Heart-Shaped Box by Joe Hill Summary and Reviews
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Book Reviews of Heart-Shaped Box
Book Review: A trip on the nightroad that's not for the faint of heart
Summary: 5 Stars
I got this book on a whim, since I'd read several glowing reviews of it, including one by Neil Gaiman that got me really curious, and I'm glad I listened to that whim.
The Dickensianly-named Judas Coyne, an aging death metal rock star, gets more than he bargained for when he buys a suit that once belonged to a recently deceased hypnotist and spiritualist, to add to his collection of macabre curios. The unwelcome and unwholesome attachment to it sends him and his Goth girlfriend Georgia on a road trip through the Deep South, on which he is forced to confront many ghosts from his path before they can shake off the intruder. Joe Hill delicately balances the gruesome moments with psychological depth and flashes of black humor. It's the kind of book you'll want to bring along to read during a long summer trip, but make sure it's a plenty-long one: You'll find it hard to set it aside before you reach your destination...
Book Review: AVERAGE...IT AINT CARRIE
Summary: 3 Stars
HEART SHAPED BOX is average fare. Joe Hill has raw talent, but his book needs some serious editing, which aint gonna happen because of who Joe's daddy is. It took me 50 pages to get interested in the story.
Georgia, the Goth Chick, is a lot more interesting and sympathetic character than Jude. I cant care less what happens to Jude because he's a neurotic navel gazer. Too much introspection for my taste.
Still, Joe writes better than Clive Barker, John Farris, Charles Grant, Peter Straub and others...but that aint saying much.
It didnt scare me.
Joe! Get an editor who's not afraid of Stevie.
Book Review: Amazing and scary
Summary: 5 Stars
Wow, what a great debut!
Now that I have that out of the way, let me start out my review by saying that Heart-Shaped Box is the creepiest, scariest new book that I have read in quite some time. Mr. Hill tells an excellent story; well thought out with wonderful character development. The thing that I really loved about his introducing us to the characters is that he just threw us into the ride with them without too much background and then built them up into very complex and likable personalities through the course of the book without setting us up with a "here's what this character is all about" sort of summary .
The story-telling in this novel is top-notch. Hill weaves a grand adventure fraught with tension and nail-biting moments that you won't want to put down. My only complaint with the novel was that sometimes his style/structure didn't flow extremely well and I had to re-read a sentence or two to comprehend what he was trying to say. These instances were few and far between, so it wasn't a distraction to the wonderful flow of the novel.
If you couldn't tell, I highly recommend Heart-Shaped Box. It's a great read. One word of caution though, if you're reading alone in a dark and quiet farm-house out in the boonies, I would suggest turning on some lights before running upstairs to get something. I didn't and I almost scared the bejeepers out of myself with the images from the book still lodged in my head!!
Book Review: An Excellent Modern Ghost Story
Summary: 4 Stars
Joe King's (aka Joe Hill) Heart-Shaped Box is a thought-provoking, fantasty/horror-drenched take on the modern ghost story. His characters definately keep the reader engaged, although some of Jude's and Georgia's traits were annoyingly uneven. But the characters' inner turmoil and struggles with the past add a level of rich depth to the novel; it is well worth the read. The whole internet ghost story concept is original and refreshingly real. The suspense and horror of the plot will please most. This novel is even better than some of his father's lesser novels (i.e. Tommyknockers and Tom Gordon, et. al.). I look for his future works and hopefully enjoy seeing his writing mature and grow.Book Review: An Impressive Debut
Summary: 5 Stars
I had read a bit of Joe Hill previous to picking up this novel, but only in short story form. Like most short stories, Hill's were a bit hit and miss. In Heart Shaped Box, he really nails it.
Each of the characters are fully realized, especially the character Jude, who goes from relatable to aloof to likeable to intolerable often in one chapter. In short, he is much like the average person you meet, except he is famous.
To say too much more would ruin the shock value of the book, but it is safe to say it is a story about love and redemption through a prism of pure horror. One of the best books of the year.