Author: Wally Runnels
Genre: Whimsical Horror
Year Published: 2022
Nerdection Rating:
“Nerdection Worth to Read”
Bone People written by Wally Runnels is a whimsical horror Novella that was published in 2022. This is an amazing book with quirky characters, hooking dialogues, and a killer plot. This is one of the few horror books you will surely like.
Spoiler-Free Plot:
When evil people die they go straight to hell. No surprises here. Except that the devil asks the evilest of them if they want to live on Earth again. If a person says yes, the devil does so, but there’s one catch. He sends them back as skeletons, and not humans, hence called the Bone people. However, if they want to be made human again, they have to give the devil a million tons of something vile. And some of the Bone people may just be up to completing this task.
Now a humvee full of illicit drugs has gone missing. Rocky and Hector are two friends who want to retrieve it. They do not believe in the existence of the bone people. Not until they are attacked by one of their clusters during the mission.
Lucille, a Bone female along with other Bone people capture Hector. They offer Rocky a deal: Bring a person named Arango to them and take Hector back, or Hector will suffer the same fate as them before they were made skeletons. That is, death.
Will Rocky be able to find that person? What surprises are waiting for Rocky? Read the book to find out more.
My Take On Bone People:
The Bone People is a horror book with a whimsical plot. For starters, this is as amazing a genre as any, where you will find capricious characters, a surreal plot and of course, an element of horror. Runnel’s ‘The Bone People’, fits nicely in the genre.
The book was a little slow to begin, nevertheless as the plot unfurled, I began to connect with Rocky and Hector and laugh at the many absurdities of their actions.
Moreover, I really liked how the characters’ dialogues weren’t philosophical or bland at all. The writing seemed original and became sarcastic at some points, and that’s what made the story fresh for me.
“Our trucks are sinister and fell.”
“What the hell is that?” Rocky crouched trying to get under the sound. “We learned to drive in Hell.” The chorale continued. “We know we’re cadaverous, so don’t try to flatter us.”
Rocky and Hector both were great characters. Though tough and rough from the outside, yet their friendship was so sweet. I loved how they were available for each other ignoring personal threats.
The book was filled with lots of action. All the action was fast-paced and made me read the story in one setting. However I found the book less horrifying than I expected. But if you’re afraid of skeletons, it may not be that way for you.
The author’s simple way of telling the story sparked a new life in this book. The bone people also lacked unnecessary details or fluff scenes. This made this book more interesting and likable for me to read.
All the series of events that led to the conclusion of this book were unexpected. But the ending was… unexpected. It left me pondering over the story even after I finished this book.
Overall, I loved reading this book. It was easy to read, imaginative, interesting, suspenseful, and filled with tons of action.
Age Appropriation:
16+
Content Warning:
Explicit Language.
About The Author Of Bone People
Wally Runnels was born in San Diego, raised along the border at his family’s ranch (whose original deed was recorded in 1870), and has traveled extensively through Mexico and Latin America. Hanging out on the border between two countries, he’s met a lot of unusual people: Hollywood types, Border Patrol Officers, smugglers, professional trackers, and people he won’t mention by name.
