Review Tuesday: HELL SHIP - The Flying Dutchman: The True Catastrophic Events of the Fortuyn as Witnessed by Tom Hardy, the Sole Survivor of the Aforementioned Vessel by Ben Hammott

HELL SHIP

The Flying Dutchman

The True Catastrophic Events of the Fortuyn as Witnessed by Tom Hardy, the Sole Survivor of the Aforementioned Vessel

by Ben Hammott

The first person account of the misfortune that befell the Fortuyn and her crew as described by Tom Hardy

I am reviewing another book by Ben Hammott. I enjoyed HORROR ISLAND (reviewed HERE) so much that when I have the opportunity to read this this book with the amusingly long title, HELL SHIP - The Flying Dutchman: The True Catastrophic Events of the Fortuyn as Witnessed by Tom Hardy, the Sole Survivor of the Aforementioned Vessel, for free in exchange for an honest review, I couldn't resist!

The story is actually told from two different first person perspectives. It starts from the view of a struggling author of horror at a failure of a book signing. A fan happened to drop by and sow the seed of a horror novel based on a manuscript written by one of her forefathers. From there we are delved into the world of Tom Hardy, a young man looking for adventure on the high seas. Unfortunately he found it in the most horrific way. 

While being a brutal and gory horror tale, it also explains how the name FLYING DUTCHMAN may have been invented as well as which ship, Fortuyn, may have even been the one. Even the strange mass of seaweed and strange creatures living in it were based on some fact discovered from Hammott's research.

The book moves at a fantastic pace. It's not long and you can tear through it reasonably quickly. The vile creatures seem to be very Lovecraftian in description, which endeared me to the story even more. The use of maritime vocabulary as well as vernacular of the time lends an extra layer of realism to the story. The massive about of detailed description brings you into the story in a terrifying way. The wave after wave of violence amazes you. Like in a good horror flick, you will catch yourself saying out loud, "DON'T GO IN THERE!"

I adored this book from the very first word to the last and I have already been telling my friends to consider giving this book a slot in their reading schedules. I didn't know that historical maritime horror was a genre, but I sure enjoyed it!I hope you will too!

Get it on AMAZON