M. A. Csortos Book Reviews

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Pallbearer Bridge

Pallbearer Bridge is a tense and involving suspense thriller with well-developed characters, expert pacing, and a gripping plot focused on the fates of Dale Grubbin High School alumni. Csortos has a penchant for building tension, mystery, and dread in a dark and brooding narrative.
Csortos's bold use of language creates a morbid, absorbing, and evocative atmosphere throughout Pallbearer Bridge. He makes brilliant use of description, creating an eerie and compelling backdrop for the story to unfold.
Pallbearer Bridge contains undoubted shades of classic horror, while providing its own distinctive blend of supernatural elements and character-driven storytelling.
Pallbearer Bridge benefits from excellently crafted characters and confidently written and believable dialogue. Csortos's involving writing style gives the reader a real sense of character motivation and the many strands of the story are weaved together expertly.
The BookLife Prize

Pallbearer Bridge

 This is a genuinely entertaining book filled with mystery, intrigue and subtle humor. Since the story is based on a high school reunion with the Grim Reaper hunting and killing the graduates one by one, it makes the reader glad not to be in the class of 1998! The author has a way of making his characters (victims) very likeable and their demise is painful to the reader. I truly enjoyed this book and will reading other books by this author soon. 

The Thirteenth Book

Csortos's plotting never skips a beat, offering readers a riveting storyline. The concept of being "haunted" through writing is absorbing, and Martie proves a forceful voice in this engrossing novel. The prose is clear and concise, and Martie's powerful first-person perspective not only delivers suspense, but also subtly lays the groundwork for the story's later events.
BookLife Prize

The Thirteenth Book

 This book grabbed me from the onset, reminding me a little of a Dean Koontz novel. I could picture Martie in that ICU watching her father’s decline. The author is extremely gifted in his command of the English language and analogies although the latter, IMHO, could be overused at times in the second half. The author’s story line is quite clever and clearly not for the squeamish. It would be a terrific contribution to the Twilight Zone or Black Mirror. 

The Thirteenth Book

 Once I started reading this novel, I could not put it down. ..."The story belongs to her"... these words appear on the front cover of the book, and we learn why and the significance in the very last chapter of the book. This is a powerful cliffhanger and a suspenseful ride right up to the very end. The author begins each chapter with a lead-in sentence that grabs your attention and keeps you wanting to read another and then another. I think the author brilliantly delivered a unique story line with amazing imagination while intertwining real life drama, evil, twisted thinking, and deceptions. A must read you will not soon forget. 

Fingers

 Author M. A. Csortos keeps pumping out novels that dive deep into imagining a world bizarre and frightening, and all of his books are for sure unforgettable. This latest book, Fingers, takes you on a journey with many twists and turns, not knowing for sure what to expect next. So many secrets. One of my favorites. Keep Writing! 

Fingers

 A gripping book about a handicapped schoolgirl who has a mysterious background and strange abilities. Having no hands, only arms, she mysteriously starts growing fingers which leads to sinister consequences. The author intertwines the story with wit and flashbacks along with the age-old battle of right versus wrong. This book is highly recommended.

Fingers 

Fingers is a dark work of psychological horror centered on a pre-teen girl, Wren. Born of trauma–her mother died in childbirth–and with a rare birth defect causing her to have no hands, she inexplicably grows appendages that appear to have their own consciousness, desires, and impulses. Despite the deliciously disturbing concept, the narrative sometimes lacks forward momentum.

Csortos strikes a sinister and emotionless–yet childlike–tone that infuses the story with a particular level of creepiness and unease.

Fingers draws motifs from classic works of body horror and examines dichotomies of good vs. evil, while maintaining a fresh storyline and a highly unusual central character with a very peculiar affliction. 

Sparrow and Robin–the fingers that sprout from Wren's body–are decidedly unique characters in themselves, and their actions (whether in tandem with Wren or on their own volition), are frightening. The work's larger themes about coming-of-age, morality, and free-will are fascinating. 

Face in the Snow

Csortos's intriguing mystery begins as a strange family history passed down from grandmother to granddaughter but soon descends into a nightmarish reality full of startling revelations for protagonist Jukie. A conversation between an ailing grandmother and granddaughter reveals some mysterious circumstances about Jukie's uncle Joey. A Face in the Snow catapults readers into a world of unusual and unsettling discoveries instigated by pure, old-fashioned storytelling. Central protagonist Jukie is a captivating character, and the relationships she strikes up with those she encounters hold the book together well. Csortos's supernatural thriller is a riveting journey between worlds that will leave readers craving more. 

The Water Tower

 Csortos offers an expansive exploration into a future world in which entertainment is relied upon by people suffering in empty water towers. The novel’s dystopian setting provides a new outlook on humanity and the nature of government control. Csortos effectively contributes novel elements to the sci-fi genre while also expanding on classic tropes. The novel introduces and follows the perspectives of a variety of characters throughout the storyline, which is generally executed with care and finesse. Csortos’s prose depicts often gruesome imagery that is exciting to read, well-conveyed, and enhances worldbuilding. The language also effectively reflects each character's personality and unique mindset. 

The Well

The plot for "The Well" is linear and focuses on a single protagonist, a police officer investigating strange occurrences in a small town who discovers his own past is entangled in the paranormal happenings. The ending lands nicely.

The writing evokes the setting and mood well, with some suitably odd descriptions that lend to the character’s grappling with his own sanity. Dialogue can feel a little flat but does not detract from the experience.

The supernatural elements of the book are unique and often unsettling. The premise is creative and approaches small-town horror from an unconventional angle.

And the unveiling of Travis’s own history works well as a plot device.

Devil Flower

 An alluring coming-of-age supernatural mystery about one girl’s quest to solve the mystery at the heart of her family, her school, and her town.
In a fresh and insightful story, fifteen-year-old Carly Cummings must confront a supernatural force that threatens to consume her entire community in yellow mist. Her mother has already succumbed, and now Carly, with the help of a boy from school, must uncover the source of the terrible vapor as well as her own sense of belonging.
Direct, first-person narration keeps readers oriented within the unfolding mystery Carly must solve and her efforts to preserve her sense of self over and against the pressure to conform.
Readers will appreciate the fresh take on finding one's way through the high school years, when everything can feel unstable and uncertain, as if it might vanish in a yellow mist. The setting enacts the challenges of clarifying one's place in the world.

Devil Flower

 From start to finish the author skillfully keeps your attention. The author's descriptive writing draws you in and then carries you deep into all of the emotions of the characters. The embarrassment, the fear the very unknown makes this a good read. 

Devil Flower

 Reader beware if you pick this book up you will not want to put if down! The characters are so vividly written that you quickly become immersed in their changing world. This book absolutely leaves you wanting to see what next adventure the author has in-store for us. 

Devil Flower

 This book grabs your attention right from the beginning , and all the way through this very imaginative story. A must read book. M. A Csortos has really out did himself with this latest book. Highly recommend!