Customer Reviews

The Language of Fear

5 star:		(49)
4 star:		(1)
3 star:		(3)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(2)

 

 

I got this book because it has the story that the Guns N' Roses song "November Rain" is based upon but I ended up reading the whole thing several times over.To be honest,Del James puts a nail in the coffin of all the traditional boring horror books.I only wish I still had a copy of this book.It does suprise me that though so mant people seem to want this book that it's so hard to get.I was disappointed by the fact that on the last page it said he had a full length novel coming out.I've never seen it and would give anything to read it.

Like many other readers of this book, it was first brought to my attention by the Guns N' Roses video "November Rain" (which had a credit to Del James at the end of the video). When I found this book several years ago, I was intrigued by the blurbs on the cover which compared Del James to Clive Barker and Lovecraft, so I purchased a copy. Laughably, the stories within were not even close to the level of the two writers mentioned above. The author's ideas are elementary at best, and he goes for cheap popular references that quickly date this book as early 90's tripe (a period in which the "splatterpunk" genre was trying to replace old fashioned horror on the bookshelves). The author goes for very cheap shocks and laces his stories with crude sexual elements that denote him as a writer with nothing interesting to say except to appear "on the edge" when most of his descriptions could just have easily been copied off a bathroom wall. The only reason this book saw print was because the author was connected to Axl Rose (of Guns N Roses), and I suppose any book that has a foreword written by Mr. Rose must be okay, right?

Ok, so I am a HUGE Guns N' Roses fan. Even if I wasn't The Language of
Fear would be my favorite book ever! I have heard this book compared
to Clive Barker or H.P. Lovecraft. For me, Lovecraft is to sci/fi and
Barker relies on too much gore. Del James captured everything that it
was like to be a teenager in the late 80's early 90's. This book was
before the grunge scene took completely over. It is about the seamy
side of life. The ultimate fear, as this book reveals, is real life.
Things like addiction, sex, love, broken homes, damning relationships,
pornography, drugs, alchohol, prostitution,loss of innocence, it is
all hear along with Rock N' Roll of course. In The Language of Fear we
learn what we've always known, that these things ar what we are truly
afraid of. While other books, and authors rely on gore, or boogy men
that we know do not exist, Del James plays on our real life fears. The
first half of The Language of Fear is the Appetite For Destruction
brought to life with characters. The second half is Use Your Illusion
brought to life. For those who are to young to remember, this was life
as we knew it in the late 80's early 90's. While we are currently
sliding into poverty, and our future is once again less than certain,
by the time this president leaves office, The Language of Fear could
once again be our lives. If you notice I did not mention Without You
thus far. I won't. I would have bought the book without it. Besides if
you are that big of a Guns N' Roses fan you should simply buy the book
and find out how the story ends. For the reviews that accused this
book of being juvenile, I would say this: This is the Language we all
once spoke appreciate the book if nothing else as a time capsule.
(...)

Honestly speaking, this was the single worst book that I have ever had the misfortune to encounter. The author neglects to provide motivation or sufficient characterization for the individuals who inhabit his stories, and he seems to have trouble maintaining a coherent timeline or plot. The stories are misogynistic - I can't think of a single positive female character - or, actually, of a single sympathetic character, period. They (the characters) fail to evoke any positive emotions, or any response other than boredom and nausea. If you appreciate the genre of horror, and specifically the short story, please, pick up Poppy Z. Brite's "Wormwood" or any of the Borderlands anthologies - you'll be saving youself both the price of shipping and a wrenching sense of disillusionment with the publishing world. (P.S. - I honestly tried to avoid the more vituperative statements - it just honestly, really, truly is that bad.)

I purchased this book shortly after it was released in the mid 1990s.
I read most of the stories, but then a girlfriend "borrowed" it, and I've never seen it since.

SO - I am not able to give a comprehensive review here.
HOWEVER, I will say that the stories I did read ran the range from very amateurish (sorry, I can't remember titles) to brilliant. Specifically the standout story that I recall was called "Without You" or something to that effect, and was the story of a rock star wrestling with his inner demons. It was, I believe the inspiration for the Guns N'Roses video for the song 'November Rain', and fans would probably enjoy the book for that reason alone.

Unfortunately, of what I read (which was nearly the whole thing) I will say that only "Without You" is memorable, and so I cannot really recommend buying the book just for that story unless one happens to be a fan of GnR.

Go to ebay...The book is currently on ebay. Hope this helps 8-)

Del James has captuered the dark side of the human spirit... a VERY dark side. Its seen in 15 short stories that go from a porn theater to a high school; from a rock & roll star's mansion to the an illegal deathmatch arena:from a tatto saloon to the back alleys of what could be any major city. The vivid descriptions can only make you cringe; there are characters you will symapthize with... others you will come to loath. But all the stories have one thing in common: fear. As HP Lovecraft put it "The oldest and strongest emotion of mankind is fear". Its this emotion that will keep you from putting this book down.

The Language of Fear is one of the most terrifying books that you may ever come across. From "Without You," (the inspiration for Guns N Roses video for "November Rain") to "A Tale of Two Heroines," James explores his own vision of the modern world and its horror. The writing is solid, though a couple of stories feel a bit forced. There is one warning with this, you may want to sleep with the light on after reading it. Avoid this work if you are easily frightened.

I live in Brazil, and the deliver was really fast. It arrived soner than I expected!
Really recommend it, nice book.

I'm only about 1/3 of the way into this book - and the short stories are excellent! I can't put it down some nights!!