Reviews tagging 'Animal cruelty'

Off Season by Jack Ketchum

18 reviews

mystericliterature's review against another edition

dark tense fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Plot
• Strong character development? No
• Loveable characters? No
• Diverse cast of characters? No

1.5

I wasn't sure if I'd like this book because I'm not a big fan of the "cannibalistic hillbilly" trope (despite loving the original The Texas Chain Saw Massacre), and it seems as though I was correct. Off Season is the first novel I have read from Jack Ketchum, and I am underwhelmed. 

Despite being left with them for Parts I and II, the characters are uninteresting and one-dimensional. We spend so much of the novel with them, yet I did not feel attached to any of them. It is almost like the "Final Destination" franchise, where you are just waiting for the characters to meet a gruesome end. But when you have no attachment to the characters, their eventual end means nothing to you.

I must also say that Ketchum is terrible at writing women. If I were to take a shot every time a woman's breasts were mentioned for no reason, I would not have written this. There is a peculiar sexualization to the women of Off Season; I suppose I should not be surprised given the sexualization of women is often prevalent in horror media, yet it still made me sigh. We will be here all day if I get into that, however, so I will not. 

Overall, Ketchum's Off Season was disappointing for me. If you are someone who just wants to see cannibals kill and eat, you may have a good time. But if you're searching for more substance, you will not find it here. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Child death, Death, Gore, Rape, Sexual violence, Torture, Cannibalism, and Murder

Moderate: Animal cruelty and Animal death

emmalizzz's review against another edition

adventurous challenging dark tense slow-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? It's complicated

4.0

Splatterpunk horror at it’s finest. Cabin in the woods, feral children, cannibalism, final girl? This book has it all. Marjorie is a badass and I love her. Nick kind of seemed like a “knight in shining armor” type but I get it. This was disturbing, disgusting, and campy in the best way possible. The depictions of eating people were..graphic but the book still had a pretty solid storyline and it felt like it was gross only where it needed to be gross. Could have done without the multiple depictions of animal abuse but I can understand how it may be needed to really get a picture of how unhinged these people are. Would love a prequel eventually. Not for the faint of heart but definitely a fun gross read if that’s what you’re into!

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Animal cruelty, Body horror, and Cannibalism

wyabook234's review against another edition

challenging dark mysterious tense medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? No
• Loveable characters? No
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? No

4.5

With Ketchum, he makes a great offering from the woods with his book titled Off Season. How as an author, Ketchum doesn't hold back on showing the brutality of these cannibals as they target a gathering of friends as their latest meals. With how these characters are struggling to eat and survive; it means that no one can be safe from the savagery of nature or civilization. Almost all of their ends are met in a descriptively graphic, disturbing manner with how these characters are burned, bitten, and chewed up. However, Off Season's not having reliance on plot armour doesn't make up for how the story is conveyed in writing prose that sometimes veers off into being clunky or needlessly focused on the sexualization of the female vacationers. Furthermore, the characters can also be seen as pretty flat, which can hurt the need for the audience to connect with these characters as they struggle to stay alive in Maine's wilderness.

With that being said of Off Season, it seems that Ketchum knows how to build up the suspense and when to escalate the tension to be more effective as opposed to having the gore instantly explode on his pages. These dreadful scenes of tension can be either the scene of the cannibals watching Carla and Jim having sex or one of the cannibals playing with Marije like she is a piece of meat before she gets the upper hand by biting into his privates. Scenes like these can be most effective as they are being used to build up for a quick getaway into another shocking situation.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Gore, Sexual violence, and Cannibalism

Moderate: Animal cruelty, Animal death, and Vomit

Minor: Adult/minor relationship and Vomit

jcliff's review against another edition

challenging dark sad tense fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Plot
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? No

4.0

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Animal cruelty

catiecoop's review

dark tense slow-paced

• Loveable characters? No

2.0

Kept losing me starting at the halfway mark. Felt like it was rambling. 2 stars because it was very detailed and descriptive.

So. Much. Gore.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Animal cruelty, Animal death, Death, Gore, Physical abuse, Sexual violence, Torture, Violence, Blood, Vomit, Kidnapping, Cannibalism, and Murder

rikathestrange's review against another edition

dark emotional tense fast-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? It's complicated

3.5

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Body horror, Child abuse, Child death, Death, Gore, Gun violence, Mental illness, Physical abuse, Violence, Blood, Kidnapping, Cannibalism, Murder, Fire/Fire injury, and Injury/Injury detail

Moderate: Animal cruelty, Animal death, Confinement, Incest, Sexual content, Sexual violence, Torture, Vomit, Grief, Stalking, and Pregnancy

issymaae's review against another edition

challenging dark sad tense fast-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

4.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Child death, Death, Gore, Sexual assault, Sexual content, Torture, Blood, Cannibalism, Murder, and Injury/Injury detail

Moderate: Animal cruelty, Animal death, and Vomit

Minor: Adult/minor relationship, Cursing, and Fatphobia

thegreatandwonderfulbookwitch's review against another edition

dark sad tense fast-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

4.0

A New York editor rents a cabin in the woods in Maine and waits for friends to arrive. A wild family living nearby decide to bring a night of terror down on their heads. None will walk away without scars.

I mostly went into this blind. I found the writing to be really solid and engaging. The description of horror was just detailed enough to be disturbing without drawing out scenes too long. The imagery was gory and terrible to read. The pacing was nice, nothing was needlessly added or fluffed up. 

I wouldn't recommend this for the faint of heart, but if you enjoy horror movies and books, then you'll like this one. You'll never see a fire the same way again! I was left pretty shell shocked by the end of it all.

I received this book from Amazon first reads for free. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Body horror, Gore, Sexual assault, Sexual violence, Torture, Police brutality, and Cannibalism

Moderate: Adult/minor relationship, Animal cruelty, Animal death, Body horror, Child abuse, Rape, Sexual assault, Blood, Kidnapping, and Murder

gatsbyonabudget's review against another edition

challenging dark tense fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? No
• Loveable characters? No
• Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
• Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

2.25

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Animal cruelty, Animal death, Body horror, Child abuse, Child death, Confinement, Death, Gore, Gun violence, Incest, Physical abuse, Rape, Sexual assault, Sexual content, Sexual violence, Torture, Violence, Blood, Excrement, Vomit, Kidnapping, Cannibalism, Murder, Pregnancy, Fire/Fire injury, Sexual harassment, and Dysphoria

the_anxious_one's review against another edition

challenging dark sad tense fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? No
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.25

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Child death, Gore, Torture, Violence, Cannibalism, and Murder

Moderate: Animal cruelty and Sexual content

Minor: Sexual assault