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stephanieluxton's review
adventurous
dark
mysterious
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
2.0
I didn't really do my research before starting this book so that was my first error. The only other book I've read by this author is Zerostrata and I absolutely LOVED that one so I was hoping this book would be similar bizarre and I guess it kind of is?
This book is about Jack, a mostly normal dude who returns home from getting takeout to find his girlfriend, Gina, is missing. He gets a call from the kidnapper who says he has 24 hours to find them before they'll disappear forever and that he will torture and kill her if Jack goes to the police.
I think this was almost a good book but I was really thrown off by the amount of sexual violence and rape. It did very little for the plot. I suppose you could argue that it increased the urgency for Jack to find Gina, but that same urgency could have been achieved with threats. It was the level of explicit you'd expect from extreme horror which just wasn't what I was expecting or wanting from this book.
Anyways, as Jack involves other people and starts to unravel the mystery, the bizarre magical realism kicks in and has a very similar vibe to The Boy and The Heron. This aspect of the book was really interesting and I was there was more of a focus on the bizarre magical parts and less on the violence. I'm not going to elaborate because I don't want to spoil it.
I think the beginning of the book was too slow and the second half went by too quickly. In the end, we are left with a lot of questions. I wish Gina's character was a bit more interesting. She was almost super interesting but all the build up doesn't really lead to anything. I am not a huge fan of the strong independent woman with plot armour trope, but I do wish Gina had put up more of a fight. I didn't feel very empowered while reading this book. It's sad and makes you feel a little sick watching what's happening to her for basically no reason.
This had a lot of potential but it just didn't do it for me.
This book is about Jack, a mostly normal dude who returns home from getting takeout to find his girlfriend, Gina, is missing. He gets a call from the kidnapper who says he has 24 hours to find them before they'll disappear forever and that he will torture and kill her if Jack goes to the police.
I think this was almost a good book but I was really thrown off by the amount of sexual violence and rape. It did very little for the plot. I suppose you could argue that it increased the urgency for Jack to find Gina, but that same urgency could have been achieved with threats. It was the level of explicit you'd expect from extreme horror which just wasn't what I was expecting or wanting from this book.
Anyways, as Jack involves other people and starts to unravel the mystery, the bizarre magical realism kicks in and has a very similar vibe to The Boy and The Heron. This aspect of the book was really interesting and I was there was more of a focus on the bizarre magical parts and less on the violence. I'm not going to elaborate because I don't want to spoil it.
I think the beginning of the book was too slow and the second half went by too quickly. In the end, we are left with a lot of questions. I wish Gina's character was a bit more interesting. She was almost super interesting but all the build up doesn't really lead to anything. I am not a huge fan of the strong independent woman with plot armour trope, but I do wish Gina had put up more of a fight. I didn't feel very empowered while reading this book. It's sad and makes you feel a little sick watching what's happening to her for basically no reason.
This had a lot of potential but it just didn't do it for me.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Rape, Sexual assault, Sexual violence, Kidnapping, Gore, Torture, Murder, Injury/Injury detail, Gun violence, Violence, Sexual harassment, Death, Cursing, and Blood
dantastic's review
4.0
When Jack Orange's girlfriend Gina goes missing, he soon gets a sinister phone call from a man that sounds like he's constantly smiling, Mr. Grin. Mr. Grin has Gina and Jack has 24 hours to find them. In the mean time, Mr. Grin is going to have some fun...
This is the ninth book in my Kindle Unlimited Experiment. For the 30 day trial, I'm only reading books that are part of the program and keeping track what the total cost of the books would have been.
This is my fourth Andersen Prunty novel and my favorite so far. Jack & Mr. Grin is a psychological horror novel about a man racing the clock to find his girlfriend and the psychopath that is holding her hostage. Complicating things is that Mr. Grin seems all-knowing and people who Jack encounters wind up with a brand on them and get possessed with psychotic rage and try to kill him. Not to mention Mr. Grin repeatedly calling him.
Around the halfway mark, the book was so hard to put down it was as if it was stapled to my hands. Jack manages to figure out where Gina might be held and things get pretty bizarre. It reminded me of the story of Orpheus a few times.
I wanted to love this book but I only wound up liking it quite a bit. Jack had a case of the stupids a few times, like wondering if Mr. Grin had supernatural powers late in the book despite all the supernatural things that had already occurred. Also, there were a few too many unanswered questions about Gina and Mr. Grin. Other than that, it was an easy four star read for me.
Current Kindle Unlimited Savings Total: $49.09.
This is the ninth book in my Kindle Unlimited Experiment. For the 30 day trial, I'm only reading books that are part of the program and keeping track what the total cost of the books would have been.
This is my fourth Andersen Prunty novel and my favorite so far. Jack & Mr. Grin is a psychological horror novel about a man racing the clock to find his girlfriend and the psychopath that is holding her hostage. Complicating things is that Mr. Grin seems all-knowing and people who Jack encounters wind up with a brand on them and get possessed with psychotic rage and try to kill him. Not to mention Mr. Grin repeatedly calling him.
Around the halfway mark, the book was so hard to put down it was as if it was stapled to my hands. Jack manages to figure out where Gina might be held and things get pretty bizarre. It reminded me of the story of Orpheus a few times.
I wanted to love this book but I only wound up liking it quite a bit. Jack had a case of the stupids a few times, like wondering if Mr. Grin had supernatural powers late in the book despite all the supernatural things that had already occurred. Also, there were a few too many unanswered questions about Gina and Mr. Grin. Other than that, it was an easy four star read for me.
Current Kindle Unlimited Savings Total: $49.09.
russellrd's review
4.0
Book has its problems, for sure, but I honestly couldn't put it down. Finished it the day after starting it.
mad_about_books's review
4.0
I found this strange little novella entertaining in the extreme. What does that say about me?
adunnells's review
dark
mysterious
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.75
pattmayne's review
3.0
This sick book moved me.
It was scary, it was sick, it was heartwarming, and it was weird as fuck.
It was scary, it was sick, it was heartwarming, and it was weird as fuck.
acknud's review
4.0
This is my first reading of bizarro and it won't be the last. Prunty takes a commonly written plot line and makes it his own with interesting plot twists and situations. I will definitely seek out more of his work.
sarahconnor89757's review
4.0
A great book for people who aren't acquainted with the bizarro genre, and for ones who are. It's has the integrity that a mainstream novel strives for with it's characters and yet still brings the mind fuck aesthetics that fans of bizarro have come to expect.
Despite the fact that the author is gorgeous, he is also very talented.
Despite the fact that the author is gorgeous, he is also very talented.
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