The Fearing
Photo of Becca Futrell

Becca Futrell &
The Fearing by John F D Taff

5 stars
Oct 5, 2021

Thank you to Grey Matter Press for sending me a copy in exchange for an honest review! All that fear, all that glorious, wonderful, unnecessary fear. My fear? That I’m not going to give The Fearing the amount of credit it deserves in this review. The Fearing: Fire and Rain is the first book in John F.D. Taff’s serial. & my introduction to the man, himself. As we speak, I’m placing two of his other books on my Goodreads TBR, because I need more of Taff’s work. & I need it ASAP. This entry in the serial clocks in at only 92-pages, and holy heck, does each page deliver. With this being only book one, it’s only touching the surface of what’s to come & I can not wait to see what else Taff puts his characters through during this apocalyptic tale. The Fearing: Fire & Rain alternates between three sets of characters: Adam Siegel, a man who seems to devour & live off of others’ fear & has some wild agenda. Kyle, Sarah & Carli, three high school students that just lost everything they’ve ever known. And, vacationers who have just returned from a road trip, only to witness a gigantic earthquake. At some point, we learn of the fears these characters have; this is definitely a huge focus in the book, but I can’t give too much away, because #spoilers. One of my favorite things is when stories use fear as a villain (i.e. It by Stephen King). We all are afraid of something, and one of the hardest things to face is our fear. When starting The Fearing, I instantly related to Adam Siegel. Granted, with the story’s progression & learning more about this character, I can’t say that I still relate to him. In the opening chapter, Taff describes Adam’s thoughts and anxiety so well. As someone with anxiety, I found myself nodding along with each of his many fears — no matter how irrational they seemed. Sure, Adam is a fictional character, but there’s nothing more validating than to hear another person has the same thoughts as you. There's really not much more I can say besides the fact that this is a phenomenal story & I am beyond excited for the rest of the serial's release. With everything that's already happened in only 92 pages, I can only imagine how more to the extreme this is going to get.

Edition
ISBN 9781950569007

Reviews

Photo of Becca Futrell
Becca Futrell@astoldbybex
5 stars
Oct 5, 2021

Thank you to Grey Matter Press for sending me a copy in exchange for an honest review! All that fear, all that glorious, wonderful, unnecessary fear. My fear? That I’m not going to give The Fearing the amount of credit it deserves in this review. The Fearing: Fire and Rain is the first book in John F.D. Taff’s serial. & my introduction to the man, himself. As we speak, I’m placing two of his other books on my Goodreads TBR, because I need more of Taff’s work. & I need it ASAP. This entry in the serial clocks in at only 92-pages, and holy heck, does each page deliver. With this being only book one, it’s only touching the surface of what’s to come & I can not wait to see what else Taff puts his characters through during this apocalyptic tale. The Fearing: Fire & Rain alternates between three sets of characters: Adam Siegel, a man who seems to devour & live off of others’ fear & has some wild agenda. Kyle, Sarah & Carli, three high school students that just lost everything they’ve ever known. And, vacationers who have just returned from a road trip, only to witness a gigantic earthquake. At some point, we learn of the fears these characters have; this is definitely a huge focus in the book, but I can’t give too much away, because #spoilers. One of my favorite things is when stories use fear as a villain (i.e. It by Stephen King). We all are afraid of something, and one of the hardest things to face is our fear. When starting The Fearing, I instantly related to Adam Siegel. Granted, with the story’s progression & learning more about this character, I can’t say that I still relate to him. In the opening chapter, Taff describes Adam’s thoughts and anxiety so well. As someone with anxiety, I found myself nodding along with each of his many fears — no matter how irrational they seemed. Sure, Adam is a fictional character, but there’s nothing more validating than to hear another person has the same thoughts as you. There's really not much more I can say besides the fact that this is a phenomenal story & I am beyond excited for the rest of the serial's release. With everything that's already happened in only 92 pages, I can only imagine how more to the extreme this is going to get.