Book Master

The Flies by Ju Ephraime is a tale of a frightening nature. Flies are annoying little bugs at the best of times. Not to mention that disgusting thing that they do with their food. But, can you imagine being possessed by one?

Jamie Bradshaw hears footsteps and banging from things that she cannot see. It has become so bad that she has resorted to living in the basement where the spirits don't visit. They're behaving themselves, to a degree, at the moment; so, are they really there or are they just in her imagination? No one else seem to see them.

So, it's now that the flies make their entrance. Up until that point, the rest of the scene is set; a lone, disabled woman whose fears are magnified each day that she lives as a recluse in her basement. The appearance of these infuriating insects are the beginning of the end for Ms Bradshaw; this is the point where I feel the story starts to become much stronger.

However, could the reader have been left to discover what the intention (possession: as told in the introduction) of the flies were? I think it would have made this story that much more chilling to read. Maybe less telling and more showing would have increased the chill factor, too. Saying that, overall, I quite liked Flies. The storyline is definitely more interesting than some of the usual horror that I have read. Also a majority of the story can be read, say, over a lunch break, leaving the conclusion left to be read at a later time. That is, if you can't wait that long!