Heart-Shaped Box

My first book by Mr. Joe Hill plus I chose it as the October Halloween Book of The Month read for my Facebook book club, "Once Upon a Time Book Club". I am Absolutely thrilled over my decision!!!! If I counted hours only. I read this book in less than 24 hours. I could not put this book down. It's a constant page turner. Hill captured the supernatural phenomenally!!!!!SPOILER ALERT!!!!!Mr. Coyne, famous rock star, does exceptionally well for himself. Has enough money to do anything he wants with out worry. Goes thru women to satisfy his needs but never gets attached,. Doesn't even respect them enough to call them by their name, instead he calls them from the state they're from. If they act crazy, they're shipped back home and another state comes along.The last one he was with is from Florida and he finds out that she killed herself, he's not too surprised with the way she was acting when they were together. Coyne's rep finds a ghost for auction because likes to collect the paranormal. He tops the bid and wins the auction. To find out he received a ghost who happens to be Florida's step-daddy. Coyne talks to Florida's sister (Price) and she laughs at him over the phone telling him he's going to die and everyone with him including his dogs and his current girlfriend, Georgia.Coyne is freaked out yet keeps seeing this ghost and this ghost is a hypnotist who comes over the radio and gets Georgia to try and kill herself but Coyne stops it. Or he trays to get Coyne to kill her or himself. He realizes what's going on and the power behind it is too hard to fight. Coyne's dogs see the spirit and attack stepdaddy Craddick. So now Coyne knows he must keep the dogs with him for protection.Coyne decides they need to get to Florida's house and give this ghost back to Florida's sister, Price. On the way the ghost Craddick follows in his old blue pick up truck trying to still kill them. Georgia wants to stop by her grams on the way since they'll be passing in case she dies. She wants to see her one last time. While there, Georgia pulls out oujia board she played with as a child. They call on Florida (real name Anna). It works and Anna tells Georgia she will be the door for her to get through to help them trap Craddick. With that settled, they leave and get to Price's house. She starts going crazy on Coyne telling him how he ruined everything, how he ruined Anna. Suddenly Coyne sees what happened when Anna returned home. All this time she was acting crazy was because she was being sexually molested by her stepdaddy by being hypnotized with her own sister assisting. She was unable to talk about it, but suddenly couldn't stay quiet anymore and when Coyne sent her home she threatened to go to the police. With all the hypnotizing being done it didn't have an affect on Anna anymore. Anna was able to block it out. They blamed all this on Coyne and swore vengeance. Anna's sister drugged her then carried her in the tub and killed her herself making it look like Anna took her own life. Anna had found pictures where Craddick was now molesting Price's young daughter as he did Anna when she was young. There were pictures. As all this was going on, in the house of price in walks Price's daughter with gun. She shoots Coyne's dog dead and shoots off Coyne's fingers. Him and Georgia run out and jump in his car. He realizes he needs to get to his house where his father is.As he's driving a car crashes into them which is Price, she hits the windshield. Coyne and Georgia are hit badly, the other dog is in the back seat crying, his legs Re broken with bone coming through. They're racist g down the highway and suddenly they're in a bad accident. Georgia's neck is sliced, Coyne sees the crescent razor moon that made the slice. He's hopeless in saving her. Suddenly there's bright light and with her blood Anna and Georgia both together draw a doorway in blood and Craddick is sucked through streaming. Anna and Georgia are both driving both in the same body. Anna is beautiful and he thanks her. He calls out for MaryBeth, no longer by her state name Georgia. She's dying and Georgia tells her to hold on. He loves her.It ends in the hospital. He swears he lost Marybeth but finds out she's in ICU in critical shape but alive. He runs to her and hold her with his shadow dogs guiding the way. The get married and all is happy. Price is in jail for the pictures found on the molestation of what she did to her own daughter. Her daughter hitches to Coyne's all grown up to say sorry that Anna visited her. She's all good driving a black car and explained what happened. How she never wants to see her mother again.Phenomenal story!!! Excellent supernatural read!! I couldn't put it down plus the gore was just the right amount. Perfect. I wasn't squeamish at all. Superb job Mr. Hill! I will definitely be reading more of your books with pleasure!!!!

Just when you think you have it all figured out another wrench gets thrown in. This book will have you feeling every type of way.

This book has been out for a number of years now, and has been praised and heralded by better folks using finer words than I shall here, but I felt the desire to share my thoughts on it as well because it's just so damn good.Horns, the author's second novel, was the first of Joe Hill's works that I read, and while I wasn't in love with it, it was still intriguing, entertaining, and had hints of a promising writer. From about ten pages into Heart-Shaped Box, I already knew that I was in for a treat much more in line with my taste.The story follow Judas Coyne, or Jude, a once hugely-successful songwriter and vocalist for a heavy rock band, now retired and keeping himself occupied with an eclectic personal collection of macabre and bizarre relics. This collection includes, among other things, a three hundred year old hand-written confession by a practicing witch, a human-skull with a hole in the cranium, a worn and bristly nineteenth century noose, and a drawing of the seven dwarfs done by John Wayne Gacy Jr. Items that are more than novelty or cute pieces of comic book horror, but rather dark and twisted artifacts that were once tied to suffering and death in very real ways.Early on in the story, Coyne's personal assistant, Danny Wooten, receives an email addressed directly to Jude offering to sell him a dead man's suit, complete with the restless soul that still haunts whoever owns the suit. Though Jude rarely receives private offers such as this, he can't help but be intrigued, and ends up buying the old-fashioned black suit, which later comes delivered in a heart-shaped box. From the moment Jude's girlfriend, Georgia, opens the box and removes the carefully folded suit, a tiny piece of hell breaks loose into Jude's home and life. Jude buys the suit in the first chapter and receives it in the second, so things move quickly right off the bat and continue to be fast-moving for the majority of the novel. The chapters are short and snappy, often with new horrors in each.What Jude had thought was merely a practical joke or scare-tactic to impress some weirdo (like himself) to buy what was really just a worthless black suit turns into a relentless and disturbing haunting from the demonic shadow of an old man; a real and sinister ghost. The old man's ghostly form is described as grotesque and rotting, with horrible teeth and black, ever-pulsing scribbles over his eyes like a photograph that has been scratched over with a ballpoint pen. The old man's spirit seems to have some power to cause dread or temporary madness to wash over whomever he chooses, and Jude witnesses him using this power both on Georgia and (more severely) on Danny Wooten. While the ghost cannot physically interact with Jude, he can speak and manipulate objects, and insists on making Jude's life such a constant hell that Coyne will destroy himself for want of relief. A good deal more happens when Jude and Georgia go on the road in an attempt to flee the ghost's presence, but I'll end my summary of the plot here so as not to ruin some of the more exciting moments and twists.Suffice it to say that this book is just crammed-full of original, creepy fun. Joe Hill is able to deliver authentically scary material over and again throughout the story, which is quite a feat in this day and age where, it seems, nothing is shocking and everything is overdone. This book has a pleasantly nostalgic quality, like it is giving nods to an older brand of straight-forward, campier horror, and yet it has no trace of corny-ness or over-the-top absurdity. In Heart-Shaped Box, Hill sets out to give you chills before bedtime, and damn if it he doesn't actually pull it off!The writing style feels fresh and excited, young even, like that of a new writer, and Hill essentially was at the time. The plot and choice of words are simple, nothing extremely poetic going on here, and yet there are a number of very lovely and profound passages of intense human observation that pop up. They give you the sense that while this isn't exactly a lofty piece of high-class literature (which is fine, that isn't the point), Hill is still an author who pays attention and can articulate beautiful or difficult moments about life. And what makes horror more scary than when you really start to bond with the victim as a character?I would highly recommend this to anyone with an appreciation for a good old fashioned horror story, and it's also a great practical place to start in Hill's bibliography. It will give you a good taste of what he's capable of, and at least in my case, will make you hungry for more.

This book is definitely my favorite. It's a twisted thriller that keeps you on the edge of your seat. If you know anything about Joe Hill, you know that his father is Stephen King. This book definitely has that King edge, but with a bit of a modern twist. It's a great bout into the supernatural, full of wit and despair.

Loved the concept of the haunting . Disturbing and original evil spirit . The presentation and description of the vengeful ghost and the other world suitably terrifying and engaging, this storyline was gripping. My main trouble was the "hero/protagonist" not his back story which was also interesting. Middle aged washed up musician with a predilection for vulnerable very white twenty something Goth women and generally a bit of a w*nker which becomes irksome after a while.I guessed the author must be a male 40-50 American ( many great authors are) as he cant right female characters with any depth of personality, so no surprises there when I checked later. I was reading book based solely on the reviews. It won the Bram Stoker award. I suspect this will make a better film with a more engaging hero. Will do for a holiday read. Lucky you're dad is Stephen King-( read Billy Summers instead)

Truly surprised by all of the positive reviews, not only on here but also on the book cover!This is the least scary thriller I've ever read, and I am quite easily scared. This has taken over a month to finish, I just was not tempted to pick it back up after putting it down.The plot is good in theory but executed terribly. The pacing is all over the place and there is no suspension or tension built whatsoever. None of the characters are particularly likeable or well drawn. There is a huge level of mysoginy - it's reads very much like one man's fantasy of having two women. Fine if thats the character you're building, but be less transparent.I highly recommend Joe hills "horns" but would advise you to leave this one well alone.

Brilliant novel - the perfect mixture of horror, suspense, twists, comic relief with a blessed sprinkle of redeeming qualities that unexpectedly surface in some of the characters. Not to mention a stonkingly brilliant premise.Sometimes I forgot I that wasn’t reading Stephen King. (Apple and tree) But then Joe would remind the reader that he is his son and an individual, by using a twist of his own and unique style of writing that is compelling and extremely talented.Genius book! More of this please!!

When I read the reviews I wasn't sure what to expect it really mixed bag of reviews I never give up on a book though.This was meant to be a short story that's probably why it grabbed me from the 1st page so much happened in first 200 pages but obviously when he decided to make it into a book it drops off abit which every book does that but really enjoyed thisWorking my way through every joe hill book at the moment as I am a big fan of his dad Stephen king same sort of writer but joe is more of my generation so I understand it more.

This is one for all the horror fans and still gives me the creeps thinking about it.story cut short never buy a dead man's item unless you want your butt haunted And chased.while theme seems to come across as easy reading this book has a way that seeks in your brains and surprises you with full blown "OMG what was that" with every bump of the night.who would of thought it would all start off with buying something unusual for his collection such as a heart shapes box with a suit .watch out for that twist though it may not make sense at first but all comes clear nearer to end and will knock your socks off