THE WRITHING SKIES is an absolute fever dream of a novella. I’m still not sure what actually happened, but I’m not disappointed about it either. It haTHE WRITHING SKIES is an absolute fever dream of a novella. I’m still not sure what actually happened, but I’m not disappointed about it either. It had me completely wrapped up in its tentacles, titillated and horrified at the same time. It did its job in both departments there.
When the story starts, you’re dropped into the middle of everything, and it’s not clear whether what’s happening is really happening or Sarah is mentally unstable and having some kind of breakdown. Considering where the plot circles back to, that’s still not off the table, especially with how everything plays out.
Honestly, I’m still not convinced this story didn’t happen entirely in Sarah’s mind and these are the last electric pulses of a dying brain. It really could be that or something that really did happen. I think that’s a testament to Rocksteady’s skill in leaving you satisfied with the ending without really knowing if it happened or not.
The body horror is top notch. Explicit enough that you really know what’s happening to who and where, but not detailed to the point of nausea. At least for me, and I’m not a gore person. There’s enough to horrify you without making you want to vomit, if that’s your bag. I definitely wouldn’t call this extreme horror, if you need a better goalpost for that.
The writing is mostly stream of consciousness, but it utilized commas liberally. Initially I wondered if it was bad editing, but the more I read the more the words flowed with Sarah’s thought process. Normally I don’t like stream of consciousness writing, but in many other instances it doesn’t use punctuation at all. Not the case here, which jived well with my brain. With that being said, I think the stream of consciousness did lend itself to a number of editorial slips. I found a number of random apostrophes scattered throughout the book that didn’t look to be purposely stylistic or serve any real purpose. Unless I’m missing something.
At the end of the day, THE WRITHING SKIES is exactly what I was looking for with erotic horror. Well, maybe it’s a little weirder than what I was looking for, but it ended up fitting the bill nicely.
Holy moly, did this book creep up on me, in the best ways possible. Gorgeously gothic and atmospheric, the world is a slow build of horror that culminHoly moly, did this book creep up on me, in the best ways possible. Gorgeously gothic and atmospheric, the world is a slow build of horror that culminates in a head-spinning fireball of an ending. Literally.
Right from page one you know this is gothic horror. From the land the people live on to the house itself, and you know, the funeral of the opening scene, you know this is not going to be a light story. Just what my black heart desires.
I’m not gonna lie though, I did question the purpose of the world for about half the book. It’s a very nice world, but I couldn’t help asking myself why wasn’t this just set in am ambiguous, Englishy area of our world in the past? WAIT FOR IT. It’s a slow weave, but everything does come together.
But that’s also a testament to the writing too. It’s beautiful without being florid, completely immersive, and horribly haunting. It’s everything I would want in a gothic story. It reaches out for you instead of pushes you away. As someone who LOVES worldbuilding, in a less well-written book I probably would have been turned off, but HOUSE OF SALT AND SORROWS kept drawing me in.
On top of that it’s fantasy horror. I haven’t read too much of this, if anything at all that I can think of. It’s glorious and the world needs more of it. It’s like fantasy world folk horror and I’m here for this.
I loved Annaleigh and yet again, a testament to Craig’s writing in how turned around I felt by the end of it all. I LOVE it when books do that. Spin my head right ’round! I was seriously questioning what was real and what wasn’t right along with Annaleigh.
HOUSE OF SALT AND SORROWS is also creepy as hell. Not only do you have the creepy gothic mansion, you have creepy things that may or may not be lurking in the bath water, or in the shadows, or in the catacombs. The ambiance of the story was absolutely wonderful. Everything my horror-loving heart desires.
What a freakishly fantastic addition to YA horror. It’s so different yet so recognizable and so utterly devious and creepy. Exactly what I’m looking for in a YA horror read. I can’t wait to read more by Craig!
5
I received a copy of this book from the publisher through a giveaway opportunity....more
A big thanks to Chuck himself for sending me BLACKBIRDS because I’m a dolt and kept buying later books in the series without effing paying attending tA big thanks to Chuck himself for sending me BLACKBIRDS because I’m a dolt and kept buying later books in the series without effing paying attending to which title I was buying and ultimately amassing a pile of Miriam Black books but NOT HAVING THE FIRST ONE. So thank you again, Chuck.
Being a fairly regular reader of Chuck’s blog, Terrible Minds, I’ve become used to him having a certain tone, mainly snarky and combining various bodily functions, food types and swears to make these hybrid, Transformer-like expletives that I immediately want to introduce to my own lexicon. With that being said, BLACKBIRDS is exactly the book I thought Chuck would write and I loved it as much as I hoped.
The tone is pithy and dirty and snarly and paints a vivid picture all on its own. Add in the characters that are both somewhat caricatures yet so grounded in reality it’s hard to not picture them as real and you get a story that kicks you in the teeth by the end of it.
Miriam is rather . . . damaged, to put it nicely. She sees pre-dead people and it kind of messes with her head. Really, she takes it better than what I think a lot of people would but it’s not without its consequences. And there are a lot. She gets herself into some messes and she’s quickly spiraling down into nothingness but the story wouldn’t be complete without a meth-adled sidekick and Ozzy and Harriet Do Grand Theft Solar Plexus. Read the book. That’ll make more sense once you do. All of these characters are just slightly over the top that you can somewhat laugh at them but it’s more of a nervous laugh because they’re serious too but like when Joe Pesce laughs you don’t know whether it’s ha ha funny or ha ha bullet in the face.
I like Miriam. I do. She’s stubbornly imperfect and makes mistakes that she quickly regrets but she’s also pretty accepting of fate. She’s mostly consigned to the fact that it is what it is but damn it all if she’s supposed to be somewhere when it happens then come hell or broken face she’ll get herself there. She’s street smart after years of living it all but that’s not to say she doesn’t get her ass handed to her. And how.
The story is a weird mesh of out-there situations and real grounded emotions. It reminds me a little bit of Sean Beaudoin’s work but where his is, for the most part, a total mind fuck, Chuck’s is more realistic and sometimes it makes you question whether you’ve been roofied. Not all the time. Just some of it. It’s actually a pretty good balance nestled firmly centered on a scale of Reservoir Dogs to Fight Club.
Lucky me I have the next two in the series on hand! Hooray! No waiting. I want to see where Chuck takes the story. It was kind of effed up in BLACKBIRDS. I want to see how much more twisted it can get. Because, you know, carpet noodle.
Curiosity Quills, publisher of my beloved STEIN & CANDLE books, had a sale around the new year but the titles weren’t availableHow did we end up here?
Curiosity Quills, publisher of my beloved STEIN & CANDLE books, had a sale around the new year but the titles weren’t available for me to buy for my device. An email later and I had a pile of digital books in my inbox, THE LAST CONDO BOARD OF THE APOCALYPSE being one of them.
I like funky books. Sean Beaudoin is one of my favorite residents of Funky Town and his books span the gamut from total mind fuck to quirktastic. So yeah, LAST CONDO sounded a bit out there but I like that kind of thing so I figured why not give it a try?
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Yeah. It was a bit TOO out there for me. Really, it was a veritable abortion of ideas onto the page and it seemed like the author had a really hard time zeroing in on any one thing. The plot had ADHD with its own elements, getting distracted by each shiny (feathery, slimly, whatever) new object that kept crossing its path, detracting it from its ultimate goal.
The book opens up to a scene that is ultimately irrelevant to the greater plot but is meant to set the tone for what Kelly does. Except the characters, the circumstances and the setting were so incredibly outlandish that I didn’t know what was going on until it was over. Something about a sad cowboy painting and some kind of animal looking for its return. I don’t know. And then the “plot” started getting going with Kelly’s assignment but, like I said, every turn she made she was distracted by something. Like the author wanted to get in as much quirk as humanly possible so instead of putting her character’s nose to the grindstone it was “OH LOOK! Something new! Let’s focus here for a moment . . .” It got annoying fast and I quickly lost my patience with trying to get everything straight. I lasted about 45 pages before I gave up trying to keep it all together.
It really just felt like it was trying too hard. It kept screaming I AM QUIRKY! LOOK AT ME! LOOK HOW QUIRKY I AM! I think I would have liked it more had it not been so outlandish and over-the-top ridiculous. I can dig quirk and noir and funk but authors need to be careful because that line can be toed really easily. It was kicked here....more
There really isn't much that Sean Beaudoin can do wrong. His novels have a definitive signature that screams THIS IS SEAN BEAUDOIN. It usually involveThere really isn't much that Sean Beaudoin can do wrong. His novels have a definitive signature that screams THIS IS SEAN BEAUDOIN. It usually involves some level of noir, exceptional find-fuckage and a snarky cynicism that is like the brand of Sean on all of his books. THE INFECTS fit nice and snugly into this mould although I have to say it's the least mind-fucked of the SB books I've read. In fact it was downright tame in comparison to the likes of FADE TO BLUE. But that doesn't mean it was bad.
Yes, THE INFECTS is a zombie novel but it's not your standard zombie novel. It's not really a world-wide pandemic of zombie proportions and the zombies have a habit of evolving, thinking, picking the more favorable pieces of your body to eat as opposed to just chomping at random. There are different levels of infected, from the full-on zombie to something a little more human to a lot more human to total meat sack meal. This isn't a simple zombie novel despite the humor that Sean involves. Yes, it's funny, but he's taken zombie lore and expanded it to something a bit more terrifying than just having to deal with your regular ol' shambling zombies.
Of course THE INFECTS has all the seriousness of a Simon Pegg movie, background events being carried out in a rather hilarious background humor fashion while the SERIOUS things happen in the foreground. Never mind the guy running around with a severed arm in his mouth. WHAT'S FOR LUNCH? It is truly a Sean Beaudoin novel for that reason, along with the demented reality that takes it that many more steps away from being grounded. It's not just a chicken restaurant but it's what everyone thinks of when they think of a chicken restaurant, the menu showcasing full servings for fried random chicken parts and a chicken surprise pack with some kind of unhealthy gravy mess. It is as much of a satire as a satire can be even moving beyond the restaurant. LIFE has elements of the familiar with added doses of ridiculous to elevate the story into the absurd but still managing to keep it relatable. Everyone wants to survive the Zomb-A-Pocalypse, right?
Nick/Nero is the spearhead of the group, much to his chagrin. His only objective is getting to Petal. People just happen to want to follow him around while he completes it. He's not comfortable with it but he makes due. With Sean's books you don't necessarily have likable or unlikable characters; they either are characters or aren't. It's all in the way they're written, that satirical pulp style that makes caricatures of everything, to one extent or another. So you'll either think the characters are too far out there (like the twins) or they're readable (pretty much everyone else). Unless they get killed. And Sean has no qualms about putting the kibosh on the pulses of any of his characters. So be warned: if you favor one more than the others, it'll probably end up with some teeth in its neck.
Reading this, though, I couldn't help but think there was some kind of message here, about over-processed and genetically engineered food, unhealthy eating habits, complacency in what we're being forced fed. Messages aren't something I picked up on in other Sean books so it took me aback a bit. Couple that with the relatively toned down (for him) style and I think it was a bit different from what Sean usually writes. Not as wild and with more of a purpose, however slight. Still incredibly enjoyable but veering off the path a little.
THE INFECTS is not your typical zombie novel, filled with atypical zombies and anti-heros and an ending that will make your head spin. Sean's snark is not for the faint of heart and the satire is for those only able to take big blasts of the absurd at a time. The level of mind fuck is lower than in previous books with the story being far more straight forward and the characters being more contoured and easy to grasp. The subtleties of it are what will make you laugh, hidden in a well-timed background element in a greater scene. It forces you to pay attention because you'll miss snippets of gloriousness if you're just reading it for what the surface provides. If you like trippy, off the wall tales riddled with snark that will make you laugh and gag in the same sentence, you'll most likely love THE INFECTS. It brings with it the familiarity of the zombie trope but Sean just comes right on in and fucks it all up. But in a good way, like always. And that's why I keep reading him. Not only is he a fantastic storyteller but his voice is so epically unique that you can't help but latch onto it and drool love all over it....more
Before you even begin the thought of reading this book, check your normal meter at the door and rev your suspension of disbelief as far up as it can gBefore you even begin the thought of reading this book, check your normal meter at the door and rev your suspension of disbelief as far up as it can go. If you go into this one thinking a semi-normal who-dunnit story is going to ensue, you're grossly mistaken. This is Sean Beaudoin remember. He eats mind fucks for breakfast. Hello? Fade to Blue anyone?
Once you get over that, expect nothing and anticipate everything, you'll begin to settle into the story nicely. Of course, you need to get over that slapped-in-the-face-by-a-fish feeling that hits the second you start reading it because everything is just so absurd. But that's the beauty of it. Just go grab a brain condom and hop on for the ride.
Beaudoin has this ability to write the psychotic that makes it come out almost believable. Everything is so absolutely insane and so over the top that no one could make this kind of thing up, right? Not really. But that's how it works. It's like pulp noir and crack had a baby but instead of being this huge ol' mess, it's so well put together that you're almost afraid to touch it. Is it real? Is it delicate? Will it all come crumbling down at the end under the weight of its own insanity?
No, it won't. The story isn't sitting on toothpicks. It's sitting on granite columns. Beaudoin has woven a crazy storyline together so intricately that it actually ends normally. For everything that happened, all the rush rush rush running of the plot, you actually get to walk it off at the end. Take a breather. Let it all sink in. And you're not left disappointed. Nothing's hanging by a thread, any perceived plotholes are firmly closed up and you're left with the greatest happy ending ever. The skeevy "massage parlor" type of happy ending anyway. You might feel a little dirty, maybe a little used and thrown away, but you're done. You're completed and while you can ask questions about the future of the story, there's nothing left to ask about the present. It's finished.
I'm amazed at the writing that Beaudoin does. Despite its insanity, he creates characters that are relatable. You can feel Dalton's frustration at every turn and his ultimate surprise when it creeps up out of nowhere. Every character is a caricature but they're grounded at the same time. They're crazy mirror images of their own selves but you believe them. Everything they say and do, it all makes perfect sense within the context of the story. Just don't walk outside that context. Your head might explode.
If you liked Fade to Blue, you'll certainly like You Killed Wesley Payne. If you haven't read either yet, then what the hell are you waiting for? But like I said, remember to check your common sense at the door. It'll only hinder your reading ability with Beaudoin's work. You need to go into it with a truly open mind. Only then can you enjoy it....more
This book is nine different level of FUCKING AWESOME! I don't know what's better; the total snark attack or the fact that the plot is so FUBAR that yoThis book is nine different level of FUCKING AWESOME! I don't know what's better; the total snark attack or the fact that the plot is so FUBAR that you have to read it again and again and again because it's twisted your brain into a knot and no matter how much you squint, you just can't untie it.
This is not a book you can just skim through because if you do, you'll be more lost than Hansel and Gretel. You have to pay attention. And if you do, you will be amply rewarded and quite possibly become a Sean Beadoin fangirl/boy by the end of it.
It starts off so linear. A little odd, but linear, normal. Your regular, slightly funky story. And then the weird shit gets weirder but running right along next to it, the fuzziness of all of the situations starts to get clearer. I'm sure that makes zero sense. Weirder and weirder but clearer and clearer. I'm not about to spoil and if I say anything about anything, it'll give it away. Just trust me on this.
I love the language of the characters. It's probably the most realistic I've read in any YA book (which is one big bucket of ironic considering the story, read it and you'll get me). It's not that faux trying-to-be-hip-and-current language that the likes of other YA books try to sound like. The dialogue, the jam, just read so naturally. The OS's upspeak is the shit. Because you know you know someone that sounds like they end all their sentences in questions. You know you do. But how often is that portrayed in YA despite the fact that it goes on all the time? Rarely. You get authors trying to bank on the dialogue but never on the actual patterns. Beaudoin does that. He doesn't rely on colloquialisms of the day to get through. It's all about sentence structure. You know "they" say that that good writers can portray accents not through phonetics but through structure. And it's true.
And this is quite possibly one of the most intricately written books I've ever read. And not just in YA. There is nothing simple in this book despite how simple it appears or how you think you've got it all figured out. You're wrong. The skill that a writer needs to write something so non-linear and so utterly fucked up but keep it this intact and understandable is phenomenal. It makes my writing so one dimensional and makes Beaudoin's look like a nine-sided Rubik's Cube. Sure, everything comes together in the end . . . except there's that one stupid red square in with all those yellows that just . . . won't . . . go . . . back . . .
I have nothing to complain about with this book. And you all know me. Even if I love it there's usually something I can point out. Nope. Not here. I wouldn't call it perfect but this is the kind of writing I'm jealous of. If you like books that really make you think while holding you on the edge of your seat while you flip page after page after page because it's your crack, read this. Read it now. Even the comic in the middle is wicked. A book with pictures! Yay! But seriously. Read it....more
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