Gifts Between Us by C.C. Adams

Gifts Between Us by C.C. Adams
Publisher: Self-Published
Genre: Sci-Fi/Fantasy, Contemporary
Rating: 5 Stars
Reviewed by Astilbe

Elderly Londoner Augustus has lived a long, miserable life. Having driven his few remaining loved ones away years ago, he now whiles away his time drinking rum and hoping for the end.

One night his death wish is nearly granted by a mugger, but a local youth called Michael intervenes. Much to the old man’s horror (and fascination) Michael promptly begins to devour the mugger’s body.

Slowly, Augustus and his mysterious saviour form an unlikely friendship, one built on sharing the gifts of trust, camaraderie, and acceptance.

And one last gift: a secret. It is the cause of Michael’s cannibalistic nature. And, perhaps, a reason for Augustus to go on living…

Second chances are nothing to sneeze at.

This was an excellent example of how to create deeply unlikeable but still compelling characters. Neither Michael nor Augustus were men I’d ever want to cross paths with, especially in a deserted alley after sunset, and yet I was fascinated by their terrifying secrets and how well they kept them hidden. Anyone who walked past them on the street would have no idea what lay behind their calm and unassuming personas which only made the later events in their lives even more frightening.

The horror in this novella was grisly and violent. It’s not something I’d recommend to the faint of heart, and yet every one of those scenes was critical in order to understand the final one. One must know exactly what these characters have been capable of in the past in order to be prepared for their futures. I thought the scenes that described how Michael had turned into the person Augustus knew were especially important given what they shared about his personality and character before the plot escalated.

Creativity is something I look for in every tale I review, and it revealed itself early here. The plot twists weren’t that common for this genre in my experience, but they worked beautifully with the established character development to create something I couldn’t possibly stop reading. I loved being surprised by where the storyline was headed next and will definitely keep an eye out for more of Mr. Adams’ work in the future.

Gifts Between Us was deliciously scary.