inflicted on unsuspecting victims. There is something so unbelievably abhorring about a man who just snaps. Add that with the fact he disguises himself as a clown and you won’t sleep for weeks! Bloody, brilliant and bold writing which at one point makes you side with the killer. Each word is dripping with passion, Jacob writes with enthusiasm and skill. British horror fiction at its best. Urban and murderous. It flows brilliantly, with no slow or dull moments. A consistent narrative that keeps the story moving as murder and chaos hack through the plot. I feel this is a revolutionary style of writing. A fast pace unlike any other fiction, with short and powerful chapters to boot! Jacob is the pioneer of a new literacy within horror.

A special mention must go to the cover. Gory, graphic, and the greater significance becomes apparent at a certain point in the book. You’ll be tossing horror movies to the wind and instead settling in with a copy of ‘Becoming’.

All in all, an intense, blood-soaked book with chilling terror, uncomfortable suspense, captivating characters, a compelling plot, remarkable writing, and jaw-dropping surprises. These are just a few of the ingredients that make up this one of a kind read.

And just wait until the ending. A spectacular twist you won’t see coming!

Order it here.

Rating: 5/5