My Heart Is a Chainsaw | 
pickI can‘t shut up about SGJ. I didn‘t like this one as much as The Only Good Indians, but I still liked it. Jade Daniels isn‘t Final Girl material, but she does love a good slasher. When murders start occurring in her small town, could she actually be living in one? Or is Jade somehow involved? I‘ll be reading the rest of this trilogy and anything else SGJ wants to throw my way. My July #BookSpin (How am I still so behind on writing these!?)
One of the things this book did well was build up to the finale. I mean, the main character is obsessed with slasher movies, so it is obviously leading up to a huge massacre, right? Or is her mind twisting things to fit her fantasy? Could the deaths just be coincidences? Is she somehow responsible for what is happening?
#wickedwhispers @eggs @alwaysbeenaloverofbooks
pickMy first rec for a series for #hauntedshelf is this amazing trilogy! My heart is a chainsaw is a gorgeous deep dark strange meta slasher perfect for Scream fans, about a Native American girl obsessed with horror movies who believes her town needs a final girl but because final girls aren‘t like her, it can‘t be her. Violent and thoughtful and creepy and incredible.
#skeletoncrew
pickI am glad I read this, and I'll continue the series, but this was tough to get into. There was something in the writing that made the flow a struggle. I had to re-read sentences often. Jade is very private and withdrawn, which comes through well, but also makes the story hard to follow at times, like there's always a detail missing or a thought unfinished. It really picks up after page 200, which is probably past the bail point for many...
I'm feeling very unfocused lately, in general but especially towards reading. I have at least three books that I started and set down on the past two weeks, and not because I didn't like them. It doesn't help that I've felt blase about most my reads so far this year. I am also finding it harder to put down my phone and focus on other things. Maybe I've just been over stimulated lately... it's been a busy couple months
pickGaahhh I LOVED this book!! I‘m a huge fan of slasher movies so just ate up all the references and Jade might be one of my favorite characters of all time. Yes, the plot was slow for much of the story but I didn‘t even care - I just knew it was building up to something epic. I also loved that this wasn‘t your typical straightforward slasher - it‘s deep and deals with some pretty heavy topics. It‘s still fun, though, and my only complaint is ⬇️
I couldn‘t decide what to start reading next so I left the wheel decide! I‘m a little nervous as I‘ve read a few reviews saying this was challenging or slow, but I‘m going to give it a try! Hopefully it‘ll terrifying me 😬
pick⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
This was a beautiful but challenging read. As a slasher that carefully and artfully explores everything from gentrification to racism and abuse, this is a truly unique take on the Final Girl that will stick with me for a very long time. Full review on my blog 👇🏽
https://slashingpages.com/2024/03/05/my-heart-is-a-chainsaw-stephen-graham-jones...
Low book count for February (for me), but at least I enjoyed them all! Tagged was extremely challenging, but worth it in the end 🖤
Sunday afternoon me-time, while my husband gets in some daddy-son time downstairs 😌
On the battered paper map that‘s carried the two of them across they‘re not sure how many of the American states now, this is Proofrock, Idaho, and the dark body of water before them is Indian Lake, and it kind of goes forever out into the night.
#FirstLineFridays A mouthful of a first line, and they don't get any shorter after that 😅 A challenging read, but worth it.
I've been lost in both of these all weekend. Completely engrossing #weekendreads
What have you been reading? 📚 I always want to know. 😅
@rachelsbrittain
Isn't it so wonderful when you discover a new author?
I started the tagged last night. My 1st Stephen Graham Jones and I could not put it down. I adore the MC, Jade.
The first thing I did this morning was check out his back catalogue 'cos I want more #horror. 📚📚📚
Any recommendations?
pickThis was a book that was a bit hard to get into. I was confused. I started to like to story when deaths started to happen. Still after 200 pages I wondered if this should be tagged as horror at all. Well the last 100 pages definitely were that.
I liked Jade, and also the message in this book. I liked several secondary characters and really rooted for them to survive.
I didn't like the writing but it had it's moments too.
#SeriesLove2024
#AutumnPlease! @eggs @Alwaysbeenaloverofbooks
Spent a good portion of this book wondering what was a #delusion and what wasn't 😬
pick#31DaysOfHorror is well underway. To supplement my diet of horror films I‘m also reading some scary books. In this one, a high school kid named Jade is obsessed with slasher films and is sure one is about to unfold in her little town. I hate that I identified with Jade a little too much—though I was the nerdy good girl, I remember that feeling of being the weirdo and inhaling horror films like Halloween candy. Good gory stuff
My Bookends post for September: https://imperfecthappiness.org/2023/10/02/bookends-september-2023/
Tagged is my favorite book of the month, which helped get me in the mood for October's TBR!
pickI really like this book. I used to watch slashers when I was younger, but I had to take a break from horror for a while after I had kids. My hypothesis is that being responsible for the life of a child was too scary for me to enjoy recreational terror. As my kids have grown, I've gradually gone back to horror, first books and later movies. I'm very grateful to have the work of Stephen Graham Jones and Jordan Peele to aid my rediscovery of horror.
Browns/Bengals vs Stephen Graham Jones. Unless something changes in Cleveland pretty soon, it's not much of a contest for my attention.
so-so#StoryGraph: fiction horror thriller dark mysterious tense
416 pages • first pub 2021 • 3 Stars
The story follows Jade Daniels, a girl whose encyclopedic knowledge of slasher films and classic horror proves frighteningly more useful than she ever expected. The novel is a deconstruction of slasher films that celebrates everything about them.
On our way to the farmers market this morning my husband *casually* mentioned there's a new indie bookstore right off the Square. So of course I had to pick up some titles! @Kangaj1 did you know about Lake City Books??
Apologies to #nomsthecat who posed so adorably.
pickOn this, my second time reading My Heart Is a Chainsaw, I found many more reasons to love it. Originally, although I quite enjoyed it, I was disappointed by the ending; it felt like it came from nowhere. But this time I found the breadcrumbs and appreciate it more.
Something about Jones‘ style makes him a moiling read. I often have to reexamine his sentences multiple times to grasp their meaning. I think, though, he is rewarding to the astute.
pickHorror is not really my go to but I was intrigued! You have to root for Jade , she doesn‘t have family support, her interest in slasher movies is deep , skills that come in handy in this “intense at the end”read ! Glad I finished it in the morning, avoided those horror dreams last night .😁🔪I came across a signed edition of book 2 at a local indie , had to get both .
Scary read before sleeping…can‘t help it!🤷♀️
so-soGreat concept and some interesting plot lines. I had a very hard time getting into the story though until about half through. Downloaded the audiobook and doing a read along made me finish though. 50-80% I was all in, but the last 10% was strange again. Something still stuck with me enough that I plan to try book 2 of the trilogy. I do love all the slasher film trivia sprinkled in.
pickBook 40📚 4⭐️
This one is chalked full of slasher knowledge, which I loved! I definitely have a few movies to add to the list.
I‘m a sucker for a 80/90s slasher! Can‘t wait for book 2!
pickApart from being a horror novel, it‘s a love letter to our favorite genre of horror films: the slasher. Following a horror film aficionado, Jade Daniels, as she starts to feel like there are things going on in her town that give her the impression that a slasher is coming through town. Jade is definitely a fictional character you grow to love. 5 ⭐️
pickI really enjoyed this even though the ending was…muddy. It‘s the start of a trilogy - the sequel is out in a few weeks. If you love/have knowledge of horror films (esp Scream, Friday the 13th, and Jaws), this was super fast paced horror with lots of references.
so-soI co-hosted a radio show about Horror movies from 2012-2015, I finished this book with a Freddy vs Jason shirt on, I live on Elm St.”Horror Chick” has been my shtick for a WHILE.I am the target audience,but it just didn‘t hit
Jade‘s inner monologue rambles so far into trivia, slang &metaphors it was at times impossible for me to tell what was happening. Gained momentum at40%+ but the end was so chaotic it took away from any character development.
#20in4 not going to make 20, might read more but I don‘t have 2 hours in me, especially for My Heart Is A Chainsaw. I want to like it: “it‘s almost October & horror is my religion” but… I‘m suffering a bit.
Silent Patient was amazing.
Nightbitch was truly strange.
These Fleeting Shadows was slightly above average.
Big Little Lies - I already watched, so it feels like a reread.
Witch & the Tsar I‘m enjoying but wish I did a physical copy.
pickRead this book. Jade stays with you after the last unique page. Slasher flicks as metaphor for alienation, racism against native communities, family violence… in a dark and sometimes darkly comic tale. The bold, vivid, sad, unexpected ending blew me away. Perhaps my favorite book of 2022? #unique #horror #comingofage #indigenousvoices
pickI really enjoyed this homage to slasher movies. Jade is obsessed with classic slasher films, which also makes her a bit of an outcast in her town. A new girl starts at her school and she identifies her as the perfect final girl. When deaths begin, Jade tries to prepare the new girl for her role. This absolutely is written for slasher movie fans. ⬇️
panThis book was definitely from the point of view of a troubled girl. It hyper focuses on mundane things, there‘s basically a whole chapter of Jade, the main character, thinks about the new girl Letha and how much of a “final girl” she is, instead of just answering Letha‘s question of “What is your name?”
I didn‘t love it. I didn‘t fully hate it. I‘m holding hope for the second book.
panI wanted to like this book, but it mostly gave me a headache. The writing style/plot were all over the place and generally just terrible. This book reads as if it never went through an outlining or drafting process. It seemed the author couldn‘t decide where to take it or how to make it end, so he just threw some things together that didn‘t make sense. Kind of like a puzzle when the pieces are being jammed into all the wrong places. ⭐️⭐️
This is officially my first read of the new year, and I am so excited! It wasn‘t originally what I had in mind, but my best friend was very adamant that I read this right away so that he could have someone to vent to about it. So, ya know, priorities, right?😂 This book had been sitting on my kindle for a little while now, so it‘ll still be a good and productive read for me😁😌
Why did I immediately think of you @Cinfhen ? 😂😂😂
Tagged book is an example of the genre.
https://bookriot.com/book-genres-we-wish-existed/
pickOver the top in all the right ways. Loved the focus on slashers and final girls; the motif of nature reflecting health or corruption of community; the topping of a flesh and blood killer with a supernatural one; multiple people getting final girl moments. I don't think the back story of SA was sensationalized but definitely be warned, likewise warnings for parental neglect, suicidal ideation & attempts. So far, I prefer SGJ's novels to novellas.
pickBk1 of November & Bk3 of #20in4 #readathon is done! I started this the last day of #Scarathlon but unfortunately didn‘t finish it in time, so not sure if I should count it as one? @Clwojick what do you think? This was brilliant, extremely strange but brilliant. He has a strange mind, Graham Jones. Almost King-like in it‘s rooting for the outcast against all odds. Highly recommend. #BookspinBingo #Pageathon #52BookClubRC #ReadHarder2022
pickWhoa! A lot to unpack in this book. Not just a paranormal mystery but some stuff simmering under the surface for our MC. I love all of the slasher references.
Chai & screams on a rainy day
Excitedly making my way through this new, audio only, Graham-Jones. I only wish it had dropped at Halloween 🎃 since the book is fully set during the season. I could save it... buuuut.... why procrastinate a good book?
Not in database so I tagged another of his I loved.
Hands down, the best exploration of The Final Girl horror trope I've read yet. Heart-wrenching, but so damn good. I cried. My heart ached for Jade. TW for child abuse.
#alphabetgame #LetterM @Alwaysbeenaloverofbooks
panI had high hopes for this, due to all the postive reviews I've seen but this is up there with the most boring books I've ever read.
It was so slow, the dialogue terrible - the writing is all over the place. Awful.
pickAmazing. I could not put this book down. I kept trying to guess what happened and it never turned out the way I expected. Such a great journey. I absolutely loved the main character.
so-soThere are a lot of deep themes to unpack in this novel however this wasn‘t a full on pick for me. The stream of consciousness style wasn‘t my cup of tea. And the middle really hung me up. I may not have finished this if it wasn‘t a book club book, but I‘m oddly glad I did. Very conflicted review, I know!
