review from BookChickCity said it all, save perhaps for the fact that I would say three instead of two, Hutson is the comfort of the familiar, and has the same sort of feel as Stephen King but in a very different way, I took this book away on holiday with me, deep within a natural forest, and it was a welcome friend, It isn't earth shattering, but it is reliable, Honestly couldnt wait to finish this book, gave up close to the end, There was no real story line, random people killing themselves for no reason and nothing adding up, Was at least hoping for some depth into it but it honestly became so repetitive, If I could I wouldnt have even bothered reading nevermind buying it A compelling blend of visceral horror and thriller set in a boarding school where all is not as it seems.
. . this is a very macarbe creepy read but one which will keep you hooked, i like the way there are small chapters each seemingly unconnected but each ending on a cliffhanger which keeps you waiting until he gets back to telling you the rest of the tale about this incident.
the main character in the story peter mason has been brutally assaulted at the school he taught in london and by taking a post in a country school far away he thinks he can start a new life and be safer.
but can he i find this book hooked me in and was very haunting there were aspects that turned my stomach but i kept on reading it took me a while to decide the ending and there are still one or two questions about it if anyone has read it and would answer my questions please get in touch! Most of the time I see Shaun Hutson as comfort reading, especially when I'm in the mood for a gruesome horror.
And by comfort reading I mean knowing the author you're reading, like slipping on an old pair of slippers, I know how Hutson writes, I know what to expect and I know that I will be pulled into the story from the get go,
Last Rites didn't disappoint regarding these aspects, In fact, the first chapter jumped in with both feet when we are introduced to the main character, Peter Mason, who is being beaten to near death by a gang of youths.
It's brutal, violent and full of swearing, It's not for the faint hearted, But I'm used to Hutson and this is the 'norm' and most of the time it doesn't bother me,
I like Hutson's writing, It's not the most beautiful prose you will ever read but it has a realness about it that sucks me into the character's lives, they become real, They always have a lot of baggage, history and depth, They are well rounded. That's another thing I enjoy about his books, he makes his characters totally believable,
However, although Last Rites succeeded on many levels, unfortunately it also failed, In the beginning, getting to know the characters and their back story was interesting, especially with Peter Mason, I enjoyed that with each chapter it focused on a different character, Unfortunately this went on for far too long and you didn't actually get to the meat of the story until at least two thirds of the way in, Then everything was rushed, which made the actions of Mason less believable and before I knew it, it was the end of the book,
Verdict:
There were a couple of surprises at the end I didn't see coming, which prevented the book from being a/, But to be honest this wasn't really Hutson's best work so it ended up being aview rating system on my blog, I have been reading Mr Hutson's work since I was a teenager and most of his works are very good He is a master in this genre,
Last Rites falls inbetween its not a bad book its not a good book its just well ok,
It ticks all the right boxes creepy, gore, Violence, moody, the story is ok all the characters are well fleshed out and the writing is of a high standard.
It even finishes that if Hutson wanted to return to this story he has left it open for a sequel which would be an interesting read,
The ending left me a little cold and felt a little rushed the ride was good but just let it self down in the end,
Worth your time and money Just,
I almost DNF'd this yesterday because the animal mutilation was too much but I kept reading and honestly, it was a page turner, Trashy, grotesque, featuring far too many foot fetishy gangbangs for my taste, and kind of ridiculous, but a page turner all the same, It's like a Goosebumps book but for adults, The Wicker Man downgraded with porn thrown in to help sales,
Finally a really good paperback horror novel!
Just when I had about givenup hope of finding some really good paperback horror, Shaun Hutsons Last Rites comes to my rescue a creepy little surprise with a sharp plot, razorlike twists and turns a plenty, and some pretty wicked bits of dialogue.
After barely surviving a nasty beating by some of his neerdowell students, English schoolmaster Peter Mason retreats to a new job at an elite boarding school where his predecessor mysteriously disappeared and a grisly collection of corpses is already starting to pileup.
The setup may be a horror trope and isnt that what we want when we grab this type of book but the real test is how far the author can run with something weve seen before, turning the trope toward a new and unsettling direction.
Fortunately, Hutson is up to the task and the story has both sense and depth, Of course, it also has the requisite level of gore for a genre book but nowhere near the drenching of blood I remember from Hutsons first book Slugs and quite a bit of graphic sex that credit where credit due has a pretty hefty charge of eroticism.
But the real strength of this book is its plot and style, There are a bushel of literal GASP OUT LOUD plot twists and the dialogue, for example, between teacher Mason and his preppy, oversexed, and obnoxious debutante students is yikes! sharp as a straight razor and trippy with uncomfortable electricity.
Those scenes alone are well worth the price of admission!
Admittedly, the book does start out a little slow it takes a long time for Mason to make it to his prep school but ultimately, the payoff is worth the setup so stick
with it.
More importantly, the increasing fervor of the plot is like a runaway train picking up speed and the last third of the novel kept me up to the wee hours, turning pages to a pretty frightful finale.
Perhaps the only real mar is a few dangling plot threads, but hardly enough to spoil this one,
As a horror fan, Dark Rites is a damn good scare,
Ultimately disappointing although the journey was interesting
Trashy, easytoread horror, This was a quick read with easy to digest chapters, and very fastpaced, Oh dear, it started off good but the ending was very rushed and I was left wondering what happened, This needed at least anotherpages to develop and finish in a satisfying way, I'd like to read Shaun's first draft to see if it was just the editing that spoilt it.
I was enjoying this, as I've enjoyed lots of Shaun Hutson novels, but then I got to the end and, . . spoiler the hero, Mason, didn't survive, The bad guys won. The thing, the guardian was never fully explained, or shown and though that can work wonderfully in a horror novel, allowing the reader to fill in the blanks, I was disappointed.
Almost as if the author got bored and suddenly decided to end the story, Latham was disposed of too easily, too,
I would have given it five, except for the ending that really let me down, bruh This book is absolutely a thriller, . . I was really not expecting that end, . . I loved the twist even though some part disgust me, It was a great book, with some enjoyable character's and an unexpected twist at the end, British horror novelist, including horror and urban thriller novels, His novella Slugs was made into a movie, although Hutson didnt like the movie, He also appeared in two horror movies himself, Hutson is a Liverpool F, C. fan. British horror novelist, including horror and urban thriller novels, His novella Slugs was made into a movie, although Hutson didn't like the movie, He also appeared in two horror movies himself, Hutson is a Liverpool F, C. fan. sitelink.