Scan barcode
A review by unicornheart_books
The Book of Accidents by Chuck Wendig
2.5
"The fear of a thing is quite often worse than the thing we fear"
I first attempted to read this book two years ago, but the writing style didn’t really click with me at the time, so I put it down. Lately, with some extra time on my hands, I decided to give it another go. At first, I was drawn in – at least for the first 250 pages. The beginning held my attention, and I was intrigued by the plot and events unfolding. The creepiness and eerie atmosphere reminded me of The Diviners by Libba Bray, which is one of my favorite books, and for a moment, I thought I’d finally connected with this one.
However, after the first half, the book began to lose me. It shifted in a direction that felt more like fantasy than horror, which diminished the creep factor, and that’s where my interest started to fade. I found myself continuing only out of a desire to finish the book rather than being genuinely invested in the characters or story. The only character I remotely cared about was Maddie, but even she couldn’t fully carry the narrative for me.
While the first half had potential and kept me hooked, the latter part of the book felt like a slog. I lost my connection to the plot and characters, and ultimately, the book didn’t deliver on the eerie, unsettling vibes I was hoping for.
I don’t think I’ll be picking up another Chuck Wendig book in the future unless the plot is particularly intriguing or widely praised as genuinely scary. His writing style just doesn’t seem to resonate with me and is unfortunately not my cup of tea.
I first attempted to read this book two years ago, but the writing style didn’t really click with me at the time, so I put it down. Lately, with some extra time on my hands, I decided to give it another go. At first, I was drawn in – at least for the first 250 pages. The beginning held my attention, and I was intrigued by the plot and events unfolding. The creepiness and eerie atmosphere reminded me of The Diviners by Libba Bray, which is one of my favorite books, and for a moment, I thought I’d finally connected with this one.
However, after the first half, the book began to lose me. It shifted in a direction that felt more like fantasy than horror, which diminished the creep factor, and that’s where my interest started to fade. I found myself continuing only out of a desire to finish the book rather than being genuinely invested in the characters or story. The only character I remotely cared about was Maddie, but even she couldn’t fully carry the narrative for me.
While the first half had potential and kept me hooked, the latter part of the book felt like a slog. I lost my connection to the plot and characters, and ultimately, the book didn’t deliver on the eerie, unsettling vibes I was hoping for.
I don’t think I’ll be picking up another Chuck Wendig book in the future unless the plot is particularly intriguing or widely praised as genuinely scary. His writing style just doesn’t seem to resonate with me and is unfortunately not my cup of tea.