Cat's Book Reviews: horror

Showing posts with label horror. Show all posts

Wednesday, August 11, 2010

Book Review: Let The Right One In by John Ajvide Lindqvist

Let The Right One In - John Ajvide Lindqvist

Synopsis:
Living with his single mother in the Swedish suburb of Blackeberg, twelve-year-old Oskar Eriksson’s life revolves around going to school- where he is bullied by a group of thugs led by Jonny Forsberg- and spending time alone around the dreary housing estate he calls home. With no friends his own age, an odd fascination with murderers, and an incontinence problem, Oskar seems destined to forever be a loner. That is, until he meets Eli, a strange young girl who lives next door, seems to have no aversion to the winter cold and whom he only sees at night. The two soon form a tentative friendship, bonded by the fact that both are victims of different circumstances.
When a teenage boy is found murdered in the nearby town of Vällingby, his body drained of blood, panic strikes the heart of Blackeberg and the surrounding towns.
As more bodies begin to pile up, there are fears that the killer, dubbed the Vällingby Murderer by the media, is on a serial-killing frenzy.
Oskar holds a gruesome interest in the developing story, and soon begins to piece together some disturbing facts about his new neighbour and friend.
Why does he never see her during the day and why are her apartment windows blacked out? Why does she sometimes seem wise beyond her years? Why does she sometimes appear to look like an old woman, and the next day look as fresh and sweet as ever?
But Oskar’s digging soon finds him learning more than he ever wanted to know about Eli. Will what Oskar learns turn him from the only happiness he has ever really known? Or will he keep Eli’s terrible secret and stay loyal and true to his mysterious, and deadly, friend?

What I gained from reading this book:
This novel is essentially about victimisation. Oskar is bullied from the outset- teased and harassed by Jonny and his friends, Tomas and Micke. Eli’s victimisation is different but still causes her just as much pain as is inflicted upon Oskar- she is over 200 years old, trapped in the body of a child and has to live with the guilt of killing innocent people, drinking their blood to survive. Eli has also experienced a devastatingly brutal past, which has completely shaped her life as a vampire. Even some of the older characters experience feelings of distress brought about by negative circumstances. Oskar’s mother does the best she can, but clearly struggles as a single parent, while Håkan, Eli’s ‘father’, is a victim of his own weaknesses. Although not all the characters are victims of bullying, many still struggle to get on with their lives, and this novel reminds readers that although life may be tough to deal with sometimes, it usually does improve with time. Oskar’s experiences also show readers that if they fight back and stand up for themselves, justice will prevail in the end.

Positives:
While reading the novel, I had a clear view in my mind of what each of the characters looked like, thanks to Lindqvist’s descriptive language. Admittedly, I saw the film before I read the book, and so this could have some bearing on the way that I imagined the characters, but if that’s the case, then the casting of the film was exceptional! The strengths and weaknesses of each person are explored in the novel, and most of this translates nicely into celluloid. But like all films that are adapted from books, there are key scenes that have been cut (for timing reasons), which add to the depth of the story, and can only be explored when you read the novel.

Negatives:
Some of the subject matter in the novel could be disturbing for some readers. Themes including child prostitution, sodomy, paedophilia and murder pervade the text, and help to form the characterisation of some of the people in the novel. This could be considered a ‘serious’ vampire novel (ie. not a fluffy teen romance like the Twilight saga or some of the other vampire novels around at the moment). Believe me when I say that this book is not for the faint-hearted.

Rating: 8 out of 10

Genre: Horror

Recommended for: People who have seen the excellent Swedish film, and want to read the novel that spawned it.

Australians can buy the book by clicking the picture below:

Friday, November 6, 2009

Book Review: Vittorio, The Vampire by Anne Rice

Vittorio, The Vampire - Anne Rice

Synopsis:
Sixteen-year-old Vittorio di Raniari is part of a wealthy family who live in a Tuscan hilltop castle that is surrounded by warring fronts. Despite the conflicts that border the small village, the people are safe in the knowledge that their Lord, Vittorio’s father, has made strong alliances with Cosimo de Medici and his people in Florence.
But a more sinister threat than war approaches the village one day and it changes Vittorio’s life forever. Without warning, the homes on the outskirts of the village are empty, as people flee a dark force that looms in the forest and only appears in the dead of night. Vittorio’s family remain in the village, but find themselves victims of a bloody and bizarre massacre- one that leaves Vittorio orphaned, alone, and seeking revenge.
Vittorio’s path of vengeance leads him to the bloodthirsty and demonic creatures of the night, to a strange village that seems too perfect, and into the arms of young Ursula, a woman who played a part in his family’s deaths yet appears eternally ‘innocent’. This is the story of how Vittorio lost his innocence and became one of the creatures he despised.

What I gained from reading this book:
In this novel, Vittorio is faced with a nightmare situation, where he sees his brother and sister die in the most appalling way, and hears his family’s screams as they are slain. What’s worse, a young woman who he can’t help but feel attracted to is one of the perpetrators of the massacre, regardless of the fact that she does everything in her power to save him from a fate like that of his family. Thus, who can blame Vittorio for wanting to seek revenge for his loss? This novel is all about vengeance and its many forms, but it’s also a tale about courage, as Vittorio confronts his fears in the face of death and struggles to find justice in a world where humanity is fragile and demons are at the top of the food chain.

Positives:
Readers already know that Vittorio is a vampire, just from reading the title of the book, but what they may not realise at first glance is that this curse was bestowed by those he hated and wanted to destroy. The author is able to turn this tale of vengeance into one of a different kind of torment for her principle character as he struggles to come to terms with his past and his infinite future.

Negatives:
Despite being written in the late 1990’s, the author uses an old style of language to best represent Vittorio and his views, and because of this technique, some people may not enjoy the story as thoroughly.

Rating: 7 out of 10

Genre: Horror

Recommended for: Fans of Anne Rice’s gothic horror stories

Australians can buy the book by clicking the picture below:

Monday, October 12, 2009

Book Review: The Blood Hunters by Katherine Ramsland

The Blood Hunters - Katherine Ramsland

Synopsis:
When four dead bodies are found throughout Bucks County in Pennsylvania, Detective Teri Lewis has her hands full; these deaths are unlike any that the seasoned homicide investigator has ever seen. The victims have been burned from the inside out before their death, are missing blood, and have been bitten- by snakes and other creatures that aren’t quite human- in what is believed to be part of some strange vampiric ritual.
While Detective Lewis follows false trails and dead ends to find the culprits, a young vampire by the name of Christian is sent to Mexico by his elite squad to extract a rival vampire, who holds special abilities that can solve the vampires’ problems back in Bucks County. With the vampire’s existence partially compromised, and human authorities coming ever closer to discovering the real creatures behind the murders, it’s up to Christian to bring the much stronger vampire back, and prove to his peers that he has what it takes to be a part of the vampire elite.

What I gained from reading this book:
In this novel, both Christian and Detective Lewis feel that they have something to prove. Both have previously made very public mistakes that have either cost the credibility of their positions or endangered others. The situation involving the murders is their chance to redeem themselves in front of their peers and earn back their respect. Through this underlying theme, readers are able to see that everybody feels the need to prove themselves, regardless of outwards appearances, and that this need is universal.

Positives:
It is interesting how the author is able to juxtapose the lives of vampires with those of humans and draw links between how each species affects the other. Usually in most vampire stories, readers only see the point of view of either the humans or the vampires, and so this novel is unique in that both sides are covered.

Negatives:
This isn’t just a vampire story- it is also a forensic case where humans are trying to solve murders, so if you don’t really want to read about the coroner’s determinations of the victims’ deaths and would prefer to read just a vampire horror story, this probably isn’t the book for you.
Rating: 6 out of 10

Genre: Horror/ Crime

Recommended for: People who enjoy well-plotted murder stories, even when they know who the culprit is from the start.

Australians can buy the book by clicking the picture below:

Book Review: Monster Planet by David Wellington

Monster Planet - David Wellington

Synopsis:
For twelve years, ever since zombies took over the world, Ayaan and her small band of fighters have been defending what is left of the human race in Africa. Doing overhead patrols in one of the few working helicopters on earth, they monitor the progress of the ghouls heading towards their camp and eliminate any that could be a threat. But one day the group come across a sight never before thought possible- a large group of living humans, working together with the zombies as they trek across the vast African desert. This unusual ensemble is led by the Tsarevich, also known as the Prince of Death, whose supernatural powers as a lich (a zombie who rose again with his intellect intact) are greater than those of any other. Sensing that this may be the only chance for her to destroy him, Ayaan and her crew make an impulsive attack on the Tsarevich’s group, but the stronger forces of the lich win out and Ayaan is captured while many of her crew are slain. Among the surviving members is Sarah, a young woman who Ayaan brought up after she was orphaned at the age of eight.
Sarah feels it is her duty as Ayaan’s young protégée to rescue her from the horrors that await, and if all else fails and Ayaan is killed, to end her ‘life’ as one of the undead. With Osman the helicopter pilot, a ghost and some old revived mummies on her side, Sarah has to face insurmountable odds to save her mentor and friend.

What I gained from reading this book:
In this novel, the viewpoints of some of the major characters change as the action of the story progresses. Views, which were once black and white, now feature variants of grey, and the ideals that were once held are overturned in favour of new concepts about the way that the future should pan out.
This is a situation that often occurs in everyday life, and it is interesting to see how the author can adapt these views to mean the difference between life and death for his characters.

Positives:
This is a story of survival- all of the human characters are fighting to create a world that will once again be safe enough for humans to inhabit, and free of flesh-eating zombies. Even the Egyptian mummies, who have been dead for thousands of years, endeavour to survive the Tsarevich’s discriminating elimination of their ‘race’.

Negatives:
The gory descriptions of the zombies and the methods that the Tsarevich uses to torture and kill his victims are more than a little unsettling at times, but given the nature of the story, this is to be expected. You can’t have a novel about the undead without it featuring some of these themes.
Rating: 7 out of 10

Genre: Horror

Recommended for: People who enjoy a good zombie novel and who may have read David Wellington’s previous zombie novels.

Australians can buy the book by clicking the picture below:

Saturday, April 25, 2009

Book review: Frankenstein by Mary Shelley

Frankenstein - Mary Shelley

Synopsis:
While sailing through the icy seas near the North Pole, adventurer Robert Walton and his crew come across a foreign man close to death and stranded on the snow.
After picking him up and attempting to nurse him back to health, the man reveals himself to be a scientist named Victor Frankenstein, whose interest in creating life through alternate means has led to his ultimate downfall.
Through letters to his sister Margaret, Robert Walton recounts Frankenstein’s tale, which has been dictated to him throughout their long conversations.
He reveals Frankenstein’s fascination with creation as a young man, and about his experiment, in which he combines body parts of the deceased to form a new being, which he brings to life with a shock of electricity.
But Frankenstein’s joy following his success is undermined once he looks into his creation’s ‘watery eyes’, and he rejects the creature on the basis of its looks, denying it any chance of being assimilated into his township, or into everyday human life. In a show of vengeance, the creature decides to wreak havoc on Frankenstein’s existence, and sets out to destroy him, and all that he holds dear.

What I gained from reading this book:
Mary Shelley’s classic novel raises many questions concerning the limitations of human creativity and highlights the moral boundaries that Victor Frankenstein breaches when he rejects his creation, and the creature’s subsequent requests for a mate. Readers have to question if the events in the novel would ever have occurred had Frankenstein treated his creature with respect, especially since the creature shows no sign of malevolence before being rejected. This book makes readers consider how tolerance and education can shape somebody’s attitudes to life, and highlights how fine the line between good and bad really is.

Positives:
This is one of the most famous gothic novels to ever be written and the influence it has had on other literature and film is astounding. Not only is this story written with gripping detail, but Shelley lets us see the story from both sides. The reader is given an insight into Frankenstein’s mind as he struggles to control and hide his disgust at his creation, and several chapters are dedicated to the creature’s interpretation of the same events. This allows the reader to see why each of the characters reacts in the way that they do.

Negatives:
This novel was originally published in the year 1818, so if you are not a fan of ‘old-fashioned’ writing, then this book is probably not a good choice for you.

Rating: 7 out of 10

Genre: Classic Horror

Recommended for: People who want to read a classic book that still raises questions today.

Australians can buy the book by clicking the picture below