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paulataua's review
3.0
A successful Horror writer comes across the body of a young girl while walking the dog and is suddenly thrown into a real horror scenario of his own as the police and community slowly turn against him. I loved the idea and it kept me reading, but I didn’t feel it captured the mood or built the tension as well as it might have. I felt detached throughout. Worth trying though!
thatsciencedad's review
3.0
I'm torn.
Loved the themes, hated the characters.
Loved the tight 'tension-building' writing of the first half. Hated how the second half spiraled into a funk.
A book of two halves for me.
Loved the themes, hated the characters.
Loved the tight 'tension-building' writing of the first half. Hated how the second half spiraled into a funk.
A book of two halves for me.
ccopeland28's review
3.0
This book reminded me of the Twlight Zone episode where the neighbors all suspect each other of being an alien living among the humans in disguise. Not exactly the same thing here, but the premise of human nature being the actual horror in these two horror stories is where they are similar. Good story and well written.
scparris's review
4.0
The horror that exists when those you once said 'hello' to turn on you.
It's even worse when you understand that they don't care why they've turned on you.
Anger, revenge...they turn the nicest people into monsters that are worse than anything our minds can conjure up. For one, they're real.
And that's the scariest thing of all.
Andrew Holland is the protagonist in this unsettling tale, and he's a best selling horror author - a profession his neighbors deem 'unsavory,' though they don't let him know this until he finds a dead girl's body in a construction site one morning.
The rest, as they say, is rather uncomfortable history.
Deception, death, and Andrew's own paranoia are pushed to their limits in this 'right-next-door' horror novel.
It's a solid tale of what could happen if humans feel justified in their anger - and decide they can act on it. It's the blindness of rage, of grief, and what it can propel us to if closure is never found.
It's a sad tale, a horrible tale (in the best sense), and it's horror in a terrible-pit-of-your-gut feeling - it's ANIMOSITY. It's by James Newman.
And it's damn good.
It's even worse when you understand that they don't care why they've turned on you.
Anger, revenge...they turn the nicest people into monsters that are worse than anything our minds can conjure up. For one, they're real.
And that's the scariest thing of all.
Andrew Holland is the protagonist in this unsettling tale, and he's a best selling horror author - a profession his neighbors deem 'unsavory,' though they don't let him know this until he finds a dead girl's body in a construction site one morning.
The rest, as they say, is rather uncomfortable history.
Deception, death, and Andrew's own paranoia are pushed to their limits in this 'right-next-door' horror novel.
It's a solid tale of what could happen if humans feel justified in their anger - and decide they can act on it. It's the blindness of rage, of grief, and what it can propel us to if closure is never found.
It's a sad tale, a horrible tale (in the best sense), and it's horror in a terrible-pit-of-your-gut feeling - it's ANIMOSITY. It's by James Newman.
And it's damn good.
charshorrorcorner's review against another edition
5.0
I don't even know what to say. I'm moved, I'm pissed off, and I'm shaken. This was a powerful tale.
A brutal story made even more so by the fact that it could (mostly) happen. A child's dead body is discovered by a horror author. From then on, his life will never be the same.
There are many levels here, from a fearless look at mob mentality to a scathing commentary on the sad state of our media. All combining into a monumental explosion of a denouement. The only issue I had was that the story went just a little over the top, as far as being realistic, but by that time, I was too caught up in the drama to care.
Be prepared for a rough ride because Mr. Newman knows all of our buttons, and he pushes every single one of them. Can you handle this kind of Animosity? Come on, I dare you.
My highest recommendation!
I received a free copy of this novel in exchange for my honest review and this is it.
A brutal story made even more so by the fact that it could (mostly) happen. A child's dead body is discovered by a horror author. From then on, his life will never be the same.
There are many levels here, from a fearless look at mob mentality to a scathing commentary on the sad state of our media. All combining into a monumental explosion of a denouement. The only issue I had was that the story went just a little over the top, as far as being realistic, but by that time, I was too caught up in the drama to care.
Be prepared for a rough ride because Mr. Newman knows all of our buttons, and he pushes every single one of them. Can you handle this kind of Animosity? Come on, I dare you.
My highest recommendation!
I received a free copy of this novel in exchange for my honest review and this is it.
findingmontauk1's review against another edition
5.0
I lucked out again and this awesome author sent me a free copy of this book for an honest review. This is my second book by Newman and while it was different than Odd Man Out, there were some things that were similar: crowd psychology and social norms, the monsters that live inside us, and just sheer fear and terror. I found that the more of this book I read, the faster I was turning the pages. It's almost as if my excitement, anxiety, and fear were all linked to the main character's as his story unfolded. People are just assholes. Conformity can lead to bad decisions. And you can find hope in the last place on earth you'd think to look. Another 5-star review from me for James Newman. I am officially a fan for life!
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