Scan barcode
A review by rubeusbeaky
Inspection by Josh Malerman
3.0
I'm not sure how to look at this book... It stars children, but is not a children's book, anymore than Logan was a movie meant for children just because it had superkids in it... But if not a children's book, then what? Is this a modern gothic horror story? A parody of the revenge genre? A parable? I can't tell if the author wants me to feel afraid, disgusted, or exultant by the end of the book.
It had wonderful storytelling for 95% of the book. Sometimes the stream-of-consciousness style was confusing for me, but it was artful and purposeful, and there were many passages which stood out as beautiful/universal to me.
But the end happens so swiftly, and almost unexpectedly, that it changed my opinion of the book as a whole. With everything that happens right at the finale... it almost feels like the author is saying, "But see, the bad guys were right!" That's unsettling, the idea that the author actually sides with his villains, and this story is somehow a morality tale?
It's a piece which can be talked about and analyzed, for sure, it's not an ending which makes the story worthless. It's just... hard to process. Confusing.
It had wonderful storytelling for 95% of the book. Sometimes the stream-of-consciousness style was confusing for me, but it was artful and purposeful, and there were many passages which stood out as beautiful/universal to me.
But the end happens so swiftly, and almost unexpectedly, that it changed my opinion of the book as a whole. With everything that happens right at the finale... it almost feels like the author is saying, "But see, the bad guys were right!" That's unsettling, the idea that the author actually sides with his villains, and this story is somehow a morality tale?
It's a piece which can be talked about and analyzed, for sure, it's not an ending which makes the story worthless. It's just... hard to process. Confusing.