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the_coycaterpillar_reads's review
4.0
misfits
/ˈmɪsfɪt/
noun
a person whose behaviour or attitude sets them apart from others in an uncomfortably conspicuous way: “a motley collection of social misfits”
The definition behind the word is a whole spectrum of meanings. What is your definition of normal and do you fit nicely inside it. I would probably class myself as a bit of a misfit, I don’t follow the crowd, I don’t follow trends and I’m a massive geek.
This is a story about a group of five friends, those who have never fitted in, who have never fitted into that perfect mould that society has deemed, normal. The stoners, the kids with traumatic childhoods and those who are tired of being kicked around. They are different, but does that necessarily mean that they are wrong or evil?
Chuck, Marnie, Mick, Heidi and Vent are our merry band of unlikely heroes. They are mature, they know how to support each other through the hard times. Its more than nipping down the park and swigging on cider and smoking weed. There’s an admirable comradery between them all. They accept each other, warts and all. There’s no judgement and they’ve got each other’s backs.
I’m sure at some point in all our lives we have felt like a misfit. Do we try and fight against it or just go with the flow. Hunter Shea has created a brutal tale of shifting change. A violent act changes the potential outcome of how their school career would end. Revenge is the only motive that pulses through their veins. It takes root and imprisons them until they act upon it. They need to put the universe to rights. What happens when they do? What’s lurking just beneath the surface, an old wives tale about a hideous being…
Misfits has a chilling narrative that is the supreme standard that Hunter Shea excels at. Its written to such an extent that we are given a screenshot into the characters thoughts. Sometimes we are given insight but sometimes it’s a bleak place to be. This is humanity – we try to hide the deepest part of us, a black veil if you will. However, sometimes, a glimpse is given and what happens when its finally out in the open?
Misfits is the perfect read for spooky season and I recommend every Halloween/horror fan add this to their TBR.
/ˈmɪsfɪt/
noun
a person whose behaviour or attitude sets them apart from others in an uncomfortably conspicuous way: “a motley collection of social misfits”
The definition behind the word is a whole spectrum of meanings. What is your definition of normal and do you fit nicely inside it. I would probably class myself as a bit of a misfit, I don’t follow the crowd, I don’t follow trends and I’m a massive geek.
This is a story about a group of five friends, those who have never fitted in, who have never fitted into that perfect mould that society has deemed, normal. The stoners, the kids with traumatic childhoods and those who are tired of being kicked around. They are different, but does that necessarily mean that they are wrong or evil?
Chuck, Marnie, Mick, Heidi and Vent are our merry band of unlikely heroes. They are mature, they know how to support each other through the hard times. Its more than nipping down the park and swigging on cider and smoking weed. There’s an admirable comradery between them all. They accept each other, warts and all. There’s no judgement and they’ve got each other’s backs.
I’m sure at some point in all our lives we have felt like a misfit. Do we try and fight against it or just go with the flow. Hunter Shea has created a brutal tale of shifting change. A violent act changes the potential outcome of how their school career would end. Revenge is the only motive that pulses through their veins. It takes root and imprisons them until they act upon it. They need to put the universe to rights. What happens when they do? What’s lurking just beneath the surface, an old wives tale about a hideous being…
Misfits has a chilling narrative that is the supreme standard that Hunter Shea excels at. Its written to such an extent that we are given a screenshot into the characters thoughts. Sometimes we are given insight but sometimes it’s a bleak place to be. This is humanity – we try to hide the deepest part of us, a black veil if you will. However, sometimes, a glimpse is given and what happens when its finally out in the open?
Misfits is the perfect read for spooky season and I recommend every Halloween/horror fan add this to their TBR.
pbanditp's review against another edition
4.0
Nobody goes down Dracula Drive. Legend has it that down the abandoned road is where the Melon Heads live. It isn’t worth facing the humanoid creatures on a dare, not when they will eat you alive.
After Marnie gets attacked, she has her friends get revenge on the guy who did it. They decide to bring the guy to the Melin Heads, and let them take care of the problem. Not everything goes as planned and now nobody in town is safe.
Hunter Shea is a great writer, you quickly get sucked in to the story and become attached to these characters. Hunter has a way with words and can write a tense and suspenseful situation. As you read, you can feel the hairs standing up on your neck, as if the Melon Heads are watching you.
Thank you to NetGalley and Flame Tree Press for a copy of the ebook in exchange for an honest review.
After Marnie gets attacked, she has her friends get revenge on the guy who did it. They decide to bring the guy to the Melin Heads, and let them take care of the problem. Not everything goes as planned and now nobody in town is safe.
Hunter Shea is a great writer, you quickly get sucked in to the story and become attached to these characters. Hunter has a way with words and can write a tense and suspenseful situation. As you read, you can feel the hairs standing up on your neck, as if the Melon Heads are watching you.
Thank you to NetGalley and Flame Tree Press for a copy of the ebook in exchange for an honest review.
pbanditp's review
4.0
Nobody goes down Dracula Drive. Legend has it that down the abandoned road is where the Melon Heads live. It isn’t worth facing the humanoid creatures on a dare, not when they will eat you alive.
After Marnie gets attacked, she has her friends get revenge on the guy who did it. They decide to bring the guy to the Melin Heads, and let them take care of the problem. Not everything goes as planned and now nobody in town is safe.
Hunter Shea is a great writer, you quickly get sucked in to the story and become attached to these characters. Hunter has a way with words and can write a tense and suspenseful situation. As you read, you can feel the hairs standing up on your neck, as if the Melon Heads are watching you.
Thank you to NetGalley and Flame Tree Press for a copy of the ebook in exchange for an honest review.
After Marnie gets attacked, she has her friends get revenge on the guy who did it. They decide to bring the guy to the Melin Heads, and let them take care of the problem. Not everything goes as planned and now nobody in town is safe.
Hunter Shea is a great writer, you quickly get sucked in to the story and become attached to these characters. Hunter has a way with words and can write a tense and suspenseful situation. As you read, you can feel the hairs standing up on your neck, as if the Melon Heads are watching you.
Thank you to NetGalley and Flame Tree Press for a copy of the ebook in exchange for an honest review.
scottneumann's review against another edition
dark
emotional
mysterious
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.5
bookish_satty's review
4.0
Rating: 3.5 stars! Rounded off for Goodreads.
This is my first take on a "creature feature" horror novel and I enjoyed it a lot.
We meet 5 friends (misfists) who fight against insurmountable odds to save themselves as well as their whole town againsts creatures residing in the forest nearby.
I loved the portrayal of 'die hard' friendship and loyalty as well as the fearlessness of the teenage years. Oh! How I miss those years dearly when you could take on anything and feel invincible all the time.
I loved the ending the most because it was satisfying and showed whether true friendships can stand the test of time or not and the sacrifices they make for one another.
Now coming to the horror part I think I wasn't all that much scared to be honest but I did like the constant tension and dire situations in which the friends found themselves.
Moreover the characters as individuals had little to none personality which was a major minus point for me because I often confused them for each other because they all sounded kind of the same to me.
Overall a good, quick and suspenseful read to enjoy during halloween time!
Thanks to Netgalley, Flame Tree Press and Hunter Shea (author) for giving me this opportunity to read and review this book.
This is my first take on a "creature feature" horror novel and I enjoyed it a lot.
We meet 5 friends (misfists) who fight against insurmountable odds to save themselves as well as their whole town againsts creatures residing in the forest nearby.
I loved the portrayal of 'die hard' friendship and loyalty as well as the fearlessness of the teenage years. Oh! How I miss those years dearly when you could take on anything and feel invincible all the time.
I loved the ending the most because it was satisfying and showed whether true friendships can stand the test of time or not and the sacrifices they make for one another.
Now coming to the horror part I think I wasn't all that much scared to be honest but I did like the constant tension and dire situations in which the friends found themselves.
Moreover the characters as individuals had little to none personality which was a major minus point for me because I often confused them for each other because they all sounded kind of the same to me.
Overall a good, quick and suspenseful read to enjoy during halloween time!
Thanks to Netgalley, Flame Tree Press and Hunter Shea (author) for giving me this opportunity to read and review this book.
adudek403's review
dark
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Sexual assault and Rape
morganewdw's review
4.0
Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for the early copy.
As a horror books fan, I had been hearing about Hunter Shea for so long that it’s very surprising it’s the first time I read one of his books.
It’s even more surprising when you think about how I enjoyed it!
See, there was this legend when I was a kid, about werewolves living in the woods close to my house. Absolutely terrifying and kept us from going out at night (good job, parents).
So I can totally believe the legend of the Melon Heads, and greatly enjoyed discovering how absolutely terrifying they are. Cannibalistic monsters? Sign me up!
The group of main characters is also very enjoyable – they’re antiheroes, maybe, but still, you can’t help but fall for them.
It’s sufficiently gory for a horror book and might even sometimes step into the "too gory" territory, but after all, it’s easier to miss a few lines if blood and cannibalism aren’t your things.
Overall, a enjoyable and exciting read that had me completely hooked. The only weakness, in my opinion, is the ending, which I’m not too sure about. Despite that, I’ll happily read another one of Hunter Shea’s novels!
As a horror books fan, I had been hearing about Hunter Shea for so long that it’s very surprising it’s the first time I read one of his books.
It’s even more surprising when you think about how I enjoyed it!
See, there was this legend when I was a kid, about werewolves living in the woods close to my house. Absolutely terrifying and kept us from going out at night (good job, parents).
So I can totally believe the legend of the Melon Heads, and greatly enjoyed discovering how absolutely terrifying they are. Cannibalistic monsters? Sign me up!
The group of main characters is also very enjoyable – they’re antiheroes, maybe, but still, you can’t help but fall for them.
It’s sufficiently gory for a horror book and might even sometimes step into the "too gory" territory, but after all, it’s easier to miss a few lines if blood and cannibalism aren’t your things.
Overall, a enjoyable and exciting read that had me completely hooked. The only weakness, in my opinion, is the ending, which I’m not too sure about. Despite that, I’ll happily read another one of Hunter Shea’s novels!
gothicvamperstein's review against another edition
5.0
Misfits was such a great read. I liked the revenge part in relation to Marnie's rape and in general how the aftermath was portrayed in a well written manner and not "she bounced back quickly like nothing happened".
I really liked that one got to know the characters a bit before the plot took a faster pace with more action. The book is engaging and fun read, especially if you like original horror novels with lots of gore. The more I neared the ending, the more I sat on the edge of the seat wanting to know what happened next.
Overall, I highly recommend Misfits.
I really liked that one got to know the characters a bit before the plot took a faster pace with more action. The book is engaging and fun read, especially if you like original horror novels with lots of gore. The more I neared the ending, the more I sat on the edge of the seat wanting to know what happened next.
Overall, I highly recommend Misfits.
pawswithprose's review
5.0
The opening of this book takes you to a place known as Dracula Drive and that’s when I was hooked.
Misfits is a 90s coming of age story and it’s my first Hunter Shea book. I don’t think I could have asked for a better introduction and I’m definitely going to be reading more by him. Mick, Marnie, Heidi, Vent and Chuck are misfits in Milbury and like a lot of towns, Milbury has a creepy local legend. Only this legend isn’t a haunted house or unsolved murder. This legend is the Melon Heads, feral humanoids who live in the darkest corners of the forests surrounding the town. When one of the group is brutally attacked, the group seeks out the Melon Heads as part of their plan for revenge. The plan doesn’t end well.
I loved these characters, I was completely invested in their individual stories and felt I was right there with them as the terror ramped up. Sometimes when reading horror you have to give a little creative freedom to the writer and just go with it. I’ve often shaken my head over a bad decision but not with Misfits, everything they did was believable. Setting this in the 90s was a brilliant choice, the nostalgia added to my enjoyment and the lack of technology added to the tension.
This is definitely not a story for the faint of heart but if you can handle gruesome deaths and edge of your seat tension then you’ll love it!
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
Misfits is a 90s coming of age story and it’s my first Hunter Shea book. I don’t think I could have asked for a better introduction and I’m definitely going to be reading more by him. Mick, Marnie, Heidi, Vent and Chuck are misfits in Milbury and like a lot of towns, Milbury has a creepy local legend. Only this legend isn’t a haunted house or unsolved murder. This legend is the Melon Heads, feral humanoids who live in the darkest corners of the forests surrounding the town. When one of the group is brutally attacked, the group seeks out the Melon Heads as part of their plan for revenge. The plan doesn’t end well.
I loved these characters, I was completely invested in their individual stories and felt I was right there with them as the terror ramped up. Sometimes when reading horror you have to give a little creative freedom to the writer and just go with it. I’ve often shaken my head over a bad decision but not with Misfits, everything they did was believable. Setting this in the 90s was a brilliant choice, the nostalgia added to my enjoyment and the lack of technology added to the tension.
This is definitely not a story for the faint of heart but if you can handle gruesome deaths and edge of your seat tension then you’ll love it!
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
j_reads_nightmares's review against another edition
4.0
Some urban myths are that - just myths. In Hunter Shea’s Misfits, this is a false assumption. The urban myth is not just a story parents tell their kids to behave - it is real as five teens are about to find out.
There is something about a cannibalistic, gory, creature-feature story that checks all the boxes. Not to mention the ‘90s feel. The Melon Heads are not something to mess around with and have no qualms about getting what they believe they deserve; revenge or otherwise. These creatures are not all the teens have to deal with. Other humans can be equally as monstrous. Definitely a book to check out, especially if you are building up a spooky reads TBR for Halloween.
Thanks to NetGalley, Flame Tree Press, and Hunter Shea for a copy of Misfits for an unbiased review!
There is something about a cannibalistic, gory, creature-feature story that checks all the boxes. Not to mention the ‘90s feel. The Melon Heads are not something to mess around with and have no qualms about getting what they believe they deserve; revenge or otherwise. These creatures are not all the teens have to deal with. Other humans can be equally as monstrous. Definitely a book to check out, especially if you are building up a spooky reads TBR for Halloween.
Thanks to NetGalley, Flame Tree Press, and Hunter Shea for a copy of Misfits for an unbiased review!