One Sitting Read Perfect Introduction To Author. This is one of those novellas that is *so* short that it is actually possible to read it in one sitting – by the time most anyone (barring certain medical conditions) will need to get up again… you’re already done with this 80 ish page book.
And yet it really is a perfect introduction to Wood’s style of storytelling and this ever expanding “Dane Maddock Universe” in particular. There’s enough references here to prior events that newer readers will be enticed to go back to read about those particular adventures, and these same references make it fun for longer term fans to remember “oh yeah, that happened in that book”.
So either for long term fans looking for the next bit of fun or people new to Wood and these characters, you’re going to have fun with this one sitting read.
And yes, it had a bit of particular interest *for me* since it happened to take place not far from an area I lived in for several years – this particular swamp where this takes place is basically on the other side of Columbia, SC from where I lived and worked on the shores of Lake Murray, just across and outside town.
Overall a fun, quick read for anyone, and thus a great one to help hit those reading goals either at the end of a month or perhaps at the end of a year.
Very much recommended.
This review of Curse Of The Cryptid by David Wood was originally written on February 4, 2025.