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sandygx260's review against another edition
4.0
I still don't know what I think...reading this book broke part of my brain, and I can accept that pain. I truly do not understand the last chapter.
punkcalf's review against another edition
1.0
Sometimes you come across bad books. The plot isn't what it promises to be, the characters are awful or it just feels poorly researched.
Against that you have books you wish you could reread again over and over again on just how good they are, how warm the characters feel and how much you want it to end well for them.
A Choir of Ill Children falls between that. It's not good. But it's not bad either. It's not for everyone, but horror rarely is. So, why the one star?
That's hard to explain. This book is one I can talk about for hours and while also being able to mention everything you need to know in a single sentence. The plot on the flap does not accurate describe what this book is about. At all.
Then, you may ask, what is the book about? And even if you put a gun to my head, I wouldn't be able to tell you. This book is a mess of characters coming in and out of the story, some appear dead only to not be. Some appear alive only to be dead. I've finished it a few hours ago and I'm still wondering what the hell just this book was. None of it makes sense.
And maybe that's the point, I wouldn't know.
What I do know is that my deciding factor in giving this book one star is how the women are treated. The conjoined twins are portrayed with a surprising respect, quite unknown to the genre, which gave me a lot of hope.
But all the women exist for sex or their sex appeal [or rarely; lack thereof.] The older women have some sort of function other than to sex the main character up but the younger and attractive ones almost all bed him at one point.
TW; Sexual Assault under the spoiler tag
This happens near the last chapter and I only finished it after that out of sheer spite that I read about 200 pages of it already and with only 20 left, I wanted to see it through. But it's a horrid mess that left me disgusted, just not for the reasons I usually turn to horror for.
Against that you have books you wish you could reread again over and over again on just how good they are, how warm the characters feel and how much you want it to end well for them.
A Choir of Ill Children falls between that. It's not good. But it's not bad either. It's not for everyone, but horror rarely is. So, why the one star?
That's hard to explain. This book is one I can talk about for hours and while also being able to mention everything you need to know in a single sentence. The plot on the flap does not accurate describe what this book is about. At all.
Then, you may ask, what is the book about? And even if you put a gun to my head, I wouldn't be able to tell you. This book is a mess of characters coming in and out of the story, some appear dead only to not be. Some appear alive only to be dead. I've finished it a few hours ago and I'm still wondering what the hell just this book was. None of it makes sense.
And maybe that's the point, I wouldn't know.
What I do know is that my deciding factor in giving this book one star is how the women are treated. The conjoined twins are portrayed with a surprising respect, quite unknown to the genre, which gave me a lot of hope.
But all the women exist for sex or their sex appeal [or rarely; lack thereof.] The older women have some sort of function other than to sex the main character up but the younger and attractive ones almost all bed him at one point.
TW; Sexual Assault under the spoiler tag
Spoiler
Every woman in this book has been raped, is raped or will be raped throughout the course of this novel. Shocking is the inclusion of the character named Eve, a prostitute who exploits her young looks to give men with a minor-fetish a go. One of the characters who isn't from the town is disgusted with himself as he slept with her before he knew that she was actually over eighteen and it was all an act. To which the main character says that it isn't a problem and that things are different around these parts.This happens near the last chapter and I only finished it after that out of sheer spite that I read about 200 pages of it already and with only 20 left, I wanted to see it through. But it's a horrid mess that left me disgusted, just not for the reasons I usually turn to horror for.
demonchicken's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
brandonadaniels's review against another edition
5.0
Goes down like moonshine distilled in a radiator.
Such a unique book. Piccirilli is a relatively unknown author, but he has several book, and I’m excited to delve further into his catalogue. Piccirilli imbues the small town of Kingdom Come with a mythic quality; it almost feels like a fantasy book. You forget that the story is supposed to take place in modern times. The story is weird and twisty and turny, but it’s less about the plot and more about the mood and the vibes, and the vibes are bad. The story gets very unpleasant, and if I have anything negative to say, is that it some of the sexual violence feels a little gratuitous, and it doesn’t really feel necessary to the story. It reminded me at times of Harriet Crews’s A Feast of Snakes and Ian Banks’s The Wasp Factory. It falls more into the category of Grit Lit than it does horror.
Such a unique book. Piccirilli is a relatively unknown author, but he has several book, and I’m excited to delve further into his catalogue. Piccirilli imbues the small town of Kingdom Come with a mythic quality; it almost feels like a fantasy book. You forget that the story is supposed to take place in modern times. The story is weird and twisty and turny, but it’s less about the plot and more about the mood and the vibes, and the vibes are bad. The story gets very unpleasant, and if I have anything negative to say, is that it some of the sexual violence feels a little gratuitous, and it doesn’t really feel necessary to the story. It reminded me at times of Harriet Crews’s A Feast of Snakes and Ian Banks’s The Wasp Factory. It falls more into the category of Grit Lit than it does horror.
the_enobee's review against another edition
5.0
Haunting, beautiful, and horrific, I had no choice but to give this book 5 stars. This ranks up there with [b:Suttree|394469|Suttree|Cormac McCarthy|https://d.gr-assets.com/books/1397600192s/394469.jpg|1196119] and [b:The Long Home|972106|The Long Home|William Gay|https://d.gr-assets.com/books/1348942670s/972106.jpg|957003] as a far out Southern tale steeped in a family's past. That is not to say this books is merely reminiscent of other Southern literature greats, as Tom Piccirilli brings his own voice in spades. With witchcraft, ghosts, and torments of the human variety, this book brought it all. Highly recommended to anyone with a strong stomach looking for a good time.
mellabella's review against another edition
2.0
This was Southern fried Gothic madness.
There was a lot going on... I think it was probably my fault that I could not differentiate the living from the dead?
Maggie? Thomas's father? What's his face? The child killer that Thomas didn't help and came back to kill him?
Drabs and the triplets is a whole other review. One eyed pregnant nuns... A lot.
It's a well written book. The characters are fleshed out. But, I don't know. I wasn't scared. More so grossed out. I wouldn't read while trying to eat.
I wouldn't go into it thinking you were going to get Flannery O'Connor. But... It's worth a look.
2.5 stars
There was a lot going on... I think it was probably my fault that I could not differentiate the living from the dead?
Maggie? Thomas's father? What's his face? The child killer that Thomas didn't help and came back to kill him?
Drabs and the triplets is a whole other review. One eyed pregnant nuns... A lot.
It's a well written book. The characters are fleshed out. But, I don't know. I wasn't scared. More so grossed out. I wouldn't read while trying to eat.
I wouldn't go into it thinking you were going to get Flannery O'Connor. But... It's worth a look.
2.5 stars
dantastic's review against another edition
3.0
In the town of Kingdom Come, Thomas cares for his brothers, conjoined triplets, and for the mill, the town's only source of income. Who's kicking all the dogs? What happened to Thomas' family?
A Choir of Ill Children is a modern Southern Gothic tale, a slice in Thomas' bizarre life. To be honest, I'm not precisely sure what this was supposed to be. It reads like a collaboration between Flannery O'Connor and Donald Ray Pollock. There is a bleakness to the tale and a lot of strange shit happens. Some parts feel quite dreamlike and I'm not sure which ones actually happened.
I'm not even sure how to describe the plot. Thomas wanders from one encounter to the next and very little ever gets resolved. However, the encounters themselves are well-written and captivating. Someone's kicking all the dogs. There is lots of sex and violence, and mystery mute woman who is either eleven years old or twenty. There are witches, a preacher that speaks in tongues, and the Holy Order of the Flying Wallendas. And much more. Some things are best experiences for yourself.
As I said before, I thought the writing was great and Piccirilli's depictions of the grotesque are very well done. There are some scenes that will stick with me for a long time. Hell, I enjoyed the shit out of it despite being lost in the swamp a few times as to what was actually happening.
Overall, I liked this book and I'll be tracking down more of Tom Piccirilli's work. I enjoyed it even if I'm not sure what the hell actually happened. Three out of five stars.
A Choir of Ill Children is a modern Southern Gothic tale, a slice in Thomas' bizarre life. To be honest, I'm not precisely sure what this was supposed to be. It reads like a collaboration between Flannery O'Connor and Donald Ray Pollock. There is a bleakness to the tale and a lot of strange shit happens. Some parts feel quite dreamlike and I'm not sure which ones actually happened.
I'm not even sure how to describe the plot. Thomas wanders from one encounter to the next and very little ever gets resolved. However, the encounters themselves are well-written and captivating. Someone's kicking all the dogs. There is lots of sex and violence, and mystery mute woman who is either eleven years old or twenty. There are witches, a preacher that speaks in tongues, and the Holy Order of the Flying Wallendas. And much more. Some things are best experiences for yourself.
As I said before, I thought the writing was great and Piccirilli's depictions of the grotesque are very well done. There are some scenes that will stick with me for a long time. Hell, I enjoyed the shit out of it despite being lost in the swamp a few times as to what was actually happening.
Overall, I liked this book and I'll be tracking down more of Tom Piccirilli's work. I enjoyed it even if I'm not sure what the hell actually happened. Three out of five stars.
tobesmagobes's review against another edition
5.0
Wow I loved the shit out of this. Very Blackwater meets Geek Love.
bunnieslikediamonds's review against another edition
4.0
Thomas is the wealthiest guy in the county, as well as the mill-owner, carrier of family secrets, digger of screwworms and caretaker of his brothers, the conjoined triplets. He also looks after his buddy Drabs Speaks-In-Tongues Bibbler and keeps an eye on two New York hipster filmmakers who want to make a porno with the triplets. That's a lot of responsibility for one person, so it's no wonder Thomas releases tension with the help of young girls and the horny town librarian.
This daily routine is disrupted by the appearance of a mute girl in the swamp and a mysterious dog-kicker with a size twelve (you can actually see the boot prints on the dogs' asses, which I guess means they aren't the furry kind). The town witches correctly predict that evil is coming, and demand that Thomas take responsibility. This means nagging him about donating blood and semen for their dark rituals (for a guy so frequently orally pleasured, he is surprisingly stingy with the semen). Long story short: evil comes, blood flows, secrets are revealed.
The book has been compared to the works of Flannery O'Connor and William Faulkner. I would love to see the looks on their faces if they were to rise from their graves and read this. (I would also love to read a book about the undead O'Connor & Faulkner). Sure, this is lyrical and um, Southern, but if you're expecting literary greatness you may be disappointed.
I quite liked it. It's grotesque and surreal and kind of goofy, which is usually not my cup of tea, but there is something amiable about it that won me over.
This daily routine is disrupted by the appearance of a mute girl in the swamp and a mysterious dog-kicker with a size twelve (you can actually see the boot prints on the dogs' asses, which I guess means they aren't the furry kind). The town witches correctly predict that evil is coming, and demand that Thomas take responsibility. This means nagging him about donating blood and semen for their dark rituals (for a guy so frequently orally pleasured, he is surprisingly stingy with the semen). Long story short: evil comes, blood flows, secrets are revealed.
The book has been compared to the works of Flannery O'Connor and William Faulkner. I would love to see the looks on their faces if they were to rise from their graves and read this. (I would also love to read a book about the undead O'Connor & Faulkner). Sure, this is lyrical and um, Southern, but if you're expecting literary greatness you may be disappointed.
I quite liked it. It's grotesque and surreal and kind of goofy, which is usually not my cup of tea, but there is something amiable about it that won me over.