Reviews

Garbage Man by Joseph D'Lacey

anyajulchen's review

3.0

It's a well thought, great written book but... There's is something missing. Like a spark in the characters or the storytelling. I loved the message, but not the messenger. At least, not as much as I thought would liked it.

kvltprincess's review

3.0

I have to admit, I found this one a little underwhelming, which made me super sad because I have been looking forward to reading it for a while. It just took such a long time to get going - for the first 60 pages or so, there's no development of the monster, just the characters, who, honestly, I didn't like. They all seemed like pretty terrible people - Ray ultimately became my favorite,

Spoiler

he seemed to really come to life after separating from Jenny. They were bad for each other anyway

. But Mason, who I *think* is supposed to be the main character/hero, I found completely pretentious and unlikable. Maybe the point with his character was supposed to be that he wasn't as brilliant as he thought he was, but if that was the point it was never made clear. I agree with his perspective in general, but he just seemed kind of holier-than-thou in his environmentalism, and misanthropic in a way even I couldn't identify with.

I will say this, however - once the book picks up and the Garbage Man and friends start coming to life, the book gets *much* better. It is gross and gory, and the last half of the book is a much faster-paced, much more exciting eco-pocalyptic disaster scenario.

Spoiler

In my personal favorite gross-out moment, a guy gets his guts vacuum-tubed out by one of the garbage monsters.

For me though, it just took too long to get there, and the majority of the characters were not likable enough for me to care what happened to them. 3.5 stars.

petealdin's review

4.0

What a great read! An unusual and (despite the title) fresh tale, very very well told.

Mr D'Lacey's writing style reminds me in some ways of Stephen King's. This is not just because of the "dark" tone and subject matter, nor the fact that King's review of Garbage Man is on the cover. It's because D'Lacey's narrative flows as well as King's (usually) does (and in some places better) -- reading the book was effortless. It's because D'Lacey has a knack for painting vivid characters who feel like people you've met, who make you cringe or feel sorry for them, who make you "root" for them.

I say this, but D'Lacey is very much is own writer, rather than a King clone. His ideas are inique, his characters more so, his techniques sneaky in a way King's aren't.

The story itself ... well, you can read other people's reviews for plot spoilers and teasers. I simply enjoyed a story about people's choices and the overwhelming message of a world reaping what it has sown.

A good read.

hisdarkmaterials's review

dark reflective medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Plot
• Strong character development? It's complicated
• Loveable characters? No
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

4.0

An agonisingly slow and somewhat confusing start that leads into a fast past survival story around the 70% mark. Reads as an anti abortion story, the dream scenes were something else. A strong message without being preachy, makes you think.

kkehoe's review

3.0

I wanted to like this more. The concept was fun, but buried too deeply in a sort of despair and grief to truly be entertaining.

bibliothecarius's review

1.0

I wish it were possible to give negative stars.