BOOK REVIEW: TERRITORY BY DAN HOWARTH

9/6/2022

Territory by Dan Howarth

ASIN ‏ : ‎ B0B14JLJTB
Publisher ‏ : ‎ Independently published (12 May 2022)
Language ‏ : ‎ English
Paperback ‏ : ‎ 127 pages
ISBN-13 ‏ : ‎ 979-8825226576

Review by David Watkins

Howarth packs a lot into these hundred or so pages. Each character is well drawn, with clear motivations and feelings. Their reactions to the escalating plot feel real and earned – no mean feat given there are a lot to keep track of.

Howarth’s latest novella is an absolute doozy. An atmospheric slow burn, full of incidental detail where you can almost feel the cold and smell the desperation of his characters.

Jari is a stoic hunter, still living in the tiny hunting village he grew up in. He is mourning the loss of his wife and hunting dog (although Howarth never makes it clear exactly which one he misses the most!) and is disappearing into drink. His former best friend, Asko, returned to the village around a year ago, with his gorgeous new wife.

A pack of wolves is hunting the livestock in the area, and this inciting incident puts the two friends at loggerheads. Jari wants to exterminate the wolves whilst Asko wants to leave them alone. It’s easy to draw COVID parallels here, with Asko playing the part of the COVID deniers of the last couple of years. He thinks the wolves will move on and there is no inherent danger to their presence. This conflict between the two men is the heart of the novella as they each try to sway the villages to their point of view.

Howarth packs a lot into these hundred or so pages. Each character is well drawn, with clear motivations and feelings. Their reactions to the escalating plot feel real and earned – no mean feat given there are a lot to keep track of. Howarth also packs in some great scenes, which have you on the edge of your seat – a particular stand out has two boys running for their school bus.

This is an easy book to recommend. It is superb, from its attention to detail through to the aforementioned scenes of horror. I liked Howarth’s earlier stuff too – his collection ‘Dark Missives’ is also worth your time, but this is a step up from anything in that.

Highly, highly recommended.

Territory
by Dan Howarth

In a remote Finnish hunting community, darkness and the cold hold the villagers close. As a pack of wolves threaten the village’s future, grief-stricken hunter Jari must unite the population to reclaim their territory.

Haunted by the loss of his wife and his best hunting dog, hunter Jari tries to flow the stem of alcohol and grief that threatens to destroy his life. As the darkness and isolation of winter settles around his small hunting community in remote Finland, it brings with it another threat. The encroachment and growing boldness of a pack of wolves endangers the villagers’ way of life. The presence of the wolves opens old feuds and cracks within the community’s makeup. As Jari tries to lead the villagers through their toughest season, it soon becomes clear that not everyone will survive the winter...

David Watkins lives in Devon in the UK with his wife, two sons, dog, cat and two turtles. He is unsure of his place in the pecking order: probably somewhere between the cat and the turtles.

He has currently released three novels: The Original's Return, The Original's Retribution and The Devil's Inn. Each book is well rated and reviewed on Amazon and beyond.

His most recent release is Rhitta Gawr, part of the Short Sharp Shocks series.
Coming this summer... The Exeter Incident from D&T Publishing.

Read more here: author.to/DavidWatkins