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pauroxas's review
adventurous
dark
mysterious
tense
fast-paced
5.0
All that I needed to hear about GOD'S LEFTOVERS by Grant Wamack is its comparison to Alejandro Jodorowsky's El Topo and immediately I was sold. I could feel my heart go thump-thump-thump wildly as I proceeded to read the prologue. By the end, I was all wrung out and satiated. Feverish, trance-inducing, straight-up bacchanalian gorefest - this is a love letter to Jodorowsky sealed with Blood, Sex and Magick. The promise had been delivered.
Welcome to The Collective. Mind that you don't lose your head.
Thank you to BookSirens for sending me an ARC to read and review, even though I may have lost a few years of my life.
💀💀💀💀💀
Welcome to The Collective. Mind that you don't lose your head.
Thank you to BookSirens for sending me an ARC to read and review, even though I may have lost a few years of my life.
💀💀💀💀💀
samijamijo's review
2.0
The book definitely had an interesting plot to it (since I finished it in one sitting), I just don't think it's my type of book. The premise of it was pretty interesting because I do love seeing inside cults. I just wish that there was more information about The Collective because I want to learn more about them and their goddess.
I received an advance review copy for free, and I am leaving this review voluntarily.
I received an advance review copy for free, and I am leaving this review voluntarily.
the_coycaterpillar_reads's review
5.0
God’s Leftovers is as murky as a midnight pool. This is a story not for those with a nervous disposition. If darkness is a veil, then Grant Womack lifts it to examine the scurrying underbelly of evil.
Where do I even begin with God’s Leftovers? The title makes you think, what on earth could it mean? Before opening the book, you’re left with questions, your brain goes one way, and your eyes try to decipher hidden meanings. Fear not – those questions are put on the back burner as the prologue guts you, stamps on you, and leaves you for dead.
The story focuses on a group of characters that find themselves in The Valley of Fire in Nevada for one reason or another. Korey, Anca, Scotty, Jerry & Will come across a group of strange beings known as The Collective, who are on a meditation retreat. The similarities of The Hills Have Eyes are obvious and the exploration of them being rejects or God’s leftovers and how they are treated as a whole. The social commentary is dark and gritty and was perfectly executed.
God’s Leftovers is NOT for the weak of the heart. This is extreme horror at its best or worst, depending on your perspective. It’s the kind of writing that comes from the deepest recesses of the human mind – the parts we don’t want to acknowledge, it lives within the pus and gore, but when it’s allowed space to grow, we get something as visceral as God’s Leftovers. It’s the perfect stage borne out of chance and depravity. The human condition is a tricky customer and no more than when it’s threatened with a painful death.
I warmed to certain characters, Korey & Anca. The latter has had a difficult life of being a sex worker. She’s accepted conditions and behaviours that are abhorrent. She finally found a slice of happiness with Will, a previous paying customer who convinced her to come away with him. She left a life of hardship in Europe behind and now has a working visa in America. What she endures at the hands of The Collective made me physically gag.
The Collective are a bunch of nasty motherfuckers…they lure people to their accommodation in the desert and perform sexual acts, which leads to murder. Those scenes are some of the most explicit and shocking pieces of imagery in a horror story. Womack has a direct line to your nightmares and makes them come to life with his special brand of Sinister horror.
Where do I even begin with God’s Leftovers? The title makes you think, what on earth could it mean? Before opening the book, you’re left with questions, your brain goes one way, and your eyes try to decipher hidden meanings. Fear not – those questions are put on the back burner as the prologue guts you, stamps on you, and leaves you for dead.
The story focuses on a group of characters that find themselves in The Valley of Fire in Nevada for one reason or another. Korey, Anca, Scotty, Jerry & Will come across a group of strange beings known as The Collective, who are on a meditation retreat. The similarities of The Hills Have Eyes are obvious and the exploration of them being rejects or God’s leftovers and how they are treated as a whole. The social commentary is dark and gritty and was perfectly executed.
God’s Leftovers is NOT for the weak of the heart. This is extreme horror at its best or worst, depending on your perspective. It’s the kind of writing that comes from the deepest recesses of the human mind – the parts we don’t want to acknowledge, it lives within the pus and gore, but when it’s allowed space to grow, we get something as visceral as God’s Leftovers. It’s the perfect stage borne out of chance and depravity. The human condition is a tricky customer and no more than when it’s threatened with a painful death.
I warmed to certain characters, Korey & Anca. The latter has had a difficult life of being a sex worker. She’s accepted conditions and behaviours that are abhorrent. She finally found a slice of happiness with Will, a previous paying customer who convinced her to come away with him. She left a life of hardship in Europe behind and now has a working visa in America. What she endures at the hands of The Collective made me physically gag.
The Collective are a bunch of nasty motherfuckers…they lure people to their accommodation in the desert and perform sexual acts, which leads to murder. Those scenes are some of the most explicit and shocking pieces of imagery in a horror story. Womack has a direct line to your nightmares and makes them come to life with his special brand of Sinister horror.
the_lkx's review
2.0
This is genuinely one of the most unpleasant books I have ever read. Usually, I have no problem with books that go into sensitive subject matter (heck, I've written a few of them), but when all a book has to offer is its shock value, you know that it's not a good book. Now, don't get me wrong, most of my favorite books go to some dark and twisted places, but where those stories work, and God's leftovers does not, they are well-written and engaging stories full of rich characters, and the dark subject matter helps to enhance these things. However, this book doesn't have any of those things. It is poorly written, the dialog is hamfisted, and the characters are bad. At best, they're forgettable cardboard cutouts, and at worst, they are offensive stereotypes. On top of that, this book is littered with typos; there either are two characters named Jerry (one of them sometimes goes by Scott), or the author made a mistake referring to Scott as Jerry multiple times. I don’t care enough to go back and check.
The only other piece of media I can compare this book to is Rob Zombie's Halloween. But, take away the fact that it's a part of a beloved franchise and whatever minuscule professionalism that Mr. Zombie brings to his projects, and you're left with a poorly made story that exists only to offend those who read it.
The only other piece of media I can compare this book to is Rob Zombie's Halloween. But, take away the fact that it's a part of a beloved franchise and whatever minuscule professionalism that Mr. Zombie brings to his projects, and you're left with a poorly made story that exists only to offend those who read it.
drakaina16's review
challenging
dark
fast-paced
4.0
This novella is brutal, fast, and nasty. If the Devil's Rejects were cult leaders, I imagine it would be something like The Collective. This is the first of Grant Wamack's works that I have read, and he is definitely on my radar now.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Rape
david_agranoff's review
5.0
I was excited to finally catch up with a Grant Wamack work. Grant is a writer I have spent some time with at cons and things. He had been a guest on the podcast. I knew he was a unique voice, and his novella was one I had wanted to read since it was announced. God’s Leftovers packs an unnatural amount of story and ideas into a thin 60 pages. The biggest negative here is that as much as I love short work I would have loved another forty pages. It is rare that I close a book and think there needed to be more. It is not needed here, It is a great novella I wanted, not needed more.
We’ll come back to that as I want to focus on the awesome stuff you get with this book. God’s Leftovers is a southwestern modern horror tale that makes use of the setting of the Valley of Fire and characters to present a vibe and story that is a pure product of Grant. The young couple who shouldn’t be in the desert, the out-of-place rapper, and the weird cult that has a strange relationship with the flesh.
With a no-nonsense set-up God’s Leftovers played in my mind on grainy film, and I could almost feel my feet sticking to the grindhouse theater floor. It is the kinda story that got rented to kids too young having to be careful their parents didn’t know they watched it. Wamack doesn’t flinch so serious trigger warnings apply. The violence is not implied, the visceral moments are as shockingly real as psychedelic and dark fantasy moments are unreal.
It is a combo that worked for me. This is a five-star 60-page novella. I enjoyed reading this novella and has me excited to read more of Grant’s work. Anyone who reads my reviews know I am a sucker for small moments that show a command of horror. “Shoes Crunched in the sand with each step. They felt far away, but still too close for comfort. Nicole wanted to scream, wail in frustration, but instead she bit her lip. She saw the man drop down on all fours scanning the ground for movement. She clamped a hand over her mouth willing him and his black ponytail to look the opposite direction. His head swiveled and locked in on her.”
Well-done moments like this are throughout the book I choose this one as my favorite.
Now could it have been longer? I loved this book at 60 pages but I think it could’ve been one hundred pages and not lost its short and hardcore tone. Will and Anca’s relationship being one arranged from Romanian over the internet gets attention and details, and it helps the character grow in our minds. All the characters get short backstories. It is well done but I wanted just a little more.
The Wiry Man, and The Collective – and their connection to nature are things I would have liked a little more exploration of. Not because the book is lacking those things but because it suggests them and I just wanted more.
God’s Leftovers is a one-sitting read and packs an amazing amount of story into 60 pages. It is not for everyone as it is very, very brutal. The most important takeaway is that I wanted more, more, more. That is a great thing Grant Wamack has my attention and horror readers looking for the gritty underground shit have a new author to check out.
destynnee's review
5.0
5/5 stars for, Gods Leftover by Grant Wamack
Possible Tw
Murder, sexual assault, blood, explicit descriptions of playing with human parts, drug usage, use of drugs without consent, desecration of a corpse.... I think that covers it.
So..
Wow.
Fucking, wow.
This is the first book, that I have read by Grant, so it was... A experience, I will never forget, and tell others about.
This is definitely not a book that those with a weak stomach should read. But, if you can handle, horror, gore, even a bit of torture p0rn.. Then this is a book you should read.
This was a ARC, that I got from booksirens , and let me just say that I love that books like this can find a place where it can get the reads, reviews, etc. that is SO FUCKING deserves.
It is available for purchase on the Zon, it is less than 70 pages. It was a quick read, but I found myself reading parts multiple times.
Possible Tw
Murder, sexual assault, blood, explicit descriptions of playing with human parts, drug usage, use of drugs without consent, desecration of a corpse.... I think that covers it.
So..
Wow.
Fucking, wow.
This is the first book, that I have read by Grant, so it was... A experience, I will never forget, and tell others about.
This is definitely not a book that those with a weak stomach should read. But, if you can handle, horror, gore, even a bit of torture p0rn.. Then this is a book you should read.
This was a ARC, that I got from booksirens , and let me just say that I love that books like this can find a place where it can get the reads, reviews, etc. that is SO FUCKING deserves.
It is available for purchase on the Zon, it is less than 70 pages. It was a quick read, but I found myself reading parts multiple times.
shh_reading85's review
dark
fast-paced
4.0
This novel was…
Brutal.
Dark.
Grotesque.
Visceral.
Yet it was captivating in a way I cannot explain.
I couldn't put the book down for the life of me. Even weeks later, I'm still thinking about the book and just how horrifying yet well-written this book is.
I received this book from Book Sirens.
My review is entirely voluntary.
Brutal.
Dark.
Grotesque.
Visceral.
Yet it was captivating in a way I cannot explain.
I couldn't put the book down for the life of me. Even weeks later, I'm still thinking about the book and just how horrifying yet well-written this book is.
I received this book from Book Sirens.
My review is entirely voluntary.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Cannibalism, Rape, Blood, Body horror, Gore, Violence, Torture, Death, Murder, and Religious bigotry
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