| REVIEWED BY FROST |
| "The Heart-Shaped Box" by Joe Hill |
| Rating: 5 Swords Joe Hill William Morrow Horror 2007 ISBN: 978-0-06-114793-7 374 pp. 5 Swords Plus! A Frost “Must-Read” If you’re looking for a horror read that will pull you up out of your complacency, and have you spinning around constantly to check behind you to see what’s creeping up on you, a novel that will make you afraid to sleep at night, you’ve found it right here. The exceptional debut novel from author Joe Hill is a one-in-a-million read and truly qualifies for the adjective “unforgettable.” As I perused the back-cover compliments and inside-cover blurb, I found myself wondering if any novel could live up to such praise! I found out everything pre-publication reviewing authors said about The Heart-Shaped Box is accurate: this is a book that will live long in my memory, and keep me glancing behind me at those barely-seen movements I spot out of the corner of my eye. Jude {Judas} Coyne is an aging {an amazing age fifty-four!} death-metal “god,” former bandleader and incredibly skilled guitarist. Jude has a penchant for death-related acquisitions, including a South-of-the-Border snuff film. When his long-term assistant Danny discovers an off-brand auction site offering sale of a ghost, Jude is motivated almost unconsciously to click on the “buy it now” button and pays $1000 to buy a dead man’s black suit—complete with ghost. The seller didn’t advertise under false pretenses: Jude indeed acquires both suit and ghost, one Craddock McDermott, late hypnotist and Spiritualist practitioner. Craddock is ghost-with-a-goal, and he and his elder stepdaughter Jessica have determined to make Jude pay with his life for the death of one of his former girlfriends, Anna, Jessica’s younger sister. “Florida,” as Jude called her, had returned to her family at his insistence, once her clinical depression became more than he wanted to handle; her subsequent death was ruled suicide and Jude has been chosen to pay the consequences, with the loss of his own life and of anyone who tries to help him stop the ghost. Jude is no two-dimensional cardboard cutout; he’s got hefty life secrets of his own. The quest for survival will develop his character in ways neither Jude, nor the enthralled reader, could expect. Superb plotting and timing render this novel one deserving of the highest praise! Joe Hill has previously authored a collection of his short-stories, 20th Century Ghosts. If you would like to be Reviewed by Frost, send an email to frost@jlfoster.biz or reviewed_by_frost@jlfoster.biz with the subject line "Submission." Include the author's name, title of book, publishing house, genre, page count, and an excerpt. |
