Review: A Head Full of Ghosts by Paul Tremblay

This is the second book I have read by this author, and honestly, I really did not like The Cabin at the End of the World. I didn't enjoy that book due to the story being told from multiple perspectives which made it really redundant and annoying after a while. So I decided to give this author another shot and decided to read his take on possession/ exorcism fiction. I will review this so as not to mention anything that is not already mentioned in the overlay.

First off I have to warn you....if you are deciding to read this because you watched or read the Exorcist and were hoping this would be similar. Stop! The only similarity this book has to that one is the "possessed" is a young girl. Next, if you are looking for horror in this you will be greatly disappointed. While the title suggests demonic possession it is a completely different animal. What you the reader is offered by Tremblay is a downward spiral of a family. The Barrett's are struggling financially, as the dad has lost his job and are down to one income. While this is not enough to stress them out. They are also struggling with the newly developing mental illness of their elder daughter. Hence the title of the book...see what he did there?

The already stressed and divided family seeks counsel from a Catholic priest and then he decides that the daughter, Marjorie is possessed by a demon and they should have an exorcism performed. He also decides to bring in a reality TV crew to film the events. This reality TV show while it provides some financial relief it also puts the family into even more stress as they become a public spectacle and protesters are outside their house daily.

I enjoyed this book much better than the Cabin but felt a little ripped off as I was expecting a horror novel but instead got a thriller/drama. I appreciated that the story was told from only one perspective of the younger daughter, Merri. It also jumped through time periods as it was told from her older self as she was trying to remember the events of this happening to her family. I liked that the author acknowledged and kind of tributed possession/haunting references at times. Also, the twist and somewhat sinister ending made this also much more enjoyable. At one point I thought the book was done but offered up a much better ending than I had anticipated.

I rated this 3 out of 5 stars on Goodreads.com and may read a few more of this author's books. I will have links down below for those looking to pick this book up for themselves. UK & Canada click here - A Head Full of Ghosts. All others can shop through this link.

 

Review: Rosemary's Baby by Ira Levin (Audiobook)

I'll admit that I saw the film from 1968 that was directed by Roman Polanski. I enjoyed it very much, but I didn't feel compelled to rush out and read the book it was based on right away.  Lately, I have been giving audiobooks a chance and have listened to a few in the last few weeks.

Rosemary's Baby came up as a recommendation from another audiobook that I had listened to, and I figured I would give it a listen as I had enjoyed the film adaptation. This was narrated by the main star of the film, Mia Farrow. I thought that this was very cool that she narrated the book. Those not familiar with the film or the book is about a young couple who choose to move into a ritzy/popular apartment building with a somewhat eery past. While there they meet some strange neighbors who Rosemary later thinks are witches.

The beginning is rather slow to start, and for anyone familiar with American Pyscho there is a similar feeling with the descriptions of the apartments in NYC. For some reason, the author felt it necessary to emphasize this part of the story which I found a bit tedious and kinda boring. But once the young couple settles on their new apartment the pacing of the story starts to pick up. Things get creepy slowly at first and then they really ramp up after the first interaction with the neighbors. For those who have seen the film only you may want to read/listen to this book because there were bonus scenes which were not included in the film version. Of course, these extra scenes lead up to a sequel which I didn't know existed until listening to this book. On a side note, there was also a film version of the sequel which is hard to find in DVD format, as it must have not been as good as the first film.

Being read by the star of the film helped me to enjoy this more, and let's be honest a good narrator makes an audiobook more enjoyable especially if they are an actor. I listened to The Haunting of Hill House and found the narrator of that to be atrocious. The audio was also souped up with music at times to emphasize thrilling scenes. I will not go into too much detail as I do not want to spoil the book for those who have yet to read/listen to it.
I really enjoyed this audiobook, and I am considering giving its sequel (Son of Rosemary) a listen in the near future. I rated this book 4 out of 5 stars on Goodread.com. I recommend this to anyone who is a fan of psychological thrillers, and books like the Exorcist. Of course also to those who have seen the film but have yet to read the book....get out and check this book out!

Movie Review: Goodnight Mommy

This film has been on my watch list for quite some time, and I just recently got the chance to watch it. For those who have not heard of it; it is an Austrian film about twin boys awaiting the return of their mother from the hospital after she has had plastic surgery. it's never explained why she had surgery, but that is not really important for the flow of the story. She returns and is acting differently than before, such as taking photos out of the family album and walking in to search the boys' room.  There is also one scene which is featured in the trailer where she walks out into the woods to disrobe.

Odd behavior that normal people just do not do, such as going for naked walks in the woods and ripping photos out of the family album. So the boys question whether she is their real mother or someone who has taken her place.

This film is very slow to get going and you the viewer mostly follow the twins around the estate doing what boys usually do. They explore and run through the woods near their home.  The mother does do some strange things and we see the boys start to question who this lady is. Is she a doppelganger? They even ask her at one point "Where is our mother?".  Is there something sinister going on? 

Not until the very last 10- 15 minutes of the movie do we understand what is really going on. I won't spoil it for you as this is the plot twist that gives you the aha moment where strange past scenes start to make sense. You may even want to go back and rewatch this after the ending so that things come out more clearly.  I'll admit I got bored at times with this film, but the end all I did enjoy it and rated it 3 out of 5 stars.