Isolation

Most novels are written for the purpose of providing entertainment for the reader. That's fine, of course, we like to be entertained. We want to escape into the universe the author has created for us, to remove our cognitive self from its daily toil with life and allow our imagination to be immersed in the story. Some novels also contain solid themes or good morals, but the endgame is still about entertaining. Every once in a while a novel comes along that has both a riveting story and also a powerful message to share. I am thankful to state ISOLATION is such a novel. "A family on the edge... A house with too many secrets... A relentless killer..." The Miller family is taking time off after being missionaries to a small village in New Guinea. The village is struggling against an intense demonic presence and incidents that occurred before the Millers left are presented to us as the narrative unfolds. The Millers move into an enormous, 40,000 square-foot lodge in the beautiful mountains of North Carolina, a dream home provided for missionaries on furlough. Their excitement soon begins to ebb as baleful discoveries are made, and a foreboding, dark presence bears down on them. The Millers are thrown into a warzone involving the mind and spirit. This spiritual warfare challenges the existence of the core of their faith as they struggle to deal with what is real, what is imagined, and what they should and shouldn't believe in. It is also a wonderful depiction of human nature, even missionaries struggle with faith. I respect Thrasher for not attempting to answer our questions about faith. Faith by its very definition means to believe in something we cannot understand. Why isn't God listening to me? Why isn't He dealing in my time zone instead of some infinite, ethereal semblance of time? There are no sermons on the existence of God. Nor does Thrasher try to answer the age-old question of why God allows bad things to happen to good people. The characters are well-developed and I quickly discovered I empathized with each one of them and their specific fears. I liked the way Thrasher bounced in and out of narration and character thought, at times even narrating in third person and interjecting a thought from the character's perspective in midsentence. The dialog was easy and flowed well. The creepy house is a character in itself, creating a perfect setting for the novel. Elements of the story may seem familiar to readers of Stephen King's THE SHINING. Thrasher even jabs at the resemblance by referencing THE SHINING in the story. But ISOLATION is a much deeper and even more frightening story. If you've based your whole life on believing in God, then come face to face with demons whose powers claim victory on your lack of faith--that's scary. The horror elements in the novel are not solely faith-based fears. There is murder, gore, evidence of ritualistic sacrifice and torture... None of which is excessive, but Thrasher does a commendable job

Thrasher's Isolation keeps you guessing and disecting until the very end! You will question sanity, weigh reality, and crave more! This is the first book of Thrasher's I have read and when a book gives me goosebumbs I will keep going back and begging for more! My future is written(no pun intended)! I am going back to the library to check out all of Thrasher's books! He is my new favorite Writer!

With Isolation multi-genre author Travis Thrasher turns his pen to horror, having written romance, drama and suspense novels in the past. While he acknowledges Stephen King as one of his literary heroes (many have drawn comparisons between Isolation and The Shining), Thrasher's work is unique in its seamless weaving together of faith and fear, resulting in Christian horror - though I wasn't sure how such a combination could possibly work. Isolation has shown me that a scary story can be made even more so through the incorporation of powerful spiritual truths. Having left the horror genre relatively untouched throughout my reading career I cannot speak to any similarities between King's work and Thrasher's. I can say that Isolation terrified me; I simply cannot remember a time when any other book I've read has left my heart pounding so hard in my chest. The true beauty of this novel is that the scares don't rely upon graphically depicted gore or violence but upon inferred events, shadows of meaning, and the horrific possibility that the scenario is entirely possible. I must applaud Thrasher for his ability to maintain the standards commonly associated with Christian fiction - clean language and avoidance of scenes of graphic violence or sexual acts - while still producing one scary ride. Isolation develops a surprising degree of depth throughout the course of the novel, proving itself to be far more than a cheap thrill. Though Thrasher doesn't consider himself a Christian novelist, Isolation's plot is faith driven from start to finish. Jim and Stephanie's struggles with their faith are authentic. Stephanie in particular is a vivid portrait of a wounded woman - flawed, floundering, and realistic, I deeply empathized with her. In addition to pairing these imperfect individuals with spiritual truths, Thrasher drives the fear home through the faith elements, contributing to the novel rather than detracting from it, or seeming tacked on. While there is light and hope to be found and an eventual end to the interminable isolation, there is a long dark night of the soul that must be passed through while the forces of light and darkness battle against each other. I was advised not to read Isolation at night. Disregarding that excellent wisdom I found myself trembling in the dark as I paged through this novel as quickly as eyes, mind, and fingers can fly. The spiritual message will attract readers from outside of the thriller genre with the potential to speak wisdom into their lives, and through some mysterious synchronicity the fear will dig it in deeper. With Ghostwriter releasing in 2009 it seems that Thrasher won't be leaving the domain of darkness anytime soon in his writing, a scary development indeed.

The Miller family has just returned to the states after a stressful ordeal on the mission field of Papua New Guinea. Jim and Stephanie have begun to feel distant in their faith and marriage and are concerned about the effects on their children, Zachary and Ashley. Feeling the urge to get away from it all, Jim moves the family to an abandoned lodge in the remote wilderness of North Carolina. As the family settles in to their new home, strange things begin to occur. Despite a welcome visit from her brother, Stephanie finds herself continually plagued by disturbing visions that leave her doubting her own sanity. Zachary soon stumbles upon a series of hidden passageways that lead him to even more startling secrets. As Jim investigates the history of the lodge, he begins to uncover mysterious and shocking revelations about the previous owner. Suddenly a severe storm sets in trapping the family and cutting them off from the outside world. A dark evil now sets in and threatens to strip away any remaining hope and faith the Miller's are clinging to. A Travis Thrasher novel is always a surprise to me, because you never really know what kind of story you're going to get. In his previous novels he has tried his hand at suspense, romance, drama, and even adventure and I'm always amazed at his storytelling ability. When I heard he was taking a stab (pun intended) at the horror genre I could not wait to see the result. Once again, Travis Thrasher has exceeded my expectations and found a way to awe me. Isolation is everything I wanted it to be: frightening, suspenseful, mysterious, and ultimately inspiring. While this story portrays strong spiritual truth throughout, Thrasher never holds back with the terror and fear that plagues the Miller family. Indeed, many of the more memorable scenes are exceedingly creepy and disturbing, making the overall message of hope and light that much more powerful. I don't know if Travis Thrasher intends to settle on one particular genre, but I think he has found his niche with Isolation. Not only will this book scare you (and I mean scare you), but it will also challenge your faith and remind you of the all encompassing power of the love of our Savior. This guy only gets better with each new offering and this latest tale might just be his best yet.

Isolation by Travis Thrasher is a haunting, frightening book about the malevolence of Satan, and at the same time a striking, life-affirming view of the power of God. James and Stephanie Miller are missionaries recently returned from the field of Papua New Guinea with their children 8-year-old Zachary and 4-year-old Hannah. Their faith has been deeply shaken by failures there, and they are looking for a way to reconnect with each other and God when the opportunity arises to spend time in a remote mansion in the mountains of North Carolina. But Stephanie is seeing visions of blood pouring down the walls, James doesn't believe her, and Zachary has some secrets of his own. This book made me turn on every light in the house, and I didn't dare go to sleep until my husband came home. Stephanie's visions and the chapters in the mind of the villain are startling and jarring. Thrasher never crosses the line between frightening and titillating the reader, keeping the adrenaline level high. Stephanie and James have grown apart in their marriage and instead of talking to and confiding in each other, they rely on themselves, which allows Satan to trick both of them. The revelation at the end about the glory of God is wonderfully done giving insight not only into the story but as to why suffering exists in the world. This is Thrasher's best work to date.