Official Review: Cooleroo Hall by Branimir Hendovich

literaturelover · Post by **literaturelover** » 12 Dec 2015, 02:33

[Following is the official OnlineBookClub.org review of "Cooleroo Hall" by Branimir Hendovich.]

3 out of 4 stars

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Official Book Review for: Cooleroo Hall by Branimir Hendovich

If I could use one word to describe how this book made me feel, it would be: Terrifying. I am an avid reader of the Paranormal/Horror/Sci-Fi/Fantasy genre. In picking Cooleroo Hall, I felt I could be reasonably prepared for its contents. I was wrong, this book actually kept me awake after finishing it and I’m still a little jumpy. I’m also sleeping with a night light for now.

The story is about Branimir Hendovich. Hendovich is an alumni of Cooleroo Hall, a prestigious Catholic School run by the Zadokite Order. In the first half of the book, the plot is focused on the memories of Hendovich as he attends school. Cooleroo Hall, to the outside world, is a prestigious secondary school dedicated to churning out highly successful individuals. Hendovich wins a scholarship and is sent there as a resident student. On his first day of school, it is clear to him that outside appearances are wrong. The school is steeped in occultism and dark ancient practices. The students soon become indoctrinated into the cult- like atmosphere which leads up to the aforementioned tragedy.

The second part of the book takes us into the present day. Hendovich has come to terms with the past and is trying to find meaning in his life. I can’t go into too much more detail or description because that would give away the ending. I can say that I was not expecting the outcome and it left me with a case of the “heebie-jeebies”.

There were a few things about the book that I didn’t like. The first half read more like the outline of a memoir. The conversations between characters are smooth and full of great dialogue, but the scenes aren’t set up as descriptively as I would have liked. The book doesn’t transition very well either. I found that instead of a smooth and seamless transition, the author simply created a new heading and went on from there. These issues caused me to take of a point for annoyance. I will gladly give this book a rating of 3 out of 4 stars.

This book reminds me of something Stephen King or Joe Hill would cook up, so there’s a lot to look forward to if you’re fans of those authors. This book should be categorized as Horror. Don’t expect any damsels or fun vampires or werewolves. It reads so realistically that I had to research it more than I normally would after finishing it, to make sure it actually was a piece of fiction. I wasn’t entirely convinced that it wasn’t real. Kudos to the writer for scaring me!

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Cooleroo Hall
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Levi · Post by **Levi** » 03 Jan 2016, 12:35

This is the best kind of compliment a book like this can receive! I haven't read any horror type books for quite some, but I think I will add this to my list based upon your "heebie-jeebies."

Post by **bookowlie** » 03 Jan 2016, 18:21

What an interesting review! I don't always like books or movies that give me the creeps. However, your intriguing review has made me want to at least take a look at the sample on Amazon.