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noahfence2007's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.25
mk_oldman's review against another edition
challenging
dark
emotional
sad
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
badseedgirl's review against another edition
4.0
I'm not sure I would classify this novel as horror. I guess there is that entire possible, maybe astral projection episode in the end, but again, maybe it was just a drug fueled mind trip. Regardless, this was a powerful story about two really F'ed up characters who found each other and made each other just a little better.
isaiahh's review against another edition
dark
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.75
"[…] this house had tasted blood before, had tasted it again today. / He thought it might be getting a taste for the stuff."
Drawing Blood can be resumed in three words: blood, drugs and sex. Despite this, it's also a romance!
Our two main characters are deeply traumatised: one is the son of underground cartoonist Bobby McGee, infamous for having murdered his wife and three-year-old son before killing himself; leaving five-year-old Trevor alone in the world. Now twenty-five, Trevor is coming back to the house where it all happened, trying to understand why he was left alive. Zachary, nineteen, on his own since his teens thanks to abusive parents, is a hacker on the run from the authorities, who somehow ends up in Missing Mile, hometown of the McGees' murder house.
The two boys meet and embark on a journey to uncover the secret of Bobby's madness while navigating their (very fucked up) relationship.
Z. Brite has a knack for crafting stories that are so unhinged, but so, SO compelling, with such vibrant characters. Drawing Blood is at once very complex and very indulgent (when I say it's blood, drugs and sex, I mean it!). It will resonate with those who enjoy love that borders on cannibalism, pretty boys, New Orleans, 90's pop culture references, and gore.
To put it simply: I had a blast reading this, and I'm only half-ashamed to say it's my new comfort book. Yes, it's bloody and violent, but it's also kind of endearing at times, and very, very sexy (if you like the blood to be part of the smut. I do.).
This was only my second Z. Brite, but it has cemented him as one of my favourite writers ever. He has such a distinct voice! I cannot wait to get my grubby little hands on Lost Souls and absolutely devour it.
homogenisiertemilch's review against another edition
challenging
dark
emotional
inspiring
mysterious
reflective
sad
tense
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
ghoulgrimmz's review against another edition
5.0
we all need a friend as loyal and caring as eddy is
beefmaster's review against another edition
3.0
Wanted to like this, thought the prologue was stupendous, but the writing, the characters, even the mode of horror (a cyberspace chase? really???) were all so painfully earnest and 90s. Horror really struggled in the 90s and here's the perfect example of why: everything feels too blunted and forced in its attempt at disengaging with the popular mode that characterized the boom of the 80s. There's also the uncomfortable fact that while Brite may not have been aping Rice, Drawing Blood slots in perfectly into the "fetishizing gay white men for female consumption" that permeated the 90s and persists in fanfiction today. The two lead protagonists, while well drawn, felt like somebody's memory of what the 90s were like: painfully thin, pale, tight low rise pants, quirky affectations, and a boringly casual relationship to drugs. I loathe reading scenes of characters doing hallucinogenics and this novel had the most boring "tripping" scene I've read in a long time. There's so much to like about the novel though: Brite's insatiable interest in the margins of society, both the characters and the literal limits of society; his (yes, his) eye for detail is exquisite, especially place (his New Orleans felt more real to me than any other depiction I'd ever read); the sheer inclusivity of the novel (nobody in the circle bats an eye; an old man thought to be homophobic and mean turns out to be wistful for when he had a queer romance). Plus, the prose was always a delight to read. I wouldn't mind reading more of his later work, but the subjects of those novels fail to spark my interest.
theduchess93's review against another edition
4.0
my first Poppy Z. Brite book! I kind of hated the hacker guy the entire time and I'm not sure if I was supposed to, but I'm glad they worked through their trauma together, I guess. The drawing world sections were a bit disorienting.