Horns by Joe Hill
Hardcover: 384 pages
Publisher: William Morrow; First edition. edition (February 16, 2010)
Language: English
ISBN-10: 0061147958 ISBN-13: 978-0061147951
Review based on US version ordered from Amazon.
Ig is a tortured man. The only girl he has loved just dumped him. That night she is raped and murdered and everyone thinks he did it. And the only proof that could save him was destroyed in a fire. One year later, Ig is still suffering the loss of his teenage love. He’s moved in with the town skank, they don’t love each other—but what the hell.
Last night he went out on the piss and got totally slammed. He wakes up the next morning with no memory of what happened and a pair of horns on his head. The horns are awesome and horrifying at the same time and they have a special power of people who see them (which is everyone), people can’t help but tell him their deepest, darkest thoughts: what they think of him and what they want to do.
Some of the things he learns are deeply disturbing.
I won’t mention them in this review, but they are good. As is part one of this book. It starts off at a fair clip, letting us get to know characters through interaction and Ig’s thoughts. They story is moving at a good clip and I can barely put it down.
Then part on ends—suddenly—and we are thrust into Ig’a childhood. Bloody hell, talk about a screeching halt. Massive back story follows. Then we get back to the horned Ig. Excitement resumes but not with the same power as before.
Throughout the story there are massive flashbacks that need decent section breaks or italics or something as I got lost a couple of times and found it very easy to put the book down. I kept hearing this was a revenge story, but not really. To me it come across as a thinly disguised love drama story. Nothing more. Nothing less. 49%. The movie was just as bad.
