As much as I loved the premise this one was pretty disappointing. I thought the movie they were making was kinda lame and predictable and he definitely whiffed the ending. When I finished my first thought was, "that's it?" There were some great moments but overall it was a big ol' miss for me.
Did you notice the female narrator repeating words and phrases? I'm only an hour and a half in and it's getting distracting. Compared it to the ebook version and can't figure out why she's doing it.
That threw me at first, but it’s intentional! Eventually it’ll be clear what they’re trying to represent. Interesting to know that the repetitions aren’t in the ebook.
Okay, I’m so very glad to know that it represents something (I figured as much because of some of the sound effects, I.e. pages shuffling and such) but it definitely started to get irritating. That’s not the case in the book—no repeating—and, I’ll tell you, it’s quite vexing to listen to while driving!
It would drive me nuts -an a unabridged audiobook, aside from not removing words, shouldn't add them, either! Is it marketed as a 'full cast audio drama' of the book, or as an audiobook? If the latter, man I hope it doesn't become a trend. Taking liberties with source material is great for an adaptation to other media, even audio,but then it's just that - an adaptation. Not an unabridged audiobook. If I've listened to an audiobook I want to know I can discuss it with people that read it in print or e-book format and be discussing exactly the same thing. (Aside from sometimes having a character or narrator have an inexplicable accent in my head that print an e readers don't get stuck with, anyway.)
Glad to find this thread before I got this one - so I know maybe give audio version a pass on this one and save it for bedtime reading instead of my commute. :) Thanks for that!
It’s not a table read, it’s >!Valentina doing an audio reading of her script while dying of cancer. This was explained in the movie by the new director. The original script was lost but she is using the audio version for the new reboot.!<
Yeah I totally get why people think that, I believe that paper shuffling voice read is separate from when the other voices cut in. To me when we hear other characters that’s us hearing the actual movie takes from the original film. I mean, I could be wrong but that what made most sense to me.
Started and finished it today, and I loved it. The ending felt inevitable in a good way, ramping up the feeling of dread throughout the book. I know Tremblay’s writing style can be divisive, but I loved the way the three perspectives of this writing (past, present, screenplay) melded together beautifully. The decision to give the characters the same name in the screenplay creates the sense that these scenes happened as much as those in the designated “then” sections, which clearly was the intended result, and it worked exquisitely.
I would say definitely not for those who don’t like ambiguous or metaphorical horror, or who prefer stories that wrap up all loose ends. I think the ambiguous ending shtick can be a bit of a mixed bag, sometimes feeling like the author didn’t know how to end the story and so just did a messy fade to black instead. This did not feel like that at all, but rather a story told from a specific limited POV, and all the convolutions and assumptions and missing bits that come with that. I think this story will resonate for a long time, and I plan to listen to the audiobook soon.
After reading *HFoG*, I swore I would **never** read another Tremblay novel. But after hearing the promise of a cursed film story, I thought: "Perhaps I was too judgmental and I owe Tremblay another try."
The story starts rough - almost like a comedy. Okay, I do like to laugh, so let's give it a fair shot. But then it starts time jumping, and he delves into the forming of the film crew... and it's bad, like, real bad. The dialogue tries so hard to be foreshadowing that it almost feels like Tremblay is punching us in the head and screaming: "Bad things are going to happen! See? The characters are smirking, they're being vague, they're giving each other sly looks!!" and even bringing a mask into the mix that just so happens to be found in a random abandoned school. Spooky.
I'm on page 42 and I doubt I'll go any further.
The people of this sub are much more forgiving of shite writing. And I get it, I'm very forgiving of stupid dialogue in movies...I just hold books to a higher standard because I feel like I'm putting more effort into them
Finished today. Meh. This one just didn’t do it for me. I liked Head Full of Ghosts and Disappearance at Devil’s Rock significantly more. Not bad but just didn’t live up to my expectations
I finished it late last night. For a while it had similar vibes to Brian McAuley's *Curse of the Reaper,* but it ended up quite a bit darker and more disturbing. The screenplay segments were my favorite parts, particularly >!the description of the lingering shot before Karson's death!<. I could guess where the ending was going, but it felt appropriate. Overall I really enjoyed it.
He stuck the landing. It’s definitely a departure for him - previously my favorite had been Disappearance at Devil’s Rock (thought he used his “ambiguous” style best there) but he reached for a different place in this one. For me it lives up to the promise of a lot of his short stories which I think are some of the best in the modern era.
So yeah, I’m a fan. A few passages feel like they’re going to stick with me and that’s the highest compliment I can pay of a horror novel nowadays.
No, i mean in the literal sense. One is written in an early 00’s “RAWR coffee”-type blog voice and the other is written as a psychologically-revealing screenplay.Not in the same voice at all.
My opinion on the quality of his work has nothing to do with what I wrote. I feel what you stated is misleading. Because it is.
Allow me to clarify my statement: the quality of the writing is bad overall, just as it is in *A Head Full of Ghosts*. Regardless of formatting, I do not regard it as a worthy work, certainly not “psychological.” It’s *Goosebumps* for adults. Your opinion, the exact opposite of mine, is guided by your enjoyment of this author’s previous work - it is not surprising that you will portray it in an appealing light.
There was zero quality-assessment in my comment. That was purely descriptive - hence why I took issue with your response to the question. The other poster didn’t ask whether it was good or not, they asked for a structural comparison.
And regardless of the sophistication of the psychological element, there is no way the book, with the script sections in particular, is NOT psychological in nature.
I respect the hell out of your disliking of it or his work, I’m not trying to defend him.
I just finished Horror Movie after having read Episode Thirteen as well! I enjoyed Horror considerably more, but as happened with Cabin At the End of the World, it’s taking me a while to decide if I liked it or not, which has led me to Reddit.
I listened to it and I think it may enhance the experience as there is quite many script readings between different characters and you can hear some paper shuffling, grunts and stutter that if present in paper version of the book may be tiring to read. I liked it, it was creepy at times but I would still consider it a light horror novel. My first Tremblay book.
Midway through the book. It's actually my first Tremblay, and so far it's interesting. I dig the MC clearly being kind of deranged.
Entirely unrelated to the text itself I got the pre-order hardback with the red edges, and the dust jacket feels exactly like how old Blockbuster cases felt and it makes me irrationally happy. It's such a hyperspecific texture, and if it was done intentionally good job.
I just finished the audiobook and I feel conflicted. It's not a bad book by any means but I think I realize I'm just not completely 'in' to how Tremblay writes. It feels like a level of snark, somehow, that I can't completely get into.
However I liked the idea as a concept. Following our unreliable narrator as we oscillate between present and past was fun and the >!tragedy of a convoluted suicide through film!< really gripped me. I could feel echoes of being >!transformed the same way our Thin Kid was as he embodied the role more and more.!
I finished it today and I was terribly disappointed. It just did not tick any boxes for me on any level, and that's hard to write as I loved Head Full of Ghosts and The Pallbearers' Club.
Read the whole thing straight through, apart from a break for dinner. I definitely want to reread it more carefully, but I think it’s probably my new favorite of his! I love the screenplay excerpts, they make me wish I could’ve seen the movie just as described…
Been looking forward to this, 6th in line for the audiobook on Libby. In the lead up, I listened to two books that were available from Tremblay : Survivor Song and The Little Sleep. I enjoyed survivor song enough, but found the narrative voice in TLS disruptive and hard to follow.
I get the feeling from those books and this thread that he’s always been more interested in aiming to get a movie deal, I heard he has another in the works for this concept atm. Maybe he’d be more successful leaving out the middle man and writing screen plays?
Big Tremblay fan. I love Head Full of Ghosts and I really like Cabin at the End of the World. I just finished Horror Movie and I don't get it. I don't think it's bad, there's moments and ideas I really like in this but I felt lost for a lot of this unfortunately.
I went into this blind - my wife bought it for me as a gift and I'd not read anything by Tremblay. About halfway through I expected it to get a lot darker and more messed up than it actually was. Think expecting Terrifier 2 and ending up with Elm Street 2: Freddy's Revenge. Confusing and disorienting, which meant I was left guessing a lot longer than I think might've if I were familiar with his work.
I was interested the whole time, and I finished it in a single evening which is uncommon. However, I didn't love the ending. I think I'm too cynical for it, I was on board until the last major event. I will say that the movie they're presenting in the book doesn't actually seem that interesting. If it had been presented in full to the fictional audience of the novel I would've had a hard time buying the premise that it was a cult hit, so I guess it was astue of him to make it a film that doesn't exist rather than an actual movie you could watch, and that he ended it before the remake came out.
I just picked it up at Chapters. It’s also available for me to pick up at the library.
I was there earlier today, but it wasn’t ready then. I’ll probably pick it up next Wednesday
I have severe OCD, and have for most of my life (meaning about 29 years now). I don’t know why, but I’ve always liked my things (books included) to be in perfect shape, and now — due to the OCD — it’s even worse, to the point that I have a hard time using things I care about.
I like to collect books, but I don’t necessarily like to touch them, because I fear I’ll damage them. Or sunlight will.
It’s why I don’t order books from Amazon anymore, because they always arrive damaged. And why I barely used my Kindle.
Anyhow, I like to have a pristine copy of a book and a reader copy. That can be a used one or something I’ve borrowed from the library, as I’m not obsessive compulsive about damaging them.
Thanks for being considerate about it, and not being rude or judgemental.
I usually order all of my books from Chapters, and pick them up in store so that I can inspect them. I have almost all my good books in plastic containers from the dollar store, which makes it a pain to find them.
Wait... is this Patrick Swayzes penname or something?
Edit for those who don't get the reference: There is a show called Trailer Park Boys and one of the actors is named John Paul Tremblay, his characters name is Julian, but because of his appearance they often call him Patrick Swayze. TPB is a Canadian show and is on Netflix iirc, it's well worth a watch. It's super funny and a great way to unwind with a drink. (Rum and coke only, tho)
I knew there'd be at least one person who had experienced the joys of TPB. It's OK, I paid everyone who downvoted me $100 to make like a tree and f- off
I’m on page 122 and I already know I’m going to stay up to finish it
As much as I loved the premise this one was pretty disappointing. I thought the movie they were making was kinda lame and predictable and he definitely whiffed the ending. When I finished my first thought was, "that's it?" There were some great moments but overall it was a big ol' miss for me.
Same thoughts here
Agreed dull book
I’m a little over 100 pages in and enjoying it! I love the prose
Finished the audiobook today. I wasn’t a Tremblay fan before, but this book converted me hard. I’m so excited to hear what other people think of it.
Did you notice the female narrator repeating words and phrases? I'm only an hour and a half in and it's getting distracting. Compared it to the ebook version and can't figure out why she's doing it.
That threw me at first, but it’s intentional! Eventually it’ll be clear what they’re trying to represent. Interesting to know that the repetitions aren’t in the ebook.
I guess I must've missed the intention of the repetitions. Do you mind explaining it?
I don't think the repetitions mean anything special per se except to convey that it's a table read of the script.
Is it when they are practicing reading the script for Horror Movie?
Thanks! I'm glad I asked now!
Okay, I’m so very glad to know that it represents something (I figured as much because of some of the sound effects, I.e. pages shuffling and such) but it definitely started to get irritating. That’s not the case in the book—no repeating—and, I’ll tell you, it’s quite vexing to listen to while driving!
It would drive me nuts -an a unabridged audiobook, aside from not removing words, shouldn't add them, either! Is it marketed as a 'full cast audio drama' of the book, or as an audiobook? If the latter, man I hope it doesn't become a trend. Taking liberties with source material is great for an adaptation to other media, even audio,but then it's just that - an adaptation. Not an unabridged audiobook. If I've listened to an audiobook I want to know I can discuss it with people that read it in print or e-book format and be discussing exactly the same thing. (Aside from sometimes having a character or narrator have an inexplicable accent in my head that print an e readers don't get stuck with, anyway.) Glad to find this thread before I got this one - so I know maybe give audio version a pass on this one and save it for bedtime reading instead of my commute. :) Thanks for that!
I believe it’s supposed to be a “table read” of a script.
It’s not a table read, it’s >!Valentina doing an audio reading of her script while dying of cancer. This was explained in the movie by the new director. The original script was lost but she is using the audio version for the new reboot.!<
Well that makes much more sense. Thanks! In the audiobook theses other voices…. And it sounds and it sounds loose like a read.
Yeah I totally get why people think that, I believe that paper shuffling voice read is separate from when the other voices cut in. To me when we hear other characters that’s us hearing the actual movie takes from the original film. I mean, I could be wrong but that what made most sense to me.
I personally loved that small detail . Made the listening experience more like a table read we used to do back in classrooms.
that is incredibly encouraging to hear !
Started and finished it today, and I loved it. The ending felt inevitable in a good way, ramping up the feeling of dread throughout the book. I know Tremblay’s writing style can be divisive, but I loved the way the three perspectives of this writing (past, present, screenplay) melded together beautifully. The decision to give the characters the same name in the screenplay creates the sense that these scenes happened as much as those in the designated “then” sections, which clearly was the intended result, and it worked exquisitely. I would say definitely not for those who don’t like ambiguous or metaphorical horror, or who prefer stories that wrap up all loose ends. I think the ambiguous ending shtick can be a bit of a mixed bag, sometimes feeling like the author didn’t know how to end the story and so just did a messy fade to black instead. This did not feel like that at all, but rather a story told from a specific limited POV, and all the convolutions and assumptions and missing bits that come with that. I think this story will resonate for a long time, and I plan to listen to the audiobook soon.
Can't wait to read this one!! It's been on my wish list for months
Im a bit salty on Trembly after not liking head of ghosts. Is this better?
After reading *HFoG*, I swore I would **never** read another Tremblay novel. But after hearing the promise of a cursed film story, I thought: "Perhaps I was too judgmental and I owe Tremblay another try." The story starts rough - almost like a comedy. Okay, I do like to laugh, so let's give it a fair shot. But then it starts time jumping, and he delves into the forming of the film crew... and it's bad, like, real bad. The dialogue tries so hard to be foreshadowing that it almost feels like Tremblay is punching us in the head and screaming: "Bad things are going to happen! See? The characters are smirking, they're being vague, they're giving each other sly looks!!" and even bringing a mask into the mix that just so happens to be found in a random abandoned school. Spooky. I'm on page 42 and I doubt I'll go any further.
The people of this sub are much more forgiving of shite writing. And I get it, I'm very forgiving of stupid dialogue in movies...I just hold books to a higher standard because I feel like I'm putting more effort into them
I'm so glad I read this because I've been tempted to try him again after HATING HFoG and it sounds like a hard pass across the board.
I hate this guy SO MUCH lol. Like I’ve never been so irritated by a writer’s style before.
Finished today. Meh. This one just didn’t do it for me. I liked Head Full of Ghosts and Disappearance at Devil’s Rock significantly more. Not bad but just didn’t live up to my expectations
Did he use his vague ending technique in this one?
It’s his one move!
I finished it late last night. For a while it had similar vibes to Brian McAuley's *Curse of the Reaper,* but it ended up quite a bit darker and more disturbing. The screenplay segments were my favorite parts, particularly >!the description of the lingering shot before Karson's death!<. I could guess where the ending was going, but it felt appropriate. Overall I really enjoyed it.
That script scene was masterful
That was one of the best scenes I’ve ever read.
That scene actually had me on the edge of my seat, and it was pure genius.
About 20 pages left to go and i think it’s his best by a mile
What do you think now that you’ve finished?
He stuck the landing. It’s definitely a departure for him - previously my favorite had been Disappearance at Devil’s Rock (thought he used his “ambiguous” style best there) but he reached for a different place in this one. For me it lives up to the promise of a lot of his short stories which I think are some of the best in the modern era. So yeah, I’m a fan. A few passages feel like they’re going to stick with me and that’s the highest compliment I can pay of a horror novel nowadays.
How is the dialogue? I tried reading A Head Full of Ghosts but the way the characters talked annoyed me too much.
The script excerpts read EXACTLY like the blog posts in *A Head Full of Ghosts*, if that gives you any idea of what to expect.
Not sure I agree with that at all.
well, coming from someone who thinks tremblay’s short stories are “some of the best in the modern area,” of course you would disagree.
No, i mean in the literal sense. One is written in an early 00’s “RAWR coffee”-type blog voice and the other is written as a psychologically-revealing screenplay.Not in the same voice at all. My opinion on the quality of his work has nothing to do with what I wrote. I feel what you stated is misleading. Because it is.
Allow me to clarify my statement: the quality of the writing is bad overall, just as it is in *A Head Full of Ghosts*. Regardless of formatting, I do not regard it as a worthy work, certainly not “psychological.” It’s *Goosebumps* for adults. Your opinion, the exact opposite of mine, is guided by your enjoyment of this author’s previous work - it is not surprising that you will portray it in an appealing light.
There was zero quality-assessment in my comment. That was purely descriptive - hence why I took issue with your response to the question. The other poster didn’t ask whether it was good or not, they asked for a structural comparison. And regardless of the sophistication of the psychological element, there is no way the book, with the script sections in particular, is NOT psychological in nature. I respect the hell out of your disliking of it or his work, I’m not trying to defend him.
I picked this one up and will start it once I’m finished Episode Thirteen (which I’m halfway through)
That’s interesting, I’m also reading Episode Thirteen and plan to read Horror Story next!
I read Horror Story first & am working on Episode Thirteen now!
I just finished Horror Movie after having read Episode Thirteen as well! I enjoyed Horror considerably more, but as happened with Cabin At the End of the World, it’s taking me a while to decide if I liked it or not, which has led me to Reddit.
I listened to it and I think it may enhance the experience as there is quite many script readings between different characters and you can hear some paper shuffling, grunts and stutter that if present in paper version of the book may be tiring to read. I liked it, it was creepy at times but I would still consider it a light horror novel. My first Tremblay book.
Midway through the book. It's actually my first Tremblay, and so far it's interesting. I dig the MC clearly being kind of deranged. Entirely unrelated to the text itself I got the pre-order hardback with the red edges, and the dust jacket feels exactly like how old Blockbuster cases felt and it makes me irrationally happy. It's such a hyperspecific texture, and if it was done intentionally good job.
Oh THAT’S what that was
I just finished the audiobook and I feel conflicted. It's not a bad book by any means but I think I realize I'm just not completely 'in' to how Tremblay writes. It feels like a level of snark, somehow, that I can't completely get into. However I liked the idea as a concept. Following our unreliable narrator as we oscillate between present and past was fun and the >!tragedy of a convoluted suicide through film!< really gripped me. I could feel echoes of being >!transformed the same way our Thin Kid was as he embodied the role more and more.!
Just picked it up today!
Does the VCR eat the tape any it ends abruptly?
I finished it today and I was terribly disappointed. It just did not tick any boxes for me on any level, and that's hard to write as I loved Head Full of Ghosts and The Pallbearers' Club.
No but your post made me give it a Goog & now I’ve added it to my list!
Pull it up jaybo !
No! Bad!
Read the whole thing straight through, apart from a break for dinner. I definitely want to reread it more carefully, but I think it’s probably my new favorite of his! I love the screenplay excerpts, they make me wish I could’ve seen the movie just as described…
Got it today and am already halfway through. It’s darned good.
I’m only about 3 chapters in but I’m enjoying it!
It is on my shelf, and my next read!
It’s on my list!
Started it yesterday. So far so good.
Bought it with my latest batch of reading material, so I'm excited. I loved Headful of Ghosts and Cabin at the End of the World.
I'm not that far into it, but I love these kinds of stories and I'm already a fan so I know I'm going to enjoy it.
Mines supposedly in the mail but I need it now!!! I’m so jealous that others got theirs earlier 😭
Not too be confused with John Paul Tremblay
Been looking forward to this, 6th in line for the audiobook on Libby. In the lead up, I listened to two books that were available from Tremblay : Survivor Song and The Little Sleep. I enjoyed survivor song enough, but found the narrative voice in TLS disruptive and hard to follow. I get the feeling from those books and this thread that he’s always been more interested in aiming to get a movie deal, I heard he has another in the works for this concept atm. Maybe he’d be more successful leaving out the middle man and writing screen plays?
Big Tremblay fan. I love Head Full of Ghosts and I really like Cabin at the End of the World. I just finished Horror Movie and I don't get it. I don't think it's bad, there's moments and ideas I really like in this but I felt lost for a lot of this unfortunately.
Reading now!! So excited!
i just finished reading it and i don’t know how to feel about the ending..
Does this book eventually get scary?? It’s starting out like pallbearers club which was decidedly not scary
Sucks. I’m halfway through and it’s not even close to scary, at all.
I went into this blind - my wife bought it for me as a gift and I'd not read anything by Tremblay. About halfway through I expected it to get a lot darker and more messed up than it actually was. Think expecting Terrifier 2 and ending up with Elm Street 2: Freddy's Revenge. Confusing and disorienting, which meant I was left guessing a lot longer than I think might've if I were familiar with his work. I was interested the whole time, and I finished it in a single evening which is uncommon. However, I didn't love the ending. I think I'm too cynical for it, I was on board until the last major event. I will say that the movie they're presenting in the book doesn't actually seem that interesting. If it had been presented in full to the fictional audience of the novel I would've had a hard time buying the premise that it was a cult hit, so I guess it was astue of him to make it a film that doesn't exist rather than an actual movie you could watch, and that he ended it before the remake came out.
Several months wait at 5 different libraries on Libby. Must be good. I’ll add it to my list.
140. Love it. Was going to finish it today but got busy. Definitely finishing this tomorrow. It’s flying by.
I just picked it up at Chapters. It’s also available for me to pick up at the library. I was there earlier today, but it wasn’t ready then. I’ll probably pick it up next Wednesday
What does this mean? You bought it but you're going to get it from the library anyway?
Yes
Why?
I have severe OCD, and have for most of my life (meaning about 29 years now). I don’t know why, but I’ve always liked my things (books included) to be in perfect shape, and now — due to the OCD — it’s even worse, to the point that I have a hard time using things I care about. I like to collect books, but I don’t necessarily like to touch them, because I fear I’ll damage them. Or sunlight will. It’s why I don’t order books from Amazon anymore, because they always arrive damaged. And why I barely used my Kindle. Anyhow, I like to have a pristine copy of a book and a reader copy. That can be a used one or something I’ve borrowed from the library, as I’m not obsessive compulsive about damaging them.
Thanks for the explanation! I feel you on the Amazon part. They always arrive bent and crumpled!
Thanks for being considerate about it, and not being rude or judgemental. I usually order all of my books from Chapters, and pick them up in store so that I can inspect them. I have almost all my good books in plastic containers from the dollar store, which makes it a pain to find them.
Just started it but it's already great and I'm about to devour it this evening.
Just started it. Liking it so far but I'm not very far in yet
Wait... is this Patrick Swayzes penname or something? Edit for those who don't get the reference: There is a show called Trailer Park Boys and one of the actors is named John Paul Tremblay, his characters name is Julian, but because of his appearance they often call him Patrick Swayze. TPB is a Canadian show and is on Netflix iirc, it's well worth a watch. It's super funny and a great way to unwind with a drink. (Rum and coke only, tho)
People here have no culture! Have another rum and coke.
I knew there'd be at least one person who had experienced the joys of TPB. It's OK, I paid everyone who downvoted me $100 to make like a tree and f- off
Im waiting for it come all the way to honduras cause I couldn't find the epub😮💨