Reviews

Monstrosity by Edward Lee

paulabrandon's review against another edition

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3.0

Clare Prentiss, formerly in the Army, is now homeless. She was raped by the commander's son, and the whole thing was covered up and she was dishonourably discharged for being a liar. However, salvation comes in the form of a new security chief job at a cancer clinic that has developed an exciting cure for an aggressive form of cancer. The job comes with a much-needed salary and its own cottage on the beach.

Sound too good to be true? Of course it is. There are frogs, snakes and cockroaches all far bigger than they're supposed to be - some with fangs! Clare wonders what happened to three employees who used to work at the clinic who suddenly vanished. She starts experiencing erotic thoughts and dreams, and becomes lustful for Dellin, the guy who recruited her. And there seems to be a deformed rapist monster picking off local rednecks who trespass on the facility's grounds!

This was a decent horror romp, with something always going on, so it was never boring. It isn't inundated with new characters every chapter. I also appreciated that while there was rape in this novel, it never came across as lurid and exploitative, as it usually does with an author like, say, Richard Laymon, whose work I otherwise quite like. It is never described in any detail and generally actually has relevance to the plot. There was plenty of gore and violence, like any good horror book!

However, as much as things were happening, it still felt like the book was spinning its wheels for most of its length. The explanation as to what is going on only comes in the last 50 pages or so. Up until then, it's just characters seeing mutated creatures and animals, and the hulking monster creature going after the locals. It felt somewhat repetitive at times, and I occasionally just wished for the book to get to the point!

Other than that, there's nothing remarkable here, but it does offer a decent helping of horror and manages to be consistently entertaining.

arasjial's review against another edition

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3.0

Naja, hab da eindeutig mehr erwartet. Die Geschichte ist definitiv ausbaufähig. Was die absonderlich sexuellen Fantasien angeht.. Sind meine eigenen wohl um einiges interessanter

jamieh2024's review against another edition

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3.0

Occassionally I am able to overlook gratuitous sex and violence when there is a wicked monster involved. In this case both have been overlooked and the story was thouroughly enjoyed. :)

echo_of_the_books's review against another edition

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4.0

Es war spannend und hat Spaß gemacht zu lesen!
Ich finde, dass es weniger banal war, als der Klappentext es vermuten lässt.

claude_'s review against another edition

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dark slow-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? It's complicated

1.5

kkehoe's review against another edition

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3.0

A solid story that's just a bit too pat, and ergo unbelievable, in it's circular connections.

jch2022's review against another edition

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3.0

Occassionally I am able to overlook gratuitous sex and violence when there is a wicked monster involved. In this case both have been overlooked and the story was thouroughly enjoyed. :)

acknud's review against another edition

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3.0

Not that impressed. OK read but nothing special.

kkehoe's review against another edition

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3.0

A solid story that's just a bit too pat, and ergo unbelievable, in it's circular connections.

doomfiction's review against another edition

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3.0

Lee definitely has a talent for grossing out readers with his brutal descriptions of terror and violence, but overall this particular story was too slowly paced. I have a few other Lee books on my shelf that I am eager to dig into, though. I just hope his others don't take 200 pages before it starts to get interesting.