 "Move over Masterton; there is a new master of techno horror; the Exeter Incident is a glorious over the top thrill ride of unrelenting horror." I have a confession to make; I don't even know where Exeter is, and after reading David Watkin's techno-thriller-horror, rollercoaster of a novel, I have no wish to step foot in the place, for it is a cursed (you need to pronounce that as cur-said for full effect) place, a place of death, doom and destruction, a place that will after reading this novel leave you with a feat of balls. While I have read most of David's work, this is the first full-length review I have written for one of his books; the last review was for his story in Leaders of The Pack, a werewolf-themed anthology, which turned out to be one of my favourite stories in the anthology. As for David's novels, I have always had a fun time with them, but more importantly, I have seen the progression and development of David as a writer; yes, The Original's Return was an entertaining werewolf novel. Still, it did have some of those first novel issues that often stop a debut novel from being brilliant rather than very good. It sounds as though I am being negative about it, which is far from the truth; there was more than enough great writing and great ideas to put David on one of my lists, not that list, although I can't remember his stance on coffee creams. Dave, do I have to put you on that list as well? This brings us to his fourth novel, The Exeter Incident, a balls to the wall, pedal to the metal, all guns blazing, horror, techno, police procedural thriller that hits the ground running from page one and refuses to give up until the final page is turned over. Your eyes and brain are smoking from the relentless narrative drive of Watkin's writing. The Exeter Incident starts with a pair of detectives investigating some gruesome murders, but they quickly realise that these murders are far from the ordinary, and soon they, along with the rest of Exeter fighting for their lives against an ancient enemy that won't stop killing until vengeance has been found. As Exeter finds itself cut off from the rest of the world, it is up to our rag-tag bunch of heroes and antiheroes to save the day and battle a ferocious enemy that is relentless in the desire to kill. Since reading The Exeter Incident, I have been wracking my brain trying to think of a novel that comes close to the manic intensity on show here, and I can't think of one. Watkins has a perfect grasp on how to create a narrative that forces the reader to keep on reading, from exciting, cinematic set pieces that remind me of the classic science fiction novel The Legacy Of Heriot, especially when all hell breaks loose, to the resourceful use of some familiar horror and sci-fi tropes, to the spartan but compelling characters and character development, all of which work together in perfect unison to create a story that delivers on all fronts. I particularly loved the villains of this story, Watkins could simply have gone down the road of creating a one-dimensional set of creatures whose only desire is to kill, but Watkins instils them with a rich and interesting backstory and a wry interpersonal relationship. Obviously, the confines of this story prevent it from reaching the epic levels of something such as Game of Thrones; nevertheless, the motivations and characterisations of these creatures are totally satisfying. I would love to read more stories about their history, where they came from, and how this family fits into the culture of their world. The interplay between "the family" is a nice touch, with infighting, distrust, and discontentment with the status quo; it adds a gratifying layer to the narrative. As for the story's heroes, Watkins has ensured that the characters' cast is varied and realistic; one highlight was the relationship between Paul, a criminal on the run desperate to make a new life for himself and the police inspector John Carter. Yes, it veers into a buddy movie territory at times, but Watkins steers their relationship away from the hard shoulder of cliche and keeps it on the straight and narrow. In terms of character development, there isn't a great deal on show here, but this isn't the type of novel where you want the action to be bogged down by excessive navel-gazing and long conversations; suffice to Watkins has given all of the significant players enough dimension and substance that you will care about what happens to them, just be prepared for some cheering and a lot of cries of "NOOOOOO!!!!" Be warned; there is a LOT of blood and guts on display here; the creatures are pure killing machines, from spiked ball tails to skin dissolving toxins and a gloriously crazy method of transportation that isn't so much balls to the wall but walls right through the walls and anything that happens to be in the way. The Exeter Incident is brimming with creative ways for the supporting cast to die, and boy, do they die in droves. Back in the late 80s and early 90s, Graham Masterton, before he went off the rails and became a bit gammony, was the go-to writer for this sort of mish-mash of horror genres; but its time to move over Masterton; there is a new master of techno horror; The Exeter Incident is a glorious over the top thrill ride of unrelenting horror, that thankfully has a fantastic modern sensibility, that manages to be horrific without being atrociously offensive. The Exeter Incident by David Watkins A CITY IN THE GRIP OF TERROR As a series of gruesome murders are discovered in Exeter, Detective Inspectors Danni Brent and John Carter begin to suspect the killer may not be human. Their investigation is only a few hours old when they also realise the murderer can’t be acting alone. There’s more than one. A lot more. Paul Kingston is on the run and hiding in Exeter. Whilst trying to secure a new identity, he comes face to face with an impossible monster. Hunted, alone and afraid, who can he turn to? Who can he trust? None of them know that Exeter is about to experience its darkest day. None of them know time is running out. The clock is already ticking…. WHO WILL SURVIVE AS THE CITY FALLS? Available 6/24 on Godless and 7/8 on Amazon! Cover art by Don Noble  the heart and soul of horror fiction reviewsComments are closed.
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