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3.41 AVERAGE
3.41 AVERAGE
I really enjoyed this so much and it freaked me out!
Daphne is a very intense, very personal novel wrapped in the the trappings of a slasher story that it wears more like a cloak than a full garment. The horror is there. The death. But the stories of the girls in danger pass like kaleidoscope images. The focus is inward, fears and dreams, tricks and promises. I
The most frightening thing about this book is not that there is a monster, or that young girls are in danger. It’s in the things Josh Malerman is teaching you without letting on. You can do anything with your life. Every parent’s promise. Every teacher’s mantra. Take it a step further. Anyone can stop what they are doing at any time, and do whatever they want with their life, because it’s nothing but a string of choices, bouts of weakness and willpower… a thing with no stability at all. Your parents. Your teachers. Nothing but the smoke and mirrors of the ‘real world’ holding them back.
Forget about the seven foot specter with ham hands and heavy metal patches. Forget about the muscle car and the graffiti. Forget because everyone does, and no one is supposed to be thinking about any of that.
Daphne is a novel that reminds me of a trick Peter Straub plays on readers. You get your story, but there are layers, and the story can be just a slasher tale to amuse those not thinking too hard about it, and something altogether different to another sort of reader. Those two readers might talk about the book, and walk away baffled by the other’s response.
Daphne is also one of the most powerful stories I’ve read in a long time, more evidence that there is no line between genre and literature, except in the minds and conceits of readers. And make no mistake, this will touch you, and make you think, and you should not. You should not think about Daphne… and you should not speak of her. And most importantly, if you ask a question, word it carefully and be ready for the answer, because most questions only have one.
Don’t miss this one.
The most frightening thing about this book is not that there is a monster, or that young girls are in danger. It’s in the things Josh Malerman is teaching you without letting on. You can do anything with your life. Every parent’s promise. Every teacher’s mantra. Take it a step further. Anyone can stop what they are doing at any time, and do whatever they want with their life, because it’s nothing but a string of choices, bouts of weakness and willpower… a thing with no stability at all. Your parents. Your teachers. Nothing but the smoke and mirrors of the ‘real world’ holding them back.
Forget about the seven foot specter with ham hands and heavy metal patches. Forget about the muscle car and the graffiti. Forget because everyone does, and no one is supposed to be thinking about any of that.
Daphne is a novel that reminds me of a trick Peter Straub plays on readers. You get your story, but there are layers, and the story can be just a slasher tale to amuse those not thinking too hard about it, and something altogether different to another sort of reader. Those two readers might talk about the book, and walk away baffled by the other’s response.
Daphne is also one of the most powerful stories I’ve read in a long time, more evidence that there is no line between genre and literature, except in the minds and conceits of readers. And make no mistake, this will touch you, and make you think, and you should not. You should not think about Daphne… and you should not speak of her. And most importantly, if you ask a question, word it carefully and be ready for the answer, because most questions only have one.
Don’t miss this one.
emotional
mysterious
tense
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
Although Josh Malerman loves to play around in different genres, he is always at his best when he leans into proper horror. Daphne is classic, late 20th century horror at its finest, and it's the best thing Malerman has written in years.
Daphne is a terrifying, 7ft. tall boogeyman (boogeywoman?), and seldom-spoken-of urban legend to the people of Samhattan, MI. She's two parts Freddie Kruger, one part Michael Myers. And if you think too hard about her, she kills you.
This is also a story of a young girl trying to deal with an anxiety disorder. Our protagonist, Kit, is suffering from a lot of anxiety (and probably OCD as well, but they don't say that on-page). The terrible thing about anxiety is that if something is causing you a lot of anxiety--such as a super-creepy urban legend about a 7ft. tall woman who kills people, and maybe eats children?--it's hard to stop thinking about it, and that can be problematic when creepy urban legend in question feeds off of people thinking about her.
Daphne is a terrifying, 7ft. tall boogeyman (boogeywoman?), and seldom-spoken-of urban legend to the people of Samhattan, MI. She's two parts Freddie Kruger, one part Michael Myers. And if you think too hard about her, she kills you.
This is also a story of a young girl trying to deal with an anxiety disorder. Our protagonist, Kit, is suffering from a lot of anxiety (and probably OCD as well, but they don't say that on-page). The terrible thing about anxiety is that if something is causing you a lot of anxiety--such as a super-creepy urban legend about a 7ft. tall woman who kills people, and maybe eats children?--it's hard to stop thinking about it, and that can be problematic when creepy urban legend in question feeds off of people thinking about her.
challenging
hopeful
mysterious
tense
fast-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:
Complicated
dark
mysterious
tense
fast-paced
dark
emotional
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
challenging
dark
emotional
mysterious
tense
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
N/A
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
This was so painful to read. I got 50 pages in and decided that author has never met a teenage girl before.