Shutter Island (Dennis Lehane, 2003)

I think after this I'd rather read the book before seeing the film. Dennis Lehane is popular but after getting 200 pages into Shutter Island (and easy feat seeing as the print is mashoosive) I wasn't entirely sure why. Maybe my opinions are tainted by the fact that I really enjoyed the hell out of the movie but Lehane's writing prose is limited. There's a workman-like sensibility to it, almost akin to a "my first popular novel". Everything is skimmed over with no depth, and considering much of the plot revolves around one man's descent into madness and its subsequent repercussions, depth is something that is drastically needed.

Reading the book seemed somewhat superfluous as, in essence, the movie is identical. Much of the story is the build to the inevitable Big Reveal but seeing as I already knew what said reveal would be, half way through I found myself wondering what's the point? None of the images presented, especially during the dream sequences, have the same impact as they do on film. It's like a film's script (which was, admittedly weak and I now see why) without the Scorsese flair. In fact, having now read the book, I'm not sure if the film would have appealed much at all.

Shutter Island is one of those books where you know that you, as an amateur writer, can do better.

2/5

Horns (Joe Hill, 2010)

If anyone were to ask me who I'd be reading in twenty years time the answer would come easily and without hesitation: Joe Hill.

I loved Heart-Shaped Box and whilst his collection of shorts (20th Century Ghosts) contained a few duds, for the most part they were excellent, the likes of Pop Art and Last Breath in particular, were works of an exciting new talent. But it has also been a while between projects (H-SB was released way back in 2007) so my anticipation for Horns was near astronomical by the time of release. But this gap also shows Hill's determination not to release sub par material. Having worked for a year on a novel titled The Surrealist's Glass, he admitted that it just wasn't working and rewrote it to what eventually became Horns. We'll never know which manuscript was better but considering how good Horns is it hardly matters.

Horns is also a very different beast from H-SB. Effectively a story about a man possessed with the powers of Satan, the forefront of the narrative is about the character's motivations and what led them to decisions that ultimately ruined the lives of the four key players. It's Merrin's murder that is the catalyst but she is just as much a protagonist as Iggy, our "hero" who seems to acknowledge the fine line between good and evil and that sometimes, evil will benefit more. As such, two of the five main sections of the book are told in flashback, detailing our character's lives from the age of 15 to the night of Merrin's death. It's compelling stuff and one trump card that Hill has managed, with H-SB also, is his ability to tell enough back-story without bogging the reader down, something his father (Stephen King) has failed to do on numerous occasions.

But, this being a story about the devil, there is debauchery aplenty and, in places, it’s filthy. It doesn't quite trump H-SB's ghost crawling out of the mouth moment or anyone masturbating to a snuff film with a pistol in their mouth but someone does die after having a snake crawl down their throat.

I loved it. Having read 90 pages, I sat down on Sunday for a quiet hour to read and ended up finishing it. Both Horns and H-SB have their good and bad moments and whilst I would honestly say that it's difficult to differentiate between the two in terms of quality, Hill's sophomore effort is step up in terms of maturity and writing prose. I just hope that it isn't another three years before his next one.

I’d like to see him try something epic next time. Maybe a zombie apocalypse?

5/5

The Birthing House (Christopher Ransom, 2008)

Beyond terrible.

I wont spoil it for those that want to give this one a try but, with an opening line as lazy, in your face and hackneyed as it has, this book was doomed from the start. To say it's poorly written is so far beyond stating the obvious it’s a joke and never once was it remotely scary. It's the first book in well over a year that I've put down before finishing. I even gave it away to a colleague just to be rid of it.

At least I have Horns by Joe Hill to read now. Now that is a man who can write a book.

Just avoid this one if you can. It fucking blows.

1/5

The Library Policeman (Stephen King, 1990)

Certainly not King's best work.

Having read The Langoliers, the first of his novellas in Four Past Midnight (it is also excellent), I had high hopes for this one, book 3 to The Langoliers book 1. I don't know what I was expecting but a promising start is squandered by a generic shape shifting beast story line that has many similarities with 'It'. It whisks along quickly enough (at 250 pages it's quite brief) but it's also nothing better than serviceable.

The initial arrival of the Library Policeman is scary as hell though. "Come with me thon, I'm a poleethman." Terrifying.

3/5

On Writing (Stephen King, 2000)

Any and all books entitled "How To Write" and such can now, officially, fuck off. In reading Stephen King's non-fiction memoir On Writing (a mix of autobiography and lessons of the craft of storytelling) I have learned more than any English lesson I've had to date and whilst King can easily be considered one of the most, if not THE most, prolific authors in history, he has no qualms about stating, often quite bluntly, that there are no set rules, no magic spark. You just need to read a lot and write a lot and seeing as I do both it's quite an confidence booster for aspiring writers even if, in the latter half, he goes into detail as to how difficult it can be to get published.

It's brief and to the point, and all autobiographical segments are relevant in that they shaped the author into the writer he is today. Never dull, always informative and is to the point. Since reading I have frantically been revisiting my short stories.

This is a must read to anyone who has ever thought about writing.

5/5