Customer Reviews

American Gothic

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Like Psycho, Bloch based this novel (however loosely) on real-life events. American Gothic focuses on the career of H.H. Holmes, a serial killer who lured victims to his "castle." Bloch's version is appropriately chilling, and carries his typical stamp of suspense.

However, Bloch is best known as a short story writer, and for good reason. His stories shine, while his novels tend to drag. This book is no exception. His writing style is much better suited to shorter fiction, and the plot and atmosphere of American Gothic are not well sustained throughout the length of the novel. If you are a Bloch fan, then by all means read it. If, however, you are a horror lover, something faster-paced may be more to your liking.

The main downfall of the story is not that it's not readable - it certainly is - but that the pacing is snail slow and seems to drag on and on. It would have been much better suited as a shorter story, or else where more action (even if invented) took place. His writing style is as enjoyable as ever, and Bloch fans should still read this one if they run into it. Suspense is there in moderate doses, but not with enough frequency to save this book from the to-be-traded pile.