Scan barcode
A review by aoki_reads
Playground by Aron Beauregard
5.0
This was my first time picking up an Aron Beauregard book.
"When horror isn’t quite horror anymore, it’s just normal. And when awful isn’t quite awful anymore, it’s just life."
Brilliant. Cruel. Raw. Heartbreaking. And then there’s all the packed-in, detailed gore. Playground has easily climbed into my #1 spot for splatterpunk books. The amount of world-building, character development, and attention to detail that Beauregard has implemented into such a twisted and demented story is truly top tier. I was not only consumed by the torture scenes, but the storyline was great. You meet characters you love and ones you hate. You find yourself rooting really hard for the kids. There are so many moments you may want the story to go one direction, but it shifts to something different. Do you know how many times I felt like I was on the edge of my seat? I anticipated every moment of this book! Love that.
A psychopathic heiress named Geraldine and her Nazi counterpart, Fuchs, create a death contraption disguised as a playground. Three low-income families are scouted out and chosen to test out the equipment in exchange for a lump sum of cash and the chance to have this new wave of playground equipment installed into their community. Little do any of the families know, The Playground will turn into the children’s version of Squid Game. Violence and bloodshed will quickly take over, and families will be destroyed forever.
No longer talking about the storyline, I adore Beauregard's writing style. It’s put-together and descriptive, yet disturbing. To find a splatterpunk author that can reel you in with more than the gore factor is always a plus in my book! I’ve seen many mentions of Playground being Beauregard’s longest piece of writing, so I’m very impressed. This book did not fizzle out or dry up once. I know I’ll enjoy his shorter books if I’ve enjoyed this, so I will be picking up plenty more from this guy.
This was an easy ★★★★★ stars to give, and what a book to start the year off with. I have high expectations for the other splatterpunk books I read, because this one definitely set the bar. Not going to sit here and go out of my way to recommend this novel, because it isn’t for a lot of people. But, if you’re into extreme horror and you are not easily offended, this may just be your cup of tea.
"When horror isn’t quite horror anymore, it’s just normal. And when awful isn’t quite awful anymore, it’s just life."
Brilliant. Cruel. Raw. Heartbreaking. And then there’s all the packed-in, detailed gore. Playground has easily climbed into my #1 spot for splatterpunk books. The amount of world-building, character development, and attention to detail that Beauregard has implemented into such a twisted and demented story is truly top tier. I was not only consumed by the torture scenes, but the storyline was great. You meet characters you love and ones you hate. You find yourself rooting really hard for the kids. There are so many moments you may want the story to go one direction, but it shifts to something different. Do you know how many times I felt like I was on the edge of my seat? I anticipated every moment of this book! Love that.
A psychopathic heiress named Geraldine and her Nazi counterpart, Fuchs, create a death contraption disguised as a playground. Three low-income families are scouted out and chosen to test out the equipment in exchange for a lump sum of cash and the chance to have this new wave of playground equipment installed into their community. Little do any of the families know, The Playground will turn into the children’s version of Squid Game. Violence and bloodshed will quickly take over, and families will be destroyed forever.
No longer talking about the storyline, I adore Beauregard's writing style. It’s put-together and descriptive, yet disturbing. To find a splatterpunk author that can reel you in with more than the gore factor is always a plus in my book! I’ve seen many mentions of Playground being Beauregard’s longest piece of writing, so I’m very impressed. This book did not fizzle out or dry up once. I know I’ll enjoy his shorter books if I’ve enjoyed this, so I will be picking up plenty more from this guy.
This was an easy ★★★★★ stars to give, and what a book to start the year off with. I have high expectations for the other splatterpunk books I read, because this one definitely set the bar. Not going to sit here and go out of my way to recommend this novel, because it isn’t for a lot of people. But, if you’re into extreme horror and you are not easily offended, this may just be your cup of tea.