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Shades of Green by Ian Woodhead has been described as "a psychologically maddening, convoluted and at times thoroughly disgusting read." I have to agree with that.It is like a British episode of the Outer Limits and a little like Dr. Seuss (I'm thinking of Bartholomew and the Oobleck here). I want to stress the British part because some of the local idiom was hard to follow for me, a poor American.
The story is full of monsters and some of my worst nightmares, like being covered in green growing things to the point you are a plant. Ick. That's the horror part. If you like that kind of thing, go order a copy of the book now. If not, keep reading.
The main characters are well written and you definitely get a sense of them and into their minds but the story does not resolve all plot threads (leaving room for a sequel, perhaps) and the end is anti-climatic. A sort of POOF! everything is all better now.
But the premise is odd too. Without giving everything away let me just say it involves a blood-eating alien machine that re-sequences DNA. Now I love science-fiction and fantasy (I even write the latter) but that's a bit much for me particularly since if you are going to go that far, why not have the machine a personality and make it a character I can get to know?
So overall, Shades of Green is enjoyable and entertaining but at the same time odd and convoluted. Horror fans should love it. Others, maybe not so much.
Shades of Green
by Ian Woodhead
available on Smashwords and Amazon
http://www.smashwords.com/books/view/31260
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