Reviews tagging 'Gore'

Wake Up and Open Your Eyes by Clay McLeod Chapman

19 reviews

kkalicky94's review

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adventurous challenging dark mysterious tense medium-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? Plot
  • Strong character development? No
  • Loveable characters? No
  • Diverse cast of characters? Yes
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? No

5.0

If Clay McLeod Chapman has zero fans I am ✨dead✨ 

I don't know what he puts into his books to make them so damn good but I hope he never stops writing. This was a cool take on "zombies"/epidemic/brainwashing? I don't even know how to describe it honestly. It reminded me of American Rapture by CJ Leede but political instead of religious. I like to go into books blind and I think that's the best approach for this book as well because there's no way you can properly describe what happens in this book. I'm sure for a lot of people it'll be a book they love or hate but I personally loved it ☺️
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7_minutes_of_weeping's review

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

3.0

Wow… what an experience. Have you ever read a book that had you periodically stop and ask, “WTF am I reading?” Well, this book had me do that more than any other book I’ve read, and I’ve read some crazy books.

In this wild social and political horror, there is an epidemic of possessions sweeping the US. The cause? Extreme right-wing media called Fax News and viral internet trends circulating on social media. Noah Fairchild fears his parents have been acting strange and pays them a visit in Virginia. He finds himself far from home when the epidemic grips the nation, and he must do what he can to get back to New York to be with his wife and daughter. 

This book is intense on several levels. It’s bold with how it points a finger at the dangers of excessive media consumption and how easy it is for someone to lose themselves to media manipulation. Chapman isn’t afraid to critique the modern polarization of our political beliefs and, quite literally, shove the toxic effects down our throats. I feel there will be a lot of people offended by these topics, and if these topics bother you, I recommend skipping this one. 

This book is also an extremely gruesome horror book that isn’t shy about delving into very graphic descriptions of disturbing and violent content. Chapman jumps straight into these elements, not even 30 pages into the book, so if you pick it up, please be advised that this book is not for the squeamish. Please read the trigger warnings for this one if you are sensitive to certain horror elements.

Overall, I must commend Chapman for his courage to write a book like this in our current political climate. It does an amazing job of pointing out the flaws of our current views on politics while also calling out the toxic consumption of social media and screen time. If you read the book Earthlings by Sayaka Murata and had a great time, you may enjoy this one 😬
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intention_elle's review

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dark reflective tense medium-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? A mix
  • Strong character development? Yes
  • Loveable characters? Yes
  • Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

5.0

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christine_d11's review

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I am so disappointed, but I had to DNF this book. I was so excited to read this new horror, which imagines that demonic possession is happening through right-wing news. But why did I have to read sexually explicit things between a mother and son multiple times in the first few chapters? This book is gory and gruesome and women are reduced to hyper-sexual beings. For those reasons, I had to put it down.
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mfrost's review

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dark tense medium-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? Plot
  • Strong character development? No
  • Loveable characters? No

3.5

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1ightcap's review against another edition

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

3.0

Eugh. I wanted there to be something sharper. I don't know, there was something wierd the whole time.  Why do the faux fox but name checks Anderson Cooper all the time. I don't know if the author really had a point or just wanted to use conspiracy brain as a backdrop.  More Squick than horror. Body horror, wierd incest vibes. Disappointing after some of the more razor maneuvers in Tell Me I'm Worthless 
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ajslifelibrary's review

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challenging dark reflective sad fast-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? Plot
  • Strong character development? No
  • Loveable characters? No
  • Diverse cast of characters? No

2.5

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rachelbram's review against another edition

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dark tense medium-paced

1.5

I just. I feel like this premise sounds really good until you realize it's kind of impossible. Either very heavy-handed or completely confusing what the takeaway is meant to be.

Gory for the sake of being gory. I thought the way the teenage character was depicted as going alt-right didn't really make any sense, especially compared with how the parents did? Like the teenager had significantly less agency, which maybe was the point but just. Didn't make sense in the context. Lots of things that didn't make sense.
Also why were all of the police characters portrayed as not "possessed"? Maybe they were the only cops left? Idk
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aghoststory's review

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

3.5

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2ratsinacoat's review

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challenging dark reflective sad slow-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? Character
  • Strong character development? It's complicated
  • Loveable characters? No
  • Diverse cast of characters? Yes
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.75

Okay, so. 
I really liked this book. I thought the themes were intriguing and noteworthy, and the ideas were fresh. I do think that having a fresh and unique idea can get you far, but… I think the things were a bit heavy handed. That’s cool, I just was hoping for something a bit more thought provoking. Fair warning, there is a lot, and I mean a lot of gore/sexuality, and not in a fun way. The ending wasn’t my favorite, but I still really liked it! If you don’t like political criticism of either side, then don’t read, but I found it enjoyable.
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