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3.35 AVERAGE
3.35 AVERAGE
Unintentionally hilarious, Jay Anson's writing failed in bringing to life the supposed horror the Lutz family experienced in their 28 days at 112 Ocean Ave. The book induced a lot of eye rolling at its cliched attempts to surprise with the reader with what can only be described as "dun... dun... DUN!" moments. That description is also entirely accurate, because Mr. Anson LOVES exclamation points, which only adds to the overall comedic value of the book. Any of the thrills of the book are produced entirely by the reader's imagination in spite of the prose - and that's before we even get into the validity of the claims ventured forth by the interviewer and interviewees.
One of the more amazing things I took away from the book: the complete lack of money savvy the Lutz family had. They were spending cash like they were rolling in it. I think it's astounding that somebody can say, "well, I've bought this house out of my price range, despite the demons, and I know the property tax rate is going to be a lot higher than the one in Deer Park, AND Amityville is more affluent, the basic necessities like groceries will be considerably more expensive... I should totally buy a boat, because the house is on the river! And maybe some motorcycles."
I rated the book two stars primarily because of its glimpse into the horrors of the 1970s and because of potential to be a book dramatically read aloud; especially the conversation George and Father Mancuso have about transcendental meditation later on the book. I wish a rating system existed for awesomely bad, because then I would give the book four out of five stars.
One of the more amazing things I took away from the book: the complete lack of money savvy the Lutz family had. They were spending cash like they were rolling in it. I think it's astounding that somebody can say, "well, I've bought this house out of my price range, despite the demons, and I know the property tax rate is going to be a lot higher than the one in Deer Park, AND Amityville is more affluent, the basic necessities like groceries will be considerably more expensive... I should totally buy a boat, because the house is on the river! And maybe some motorcycles."
I rated the book two stars primarily because of its glimpse into the horrors of the 1970s and because of potential to be a book dramatically read aloud; especially the conversation George and Father Mancuso have about transcendental meditation later on the book. I wish a rating system existed for awesomely bad, because then I would give the book four out of five stars.
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
Great book, with lots of tense, paranormal parts. Caution: the audio book reader is a little flat, so it can be hard to stay engaged while listening.
Read as fiction. As a seminal book in the development of modern horror tropes and film formula; I wanted to finally delve into this story. Some good imagery and use of poltergeist haunting. Fun to see where certain movie moments originated. Lost me in the clunky writing and narrative structure.
More like a 3.5. George and Kathy Lutz move into a new house, and you know what comes next! It has all those beloved haunted house tropes lke moving objects, disembodied voices, a ghostly hand on your arm, secret rooms, and creepy pig demons! This style of horror is very effective and had me looking over my shoulder afraid of the boogeyman during the final act.
Not a perfect five because there was plenty of build up and only a brief resolution. It was still an exciting ending, but after everything that had happened I expected a more fleshed-out three act structure. Still a good book.
Not a perfect five because there was plenty of build up and only a brief resolution. It was still an exciting ending, but after everything that had happened I expected a more fleshed-out three act structure. Still a good book.
dark
emotional
tense
medium-paced
dark
tense
fast-paced
Fast -paced, well-written, readable. The author did well. Had this been marketed as a fiction novel, it still would be a classic of the horror genre.
The truth of the matter? Some single dude marries a woman with three kids, has issues with their behavior problems, is an impulse spender with multiple cycles and boats he can't afford, buys a house that's over half more expensive than his original max budget, is having problems with the IRS investigating his company...
You think that maaaaybe money might have to do more with his problems than demons or ghosts?
Looks a lot more like the dad had a mental breakdown over backing himself in the corner, started doing stuff in a somewhat fugue state, found himself highly suggestible to previous murders, and had a wife who backed up whatever her husband said regardless--and was herself highly suggestible. They were lucky to get out alive--but not because of demonic possession. Just regular old family mentdown crazy was enough.
The truth of the matter? Some single dude marries a woman with three kids, has issues with their behavior problems, is an impulse spender with multiple cycles and boats he can't afford, buys a house that's over half more expensive than his original max budget, is having problems with the IRS investigating his company...
You think that maaaaybe money might have to do more with his problems than demons or ghosts?
Looks a lot more like the dad had a mental breakdown over backing himself in the corner, started doing stuff in a somewhat fugue state, found himself highly suggestible to previous murders, and had a wife who backed up whatever her husband said regardless--and was herself highly suggestible. They were lucky to get out alive--but not because of demonic possession. Just regular old family mentdown crazy was enough.
Tried scratching my horror itch with this one because it has been a while since I've seen the movie.
Maybe that is why I feel like it deserves 3 stars. Wasn't bad, wasn't great. Just was.
I feel that you get just as much, if not more, from simply watching the movie. Maybe the narration on Audible has something to do with it, but it just didn't capture my attention as much as I thought it would.
Still, a good book and I'd of course recommend it to anybody into the paranormal.
Maybe that is why I feel like it deserves 3 stars. Wasn't bad, wasn't great. Just was.
I feel that you get just as much, if not more, from simply watching the movie. Maybe the narration on Audible has something to do with it, but it just didn't capture my attention as much as I thought it would.
Still, a good book and I'd of course recommend it to anybody into the paranormal.
dark
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
mysterious
medium-paced
I didn't realize how "based on a true story" this was. Those people are dumb as hell, but whatever, it's an interesting listen!