Afterwards comes Paul, aged 12, whose presence in the story is very strange. He’s not really got any motive other than his own dark desires. A weirdo 12 year old with violent tendencies is really nothing new – Paul was just a little more over the top! Fatal Flaw: Barbara manages to get the upperhand and fight off her captors and nearly forces them to free her...all while still bound and gagged, but relents at the last second because she can't bare to hurt Cindy any more than she already is The eldest of the group is Dianne, at the age of 17, and I personally think she was the least likable but also least believe character. Her involvement in the kidnapping went no further than “just because” – she was in charge of all the children simply because she was the oldest and she let them do whatever they wanted. She had no motive to want to hurt Barbara, she was simply cruel for cruelty’s sake. Rather than going into the plot (I'd like for people to be able to read this with as few spoilers as possible.) I'd like to express both my admiration for Johnson's writing and for the thought it must have taken to create such a thoroughly dark and cerebral book at a time when this sort of book might have garnered a great deal of trouble for him. His breathing gets shallow. If Dianne were here, she would pet his hair and tell him to calm down. She would hold out her hand and in the palm would be a little pill, and in her gray eyes would be something like wildness, only not a wildness that Paul’s familiar with. Dianne’s wildness comes from fear.

Gertrude, two of her children and two neighborhood boys were tried together, and ultimately Gertrude was found guilty of first-degree murder and sentenced to life. Her daughter Paula was found guilty of second-degree murder, and the other three were found guilty of manslaughter. Can words and eyes and tone of voice alone persuade? Can anyone convince anyone else of anything at all? Is it ever possible to change the direction of things that are about to happen?’ If you are reading this review on Goodreads you’ll have already seen my star rating, but before I divulge it here, I wanted to go through a few things about my rating. Fix Fic - At least two professional works, the above mentioned Game's End by Barry Schneebeli, and a subplot in the novel The Abyss by Steve Vance, were born out each writer's desire to save Barbara and/or punish the kids.

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Fix Fic: At least two professional works, the above mentioned Game's End by Barry Schneebeli (more on this below), and a subplot in the novel The Abyss by Steve Vance, were born out each writer's desire to save Barbara and/or punish the kids. If you've ever read the book, you might be tempted to write one yourself. No one would blame you. I appreciated Johnson’s change in narrative tone at this part as well. At first, the experience starts out exciting and the kids all take their turns finishing Barbara. Then while they are torturing her, she dies, and Johnson explains how they all grow bored with her body, now that she’s not responding nor making noises. It read very similarly to how a lot of children are with toys that become discarded. The batteries die or a piece breaks off and it no longer works like it used to. So it gets buried in the bottom of the toy bin until eventually it’s tossed out. This was the essential basis for the entire buildup of the story and it was done incredibly well. But this year… well this year’s different. You see, roof repairs have caused them to have to change their plans. Now they’re staying at the cabin at the end of season, in fact they’re the last campers before it closes for the winter. Dianne – initially described as being tall and boring to look at (when reading this I had to remind myself that a man in his mid-forties writing this book, would still believe a woman would be longing for a girlish figure and to have the boy’s attention, especially in the 1970’s) she blossoms into a young woman by the end. Not in a sexual way, but by having to make solid grown-up decisions. She also transforms from idle participant to a dictator in charge of what will be happening.

Two years after the release of Let’s Go Play at the Adams’, Johnson died from cirrhosis of the liver. Reportedly, he had three novels in process at the time of his death. Purple Prose: The prose oscillates between flowing, florid descriptions, clinically dispassionate ones, bone-dry commentary, and abrupt, concise summaries. It's a pretty brutally effective combination. Dying as Yourself: Paul. Right before he dies, the cloud of insanity is finally lifted from his mind.

I imagine if you are reading this review you fall under 1 of 3 categories: 1) You've already read this book, so you are curious about my opinion, 2) you want to read this book, in which case you should stop reading this right now because spoilers lurk ahead, or 3) you have no intention of ever reading this book, and yet you are drawn to my review out of curiosity. A teenage boy, wielding a knife, tortures a naked young woman. She is tied to a chair, her mouth gagged. When the boy notices her pleading eyes, he feels not guilt or remorse, but annoyance. Then, in a stroke of inspiration, he solves the problem by blindfolding her. Deconstruction - Pretty much does this to the oft-used comedic plot device of the babysitter being tied up by her charges ( I Love Lucy for example). When Barabara is first tied up, it seems like the novel will go in a light-hearted direction. She's more surprised and annoyed, than concerned. That changes in the second or third chapter. So we have a cult status horror novel that's so despicable people either tore it to pieces or felt like vomiting upon finishing it. It's also incredibly hard to find at a price most people are willing to pay. I was intrigued.