Richard Laymon
Paperback | Pages: 279 pages Rating: 3.66 | 1196 Users | 77 Reviews
Define Books To Night Show
| Original Title: | Night Show |
| ISBN: | 074724782X (ISBN13: 9780747247821) |
| Edition Language: | English |
Ilustration As Books Night Show
Night Show was one of the only Laymon novels I had not read. That is no longer the case. Unfortunately, I'm left with a feeling that I should have ignored this one when I saw it on NetGalley. Alas, I requested a copy for review, and was provided one. So here we go...This book isn't very good. In fact, it's probably down there in the bottom five of Laymon's work. I am and always will be a huge fan of Dick's (may he rest in peace), but like every prolific author in existence, he produced several stinkers in his time. This is no Island, Night in the Lonesome October, In the Dark, or The Traveling Vampire Show. This one is more along the lines of the foolishness that is Darkness, Tell Us and Amara.
There's two things going on in this book, and neither one of them is very plausible or interesting. You have Stalker McPanty-Sniffer who is invited in by the woman he is stalking in the attempt to make him go away (this is some of that old bullshit known as forced plot progression, where idiot characters react in idiotic ways for the sake of the storyline, because without them being idiots, the story would simply stall and die), while on the other hand we have a chick seeking revenge for someone making her piss herself. Okay, she got hit by a car too, but she seems far more concerned with the fact that someone made her yellow her panties. This isn't a huge affront, as Laymon does this kinda story often. But at least in his other books you have the nutso sex and violence to distract you.
I think what pissed me off the most in this book was the lack of wow or ewww factor. You have all of the Laymon staples here: gratuitously-described sex, batshit crazy baddies, and terrific, realistic dialogue. But we're missing all the over-the-top blood and gore. This book felt nerfed. For those of you who are not familiar with the term "nerfed" here's the definition that came up when I used my incomparable Google prowess:
"Nerf is a term that means to be rendered ineffective or less effective by a change in the rules or game system. The term nerf is based on Non-Expanding Recreational Foam, a substance used to make toy weapons. To nerf could be translated as "turn a real weapon into a toy weapon"."
Got it? Well, that's what this book felt like - nerfed Laymon. Every time I felt something big coming, some amazing feat of debauchery or gory fuckery, Laymon pulled his punch. Every fucking time. The ending was the biggest culprit. What a fucking let down. Sigh...
And finally, Laymon's sex scenes suck, and this one is packed full of them. They're laughable at best. There, I said it. The cat's out of the bag. I bet that bag feels empty now. It felt so full and complete when the cat was there. Whatever will that bag do without that cat inside her...
In summation: There are far better Laymon books out there. I listed four of my favorites above, so check those out. For those of you looking for Laymon-Lite, this is the book you should read. Hardcore Laymon fans need not apply.
Final Judgment: Like a Michael Bay movie without explosions.
Details Containing Books Night Show
| Title | : | Night Show |
| Author | : | Richard Laymon |
| Book Format | : | Paperback |
| Book Edition | : | Special Edition |
| Pages | : | Pages: 279 pages |
| Published | : | October 13th 1994 by Feature (first published 1984) |
| Categories | : | Horror. Fiction. Splatterpunk |
Rating Containing Books Night Show
Ratings: 3.66 From 1196 Users | 77 ReviewsEvaluate Containing Books Night Show
Review Excerpt: : I dont feel that Night Show is one of Laymons better works. While I was initially drawn to it, by around the halfway point, I had no interest in continuing to read it. I wasnt adverse to what I was reading; I just found it entirely too easy to walk away from and my attention was constantly being diverted as it seemed to settle into a rut of the same things happening in different form repeatedly.Disclaimer: I received a copy from this book from the publisher for reviewNight Show was one of the only Laymon novels I had not read. That is no longer the case. Unfortunately, I'm left with a feeling that I should have ignored this one when I saw it on NetGalley. Alas, I requested a copy for review, and was provided one. So here we go...This book isn't very good. In fact, it's probably down there in the bottom five of Laymon's work. I am and always will be a huge fan of Dick's (may he rest in peace), but like every prolific author in existence, he produced several
3 1/2 stars rounded up because, though the subject matter & plot were not as intriguing as other books I've read of his, Richard Laymon is a Master storyteller of Horror, and I couldn't put this down until I finished.
Ok first of all I just want to say that I am a huge Laymon fan, ever since I first picked up Amarah in hard back from a local library sale. I own all of his books and this is one of the last three I have yet to read over a 10 year period. That said however this is one of the bottom dwellers where I felt it would have been best to just not publish it. Its just terrible and one one his worst with the exception of Blood Games.For start there one of the main characters and the opening storyline in
THE NIGHT SHOW, by Richard Laymon is not one of his more "over the top" books in terms of gratuitous gore and rape scenes. That's not to say that there wasn't any--just not as much as fans of his are accustomed to seeing.The story itself was very straightforward--two separate plot lines, but each ultimately linked by a common factor. The main part of the story concerns Dani Larson--a woman who makes gory special effects for movies, and a star-struck admirer, Tony, who decides he belongs
I miss Richard Laymon...NIGHT SHOW was first published in 1984. I read it back then (and thought I was so cool to be reading this cutting-edge fiction) and just read it again. Layton was known for his outrageous, bloody, gutty, balls to the wall stories. This one is actually kind of mild compared to some of his others - QUAKE comes to mind.There's a couple of storylines in this tale, one about Linda, a teenage girl that gets locked in a haunted house and gets the piss scared out of her, then
This was a quick and creepy read.One night a disturbed youth who gets off on scaring people decides it would be great fun to lock a girl in the local "haunted" house as a prank. Something goes wrong and now this girl is out for revenge.Meanwhile this disturbed young man has moved on to stalking Dani, a horror movie special effects expert. He insinuates himself into her life with dire consequences.A fun and suspenseful read.I received an advance copy for review.
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