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unboxedjack's review against another edition
dark
emotional
funny
reflective
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.75
Content Warnings
Minor: Alcoholism, Animal death, Death, Suicidal thoughts, Violence, Blood, Grief, Alcohol, and Injury/Injury detail
breauseph's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
tense
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
Every single thing that happens in the plot of this book is a convenient coincidence. Although I kmow that it follows the logic of video games and that is also true in video games - things come to you conveniently when you need them - a video game is interactive where a book is passive, and that makes an enormous difference. For as much of a normal guy as Ben is, the scenes where he miraculously gathers all his strength to pull himself out of death's way are absolutely unrealistic and for all intents and purposes he really should die within his first encounter. In the end, we aren't given a spectacularly good reason why he doesn't.
There is no character development in this book. For everything Ben goes through, he has the same motivations at the beginning and the end and is pretty much the exact same person throughout. Teresa is a shell of a character, only there to humanize Ben and tether him to reality but only possessing characteristics that are convenient for Ben's hike. Like oh, he needs to fight someone? Great, we're given a memory out of absolutely nowhere that Teresa taught him some sweet Jiu Jitsu moves once. Now by the power of love and Jiu Jitsu he can - with no formal training we know of beyond one session of sparring with his wife - overpower and kill an enemy he was helpless against *when he had MORE strength.*
The single thing I can give this book credit for is its one half of an ounce of a critique of action movie machismo in that when Ben commits an act of violence it's written as if it genuinely affects him on a personal level.
But don't believe the hype about the ending. It's unearned, there's no development that leads you to it, and it makes no difference whatsoever for any of the characters.
I have really disliked some books in the past but I straight-up would throw this in the trash if it wouldn't break my dumb little heart to put a book in a garbage can. I described it as "slow" primarily because even though the pages turn quickly enough, it was such a boring slog that I just didn't want to read it and kept putting it down. Don't waste your time. If you want something well-written that scratches the same itch, Kelly Link's Good Trouble will do you just fine.
There is no character development in this book. For everything Ben goes through, he has the same motivations at the beginning and the end and is pretty much the exact same person throughout. Teresa is a shell of a character, only there to humanize Ben and tether him to reality but only possessing characteristics that are convenient for Ben's hike. Like oh, he needs to fight someone? Great, we're given a memory out of absolutely nowhere that Teresa taught him some sweet Jiu Jitsu moves once. Now by the power of love and Jiu Jitsu he can - with no formal training we know of beyond one session of sparring with his wife - overpower and kill an enemy he was helpless against *when he had MORE strength.*
The single thing I can give this book credit for is its one half of an ounce of a critique of action movie machismo in that when Ben commits an act of violence it's written as if it genuinely affects him on a personal level.
But don't believe the hype about the ending. It's unearned, there's no development that leads you to it, and it makes no difference whatsoever for any of the characters.
I have really disliked some books in the past but I straight-up would throw this in the trash if it wouldn't break my dumb little heart to put a book in a garbage can. I described it as "slow" primarily because even though the pages turn quickly enough, it was such a boring slog that I just didn't want to read it and kept putting it down. Don't waste your time. If you want something well-written that scratches the same itch, Kelly Link's Good Trouble will do you just fine.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Animal death, Body horror, Death, Gore, Panic attacks/disorders, Torture, Violence, Blood, Death of parent, Murder, and Injury/Injury detail
Do not read this book if you hate gore because boy is there ever a lot of it.jetpackdracula's review against another edition
adventurous
mysterious
reflective
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Confinement and Injury/Injury detail
Moderate: Animal death and Body horror
samspur's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
dark
emotional
funny
hopeful
mysterious
sad
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
This is the weirdest book trip I've ever been on and I loved it. It's like a horror version of Alice in Wonderland x the Wizard of Oz with a dash of Annihilation vibes (the movie - I haven't read the book).
At first I didn't understand the abrupt chapter scene changes. It felt similar to video game levels where you progress to the next area, but eventually I grew to like it. One minute you'd be in the desert and the next under a mountain with a giant. My favorite was to retell the story to my partner and have him try to follow along.
I love the Crab! The book could have just been the crab scenes and I would have been happy. I also really liked Cisco's character and his wholesomeness. I wasn't expecting a lot from this book but it's quickly become a favorite for this year. Be sure to look at content warnings this is definitely a horror book.
At first I didn't understand the abrupt chapter scene changes. It felt similar to video game levels where you progress to the next area, but eventually I grew to like it. One minute you'd be in the desert and the next under a mountain with a giant. My favorite was to retell the story to my partner and have him try to follow along.
I love the Crab! The book could have just been the crab scenes and I would have been happy. I also really liked Cisco's character and his wholesomeness. I wasn't expecting a lot from this book but it's quickly become a favorite for this year. Be sure to look at content warnings this is definitely a horror book.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Body horror, Child death, Death, and Injury/Injury detail
Moderate: Sexual content
stephanieluxton's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
mysterious
sad
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? N/A
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
2.25
I wanted to read this book because it sounded bizarre and sometimes it's nice to read something really weird to cleanse the palate. I think I was hoping for something similar to Welcome To Nightvale, Zerostrata, A Short Stay In Hell, The Left Right Game or a Studio Ghibli movie where weird things are happening but everyone just kind of accepts it as reality, or has to adapt to a world where things don't make sense.
This book is about Ben, a married man and father of three who is away on a business trip. When he gets to his hotel in the mountains, he goes for a walk by himself to enjoy the outdoors and his surroundings eventually devolve into a bizarre hellscape in which he cannot escape unless he keeps going.
Excellent concept.
My first issue with the book is the tone. It seems to flip back and forth between being a bizarre silly adventure then almost straddles a more extreme horror/slasher line, then just gets kind of bleak and depressing. This kind of book is fun to read because you don't always know what to expect next but I found myself not loving the powerlessness of the situation - it very much felt like Ben was a slave to his fate.
Ben's journey isn't easy but I felt annoyed that if there was a piece of information he needed, it generally fell right into his lap right before becoming relevant. He's given a series of tools that he basically uses right away. I think the story would have been more satisfying if he was more clever and able to outsmart his obstacles. He makes mostly really dumb decisions in the beginning and it feels like nearly every obstacle he overcomes is due to pure luck. For example:When he's explicitly told that if he leaves the path, he will die. Then he immediately leaves the path and almost dies. This feels more unbelievable because it happens right after he's almost butchered by two scary men wearing dogs faces as masks.
I wish there were more characters in this book so that the sense of danger would feel more severe. When there's really only one character, the danger is lessened because the story must go on.
I will say that I did like the very end of the book. There's a couple little revelations that I appreciated and didn't expect.
In conclusion, I think the book had a lot of good ideas but I wish it had decided if it wanted to be spooky or silly as it's very difficult to pull off being both. This book reminded me a lot of Fairytale by Stephen King at times. Looking back on Ben's journey, it felt kind of pointless. I don't feel like he was introduced to us as being flawed enough at the start for me to appreciate the ways he's grown as a character. I feel like he just becomes more bitter as the story progresses (and rightfully so, I suppose).
This book is about Ben, a married man and father of three who is away on a business trip. When he gets to his hotel in the mountains, he goes for a walk by himself to enjoy the outdoors and his surroundings eventually devolve into a bizarre hellscape in which he cannot escape unless he keeps going.
Excellent concept.
My first issue with the book is the tone. It seems to flip back and forth between being a bizarre silly adventure then almost straddles a more extreme horror/slasher line, then just gets kind of bleak and depressing. This kind of book is fun to read because you don't always know what to expect next but I found myself not loving the powerlessness of the situation - it very much felt like Ben was a slave to his fate.
Ben's journey isn't easy but I felt annoyed that if there was a piece of information he needed, it generally fell right into his lap right before becoming relevant. He's given a series of tools that he basically uses right away. I think the story would have been more satisfying if he was more clever and able to outsmart his obstacles. He makes mostly really dumb decisions in the beginning and it feels like nearly every obstacle he overcomes is due to pure luck. For example:
I wish there were more characters in this book so that the sense of danger would feel more severe. When there's really only one character, the danger is lessened because the story must go on.
I will say that I did like the very end of the book. There's a couple little revelations that I appreciated and didn't expect.
In conclusion, I think the book had a lot of good ideas but I wish it had decided if it wanted to be spooky or silly as it's very difficult to pull off being both. This book reminded me a lot of Fairytale by Stephen King at times. Looking back on Ben's journey, it felt kind of pointless. I don't feel like he was introduced to us as being flawed enough at the start for me to appreciate the ways he's grown as a character. I feel like he just becomes more bitter as the story progresses (and rightfully so, I suppose).
Content Warnings
Graphic: Child death, Confinement, Cursing, Physical abuse, and Slavery
Moderate: Animal death, Body horror, Infidelity, Cannibalism, Toxic friendship, and Injury/Injury detail
Minor: Sexual content
inakar's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
dark
emotional
funny
hopeful
inspiring
mysterious
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
Content Warnings
Moderate: Emotional abuse, Infidelity, Torture, Violence, Forced institutionalization, Grief, Cannibalism, Murder, and Injury/Injury detail
Minor: Suicidal thoughts
msawyer77's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
mysterious
reflective
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5
Content Warnings
Graphic: Body horror, Cursing, Gore, Violence, and Injury/Injury detail
Moderate: Child death
3martini's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
funny
mysterious
reflective
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Injury/Injury detail
Moderate: Animal death, Confinement, Cursing, Death, Violence, Blood, Cannibalism, Murder, and Alcohol
Minor: Alcoholism, Sexual content, Suicidal thoughts, and Vomit
gorbon's review against another edition
adventurous
emotional
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
3.75
Content Warnings
Graphic: Body horror, Blood, and Injury/Injury detail
Moderate: Torture
Minor: Alcoholism and Child abuse
greatexpectations77's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
dark
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
2.75
This book just didn't work for me. I didn't feel like I could connect with the main character, and I think it's because of Magary's kind of sardonic voice that doesn't let you get close and vulnerable. And that's fun in his other writing, but it wasn't for me here. Kind of formulaic for me too.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Bullying, Confinement, and Abandonment
Moderate: Animal death, Death, Violence, Forced institutionalization, Grief, Alcohol, and Injury/Injury detail
Minor: Gun violence, Infidelity, Sexual content, and Blood