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Books of Blood: Volume One

Book 1 in the series:Books of Blood

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'Books of Blood: Volume One' by Clive Barker is a collection of short stories that delve into the realms of horror, darkness, and the bizarre. The stories are described as sexual, dark, decadent, and disturbing, with themes ranging from desert demons to killer apes to extraordinary powers. Barker's writing style is noted for its vivid descriptions of violence, its ability to evoke fear and horror, and its skill in crafting tales that get under the reader's skin. The book is praised for its creepy and horrific content, with each story offering a unique and unsettling experience for the reader.

The book features a mix of disturbing and graphic tales that explore themes of lust, power, love, and fear. Barker's storytelling is said to be both beautiful and horrifying, with an ability to create vivid and creepy imagery that stays with the reader long after the story is finished. The collection is noted for its wide range of horror pieces, from haunted houses to monsters to strange races, all presented in a succinct and satisfying manner that leaves a lasting impact on the reader.

Characters:

The characters exhibit complexity and are often placed in extreme situations, reflecting deeper psychological and existential themes.

Writing/Prose:

The writing style is poetic and immersive, effectively combining beauty and grotesqueness to create a vivid reading experience.

Plot/Storyline:

The collection features various short stories with diverse themes, including horror mixed with elements of sexuality and identity, showcasing Barker's unique storytelling.

Setting:

The settings are diverse, ranging from urban to surreal, contributing significantly to the stories' overall unsettling atmospheres.

Pacing:

Pacing varies, allowing for quick reads while also providing stories that build tension effectively before delivering impactful climaxes.
They run, unerring lines of ghost-trains, of dream-carriages, across the wasteland behind our lives, bearing an endless traffic of departed souls. Their thrum and throb can be heard in the broken plac...

Notes:

Clive Barker's Books of Blood is a collection of horror short stories.
The series includes six volumes that were first published in the 1980s.
Stephen King praised Barker's work, calling him 'the future of horror'.
The stories often explore themes of gender and sexuality, making them unique in the horror genre.
Many of the stories in the collection have been adapted into films, including 'Midnight Meat Train'.
Barker's writing is known for its vivid imagery and poetic language, even in grotesque contexts.
Readers have noted that some stories can be disturbing and have lasting effects, haunting them long after reading.
The style of writing varies from visceral horror to surreal and almost poetic storytelling.
The collection is considered seminal in the splatterpunk genre, which focuses on graphic violence and explicit content.
Books of Blood remains influential, with many modern horror writers citing Barker as an inspiration.

Sensitive Topics/Content Warnings

Content warnings include graphic violence, sexual content, mental health issues, and body horror.

From The Publisher:

THE INSPIRATION FOR THE HULU ORIGINAL FILM

Rediscover the true meaning of fear in this collection of horror stories from Clive Barker, New York Times bestselling author and creator of the Hellraiser series.

Everybody is a book of blood; wherever we're opened, we're red.

In this tour de force collection of brilliantly disturbing tales, Clive Barker combines the extraordinary with the ordinary, bringing to life our darkest nightmares with stories that both seduce and devour. As beautiful as they are terrible, the pages of this volume are stained with unsettling imagery, macabre humor, and visceral dread. Here then are the stories written on the Book of Blood. Read, if it pleases you, and learn....

This Volume includes: "The Book of Blood"

"The Midnight Meat Train"

"The Yattering and Jack"

"Pig Blood Blues"

"Sex, Death and Starshine"

"In the Hills, the Cities"

Ratings (28)

Incredible (5)
Loved It (11)
Liked It (9)
It Was OK (2)
Did Not Like (1)

Reader Stats (61):

Read It (28)
Currently Reading (1)
Want To Read (20)
Not Interested (12)

1 comment(s)

Loved It
1 year

I love Clive Barker's ability to create disturbing imagery with one foot in the fantastic and the other planted squarely in urbane reality. With uniquely poetic prose, he melds together violence, sly, dark humour, and eroticism.

 

About the Author:

Born in Liverpool in 1952, Clive Barker has written and produced a number of plays, including The History of the Devil and Frankenstein in Love, which are as diverse in style and subject as the fiction he has written since. His volumes of short fiction, Books of Blood, earned him immediate praise from horror fans and literary critics alike. He won both the British and World Fantasy awards, and was nominated for the coveted Booker Prize, Britain's highest literary award. His bestselling novels include The Damnation Game, Imajica, Coldheart Canyon, The Thief of Always, The Great and Secret Show, Everville, the Abarat series, and The Scarlet Gospels. He is also the creator of the now-classic Hellraiser films as well as Nightbreed and Lord of Illusions.

 
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