A review by kinglee
Breathe In, Bleed Out by Brian McAuley

dark mysterious tense fast-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

2.0

 

The thriller/horror genre is one I’ve really found myself drawn to as of late. Being absorbed into an exciting, fast-paced world was perfect and exactly what I was looking for. I couldn’t wait to have this same thrill happen with Breathe In, Bleed Out, and well… unfortunately it didn’t. 

 

This slasher struggled with what it wanted to be. Half the time when I was reading it, I was questioning whether McAuley was aiming for a camp vibe or wanting to be a little more serious with it. There would be these lines that were so over the top it felt like the author was leaning towards camp, but then none of that would return for chapters. As a reader trying to figure this out, it really pulled me out of the story time and time again. 

 

In a slasher, I never expect to like the characters. I don’t want to either! I don’t want to get attached just to watch them die a horrible death! Yet, all of these characters here were so bland that it took me to a new level of not caring enough, something I didn’t know was possible. If I’m not even hoping that one of them dies a brutal death, I think that is just too far on the other side of the pendulum. 

 

There was a simplicity to the writing that didn’t work for me. I never felt the fear or the horror, never even shock, and I think that is due to the writing doing more showing instead of telling. Everything is just happening, but not in a way that the reader feels they can experience it. I think the deaths were some of the best-written parts of the book, but even then, there still felt like there was a wall up. 

 

When it came to the ending, I stopped three pages from finishing it because it felt like there was just such a disconnect from everything. The lack of build-up to that and the amount of red herrings that were thrown in within ten pages of revealing the killer. It was infuriating, and when I finally finished it, I was thrilled to be done. 

 

Maybe as a low-budget film this would have worked, but as a novel it wasn’t thrilling by any stretch of the means. This simply just didn’t work for me.