Haunted

Haunted is a novel made up of twenty-three horrifying, hilarious, and stomach-churning stories. They’re told by people who have answered an ad for a writer’s retreat and unwittingly joined a “Survivor”-like scenario where the host withholds heat, power, and food. As the storytellers grow more desperate, their tales become more extreme, and they ruthlessly plot to make themselves the hero of the reality show that will surely be made from their plight. This is one of the most disturbing and outrageous books you’ll ever read, one that could only come from the mind of Chuck Palahniuk. (www.goodreads.com)

This has to be one of the most terrible books I've ever read. Honestly, I've got nothing good to say of this novel. Why has it been published? Because the writer has a succesful film adaptation on his record? I don't know, but going on this book alone, I'd never read anything of his again.

Don't misunderstand me. Most of those short stories are well crafted, but there's nothing going for the content other than the excess of gore. Nothing horror about them, those calling this horror should really examine them, this is just the stuff we'd like to see when we drive by a serious accident, nothing short of disaster tourism.

I haven't even finished the novel. I only read it sporadically and I finally got bored by the ugliness of the stories. I skipped to the end, which I haven't done since I had an obligatory reading assignment in school and I truly despised the ending. Of course there are people who find this novel good, and I have respect for those people, but as it goes for me.. I'm not recommending this novel to anyone.

Personal score: 1 star