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3.91 AVERAGE
3.91 AVERAGE
dark
medium-paced
Really wanted to read the story Candyman is based on & it was pretty great.
adventurous
dark
mysterious
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
dark
funny
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
dark
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
dark
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
Clive Barker has always been more miss than hit and this collection was no exception. However, When the story hit it's a classic and the same is also true here with The Forbidden being a true classic but the other stories were slightly dull and disappointing.
dark
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
The Forbidden - A woman doing her thesis on graffiti chooses a run-down low-rent apartment complex on which to focus her study. She becomes aware of a nasty series of crimes in the area and thinks it might be related. The locals are pretty weird about it. Even weirder than one might expect. This is the story the movie Candyman was based on. I think it actually works better as a movie (not just because more background info was added) but I still enjoyed the story.
The Madonna - Some people are trying to redevelop an old swimming pool complex but some weird things start happening when they're separated or there alone. And in the end, both of the male main characters are turned into women. This was my least favorite of the stories in this book because there were a few parts that felt uncomfortably misogynistic to me. That happens with Clive Barker stories sometimes. and often I can't quite figure out if it's just the character or if it's really coming from him.
Babel's Children - A woman gets stranded in the middle of nowhere when her car breaks down. She winds up finding and being locked up in a compound where a committee of great thinkers decide the outcome of everything that happens in the world. But instead of deciding through debate, they've come to decide by playing games of chance. This is the shortest story in the book, but it's also my favorite. I love the whole concept, the main character irritated and interested me (sometimes Clive Barker's women fall flat), and there were parts that were creepy and made me think, as well as parts that made me laugh.
In The Flesh - Billy Tait is Cleve Smith's new cellmate in jail. It turns out Billy got himself caught and sent to this prison on purpose because he thinks his grandfather (who was an inmate and was hanged there decades before) is calling him there. Insert supernatural murders, secrets and lies, weird dream states, and purgatory. I read a summary of this story before I started it and it didn't sound all that interesting to me. But I was extremely pleasantly surprised. The story before this was my favorite in the book, but this one was still good enough to really stand out. I think it'll stick with me and become one of the stories I call a favorite when I'm asked for reading recommendations.
The Madonna - Some people are trying to redevelop an old swimming pool complex but some weird things start happening when they're separated or there alone. And in the end, both of the male main characters are turned into women. This was my least favorite of the stories in this book because there were a few parts that felt uncomfortably misogynistic to me. That happens with Clive Barker stories sometimes. and often I can't quite figure out if it's just the character or if it's really coming from him.
Babel's Children - A woman gets stranded in the middle of nowhere when her car breaks down. She winds up finding and being locked up in a compound where a committee of great thinkers decide the outcome of everything that happens in the world. But instead of deciding through debate, they've come to decide by playing games of chance. This is the shortest story in the book, but it's also my favorite. I love the whole concept, the main character irritated and interested me (sometimes Clive Barker's women fall flat), and there were parts that were creepy and made me think, as well as parts that made me laugh.
In The Flesh - Billy Tait is Cleve Smith's new cellmate in jail. It turns out Billy got himself caught and sent to this prison on purpose because he thinks his grandfather (who was an inmate and was hanged there decades before) is calling him there. Insert supernatural murders, secrets and lies, weird dream states, and purgatory. I read a summary of this story before I started it and it didn't sound all that interesting to me. But I was extremely pleasantly surprised. The story before this was my favorite in the book, but this one was still good enough to really stand out. I think it'll stick with me and become one of the stories I call a favorite when I'm asked for reading recommendations.