Started off great, but started falling apart in the middle. By the end, I was just glad I was done with it. Had a lot of potential, but failed in the Started off great, but started falling apart in the middle. By the end, I was just glad I was done with it. Had a lot of potential, but failed in the execution. The pacing was all over the place; some things were dragged out way longer than needed and others were completely rushed. Of course, the interesting stuff were the parts that were rushed and the boring stuff had way too many pages dedicated to it. I kind of feel like this novella was the prologue to the book that I actually want to read....more
I really regret finishing this one. I almost put it down several times, but kept hoping it would get better. I was wrong. I had everything mostly figuI really regret finishing this one. I almost put it down several times, but kept hoping it would get better. I was wrong. I had everything mostly figured out about 50 pages in and nothing got better from there. That combined with some of the worst characters I've read in a long time make this one a stinker. Another waste of a great cover with a mediocre book. ...more
The middle of this book was actually pretty good. The problem was that the beginning was boring and drawn out and the end kind of sucked. A better endThe middle of this book was actually pretty good. The problem was that the beginning was boring and drawn out and the end kind of sucked. A better ending still could have saved this book. I just wish they'd have stuck more to the Polybius urban legend instead of the direction they went with it. ...more
My library loan ended about halfway through reading this and I had to wait a couple of weeks to be able to check it out again and finish. I hadn't reaMy library loan ended about halfway through reading this and I had to wait a couple of weeks to be able to check it out again and finish. I hadn't really enjoyed it up to the point I had to stop, but I was hopeful that it would improve. In hindsight, I should have just put this on my DNF shelf.
I pretty much hated all of the main characters. Some were worse than others, but the best I can say about any of them is that they were tolerable. Normally, in books like this, I'm rooting for the monster to kill everyone, but I hated the monster too.
The monster story had me somewhat interested at the beginning, but after the reveal and I was just angry and confused. No attempt was made to even guess what was happening or why, let alone any kind of explanation. Then the non-supernatural "twist" at the end just came out of left field and contributed nothing. There were so many better ways that part of the story could have been resolved and that's where the story felt like it was heading.
I feel like two stars was pretty generous for this book. It probably should be a one star, but there's still a salvageable story here if only a decent editor would have intervened. ...more
This was a really great horror story. The characters were very well written (especially for mostly 14 year olds) that had me rooting for and against dThis was a really great horror story. The characters were very well written (especially for mostly 14 year olds) that had me rooting for and against different characters. The book definitely has a creepy, skin-crawling vibe the whole way through. I was a little disappointed with the ending, but not enough to ruin the book.
Spoilers below.
I am kind of curious why the author completely avoided the cannibalism angle. When you've got characters that are infected with an insatiable hunger, especially for meat, you'd think someone would wind up with a few bites missing. Something could have been fit into the story without being overly cliche. I think it would have made the Shelly parts of the story a lot more intense and scary....more
Just okay for me. Not enough backstory on the MC to make me care.
My biggest problem is that the book reads like it takes place in 1940's Appalachia, Just okay for me. Not enough backstory on the MC to make me care.
My biggest problem is that the book reads like it takes place in 1940's Appalachia, but it's actually modern day England. Do police not exist in this part of England? Even without police, there would be a hundred true crime podcasts speculating as to why so many people go missing in a relatively small area. Also it appears that no search parties ever take place looking for missing hikers. No reporters investigating and asking locals for comments?...more
I went into this pretty blind. I saw it in the new arrivals at my library and picked it on the title alone. It was a pretty quick read at a hundred paI went into this pretty blind. I saw it in the new arrivals at my library and picked it on the title alone. It was a pretty quick read at a hundred pages and change. It wasn't bad, and definitely better than I expected. . Based on the cover, I was kind of expecting it to lean young adultish, but it wasn't.
The story doesn't really waste much time. The titular circus tent shows up in the first few pages and we jump right into the weirdness. Most of the story stays in okay territory; it's not great, not horrible, and still entertaining. The ending though was what really kicked it up a notch. It was almost enough to bump it to four stars, but I'm still holding out.
Apparently the "I Found" is a series of sorts by this author, so I'll probably check out some of his other books. If they're all short like this and keep up the quality, they'll make a really good palate cleanser between larger books....more
Huh. The book blurb just kind of skipped right over the whole homoerotic torture porn aspect. It's beautifully written homoerotic torture porn, but itHuh. The book blurb just kind of skipped right over the whole homoerotic torture porn aspect. It's beautifully written homoerotic torture porn, but it's still homoerotic torture porn. Not at all what I was expecting when I picked up this book.
On a bright note, the writing was really great. Even though I didn't like the book or the plot, I was completely pulled in by the writing style. It was like getting sucked into a literary undertow that made it nearly impossible to put the book down and probably the only reason I finished it.
The main story breaks away a couple of times to tell two separate short stories that are completely unrelated to the main story.They're just shoehorned in for no particular reason. I'm not sure if these were intended as part of the original book, or were just a couple short stories that the author had lying around and decided to use. Maybe his early readers decided all the book really needed some torture porn to make it great.
This book wasn't at all my cup of tea, but I was still impressed by the author....more
This was pretty good. Probably would have been a five star read except for the protagonist MC making some insanely stupid decisions that made me want This was pretty good. Probably would have been a five star read except for the protagonist MC making some insanely stupid decisions that made me want to throw the book across the room multiple times. They kind of make sense based on how the character is written, but I have a hard time believing someone that smart can be that stupid that often. I managed to get past that and the last part of the book picked up and almost made up for it.
The writing was similar to Clown in a Cornfield without the tongue in cheek and humor. Looks like there's potential for a sequel, so I'm sure I'll read it if it happens. ...more
I'm going to chalk this one up to a "it's not you, it's me" type of situation. The book is written in a stream of conscious way that left me confused I'm going to chalk this one up to a "it's not you, it's me" type of situation. The book is written in a stream of conscious way that left me confused more often than not. The story kept me intrigued enough to keep reading, but I can't say that I really enjoyed it. It wasn't bad, but just not really for me. I honestly think I just fell victim to judging a book by its cover because I 100% only read this because of the amazing cover....more
I really liked the first half, then the author made the "twist" pretty obvious right around the half way point. Even once the twist was revealed, therI really liked the first half, then the author made the "twist" pretty obvious right around the half way point. Even once the twist was revealed, there were still a lot of unanswered questions by the end of the book. I don't know if I missed something that was supposed to be obvious or if this is one of those ghost stories where it's up to the reader to decide (I loathe those) what really happened. I feel like this would have been a lot better as a straight up ghost story without getting all the other messes involved. ...more
You never know what you're going to get with Grady Hendrix, but this turned out to be one of the great ones. Easily the best since, if not better thanYou never know what you're going to get with Grady Hendrix, but this turned out to be one of the great ones. Easily the best since, if not better than, Southern Book Club. I just finished reading it, but after thinking about it more, it will probably be right up there with My Best Friend's Exorcism.
Overall, this was a pretty great book. My only real complaint was that the beginning was really slow. Hendrix spends the first 100 pages introducing all the girls in the home, only for all but four of them to fade into the background for the rest of the book....more
This book is a bit of a mixed bag. The writing was really good, much better than I expected from a killer bug story. I liked the plot, other than someThis book is a bit of a mixed bag. The writing was really good, much better than I expected from a killer bug story. I liked the plot, other than some of the parts that felt more like magic than science. A couple of the points of view characters didn't really add much to the story and could have been cut entirely. Whatever important narrative parts they contained could easily have been stuck elsewhere in another pov. Cutting those povs would also get rid of the parts that drag and trim the story to a better length.
Overall, I liked it. It was almost 4 stars for me, but just wasn't quite there....more
One of Crouch's early novels, republished. It wasn't as strong as some of his newer stuff, but I still really liked it. I get why people think it was One of Crouch's early novels, republished. It wasn't as strong as some of his newer stuff, but I still really liked it. I get why people think it was slow, but seemed like a bit more realistic take on regular people dealing with an apocalyptic scenario than some of the prepper porn apocalyptic novels out there. ...more
It's Scooby-Doo, minus Scooby, and everyone is gay and a Millennial.
I ended up liking this more than I originally thought I would. The writing was a It's Scooby-Doo, minus Scooby, and everyone is gay and a Millennial.
I ended up liking this more than I originally thought I would. The writing was a bit jarring to begin; the story is set in the US, but the author uses British spelling and terms. Once you get used to that, you have to adjust to the story feeling like it was written for ten year olds at times. Kind of weird to be condescended to by a YA book. Also, the Scooby-Doo thing is so blatant it feels like there should have been a fifth character walking around holding a sign that says Scooby-Dooby-Doo every twenty pages or so, just to really beat you over the head with it.
So, yeah, this is the fast food version of YA fiction; it's full of salt, fat, and preservatives and isn't good for you, but it's quick and filling and tastes better than it looks....more
I didn't love it, but didn't hate it either. Seemed a bit too long and descriptions kept going off on tangents that killed the flow of the story.I didn't love it, but didn't hate it either. Seemed a bit too long and descriptions kept going off on tangents that killed the flow of the story....more
Murray/Wearmouth books always have that straight to video vibe. They're not bad books, just a little cheesy. They do best when the authors fully embraMurray/Wearmouth books always have that straight to video vibe. They're not bad books, just a little cheesy. They do best when the authors fully embrace the cheese factor. In this one, it kind of felt like they couldn't decide if they wanted to be serious or not and the book suffers a bit for it. I get it; it's not easy being cheesy, but sometimes you've got to take a long look in the mirror and realize you're 100% Gouda.
The book was fun, but ultimately kind of forgettable. I think this writing duo needs to stick with the monster stories and not be afraid to go full cheddar. That seems to be their wheelhouse....more
