Horns by Joe Hill
Paperback, 416 Pages
2011, Harper Paperbacks
ISBN: 0061147966
Synopsis
The New York Times bestselling author of Heart-Shaped Box returns with a relentless supernatural thriller that runs like Hell on wheels . . .
Merrin Williams is dead, slaughtered under inexplicable circumstances, leaving her beloved boyfriend Ignatius Perrish as the only suspect. On the first anniversary of Merrin's murder, Ig spends the night drunk and doing awful things. When he wakes the next morning he has a thunderous hangover . . . and horns growing from his temples. Ig possesses a terrible new power to go with his terrible new look—a macabre gift he intends to use to find the monster who killed his lover. Being good and praying for the best got him nowhere. Now it's time for revenge . . .
It's time the devil had his due. . . .
Review
Reading Horns was a delightfully guilty pleasure. I'm a fan of novels that are scandalous by nature. The more airing of dirty laundry the better. Horns has just that, with people telling Ig their darkest secrets only to have no recollection of the conversation once he's gone. Some secrets were funny, others were completely disgusting, and all drew me further into the story.
Ig is a highly sympathetic character, surprising given his circumstances. Everyone believes he killed his girlfriend, but no one can prove it. He can't prove his innocence because he was passed out drunk without any witnesses. Since Merrin's death, he's let his life slip by, spending most of his time brooding, drinking and sleeping with a trashy girl he knew from childhood. Ig wakes after yet another blackout binge with horns growing out of his head. People keep telling him things they would never say out loud and asking his permission to follow through on their more devious desires. Snakes start following him. And Ig doesn't always use his newfound ability for good. Yet, his heart is in the right place. Through flashbacks, we see the entirely of his relationship with Merrin and who he really was before her death.
Horns is a horror story containing many mysteries. Who really killed Merrin? What's Ig becoming and why? Some answers are more obvious than others, but Joe Hill manages to keep readers creeped out and in the dark for the bulk of the story.
Light and humorous at times, dark and disturbing at others, Horns is a wonderful, thrilling ride that will suck you in immediately. Occasionally the flashbacks get to be a little much, but they serve their purpose well, relaying vital information and endearing Ig to the reader. Horns is surprisingly good and I'll definitely be looking for more from Joe Hill.
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