'So Cold the River' by Michael Koryta - Book Review

So Cold the River? Michael Koryta’s newest thriller didn’t give me much of a chill. So Cold the River starts out with a bit of mystery and supernatural intrigue, but it falls into standard fare that neither strokes a deathly finger up the reader’s spine nor makes one want to rush into the warm sunshine to break its cold spell. You’ll more than likely want to leave this limp tale behind when going to the beach.

Eric Shaw, former talented Hollywood cinematographer, now director and editor for memorial videos at funerals, has a talent for feeling why a shot or image has meaning. When asked by a woman to shoot a video history about her dying father-in-law, Campbell Bradford, and the town he came from, Eric accepts the job and heads to West Baden, Ind., with $5,000 in advance payment and a bottle of mineral water Bradford always kept with him. However, when Shaw gets curious and tastes the water, he begins to see strange things. It seems the town of West Baden has untold secrets that someone or something wants to let out.

In some ways, So Cold the River by Michael Koryta does provide a welcome thriller. So Cold the River doesn’t rely on vicious acts of gruesome violence to tell its story. It’s more of a classic gothic approach to storytelling without the current trend of vampirism to fuel its ghostly tale. Still, it’s not that compelling either. If you’re content with narrative loopholes, foreshadowing with no real payoff and scary storytelling that doesn’t make a whole lot of sense (ex. If Campbell Braford really wanted to hurt everyone who didn’t share his blood, then why is Eric the only one suffering? And why does Campbell Bradford have any supernatural power in the first place?), then take a sip and drink. I doubt it will make you crave more, but it may just give you a headache as you realize that you started a five hundred page book that will leave you wet with disappointment.

But maybe you shouldn’t take my word for it. Koryta does have a good deal of fans. Denis Lehane and Dan Simmons, both authors I highly respect, give him glowing reviews on the cover of So Cold the River. I’ve never read Koryta’s other works, but it seems he’s a young, award-winning author with a bright future. However, when he’s all said and done, I don’t think So Cold the River will be much of a splash when it comes to describing Koryta’s best or most successful works.