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nikkiv78's review
5.0
This is an amazing read! As I read it was easy to picture every detail of the book and characters. The way this is written is so detailed and the development of the story and character to the very tiniest of details really set this story apart for me. I would give this an 11/10 it just flowed so naturally that you don't get lost in following the story. I would recommend this too anyone who loves horror or dark suspense. The author Sergio Gomez is an excellent story teller and I eagerly await his next adventure!
tyto_alba's review against another edition
3.0
Because the other reviews affected my expectations (and thus, my experience) of this book, I feel I must discuss the oft-made comparison to Goosebumps and Slappy in order to review this book myself. I have been rereading a lot of the Goosebumps books (I'm gonna shorten this to GB), so I was excited to read what others described as "an adult GB book." I was essentially expecting Slappy BUT WITH A GUN, but that is definitely not what I got. Honestly, other than the presence of a living dummy (who is far more like Pinocchio than Slappy), this has little in common with GB. It feels like the author is a fan of GB, since the ideas themselves (and the imagery) are kinda silly and not meant to be taken too seriously, and the plot is so predictable that the characters themselves accurately guess the ending early on. However, if I had to make a comparison to other movies/books, I would say this is more like if Pinocchio was forced to be the killer doll in Child's Play, but set in Stephen King's It.
Since I feel most strongly about Lucas, let me start with…
THE "BAD":
My main problem with the book itself (as well as, unfortunately, my favorite part) is Lucas the ventriloquist dummy. Lucas is murderous, yes, but so painfully naive that he often feels unfairly innocent and undeserving of the life he was dealt (regardless of his origins, which he doesn't even remember). I actually stopped reading for almost a month after I got to "Momma" because I simply didn't want to see anything worse happen to him. And it's not that I didn't like the main cast, either. This book does an absolutely wonderful job at developing all of the characters (Raymond in particular broke my heart). But all of the circumstances surrounding Lucas felt so unfair, that I couldn't help but sympathize with him the most, which made reading it difficult. At least Slappy purposely chooses to be evil. He fully understands the gravity of his actions and gleefully does it anyway, because for all intents and purposes, he is an adult who is actually evil. Lucas is literally a newborn child with even less understanding of the world around him than his 12-15 year old "adversaries" do. That he immediately resorts to murder doesn't make me think he's evil because for one, he doesn't understand right from wrong, and for two, he feels as though he is fighting for his very life (and he is). The reason this is such a problem for me is that he is clearly supposed to be the "pure evil" the kids need to defeat, but he is more of a child than they are, and nothing about the way the plot unfolds around him is enjoyable to read because of this.
The ending (no spoilers here) feels like it goes further to "prove" Lucas was always super evil, but it only makes Lucas even more of a powerless victim of circumstance. I have no idea if this is intentional or not.
THE GOOD:
The character development is the strongest point of this book. Before the plot really kicks into action, I thoroughly enjoyed seeing all the characters' lives and how they interacted with each other. I don't think I have ever enjoyed the "group of kids from ye-olden-days" trope as much as I had here, because I liked all of them, and I even cared about the adults in their lives, who (aside from Big Bob) were all multidimensional people who were interesting in their own right. The drama of this little town because of the character relationships was interesting all by itself, which I find to be an impressive feat.
The writing style and the way events are paced (at least in the first half) make the story very compelling and quick to read through. The pacing with Lucas's creation, flipping back and forth between characters and having people mentally comment on something being off about Raymond, really upped the suspense and had me dying to see the moment Lucas was finished.
I also enjoyed (or rather, almost enjoyed) how silly the visuals were with Lucas using weapons. Had he been written differently, I would have taken the same enjoyment as seeing Chucky with a knife (a living doll is creepy, but a doll with deadly weapons is hilarious).
IN CONCLUSION:
Overall, for as "schlocky" as this book tries to be, it made a huge mistake (in my opinion) by making the villain far too sympathetic. I can love villains AND be happy when they get defeated, but having the villain feel like a victim sucks the enjoyment away. There is a reason the Wolfman and Frankenstein's monster are seen as tragic figures and Freddy Krueger and Chucky are not. Pulling a Frankenstein's monster and framing it as Chucky just feels mean spirited.
So, if you are not the kind of person to easily sympathize with villains or you really just want more living ventriloquist dummy horror in your life, I would recommend this book. Just don't go into this expecting Slappy.
Since I feel most strongly about Lucas, let me start with…
THE "BAD":
My main problem with the book itself (as well as, unfortunately, my favorite part) is Lucas the ventriloquist dummy. Lucas is murderous, yes, but so painfully naive that he often feels unfairly innocent and undeserving of the life he was dealt (regardless of his origins, which he doesn't even remember). I actually stopped reading for almost a month after I got to "Momma" because I simply didn't want to see anything worse happen to him. And it's not that I didn't like the main cast, either. This book does an absolutely wonderful job at developing all of the characters (Raymond in particular broke my heart). But all of the circumstances surrounding Lucas felt so unfair, that I couldn't help but sympathize with him the most, which made reading it difficult. At least Slappy purposely chooses to be evil. He fully understands the gravity of his actions and gleefully does it anyway, because for all intents and purposes, he is an adult who is actually evil. Lucas is literally a newborn child with even less understanding of the world around him than his 12-15 year old "adversaries" do. That he immediately resorts to murder doesn't make me think he's evil because for one, he doesn't understand right from wrong, and for two, he feels as though he is fighting for his very life (and he is). The reason this is such a problem for me is that he is clearly supposed to be the "pure evil" the kids need to defeat, but he is more of a child than they are, and nothing about the way the plot unfolds around him is enjoyable to read because of this.
The ending (no spoilers here) feels like it goes further to "prove" Lucas was always super evil, but it only makes Lucas even more of a powerless victim of circumstance. I have no idea if this is intentional or not.
THE GOOD:
The character development is the strongest point of this book. Before the plot really kicks into action, I thoroughly enjoyed seeing all the characters' lives and how they interacted with each other. I don't think I have ever enjoyed the "group of kids from ye-olden-days" trope as much as I had here, because I liked all of them, and I even cared about the adults in their lives, who (aside from Big Bob) were all multidimensional people who were interesting in their own right. The drama of this little town because of the character relationships was interesting all by itself, which I find to be an impressive feat.
The writing style and the way events are paced (at least in the first half) make the story very compelling and quick to read through. The pacing with Lucas's creation, flipping back and forth between characters and having people mentally comment on something being off about Raymond, really upped the suspense and had me dying to see the moment Lucas was finished.
I also enjoyed (or rather, almost enjoyed) how silly the visuals were with Lucas using weapons. Had he been written differently, I would have taken the same enjoyment as seeing Chucky with a knife (a living doll is creepy, but a doll with deadly weapons is hilarious).
IN CONCLUSION:
Overall, for as "schlocky" as this book tries to be, it made a huge mistake (in my opinion) by making the villain far too sympathetic. I can love villains AND be happy when they get defeated, but having the villain feel like a victim sucks the enjoyment away. There is a reason the Wolfman and Frankenstein's monster are seen as tragic figures and Freddy Krueger and Chucky are not. Pulling a Frankenstein's monster and framing it as Chucky just feels mean spirited.
So, if you are not the kind of person to easily sympathize with villains or you really just want more living ventriloquist dummy horror in your life, I would recommend this book. Just don't go into this expecting Slappy.
littlemissgemreads's review
dark
mysterious
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5
dannycakez8808's review against another edition
5.0
This book was absolutely amazing! It definitely gave me throwback vibes to Goosebumps (Slappy the ventriloquist dummy) and Pinocchio. Sergio did an amazing job with the characters, making them relatable, and with the relationship building. I enjoyed hearing the story of Raymond- growing old, losing his friends, and becoming lonely. You also get to meet an amazing group of friends. This book is not for the light-hearted, so you have been warned- watch out for Lucas!
spooky_librarian's review
4.0
“It was like some living doll. Like a puppet without any strings. A deranged Pinocchio.”
This was such a fun and dark horror fantasy reminiscent of R.L. Stine’s Night of the Living Dummy and Stephen King’s IT! I was actually very surprised to have my heart strings pulled by the loneliness of the old toymaker Mr. Gibson, the strong bond of the neighborhood kids, and even the betrayal and abandonment felt by the evil dummy! In spite of this being over 500 pages, I sped through this book in a week and appreciated all the time Sergio Gomez put into developing his characters and the small world of Dutch County. Can’t wait to read more from Gomez!
This was such a fun and dark horror fantasy reminiscent of R.L. Stine’s Night of the Living Dummy and Stephen King’s IT! I was actually very surprised to have my heart strings pulled by the loneliness of the old toymaker Mr. Gibson, the strong bond of the neighborhood kids, and even the betrayal and abandonment felt by the evil dummy! In spite of this being over 500 pages, I sped through this book in a week and appreciated all the time Sergio Gomez put into developing his characters and the small world of Dutch County. Can’t wait to read more from Gomez!
scottneumann's review
challenging
dark
emotional
mysterious
sad
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.5
shereadsbecause's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
dark
lighthearted
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
rogue_raven's review
dark
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.0
Sergio Gomez is always a fun read. Good classic horror, I always end up with flavours of some of my fave old horror movies.. this one was a little different.. take some Chucky and mix it with The Goonies. This comparison made me giggle but it's kids vs a demon doll, I'm not far off the mark lol. Not as gruesome as some of his others can be but it's still slashy in enough places. I had fun with this one
theb00kcryptid's review
dark
funny
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.0