Best book of 2020

Book: The Southern Bookclub's guide to slaying vampires
Rating: 4.5/5

Review:

This book is about five agreeable white women, their obtuse husbands, their familiar children, a no nonsense house keeper and a vampire. But most importantly this book is about what it takes to be a mother.

The 'Not quite bookclub' was formed', because five women refused to read books about poltics, social commentary and strife. Instead they devoured sleazy true crime novels like 'Helter Skelter', 'In cold blood' etc; and in the bargain learned how the mind of a serial killer works.

So, when a strange man whose eyes water with exposure to sunlight, whose words melt with sincerity and whose past is shady enough to block the burning sun at the old village, it is only natural that Patricia, a respectable member of the 'Not quite book club' would draw parallels between him and Ted Bundy.

What I loved most about this book was how close it comes to describing the complex nuances of being a woman, a mother and a housewife. It amazed me that a male author could do such a wonderful job of bringing out multiple layers of the women's personalities.

Even when they were scoffed at, made a mockery of, it was clear how obtuse the men in their life have been. How very sure of themselves, that anything beyond their own glory slinks away in the shadows. And the best part about the book, it doesn't end in redemption. Of course the bad guy is taken care of, but the true crime, the crime of undermining the women who have mothered their children, doesn't see justice. And isn't that what life is, we hope and pray that people will finally realise our value, finally see the light in our words, but that never happens. We just learn to move on, knowing that irrespective of what they think, we are worthy.

Brimming with dark humour, moments of fear so strong that you forget to breathe and gore described like the practical chopping of chicken for dinner; I loved the narration.

The only reason for a less than 5/5 rating, was that it was too long. The book stretched across 4-5 years and we are all so used to swift justice, that there were moments my patience stretched thin.

I strongly recommend this book, it's a poignant horror (oxymoron, i know).

PS: Since the Kindle version is ridiculously expensive, I listened to it on Audible. It was the best decision I made. Bahni Turpin, the narrator, is brilliant.

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1 person found this helpful

Narration is what kept me going

The narrator of this book did a extremely great job in bringing the characters to life and kept me from stop listening or processing in this book, the way she acted for every character in every situation is mind blowing. That’s why I love Audible.

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Dark and gripping

I started this book thinking it would take the cozy book club turned into amateur sleuth group route but it strapped me in a horror ride which was painfully slow in the first half but it went from grim to dark and gory pretty fast.

The book club women are incredibly flawed and the people around them, especially their husbands are insufferable. I didn't like any character much except maybe the caretaker of the grandmother but the ladies had their humane moments.

Although I have not read it, it feels one of those books that should be listened to, than read. The narrator did a wonderful job with all the different voices and personalities.

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loved it throught!!!

i loved the narration!!! The story was quite entertaining from the start. This is my second book by Grady hendrix and i am enjoying his writing a lot

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