Lies & Ugliness [Hardcover]

Brian Hodge (Author)

Product Details

• Hardcover
• Publisher: Night Shade Books (1997)
• ASIN: B000KIP9TY
• Average Customer Review: 5.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (2 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #9,852,678 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

9 of 9 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Stories for the Intelligent Reader, November 11, 2002

By 

Michael Samhain (St. Louis, MO) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Lies & Ugliness (Paperback)

This is one of the best quality short story collections to be published in quite a while, as Hodge has once again delivered quality fiction for the intelligent reader.

This collection opens with the thought provoking "Madame Babylon", a story that immediately grabs the reader with a sexual taboo, yet reminds us that within everyone there is a bit of voyeur and exhibitionist. But Hodge doesn't stop there, like with every story in this collection, he takes the idea even further, explores a few deeper themes, themes that examine and question the very things we take for granted, and then wraps it all together in a way that leaves the reader fully identifying with the protagonist, which sometimes isn't a comfortable thought at all.

"Cancer Causes Rats" is another unique story in the collection. Part mystery, part thriller, part horror, this story will keep you guessing the outcome until then end, and that ending will leave you horrified. In this story, like many others, Hodge turns logic upside down and makes it still seem right, leaving the reader with thoughts and impressions afterwards that just can't be shaken.

Three stories in the middle of the book are set in the British Isles, and although he is a native of America, Hodge manages to capture the feel of Great Britain better than many British authors today. A line from the story "Cenotaph" sums it up best: "The thing about England was, you could scarcely throw a mossy stone without hitting something to remind you of how vastly _old_ the place was." "Far Flew the Boast of Him" is a story set in the shared-world setting of Hellboy, but Hodge tackles this in such a way that pre-knowledge of the shared-world is not required, yet he manages to contribute to the mythos in an insightful way not usually accomplished by other authors.

Leaving no genre untouched by his skills, Hodge includes a western in this collection. Not a fan of westerns myself, I expected this story to be my least favorite, and was pleasantly surprised. "Pages Stuck By a Bowie Knife to a Cheyenne Gallows" is one of the best stories of the collection. Offering more than just a typical western, Hodge pushes the boundaries of the genre in this story set in a splintered, anarchic Missouri during the Civil War.

The Endnotes offer the insatiable reader with wonderful little insights into the stories behind the stories. Where the fiction reveals Hodge's intelligence with small glimpses of his sense of humor, the Endnotes expose the author even more, leaving the reader with a warm sense of familiarity for Hodge.

Honestly, I don't know why this author isn't more widely recognized. Hodge has consistently published high quality fiction over the course of the past ten years or more, and yet remains absent from the average reader's vocabulary. With Lies and Ugliness, Hodge has delivered again. And although it has been said many times about many books, the fact remains true with this one: Those who do not read this collection will be missing out on wonderfully intelligent stories that leave long lasting impressions.

4 of 4 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars One of the best collections I've read!, April 2, 2006

By 

Leon "Leon" (Lake Havasu, CA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Lies & Ugliness (Paperback)

This is one of the best collections I've read. Not a single story was bad, and all were well written.

"Madame Babylon", is a story that pulls you and doesn't let go. It concerns a sexual taboo that...well, it left me wanting more, much in the way it leaves the characters in the story wanting more. "Cancer Causes Rats" is a combination of crime and horror and will keep you guessing all the way in the end.

"Pages Stuck By a Bowie Knife to a Cheyenne Gallows" is one of the best stories of the collection and definitely qualifies as a "weird western". It is the first person account of an outlaw, who is cursed by something he did that keeps him alive despite his reckless living. The revelation of what he did, and what the curse is, will leave you shaking.

Another favorite story was "Some Other Me", about a guy recounting his childhood and the strange neighbor he had who kept these weird things in jars...kind of reminded me, in a way, of the Ray Bradbury classic "The Jar".

Every story in this book is well-written, thoughtful, and memorable. Highly recommended!