Most Helpful Customer Reviews
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12 of 13 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Graphic horror delight., December 17, 2001
It is off-season in an old cabin in the small town of Dead River, Maine. In that old cabin, there are six out of towners from New York. One is there to finish the last edit on a book. The other five are there for a relaxing week of vacation. However, there's seventeen other "people" who have different plans for them. What those plans are, are revealed in one of the most gruesome experiences you'll ever read. For those six people, it very quickly turns into an evening of death, despair and hopelessness. This is Jack Ketchum's first book, and one of, if not his best. Ketchum takes you on a wild ride that assaults you at every turn and then runs you straight into a brick wall. Outside of the opening chapters of the book, part I and part II can read a little slow. However, the reader will find these two parts are necessary and a well-planned lead into part III. Ketchum sets you up, pulls the rug out from underneath you, and then gives you the knock out punch. Within a story that is well laid out, there are scenes of graphic events. Be forewarned that some of these are extremely descriptive and brutal in nature. There's enough blood, guts, gore, and death to fill several books. If tamer scenes from writers like Clive Barker and Stephen King bother you, then this book is NOT for you. If you like writers like Edward Lee and Lucy Taylor, and you like Ketchum's other works, then this book IS for you. If you read the unexpurgated version, do not read the introduction or afterword until you've finished the book. There are passages in both of these that will give away parts of the book. What amazes me is that there once was more to this book. Ketchum explains that this was the version to be published after the first major editing session. He tossed his original manuscript after that edit, so the story in it's entirely is forever lost. The first mass mark publication was edited even more that what you will read in the Unexpurgated version.
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4 of 4 people found the following review helpful:
3.0 out of 5 stars
Ballatine's Mistake., October 28, 2003
As most Ketchum fans know, The publisher Ballantine originally ruined this book and may have ruined an otherwise very successful carreer. "Off Season", ketchum's first novel is truely horrific, but since even the unexpurgated version isn't the original version , I wonder if somewhere amongst the multiple edits it lost its power to be disturbing? Unlike "Girl Next Door", I wasn't disturbed by this book. It did have it's moments of horror like no other horror novel , but it still seemed to be holding back something. I still wonder if the original that was thrown away by Ketchum was the true "Disturbing" version. Now for the good side.
Even though Ketchum doesn't spend many words developing characters, they are always realistic. The reader doesn't always like the characters, just like in real life, where you don't always like most people you meet. But the things that happen to them in this book makes you swallow your dislike and immediatedly feel dread and sorrow for them. The villians on the other hand,, are savages,"literally" But with that said, only about 3 of them are adult men. Some of the rest are made up of and 11 year pregnant girl and even younger children, once again blurring the lines between good and evil. Out of all the gore and horror through-out the book, the end of this version really solidifies it as a dark and depressing novel of which Ketchum is known. I would reccommend this book to other horror fans ,but unlike Ketchum's "Girl Next Door", I don't think it's a must read for everyone.
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4 of 4 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars
A ruthless, gory read, February 18, 2000
I had been so anxious to read this ever since I heard about it. Finally, I found a library that had it, and read it in only a few days. And I must say, it was gut-wrenching at times. Revolting, even. But, as sick as it was, I never read anything like this before.Carla is a book editor from Manhattan. She heads up to Maine to a cabin for a vacation, and a week later, her boyfriend Jim, sister Marjie, Marjie's boyfriend Dan, her old friend Nick, and Nick's girlfriend Laura join her. That night, a tribe of cannibals attack, and it's an all-out war in one night of bloody terror. I honestly didn't know what I was getting into when I started this, and was shocked. I noticed a mix of three very similar and also very horrifying movies, "Texas Chainsaw Massacre," "Night of the Living Dead," and "The Hills Have Eyes," all of which, from what I read, are inspirations to Ketchum's work. But this still stands out amongst all three of those. Far bloodier. Maybe not scarier, but bloodier. There were some very scary scenes, and the climax is one of the bloodiest I ever read. This unexpurgated edition is great, but if you're like me and never read the book before, don't read the foreword and afterword until you're done with the story, because it reveals plot pieces. I paged through both, and found out some things before I got to those specific scenes I'd prefer not knowing until I got there. In any event, a good book, DEFINITELY not for everyone! I was offended by many different scenes, including an account of a fisherman who saw the cannibals who watched them kicking a dog until it died, then floating it out to sea. I had trouble reading after that. If that little snippet bothered you, I suggest you revise if you really want to read this. Now, what is this sequel, "She Wakes"? I'll go hunting, but if anyone knows, Email me some info.
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