A review by meows_and_migraines
Rotten Tommy: A Horror Novel by David Sodergren

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

3.0

First novel I've read by this author. Not bad, not great. Fun ideas, lots of gore, and a crazy premise. I enjoyed the MC for the most part, though the supporting cast left something to be desired. What I really wish is that the ending (hell, the story itself) answered more questions. I get the feeling the author intentionally left it vague and I appreciate Sodergren wanting to leave a mystery and letting the readers mind fill the gaps - but a tiny bit more explanation would have bumped my rating up. 

Our protag, Becky, is strong-willed, smart and funny. Everyone else is... meh. Basic paperthin characters written to fulfil a role to move the plot along. Once again I felt myself wishing for just a little more development. If that had happened, my reaction to their fates would have sufficed more than an apathetic 'Well, hat happened. Sucks for them. Moving on.'

I won't/can't comment on his description of autism (which our leading lady is diagnosed with), I'm certainly not qualified in that area and I won't pretend to be. But I will say, that as a reader, I feel it added a layer to Becky that I appreciated and enjoyed.

Will I read more of Sodergren's stuff? Probably. His writing holds a campy 80s horror movie vibe which is hard to find outside the screen nowadays and that is a scratch that can be mighty hard to itch with a book.
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