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dantastic's review against another edition
5.0
The town of Gethsemane, Ohio, is rocked by a string of suicides that some are calling The Suicide Virus. Meanwhile, troubled young teenager Steven Wrigley meets the girl of his dreams. But does his new lady love have some sort of connection to the suicide plague?
Some people seem to be afraid of the bizarro genre, thinking it's full of things like talking penises running for president, super heroes wielding magical dildos, people having sex with fruit, and pieces of furniture having sex with one another. While this is certainly true in some cases, it is not always the case. I like to think of the bizarro as writers writing what they feel like without the constraints of a conventional publisher. This book is a perfect example.
The Sorrow King is a chilling tale of a demon-like creature, the Sorrow King, that drives teenagers to commit suicide so that it can feed on their misery and the misery their deaths cause. Andersen Prunty does a great job maintaining a creepy mood throughout as the Sorrow King tempts his victims. Up until a huge twist near the end, I could easily see the Sorrow King coming from a major publishing house. Then came the twist, which I couldn't see any major publishing house putting out. I'm not going to divulge any more plot information at this time. I already feel like the back cover gives away a little too much.
The characters of Steven and his father are very well done. I liked the interplay between them as it nicely summed up their relationship, more like friends than father and son. The character of Elise could have used a bit more developing but I bought Steven falling for her so fast. After all, I was a hormone-driven teenage boy once.
Andersen Prunty's writing continues to impress me. I enjoyed Zerostrata quite a bit and, while it's a completely different kind of book, I enjoyed The Sorrow King even more. I almost wish I would have saved it until Halloween.
To sum things up, The Sorrow King is one the best bizarro books I've read so far and I recommend it to all the Bizarro-curious (or Bi-curious, as Steve Lowe calls them) readers out there.
Some people seem to be afraid of the bizarro genre, thinking it's full of things like talking penises running for president, super heroes wielding magical dildos, people having sex with fruit, and pieces of furniture having sex with one another. While this is certainly true in some cases, it is not always the case. I like to think of the bizarro as writers writing what they feel like without the constraints of a conventional publisher. This book is a perfect example.
The Sorrow King is a chilling tale of a demon-like creature, the Sorrow King, that drives teenagers to commit suicide so that it can feed on their misery and the misery their deaths cause. Andersen Prunty does a great job maintaining a creepy mood throughout as the Sorrow King tempts his victims. Up until a huge twist near the end, I could easily see the Sorrow King coming from a major publishing house. Then came the twist, which I couldn't see any major publishing house putting out. I'm not going to divulge any more plot information at this time. I already feel like the back cover gives away a little too much.
The characters of Steven and his father are very well done. I liked the interplay between them as it nicely summed up their relationship, more like friends than father and son. The character of Elise could have used a bit more developing but I bought Steven falling for her so fast. After all, I was a hormone-driven teenage boy once.
Andersen Prunty's writing continues to impress me. I enjoyed Zerostrata quite a bit and, while it's a completely different kind of book, I enjoyed The Sorrow King even more. I almost wish I would have saved it until Halloween.
To sum things up, The Sorrow King is one the best bizarro books I've read so far and I recommend it to all the Bizarro-curious (or Bi-curious, as Steve Lowe calls them) readers out there.
trudilibrarian's review against another edition
3.0
OCTOBER COUNTRY 2013 - #1
First of all, there are some fantastic four and five star reviews available that really sell the merits of this book's accomplishments in mood and story. But it's this review that most closely captures my reading experience of it.
What can I say? I like my horror to hit the lizard part of my brain, rather than the mysterious, atmospheric-laden kind that's literary and beautiful, yes, but misses my lizard brain altogether and goes right for the higher thinking part. I'm not opposed to literary horror -- some of it can be quite effective and evocative -- but it's not my favorite, it's not what I seek out, and it's not what I tend to remember. The best horror combines the elements of both, succeeding not only in a literary sense, but in attacking that primal part of our brain that feels and reacts rather than thinks and considers.
In the Afterword to his collection of novellas [b:Full Dark, No Stars|7912007|Full Dark, No Stars|Stephen King|https://d202m5krfqbpi5.cloudfront.net/books/1327892855s/7912007.jpg|11067830], Stephen King writes:
Aspects of The Sorrow King tickled my lizard brain, but like Elise's time spent in the Obscura, or Steven's long midnight walks, it's more a tale constructed out of dreams and moods, colors and sounds. Don't get me wrong -- things really do happen, frightening things accompanied by disturbing imagery -- I just feel like I spent too much time in my head while reading this one, and not enough time looking over my shoulder for the monster creeping up behind me.
First of all, there are some fantastic four and five star reviews available that really sell the merits of this book's accomplishments in mood and story. But it's this review that most closely captures my reading experience of it.
What can I say? I like my horror to hit the lizard part of my brain, rather than the mysterious, atmospheric-laden kind that's literary and beautiful, yes, but misses my lizard brain altogether and goes right for the higher thinking part. I'm not opposed to literary horror -- some of it can be quite effective and evocative -- but it's not my favorite, it's not what I seek out, and it's not what I tend to remember. The best horror combines the elements of both, succeeding not only in a literary sense, but in attacking that primal part of our brain that feels and reacts rather than thinks and considers.
In the Afterword to his collection of novellas [b:Full Dark, No Stars|7912007|Full Dark, No Stars|Stephen King|https://d202m5krfqbpi5.cloudfront.net/books/1327892855s/7912007.jpg|11067830], Stephen King writes:
I want to provoke an emotional, even visceral, reaction in my readers. Making them think as they read is not my deal...if the tale is good enough and the characters vivid enough, thinking will supplant emotion [only] when the tale has been told and the book set aside.As a reader of horror, that's the experience I'm seeking first and foremost. I want to be made to feel on an instinctual level of 'fight or flight'. The cerebral stuff is for another time and place.
Aspects of The Sorrow King tickled my lizard brain, but like Elise's time spent in the Obscura, or Steven's long midnight walks, it's more a tale constructed out of dreams and moods, colors and sounds. Don't get me wrong -- things really do happen, frightening things accompanied by disturbing imagery -- I just feel like I spent too much time in my head while reading this one, and not enough time looking over my shoulder for the monster creeping up behind me.
booksdogsandjess's review against another edition
3.0
I tried, but maybe this was just not my bag?
If we broke the elements of the story into parts I got most of them, there is a teenage boy who is lonely and a bit depressed, got it, there is a pretty girl with a secret, got it,
there is a surge in teen suicide in the past few weeks, got it,
there is a realm called the Obscura where you can feel power and happiness, but is also connected to cloud formation….
Yes what? I just could not for whatever reason get into the flow of this book and fully ..understand what the Obscura was and the dynamics in play. This book is 211 pages and it took me 2 weeks to finish, I just did not get into it all.
Also there were bugs, I do not do bugs, they creep me the fuck out. There is a character Mary in the Sorrow King who at one point hears a scuttle and turns to see a substantial spider run and hide behind a box. The proper course of action is to not “try to ignore it”, that will not end well. My advice to Mary is a little more like this..
Spiders are not be trusted…ever
There is a story within the story that was cool, The Jackthief. It was very creepy. I like creepy and suspense, rather then out and out gross. Which was my issue with The Sorrow King just a bit too yucky for my tastes.
If we broke the elements of the story into parts I got most of them, there is a teenage boy who is lonely and a bit depressed, got it, there is a pretty girl with a secret, got it,
there is a surge in teen suicide in the past few weeks, got it,
there is a realm called the Obscura where you can feel power and happiness, but is also connected to cloud formation….
Yes what? I just could not for whatever reason get into the flow of this book and fully ..understand what the Obscura was and the dynamics in play. This book is 211 pages and it took me 2 weeks to finish, I just did not get into it all.
Also there were bugs, I do not do bugs, they creep me the fuck out. There is a character Mary in the Sorrow King who at one point hears a scuttle and turns to see a substantial spider run and hide behind a box. The proper course of action is to not “try to ignore it”, that will not end well. My advice to Mary is a little more like this..
Spiders are not be trusted…ever
There is a story within the story that was cool, The Jackthief. It was very creepy. I like creepy and suspense, rather then out and out gross. Which was my issue with The Sorrow King just a bit too yucky for my tastes.
adunnells's review against another edition
dark
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
5.0
liamunderwood's review against another edition
2.0
I seem to have accidentally started a tradition where, whenever I go on holiday, I take a bizarro book (or two) with me. Last year when I visited Croatia I read HELP! A Bear is Eating Me! (it was... ok) and Apeshit (far more enjoyable), and this year when visiting Austria for a weekend of skiing I took The Sorrow King. Unfortunately, I found this to be more in the vein of HELP! A Bear is Eating Me! and came away from The Sorrow King feeling it was just ok. There are flashes of greatness in this book, usually when author Andersen Prunty leans more into the horror, but overall I never found myself massively gripped and eager to read what happens next. The premise is interesting, but the elements that most piqued my curiosity are often overlooked or left (presumably deliberately) ambiguous. I don't really know exactly what I was expecting from this - hell, I never know what to expect from bizarro having only read literally just three of them now - but I was hoping it'd be more.... enjoyable is the wrong word, but better. Yes. More better, please.
2/5
2/5
macbean221b's review against another edition
4.0
Well, that was weird. But really good weird. A lot of bizarro fiction is really out there, but this was a bit milder. You can almost imagine it actually happening. And the concept -- a 'suicide virus,' even though it's one caused by a supernatural being -- is a really disturbing thought.
I also like the way the author writes. Often, authors will try to Tell A Story -- they're trying to get a point across to the reader, whether it's a moral lesson or just "Look at me! I'm a really good writer!" I hate that. This book just felt like the author was telling a story -- like we'd sat down across from each other and he was casually telling me about some bad stuff that once happened to a little town in Ohio.
I have to admit that it's entirely possible that I enjoyed this book so much because the last two books I'd read were extremely disappointing. But the fact remains that I did like it; I lost sleep because I couldn't stand to put it down.
I also like the way the author writes. Often, authors will try to Tell A Story -- they're trying to get a point across to the reader, whether it's a moral lesson or just "Look at me! I'm a really good writer!" I hate that. This book just felt like the author was telling a story -- like we'd sat down across from each other and he was casually telling me about some bad stuff that once happened to a little town in Ohio.
I have to admit that it's entirely possible that I enjoyed this book so much because the last two books I'd read were extremely disappointing. But the fact remains that I did like it; I lost sleep because I couldn't stand to put it down.
myiachristine's review against another edition
DNF
I just...couldn't do it. No disrespect to Andersen Prunty, but his narration wasn't something I could tolerate. He sounds so bored and tired, despite the fact that he's literally reading his own work. I may try to push through, as the premise so far seems quite interesting, but I think I'll try another format next time. If I do, I'll happily change my rating and update my review.
I just...couldn't do it. No disrespect to Andersen Prunty, but his narration wasn't something I could tolerate. He sounds so bored and tired, despite the fact that he's literally reading his own work. I may try to push through, as the premise so far seems quite interesting, but I think I'll try another format next time. If I do, I'll happily change my rating and update my review.
chemistreadingonthejob's review against another edition
4.0
The sorrow king really surprised me. I was imagining some same ole book on how horrible life is yada yada. Instead I got an amazing story basically about this regular teenager whose mother died and has a bad time talking to his dad. He starts to fall in love with a depressed teenage girl. She wants to be all alone so everytime she moves she builds an obscura. A place where she feels at peace. She has no idea that the sorrow king has chosen her to help with his evil plans. All over town kids drop dead from "suicides" and whats more sorrowful than children dying?
Who is the sorrow king?
He carved from wood and bone.
He smells like wax, dead leaves, and memories.
He travels by moonlight and drinks the sorrow of others.
I won this book on the goodreads giveaway and it was a totally worth the read!
Who is the sorrow king?
He carved from wood and bone.
He smells like wax, dead leaves, and memories.
He travels by moonlight and drinks the sorrow of others.
I won this book on the goodreads giveaway and it was a totally worth the read!
ashley__reads's review against another edition
5.0
This really reminded me of an episode of Black Mirror and I am HERE for this.
madarauchiha's review
dark
emotional
sad
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? Yes
0.75
❤️ 🧡 💛 💚 💙 💜 my about / byf / CW info carrd: uchiha-madara 💜 💙 💚 💛 🧡 ❤️
Eh, idk. It was a lot to take in. Very sad, tedious country small town, and sad bad things happening in it. I don't really care for it. specificallybecause you can really tell it's a cishet male author and goddam is he tactless and shitty about heavy topics. It felt like he was trying to smash every edgy grimdark concept he could into this book. It took like, and hour to read.
“I don’t know. The night air feels nice sometimes. Sometimes I feel claustrophobic in my house. My parents fight a lot. My stepmom’s kind of a bitch. And then they like to have make-up sex and I guess they either think I don’t know what’s going on or I’m old enough to handle it. Anyway, it kind of grosses me out and makes me feel uncomfortable, so I go outside. Don’t you think that’s funny?”
This is the incestuous part.
▪ Maybe when she was older she could find someone she could confide in but she was only fifteen and still had a lot of growing up to do.
The female mc's age. Idk how old the other male mc is and I don't care enough to crack open the epub again.
minor antiblack racism, date rape, fatphobia, rape
medium ableist c slur five times in book, alcohol use, anti homeless sentiment, body horror, bullying, cancer, classism, date rape, drug use smoking tobacco, excrement, grooming, homophobic q slur once, infertility, infidelity, nazi mention, parental death, pedophilia, rape, sexual abuse, suicide ideation
major ableism, animal death, asphyxiation, body horror, car crashes, child abuse, child death, confinement, death, drug use smoking tobacco, gore, grief, gun violence, homophobia, incest, kidnapping, medical content, mental illness, necrophilia, rape, rape by deception, cis male rape, sexual content, spiders, suicide, suicide attempt, torture, unreality, unsanitary, violence
Eh, idk. It was a lot to take in. Very sad, tedious country small town, and sad bad things happening in it. I don't really care for it. specificallybecause you can really tell it's a cishet male author and goddam is he tactless and shitty about heavy topics. It felt like he was trying to smash every edgy grimdark concept he could into this book. It took like, and hour to read.
This is the incestuous part.
▪ Maybe when she was older she could find someone she could confide in but she was only fifteen and still had a lot of growing up to do.
The female mc's age. Idk how old the other male mc is and I don't care enough to crack open the epub again.
minor antiblack racism, date rape, fatphobia, rape
medium ableist c slur five times in book, alcohol use, anti homeless sentiment, body horror, bullying, cancer, classism, date rape, drug use smoking tobacco, excrement, grooming, homophobic q slur once, infertility, infidelity, nazi mention, parental death, pedophilia, rape, sexual abuse, suicide ideation
major ableism, animal death, asphyxiation, body horror, car crashes, child abuse, child death, confinement, death, drug use smoking tobacco, gore, grief, gun violence, homophobia, incest, kidnapping, medical content, mental illness, necrophilia, rape, rape by deception, cis male rape, sexual content, spiders, suicide, suicide attempt, torture, unreality, unsanitary, violence
Content Warnings
Graphic: Ableism, Animal death, Body horror, Car accident, Child abuse, Child death, Confinement, Death, Drug use, Gore, Grief, Gun violence, Homophobia, Incest, Kidnapping, Medical content, Mental illness, Rape, Sexual assault, Sexual violence, Suicide, Suicide attempt, Suicidal thoughts, Violence, and Torture
Moderate: Ableism, Alcohol, Body horror, Bullying, Cancer, Sexual assault, Sexual violence, Homophobia, Infertility, Infidelity, Death of parent, Pedophilia, Rape, Suicidal thoughts, and Suicide
Minor: Racism, Rape, and Fatphobia