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avidreader999's review against another edition
5.0
Strange, unsettling and absolutely genius. Narrated by Evil, it begins “DON’T READ THIS”. Evil manoeuvres his way thorough the small town of Hinton Hollow - subtly influencing the darker side of the inhabitants - and making us his confidantes and co-conspirators. A series of dark crimes ensues - murders of small boys and their mothers, suicides, animal cruelty.
shelfofunread's review against another edition
4.0
I struggled somewhat to put Will Carver’s last book, Nothing Important Happened Today, into words. It was so unique, so dark but so brilliant, so very, very unusual – and so very easy to spoil if you gave away too much.
Well, surprise surprise, I’m equally stumped as to how I’m going to review Hinton Hollow Death Trip, Carver’s follow-up to Nothing Important and the third in his Detective Sergeant Pace series. Because Carver has only gone and written ANOTHER uniquely dark and disturbing thriller with a dash of pitch-black humour and so many twists it’ll leave your head spinning.
But, before we go any further, time to talk triggers. Make no mistake, Hinton Hollow Death Trip is a DARK book. It pulls no punches in its depictions of alcohol abuse, suicide, animal cruelty, child murder, and family breakdown. I’m not usually put off by dark themes but even I found some of the incidents in Hinton Hollow extremely disturbing so if you are a reader of a sensitive disposition, or any of these topics are triggering for you, then Hinton Hollow Death Trip is not going to be the book for you.
That said, as with Nothing Important, what kept me reading through even the darkest chapters was that Carver doesn’t make his violence gratuitous. It’s not there simply to shock the reader, or to cause them to recoil in horror. Every incident, however violent, is designed to develop a character, to advance the plot, or to further make Evil’s very simple point: people have the power to destroy everything.
Yes, Hinton Hollow Death Trip is narrated by Evil. And Evil has it’s eyes on Detective Sergeant Pace. Following the events of Nothing Important Happened Today, Pace has retreated to his hometown of Hinton Hollow. But Evil has followed him. It is infecting the town, taking the petty jealousies and latent fears of the townspeople and turning them against themselves. It starts with the shocking murder of a child. Or maybe it starts with a little boy, alone on a train and far from home. Or with the elderly lady who has become the beating heart of the town. Or with the young couple, soon to be married. Or with the mothers.
I’m not going to tell you any more about Hinton Hollow Death Trip‘s plot. Unravelling it will make your brain ache by the end of the book but it’s a wild and unexpected ride, with shocking revelations coming thick and fast as the novel progresses. Trust me when I say you’re going to need a breather after this book – with it’s short, sharp chapters and direct prose it’s not complicated in a ‘difficult to read’ sense but I still needed a good few days to process the way in which the various plot strands came together, and the wider implications of the novel’s dark themes.
I worry that I’ve made Hinton Hollow Death Trip sound like a terminally depressing book. It really isn’t – in fact, there’s a strand of pitch-black humour running amidst the destruction that Evil leaves in its wake. As with Death in Marcus Zusak’s The Book Thief, Carver’s Evil is a wryly observer of the human condition, and their interventions and observations provide both poignancy and humour.
This unusual perspective does an excellent job of making you really think about the events taking place in Hinton Hollow, and how they reflect the reality of human nature. More than once during the novel, I found myself wondering what I would do in that situation, or jolted into the realisation that I was judging the characters in exactly the way that Evil was expecting them to be judged. It’s definitely a novel that will leave you wondering about morality, and that encourages you to think about the extent to which nature and nurture impact upon a person’s moral compass.
Hinton Hollow Death Trip is, arguably, one of the most unrepentantly dark books I’ve ever read, and one of the most brilliant. It’s dark, complex, original, memorable, disturbing, and mesmerising. It’s definitely not a book for everyone but, if you can handle the sinister content, you’ll discover one of the most unique books of the year.
NB: This review first appeared on my blog https://theshelfofunreadbooks.wordpress.com/ as part of the blog tour for Hinton Hollow Death Trip. My thanks go to the publisher for providing a copy of the book in return for an honest and unbiased review.
Well, surprise surprise, I’m equally stumped as to how I’m going to review Hinton Hollow Death Trip, Carver’s follow-up to Nothing Important and the third in his Detective Sergeant Pace series. Because Carver has only gone and written ANOTHER uniquely dark and disturbing thriller with a dash of pitch-black humour and so many twists it’ll leave your head spinning.
But, before we go any further, time to talk triggers. Make no mistake, Hinton Hollow Death Trip is a DARK book. It pulls no punches in its depictions of alcohol abuse, suicide, animal cruelty, child murder, and family breakdown. I’m not usually put off by dark themes but even I found some of the incidents in Hinton Hollow extremely disturbing so if you are a reader of a sensitive disposition, or any of these topics are triggering for you, then Hinton Hollow Death Trip is not going to be the book for you.
That said, as with Nothing Important, what kept me reading through even the darkest chapters was that Carver doesn’t make his violence gratuitous. It’s not there simply to shock the reader, or to cause them to recoil in horror. Every incident, however violent, is designed to develop a character, to advance the plot, or to further make Evil’s very simple point: people have the power to destroy everything.
Yes, Hinton Hollow Death Trip is narrated by Evil. And Evil has it’s eyes on Detective Sergeant Pace. Following the events of Nothing Important Happened Today, Pace has retreated to his hometown of Hinton Hollow. But Evil has followed him. It is infecting the town, taking the petty jealousies and latent fears of the townspeople and turning them against themselves. It starts with the shocking murder of a child. Or maybe it starts with a little boy, alone on a train and far from home. Or with the elderly lady who has become the beating heart of the town. Or with the young couple, soon to be married. Or with the mothers.
I’m not going to tell you any more about Hinton Hollow Death Trip‘s plot. Unravelling it will make your brain ache by the end of the book but it’s a wild and unexpected ride, with shocking revelations coming thick and fast as the novel progresses. Trust me when I say you’re going to need a breather after this book – with it’s short, sharp chapters and direct prose it’s not complicated in a ‘difficult to read’ sense but I still needed a good few days to process the way in which the various plot strands came together, and the wider implications of the novel’s dark themes.
I worry that I’ve made Hinton Hollow Death Trip sound like a terminally depressing book. It really isn’t – in fact, there’s a strand of pitch-black humour running amidst the destruction that Evil leaves in its wake. As with Death in Marcus Zusak’s The Book Thief, Carver’s Evil is a wryly observer of the human condition, and their interventions and observations provide both poignancy and humour.
This unusual perspective does an excellent job of making you really think about the events taking place in Hinton Hollow, and how they reflect the reality of human nature. More than once during the novel, I found myself wondering what I would do in that situation, or jolted into the realisation that I was judging the characters in exactly the way that Evil was expecting them to be judged. It’s definitely a novel that will leave you wondering about morality, and that encourages you to think about the extent to which nature and nurture impact upon a person’s moral compass.
Hinton Hollow Death Trip is, arguably, one of the most unrepentantly dark books I’ve ever read, and one of the most brilliant. It’s dark, complex, original, memorable, disturbing, and mesmerising. It’s definitely not a book for everyone but, if you can handle the sinister content, you’ll discover one of the most unique books of the year.
NB: This review first appeared on my blog https://theshelfofunreadbooks.wordpress.com/ as part of the blog tour for Hinton Hollow Death Trip. My thanks go to the publisher for providing a copy of the book in return for an honest and unbiased review.
amothersmusings1's review against another edition
4.0
Will Carver always guarantees to deliver a high-concept, dark, and twisted literary thriller and the third in the unique Detective Sergeant Pace series, “Hinton Hollow Death Trip” is no exception.
With a distinctive and eye catching layout, the story is instantly addictive and with interesting little snippets on most of the pages, these fitted in perfectly with the chapter you are reading and are often thought provoking on the human condition.
Uniquely recountered and narrated by Evil itself, this provided a remarkable voice to an already chilling story. Don’t think Halloween costumes or Hollywood movies, this is a faceless entity that could be a whisper, a gentle breeze, black flames on a wall or a feeling of being followed. Very chilling but I did find I endeared to Evil even though he/she is everything it’s name suggests! Evil warns the reader at the beginning to turn back there and then and I would recommend if you’re easily offended or triggered by animal cruelty or children’s deaths then I would say don’t read this book. There’s a lot of uncomfortable reading but in a surreal, entertaining way but then I like my stories to be as dark as dark can be.
Detective Pace is a bit of an enigma but if you’ve been following him through the previous two books you’ll understand his character. I loved old Mrs Beaufort, the stalwart and matriarch of the town but once Evil gets it’s hands on many of the characters with an invisible push, it changes their personality but only to what’s deep inside them to begin with.
Will Carver is well known for his inventive, sadistic, crude and often cruel imagination, so if like Evil suggests this is not for you, turn back straight away but for me, it was a highly entertaining, thought provoking read that I thoroughly enjoyed. Chilling, sinister, dark and festering, I only hope that Evil and his plans won’t pay a to visit our towns and cities anytime soon!
4 stars
Many thanks to Lovereading for my copy of the book in exchange for an honest review.
With a distinctive and eye catching layout, the story is instantly addictive and with interesting little snippets on most of the pages, these fitted in perfectly with the chapter you are reading and are often thought provoking on the human condition.
Uniquely recountered and narrated by Evil itself, this provided a remarkable voice to an already chilling story. Don’t think Halloween costumes or Hollywood movies, this is a faceless entity that could be a whisper, a gentle breeze, black flames on a wall or a feeling of being followed. Very chilling but I did find I endeared to Evil even though he/she is everything it’s name suggests! Evil warns the reader at the beginning to turn back there and then and I would recommend if you’re easily offended or triggered by animal cruelty or children’s deaths then I would say don’t read this book. There’s a lot of uncomfortable reading but in a surreal, entertaining way but then I like my stories to be as dark as dark can be.
Detective Pace is a bit of an enigma but if you’ve been following him through the previous two books you’ll understand his character. I loved old Mrs Beaufort, the stalwart and matriarch of the town but once Evil gets it’s hands on many of the characters with an invisible push, it changes their personality but only to what’s deep inside them to begin with.
Will Carver is well known for his inventive, sadistic, crude and often cruel imagination, so if like Evil suggests this is not for you, turn back straight away but for me, it was a highly entertaining, thought provoking read that I thoroughly enjoyed. Chilling, sinister, dark and festering, I only hope that Evil and his plans won’t pay a to visit our towns and cities anytime soon!
4 stars
Many thanks to Lovereading for my copy of the book in exchange for an honest review.
honestmamreader's review against another edition
4.0
Ok, I don't know how to describe this book, I don't know where to start with my thoughts. This story makes you think, it makes you take a good hard look at life and people.
Evil is the narrator of Hinton Hollow Death Trip. Such a great concept, such a weird yet dam right fantastic idea. At times I felt like I was learning a lot from Evil. It was like a self-help book Evil was dissecting the inner workings of the human mind. How we interpret good versus evil. I found myself agreeing with a lot of things that Evil had to say. Does that make me Evil? You read this book and see what you agree with.
This is my first Will Carver book, admittedly I should have read the first two Detective Pace books, but I didn't realise this was a part of a series until I'd started reading. Carver has such a unique style of writing, I found it mesmerising yet also bizarre. Like I say when reading it did feel like a self help book. But, then at times it felt like I was being lectured by Evil. To the point where Evil was judging my thoughts on the story. Telling me not to read, or telling me how to interpret the story.
Even the structure of the story is not your normal tin of the mill book. It's not set out in chapters. It's split into days, and under the days we have sub-headings. This then feels like an essay. But, I really enjoyed this style. It gave the story more substance, we were allowed to delve deeper into the plot and go through each detail with Evil guiding us along.
Hinton Hollow Death Trip is a story that will give you so much to think about, it will make you question what you know about life. It will dig deep into your psyche. It will prod your brain and say 'hey you reader, this is what you should do'
This is a masterpiece on storytelling. It's not just a begining, middle and end type of book. It's a book with meaning and thought. Evil is a genius storyteller.
Evil is the narrator of Hinton Hollow Death Trip. Such a great concept, such a weird yet dam right fantastic idea. At times I felt like I was learning a lot from Evil. It was like a self-help book Evil was dissecting the inner workings of the human mind. How we interpret good versus evil. I found myself agreeing with a lot of things that Evil had to say. Does that make me Evil? You read this book and see what you agree with.
This is my first Will Carver book, admittedly I should have read the first two Detective Pace books, but I didn't realise this was a part of a series until I'd started reading. Carver has such a unique style of writing, I found it mesmerising yet also bizarre. Like I say when reading it did feel like a self help book. But, then at times it felt like I was being lectured by Evil. To the point where Evil was judging my thoughts on the story. Telling me not to read, or telling me how to interpret the story.
Even the structure of the story is not your normal tin of the mill book. It's not set out in chapters. It's split into days, and under the days we have sub-headings. This then feels like an essay. But, I really enjoyed this style. It gave the story more substance, we were allowed to delve deeper into the plot and go through each detail with Evil guiding us along.
Hinton Hollow Death Trip is a story that will give you so much to think about, it will make you question what you know about life. It will dig deep into your psyche. It will prod your brain and say 'hey you reader, this is what you should do'
This is a masterpiece on storytelling. It's not just a begining, middle and end type of book. It's a book with meaning and thought. Evil is a genius storyteller.
vickybrewster's review against another edition
Too dark for me - and I like a dark book!
ohhek's review
dark
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
1.0
I really wanted to love this book - I thought the premise sounded genuinely novel and that I was in for a good ride. Oh dear god though. I ended up being so frustrated by the endless sanctimonious pronouncements by 'Evil' interjecting every 5 seconds. Also everything about this book seemed to want to be American noir, but its set in a small town in Berkshire (what small town in Berkshire has a diner?!).
karlou's review against another edition
5.0
Check out my blog to read a fantastic Q&A with Will Carver: https://hairpastafreckle72.blogspot.com/2020/08/hinton-hollow-death-trip-by-will-carver.html
The first thing you should know about Hinton Hollow Death Trip is that some of you will hate it. It will make you upset or angry; the language is explicit, people commit heinous acts that inflict cruel pain on others, children and animals die in shocking circumstances. It's not just me who is warning you, the omniscient narrator says so right at the beginning, advising readers to leave now, without even bothering to finish the page. And the narrator knows everything because the narrator is Evil. That's not my opinion either, this is actually Evil with a capital E in person. If, however, you love reading something different then stick around because there is nobody better than Will Carver when it comes to writing original, no holds barred fiction.
Hinton Hollow Death Trip is the third book to feature Sergeant Pace although he is only a minor character in Good Samaritans, and though his role in Nothing Important Happened Today is more significant, it isn't necessary to have read either before this one. That said, there are moments which will resonate more with returning readers and I'd highly recommend both as they are outstanding novels. Pace returns to his home town after the devastating events in his most recent case and could be excused for thinking things would be a little more settled there. Hinton Hollow is a small town between London and Oxford and is the sort of place where everybody walks rather than taking the car and where everybody seems to claim to know everybody, although perhaps only town matriarch, Mrs Beaufort can really say that. The townsfolk are soon indelibly linked however and the population of 5,120 is going to fall over the next five days because Evil has a plan.
We often hear perpetrators of horrific acts described in shocked terms as being 'just an ordinary man' and it's an Ordinary Man who brings death to Hinton Hollow. Sergeant Pace needs to find a killer but he will strike again and Evil soon ensures that almost everybody in the town is behaving differently. Meanwhile, Pace has been seeing black flames and looking over his shoulder for a long time and there's a reason why Evil has followed him. I've always been fascinated by the complex, tormented detective and he reaches both his nadir and the climax of his story so far here.
I've read Hinton Hollow Death Trip twice now and enjoyed it as much, if not more the second time even though I knew what happened because I noticed things I missed initially. The gradual revelations, the encroaching terror, the sheer weight of the tragedy all make this an intriguing read but it is so much more besides. For a start, there's that compelling, strangely likeable narrator, Evil who describes what is happening in Hinton Hollow but also explains why; as we get worse, as our average becomes good and our bad becomes terrible, the need for balance means that despite really wanting a quiet life, Evil has to become...well, more evil. It may be a bold move having Evil narrate the book but this isn't the only risk Will Carver takes and the provocative audacity of the novel means it is so much more than a straightforward crime thriller.
The structure of the book is perfect; this isn't just a linear story and Evil often interrupts the flow of the narrative with an aside about the nature of evil, a hint filled with foreboding about what is still to come, an observation on humankind or to exhort readers to examine our responses to what happens. We are shown the same event from different perspectives and even left not ever learning the full truth about certain events. The short, staccato sentences are like a finger prodding at our shoulders, no matter how uncomfortable we become, it's impossible to ignore and so we're forced to consider our own hypocrisies amidst this often damning indictment of our self-centred, contradictory, increasingly fragmented society.
The language is almost playful yet sharply perceptive with certain words -
l i e s, f e a r, h o n e s t y, g o s s i p, t r u t h, h o p e
- written with extra spaces, informing us that these small, seemingly insignificant words are where Evil is perhaps most able to present itself. The writing is beautiful, Will Carver has a wonderfully descriptive turn of phrase, bringing the town and its inhabitants vividly to life but although the story is utterly engrossing, this isn't meant to be an easy read. It does require the reader to think, to look within themselves, to assess their responses candidly and to accept they may not always like what they discover. It's not entirely bleak however, and despite the undeniably dark themes explored it still suggests that with the right will, change is achievable. It also made me cry which I wasn't expecting. This is an magnificent novel - I love it when authors take risks, I love fiction that challenges me and asks difficult questions and I love really feeling a book. Hinton Hollow Death Trip is a masterpiece.
The first thing you should know about Hinton Hollow Death Trip is that some of you will hate it. It will make you upset or angry; the language is explicit, people commit heinous acts that inflict cruel pain on others, children and animals die in shocking circumstances. It's not just me who is warning you, the omniscient narrator says so right at the beginning, advising readers to leave now, without even bothering to finish the page. And the narrator knows everything because the narrator is Evil. That's not my opinion either, this is actually Evil with a capital E in person. If, however, you love reading something different then stick around because there is nobody better than Will Carver when it comes to writing original, no holds barred fiction.
Hinton Hollow Death Trip is the third book to feature Sergeant Pace although he is only a minor character in Good Samaritans, and though his role in Nothing Important Happened Today is more significant, it isn't necessary to have read either before this one. That said, there are moments which will resonate more with returning readers and I'd highly recommend both as they are outstanding novels. Pace returns to his home town after the devastating events in his most recent case and could be excused for thinking things would be a little more settled there. Hinton Hollow is a small town between London and Oxford and is the sort of place where everybody walks rather than taking the car and where everybody seems to claim to know everybody, although perhaps only town matriarch, Mrs Beaufort can really say that. The townsfolk are soon indelibly linked however and the population of 5,120 is going to fall over the next five days because Evil has a plan.
We often hear perpetrators of horrific acts described in shocked terms as being 'just an ordinary man' and it's an Ordinary Man who brings death to Hinton Hollow. Sergeant Pace needs to find a killer but he will strike again and Evil soon ensures that almost everybody in the town is behaving differently. Meanwhile, Pace has been seeing black flames and looking over his shoulder for a long time and there's a reason why Evil has followed him. I've always been fascinated by the complex, tormented detective and he reaches both his nadir and the climax of his story so far here.
I've read Hinton Hollow Death Trip twice now and enjoyed it as much, if not more the second time even though I knew what happened because I noticed things I missed initially. The gradual revelations, the encroaching terror, the sheer weight of the tragedy all make this an intriguing read but it is so much more besides. For a start, there's that compelling, strangely likeable narrator, Evil who describes what is happening in Hinton Hollow but also explains why; as we get worse, as our average becomes good and our bad becomes terrible, the need for balance means that despite really wanting a quiet life, Evil has to become...well, more evil. It may be a bold move having Evil narrate the book but this isn't the only risk Will Carver takes and the provocative audacity of the novel means it is so much more than a straightforward crime thriller.
The structure of the book is perfect; this isn't just a linear story and Evil often interrupts the flow of the narrative with an aside about the nature of evil, a hint filled with foreboding about what is still to come, an observation on humankind or to exhort readers to examine our responses to what happens. We are shown the same event from different perspectives and even left not ever learning the full truth about certain events. The short, staccato sentences are like a finger prodding at our shoulders, no matter how uncomfortable we become, it's impossible to ignore and so we're forced to consider our own hypocrisies amidst this often damning indictment of our self-centred, contradictory, increasingly fragmented society.
The language is almost playful yet sharply perceptive with certain words -
l i e s, f e a r, h o n e s t y, g o s s i p, t r u t h, h o p e
- written with extra spaces, informing us that these small, seemingly insignificant words are where Evil is perhaps most able to present itself. The writing is beautiful, Will Carver has a wonderfully descriptive turn of phrase, bringing the town and its inhabitants vividly to life but although the story is utterly engrossing, this isn't meant to be an easy read. It does require the reader to think, to look within themselves, to assess their responses candidly and to accept they may not always like what they discover. It's not entirely bleak however, and despite the undeniably dark themes explored it still suggests that with the right will, change is achievable. It also made me cry which I wasn't expecting. This is an magnificent novel - I love it when authors take risks, I love fiction that challenges me and asks difficult questions and I love really feeling a book. Hinton Hollow Death Trip is a masterpiece.