Title: Oasis of the Damned
Author: Greg F. Gifune
Genre: Dark Fiction, Horror
Age Group: Adult (18+)
Rating: 3,5 stars
Purchase: Amazon
Review copy provided by the publisher in exchange for an honest review.
When her helicopter crashes in the middle of the Sahara, Heather Richter, a former Army Captain and veteran of the Iraq War, finds herself at an abandoned WWII military outpost in one of the harshest and deadliest deserts on Earth. But she soon realizes there is another victim of the desert in this empty expanse of endless sand. Owens, a victim of an earlier plane crash, is there as well. An enigmatic and brooding man, he knows the secrets of the outpost, that it was actually built on top of an oasis and a natural well, the only thing that’s kept him alive. But he also knows the darker secrets of this strange and forgotten patch of desert hell.
He and Richter are not alone. And the cruel terrain and relentless sun are the least of their worries, because inhuman things haunt the outpost, hideous and violent things that only come at night. Ancient, evil creatures hungry for human flesh, and no matter how many Richter and Owens kill, they just keep coming.
With little hope of rescue, and tortured by her horrific experiences in Iraq years before, as well as the untimely and tragic death of her younger brother, Richter struggles to maintain her sanity amidst the brutal attacks that occur each time night falls, all the while trying to figure out if Owens is truly what he claims, or something more.
Is anything as it seems, or is there something more profound happening, a shocking wound bleeding deeper than the ancient sands, the dark desert nights and the blistering sun?
Two lost souls…a forgotten outpost in a haunted desert…vicious creatures bent on destruction…
The brutal fight for survival has begun.
In Oasis of the Damned, Heather Richter’s helicopter crashes in the middle of the Sahara. Owens, the victim of an earlier plane crash, is the only human around in miles. But Owens knows things about the outpost they crashed at, and none of it is good. Despite Richter being a tough cookie – she’s a war vet and former Army Captain – what she finds in the middle of the desert may be too tough to beat, even for her. At night, inhuman, ancient creatures hungry for human flesh, appear and wreak havoc, and every night, they come closer and closer to destroying them. The creatures already killed all of Owens’ companions, and they might be next..
The creatures aren’t particularly horrifying. I mean, they’d terrify me if I were out in the desert, sure, but the creep effect never really translates while you’re reading. The most interesting parts were the ones that focused on Richter’s based. These parts make her seem human, real, more than an unlucky person who got stranded in the dessert.
The ending has a nice twist, and overall, the story is a satisfying read. As usual, the writing is superb and the prose is one of the highlights of the book.
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