bananabirb's review
5.0
Very interesting quick read! I am slowly getting in to horror/ spooky reads in preparation for Halloween
pamwinkler's review against another edition
Alright, I got 60% of the way through the audiobook and had to quit. They put in songs in between section breaks. The first I listened to; the second I fast-forwarded through. By the third, I just quit.
I'd also been having some issues keeping track of people, figuring out who was who. The style is interesting, alternating between very philosophical and pretty versus more action-oriented.
Also, it's very weird to have them reference Council Bluffs, Nebraska as a 'big city', or at least a bigger city. That's where my dad was born, and I've been there quite a few times.
I returned the audiobook, and will get the ebook from the library instead.
I'd also been having some issues keeping track of people, figuring out who was who. The style is interesting, alternating between very philosophical and pretty versus more action-oriented.
Also, it's very weird to have them reference Council Bluffs, Nebraska as a 'big city', or at least a bigger city. That's where my dad was born, and I've been there quite a few times.
I returned the audiobook, and will get the ebook from the library instead.
600bars's review
3.0
Multiple friends gave this a so-so review, but I read it anyway because the premise was intriguing. I listened to it as an audiobook and there is a lot more music in it than most audiobooks. I’ve never really listened to the Mountain Goats tbh.
Anyway, everyone was right. It has lots of interesting elements but struggles to cohere. And sometimes that is fine, but the lack of coherence was less “the puzzle doesn’t make sense” and more “the vibes are disjointed”. The original premise is about creepy videos appearing on tapes at a video rental store. This brings to mind stuff like Ringu and Blair Witch Project, and the rural Iowa setting makes me think this is going to be a horror novel. Instead it focuses more on a father and son who are grieving the loss of their wife/mother and trying to move on in spite of being taciturn midwestern men who don’t talk about their feelings.
The focus shifts abruptly to the backstory of Lisa, the woman who lives in the house where the tapes are filmed. Her mom left her and her dad for a cult. This section reminded me of the Carnality series, which incidentally also has weird shit with cameras and takes place in Iowa and is about fringe Christian groups. Cults are also great horror fodder. I thought of the movie “the Endless”.
There are moments of creepiness to be sure, like whenever the narrator suddenly drops an “I” or a detail about a character far into the future. I also really liked the way Sarah Jane becomes seduced by Lisa and her house. Unfortunately in the third act things still didn’t come together. There’s another shift, we have some teens who live in the present day in Lisa’s house. They find the tapes and decide to track down all the people shown on the footage. They do, and everyone is basically fine. It feels like a let down. I wish it had stayed with Lisa and Jeremy’s dual experiences of grief.
This book has its scary supernatural seeming phenomena but is strongly about the atmosphere of a small town, from its people to its landscape. It reminded me of Twin Peaks, and even though Twin Peaks should be less satisfying (as in it doesn’t explain itself the way Universal Harvester ultimately does), this still feels disjointed and kinda fizzles out. And I’m still honestly confused how making the tapes would help Lisa grieve for her mother?? Was Jeremy’s mother actually in the video? Idk. Everyone was correct, this is exactly a 3 star book.
Anyway, everyone was right. It has lots of interesting elements but struggles to cohere. And sometimes that is fine, but the lack of coherence was less “the puzzle doesn’t make sense” and more “the vibes are disjointed”. The original premise is about creepy videos appearing on tapes at a video rental store. This brings to mind stuff like Ringu and Blair Witch Project, and the rural Iowa setting makes me think this is going to be a horror novel. Instead it focuses more on a father and son who are grieving the loss of their wife/mother and trying to move on in spite of being taciturn midwestern men who don’t talk about their feelings.
The focus shifts abruptly to the backstory of Lisa, the woman who lives in the house where the tapes are filmed. Her mom left her and her dad for a cult. This section reminded me of the Carnality series, which incidentally also has weird shit with cameras and takes place in Iowa and is about fringe Christian groups. Cults are also great horror fodder. I thought of the movie “the Endless”.
There are moments of creepiness to be sure, like whenever the narrator suddenly drops an “I” or a detail about a character far into the future. I also really liked the way Sarah Jane becomes seduced by Lisa and her house. Unfortunately in the third act things still didn’t come together. There’s another shift, we have some teens who live in the present day in Lisa’s house. They find the tapes and decide to track down all the people shown on the footage. They do, and everyone is basically fine. It feels like a let down. I wish it had stayed with Lisa and Jeremy’s dual experiences of grief.
This book has its scary supernatural seeming phenomena but is strongly about the atmosphere of a small town, from its people to its landscape. It reminded me of Twin Peaks, and even though Twin Peaks should be less satisfying (as in it doesn’t explain itself the way Universal Harvester ultimately does), this still feels disjointed and kinda fizzles out. And I’m still honestly confused how making the tapes would help Lisa grieve for her mother?? Was Jeremy’s mother actually in the video? Idk. Everyone was correct, this is exactly a 3 star book.
pamwinkler's review
Alright, I got 60% of the way through the audiobook and had to quit. They put in songs in between section breaks. The first I listened to; the second I fast-forwarded through. By the third, I just quit.
I'd also been having some issues keeping track of people, figuring out who was who. The style is interesting, alternating between very philosophical and pretty versus more action-oriented.
Also, it's very weird to have them reference Council Bluffs, Nebraska as a 'big city', or at least a bigger city. That's where my dad was born, and I've been there quite a few times.
I returned the audiobook, and will get the ebook from the library instead.
I'd also been having some issues keeping track of people, figuring out who was who. The style is interesting, alternating between very philosophical and pretty versus more action-oriented.
Also, it's very weird to have them reference Council Bluffs, Nebraska as a 'big city', or at least a bigger city. That's where my dad was born, and I've been there quite a few times.
I returned the audiobook, and will get the ebook from the library instead.
ricoocri's review
4.0
Such a beautiful and touching ending. Absolutely baffled as to why this was marketed as a horror novel though, its not really that, more of a mystery, and about so much more than that.
yafi's review
dark
mysterious
slow-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
1.75
I read this on an overnight airport stay, so my overall state of mind and mood probably had a large influence on my overall enjoyment of this novel. Maybe, if I had been well rested and in a good mood and not just reading anything so keep myself from perishing while waiting for the security check to open, I might have rated this higher. I hate to rate it so poorly based on my personal reading situation, however I try to rate my books based on how much I enjoyed them, which in this case is not very much.
samusiamus's review
4.0
Darnielle is a true master of prose, in my most humble opinion. I pre-ordered and devoured Wolf in White Van, enjoying the flow of his writing; imagining it in his lyrical, playful voice. Both novels have read just like any one of his songs might, and yes, I am a complete and utter fan girl but I will also point out the flaws that I found during my experience.
Jeremy's story starts off as rather bland and uninteresting, but that's the things with humans-- we have a strange fascination with the mundane things of every day life, especially when we're privvy to the life and thoughts of strangers. I found the slow unfolding of Jeremy's predicament intriguing, his eventual apathy frustrating, and the overall arc very unique. I will admit some confusion with the second half of the book in trying to piece together the timelines, I am not sure if it's just my own reading comprehension or my inexperience with the very specific way Darnielle chose to tell the stories.
I can't quite remember the other issue I had with the story, it's been a few months so the details are a little fuzzy. Despite the minor qualms I have, overall I really enjoyed reading this and will continue to support Darnielle's ventures.
Jeremy's story starts off as rather bland and uninteresting, but that's the things with humans-- we have a strange fascination with the mundane things of every day life, especially when we're privvy to the life and thoughts of strangers. I found the slow unfolding of Jeremy's predicament intriguing, his eventual apathy frustrating, and the overall arc very unique. I will admit some confusion with the second half of the book in trying to piece together the timelines, I am not sure if it's just my own reading comprehension or my inexperience with the very specific way Darnielle chose to tell the stories.
I can't quite remember the other issue I had with the story, it's been a few months so the details are a little fuzzy. Despite the minor qualms I have, overall I really enjoyed reading this and will continue to support Darnielle's ventures.
tomhill's review
4.0
This novel sticks with you, which for me is high praise. Its strengths lie in the eerie (really eerie at the beginning) tone throughout, as well as the deeper message about loss and coping with loss. By the end of the book, a lot remains unresolved and unclear, and while this may bother some readers, for me, this too is one of Universal Harvester's strengths. The book falls short when it comes to character development, although perhaps Darneille never intended to write a character study. The characters act more as a means to an end; a way of conveying the novel's larger themes. Very well written and affecting, but I couldn't help feeling that something was missing. Then again...maybe that's the point.