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I wish I could unread this... The descriptive rape scenes were just, I kind of felt like I was walking in on someones private bondage fantasy...
Besides that, there were some interesting elements to the story, but they're overshadowed by the fact that I want to remove the parts of my brain that remember this book.
Besides that, there were some interesting elements to the story, but they're overshadowed by the fact that I want to remove the parts of my brain that remember this book.
dark
funny
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
Not good but unintentionally hilarious throughout.
The woods aren’t simply dark; go walking about in them after nightfall, what might one see? Turns out, one will find a cannibalistic tribe of savages called the Krulls, murderous forest tribalists intent on maintaining a bizarre sense of freedom. But they’re slowly dying out, and it’s time they replenished the stock...
Laymon is a creative master, and his skill at turning a fairly standard exploitation tale into something greater is fully present here. Each character feels real and has their own motivations and emotions (something that is sadly incredibly rare in this genre), including the Krulls, whose leader is one of the more interesting cast members. Laymon’s other talent lies in writing extremely brutal, sickening action set pieces that set the stomach churning and the mind racing.
This book is Graphic. Capital G. Everything goes wrong here and it’s all out in view: murder, rape, infanticide, incest, etc, etc. Not for the squeamish, for sure.
I gave it three stars for a reason however, and all my praise cannot excuse this mistake. It’s my pet peeve, and here it is worse than normal: the hokey, needless love triangle. It is so badly written and so unbelievable that it rips the reader right out of the action, and the scaffolding of the remaining story beats crashes down around it. It put a bad taste in my mouth, i was so disappointed. Needless to say, without that awful interlude, it would have been at least 4 stars but, there it is. Definitely worth a read if your tolerance for far fetched, stockholm-syndrome romances is high enough.
Oh and all the other horrible things too.
Laymon is a creative master, and his skill at turning a fairly standard exploitation tale into something greater is fully present here. Each character feels real and has their own motivations and emotions (something that is sadly incredibly rare in this genre), including the Krulls, whose leader is one of the more interesting cast members. Laymon’s other talent lies in writing extremely brutal, sickening action set pieces that set the stomach churning and the mind racing.
This book is Graphic. Capital G. Everything goes wrong here and it’s all out in view: murder, rape, infanticide, incest, etc, etc. Not for the squeamish, for sure.
I gave it three stars for a reason however, and all my praise cannot excuse this mistake. It’s my pet peeve, and here it is worse than normal: the hokey, needless love triangle. It is so badly written and so unbelievable that it rips the reader right out of the action, and the scaffolding of the remaining story beats crashes down around it. It put a bad taste in my mouth, i was so disappointed. Needless to say, without that awful interlude, it would have been at least 4 stars but, there it is. Definitely worth a read if your tolerance for far fetched, stockholm-syndrome romances is high enough.
Oh and all the other horrible things too.
Every single character is just awful, and the writing is atrocious. I was rooting for the cannibals by the end. How many times do the words "nipple" and "erection" appear in this book? Far too many is the answer. This was my first and last attempt at reading Richard Laymon. I went into this blind and thought it was going to be a folk horror novel based on the recommendation I got. It definitely isn't that, it's basically a badly written cannibalistic rape fantasy that takes place outside Yosemite.
Whoever it was that first wrote the phrase "She breasted boobily to the stairs, and titted downwards" must've read Richard Laymon.
Whoever it was that first wrote the phrase "She breasted boobily to the stairs, and titted downwards" must've read Richard Laymon.
dark
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
This book was fast moving and pretty sickening, like everything he writes. He has this incredible talent for starting a book with a handful of 'innocent' characters that are exposed so strange atrocities and traumas, only to get in touch with their own sickening perversions. It reminds me that not everyone knows the evil they're capable of until they are given an opportunity.
I'm so sad that Laymon has passed and there's limited material to read... he was fantastic.
I'm so sad that Laymon has passed and there's limited material to read... he was fantastic.
Well! I do declare!
No spoilers!
This book scared the wits out of me! I started reading around 10pm and I finished at 4am. Reading this at night definitely sets a different mood.
I honestly wasn’t expecting much. I was curious, the sub genre niche of horror this book falls into, I guess I expected something sub par. Far from it!
Laymon’s ability to describe visuals was delicious! Gore, smut scenes, terrain, sensations, etc. I’m impressed he made such an odd combination of cannibalism and smut seamlessly come to life. There’s no lack of action either, and not once was anything predictable!
Obviously a rated XXX book, if your kid is asking for this book I’d question why, but for those thinking this book has no violent sex and could be triggered with the forced scenes, you now know!
For me it was a very easy and fast read. No flourishing fanciful writing like a Terry Goodkind. There also wasn’t much unnecessary drama. Still though, a wee bit of drama, but in a way needed for the reader to understand the character’s actions and decisions. Character development felt natural. The characters weren’t overzealously developed or subpar.
If you’re into blood n guts and want to read something new other than vampires, zombies or viruses and can stomach some pretty violent smut scenes, this is for you!
Yeah, definitely following Laymon for more reads!
No spoilers!
This book scared the wits out of me! I started reading around 10pm and I finished at 4am. Reading this at night definitely sets a different mood.
I honestly wasn’t expecting much. I was curious, the sub genre niche of horror this book falls into, I guess I expected something sub par. Far from it!
Laymon’s ability to describe visuals was delicious! Gore, smut scenes, terrain, sensations, etc. I’m impressed he made such an odd combination of cannibalism and smut seamlessly come to life. There’s no lack of action either, and not once was anything predictable!
Obviously a rated XXX book, if your kid is asking for this book I’d question why, but for those thinking this book has no violent sex and could be triggered with the forced scenes, you now know!
For me it was a very easy and fast read. No flourishing fanciful writing like a Terry Goodkind. There also wasn’t much unnecessary drama. Still though, a wee bit of drama, but in a way needed for the reader to understand the character’s actions and decisions. Character development felt natural. The characters weren’t overzealously developed or subpar.
If you’re into blood n guts and want to read something new other than vampires, zombies or viruses and can stomach some pretty violent smut scenes, this is for you!
Yeah, definitely following Laymon for more reads!
dark
fast-paced
This story started out ok. It had potential. It ended up being a book full of graphic sex (most of it not consensual), cannibalism and gore. A suddenly sex obsessed family man running through the woods dreaming of rape, obsessing over his erections, young boys (and girls) participating in rapes, and don’t forget the heads on spikes, none of it appealed to me. If you like gory, ridiculous stories, you may be into it. Not to mention, the “love story” that develops between two of the characters is rushed and absurd.
Umm... WTF did I just read here?!? Man, this guy needs his head examined.
Basic storyline of this rag:
Man: "Holy shit, we're being chased by a bunch of wacko crazy inbred rednecks and they want to eat us!"
Woman: "Let's hide in this shack... wanna have sex?!?"
Man: "OK sure"
While civilized man-turned Tarzan discovers his "manhood" with said wacko crazy inbred rednecks" whilst sprouting passages from William Shakespeare and singing along in the forest like he's f&*%ing Tom Bombadil!!!
The only reason why I gave it more than one star is because this would have been such an awesome story if he didn't ruin it with all the carnal lust and ridiculous B-porn crap. What a waste.
Turn away true readers, nothing to look at here.
Basic storyline of this rag:
Man: "Holy shit, we're being chased by a bunch of wacko crazy inbred rednecks and they want to eat us!"
Woman: "Let's hide in this shack... wanna have sex?!?"
Man: "OK sure"
While civilized man-turned Tarzan discovers his "manhood" with said wacko crazy inbred rednecks" whilst sprouting passages from William Shakespeare and singing along in the forest like he's f&*%ing Tom Bombadil!!!
The only reason why I gave it more than one star is because this would have been such an awesome story if he didn't ruin it with all the carnal lust and ridiculous B-porn crap. What a waste.
Turn away true readers, nothing to look at here.