Jackie has a map of the city on the wall of her bedroom, with a green pin for each of her trees. She has a first-kiss tree and a broken-arm tree. S...
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reviews
May 28, 2011
karen
rated it: 
this is one of those books...
wait, is it??
i'm not entirely sure what kind of book this is...
it opens with some bloody vomit at the breakfast table and ends on an awkward comic relief rimshot of a line.
and in between. well, there's ghosts and zombie-ish types and a really endearingly stupid dog and good old fashioned teenaged helpless desperation and rage. and if that sounds like a jumbly mess to you, remember that this is the same author who brought you bible More...
wait, is it??
i'm not entirely sure what kind of book this is...
it opens with some bloody vomit at the breakfast table and ends on an awkward comic relief rimshot of a line.
and in between. well, there's ghosts and zombie-ish types and a really endearingly stupid dog and good old fashioned teenaged helpless desperation and rage. and if that sounds like a jumbly mess to you, remember that this is the same author who brought you bible More...
19 comments
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(33 people liked it)
Dec 16, 2011
jo
rated it: 
this book is perfect. i hadn't read a perfect book in quite some time and now i have. no, wait. Lord of Misrule is perfect too (though it's easier for shorter books to be perfect, isn't it?), so now i've read TWO PERFECT books back to back. this is life smiling at me with a big fat grin.
as with Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close, of which this book reminded me, and as with The History of Love, of which also i was reminded (i just read it), and maybe most of all like An Invisible Sign of My Own More...
as with Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close, of which this book reminded me, and as with The History of Love, of which also i was reminded (i just read it), and maybe most of all like An Invisible Sign of My Own More...
7 comments
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(7 people liked it)
Jul 22, 2010
Shellie (Layers of Thought)
rated it:
3.5 stars actually
The original copy of this review is posted at Layers of Thought.
A very dark and hilarious horror story with an ending that will gross you out, blow you away, and leave you smirking.
Set Up: There are several main character in this layered story. One is a teenager, Jackie, who is experiencing a variety of life stresses, one of which is that her favorite tree has been cut down. She loves trees. Worse yet is that she is also in love with her b More...
The original copy of this review is posted at Layers of Thought.
A very dark and hilarious horror story with an ending that will gross you out, blow you away, and leave you smirking.
Set Up: There are several main character in this layered story. One is a teenager, Jackie, who is experiencing a variety of life stresses, one of which is that her favorite tree has been cut down. She loves trees. Worse yet is that she is also in love with her b More...
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Dec 22, 2011
This is the first book ever that I truly don't know what rating to give it. I like and sort of understand the characters. Yet, I detest the same people. On one hand, I empathize with their emotions, however, on the other hand, I believe they are too weird to contemplate. My range of rating is somewhere between 2 and 5, therefore, I choose to remain befuddled and chicken out on assigning a number rating.
9 comments
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(1 person liked it)
Aug 11, 2010
Lexyvs
rated it:
I usually judge how much I enjoy a book by how hard it is to put down. Do I stay up far later than I should, until my eyes are burning with the need for sleep, or do I roll over and call it quits for the night? Do I forgo stopping for coffee in the morning in order to get ten more minutes of reading in before I have to leave for work? If I answer yes to these questions (particularly the later), then I know that I’m in possession of a great book.
This is where I found myself with Joey Comeau More...
This is where I found myself with Joey Comeau More...
Jun 20, 2010
Monk
rated it: 
When one approaches a horror book, you expect a couple of things. Horror is very much a scripted affair - you're guaranteed death and destruction and madness. There are a couple of different ways for it to branch out, and sometimes a talented writer can permute it a little and work something novel in. But, as a reader of the horror genre, I've seen a lot of it by now.
Joey Comeau is a surprise however.
You wouldn't expect a web comic writer to go about the horror novelist p More...
Joey Comeau is a surprise however.
You wouldn't expect a web comic writer to go about the horror novelist p More...
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(1 person liked it)
Apr 12, 2010
Jennifer
rated it:
The cover of this book says just about all you need to know - the plot of this story seems normal at first, like the black cat on the cover, but reality is set on its side, and on second thought, appears slightly sinister. The title, too, is a tongue in cheek clue to the plot. Read it once, it's a mundane complaint. read it again, and it is a quite chilling warning.
I don't want to delve too much into the particulars of the plot as much of the spine tingling is related to the mystery of More...
I don't want to delve too much into the particulars of the plot as much of the spine tingling is related to the mystery of More...
Nov 23, 2010
Jenna
rated it: 
I rated this book a 1.5...All I have to say is highly grotesque, very funny, and just down right weird. If I could prescribe a book Prozac, this one would be it. I honestly don't know if I enjoyed this book or am completely mortified. I was laughing, upset, and grossed out all at the same time and that is a odd combination for me. This book follows the lives of Jackie, Ann, and Charlie with his old dog Mitchie.
Jackie is the main focus of this book I would say and she is nuts, literal More...
Jackie is the main focus of this book I would say and she is nuts, literal More...
May 18, 2010
Marta
rated it:
One Bloody Thing After Another is an apt title to this book. It is a gory horror story, told in an episodic manner, with short chapters.
It tells us the stories of Jackie, her trees and schoolgirl crush on her friend Ann; of Ann and her mother's strange disease that transforms her into something akin to an animal; and of Charlie, his dog that walks into corners, and the headless ghost that has him bother a tenant every single day. These storylines cross somewhat, but follow their own More...
It tells us the stories of Jackie, her trees and schoolgirl crush on her friend Ann; of Ann and her mother's strange disease that transforms her into something akin to an animal; and of Charlie, his dog that walks into corners, and the headless ghost that has him bother a tenant every single day. These storylines cross somewhat, but follow their own More...
Apr 11, 2010
Peep (Pop! Pop!)
rated it: 
If I had read the description of what would be in the book, I would not have taken the time to read it. At any rate, I started the book and it was an extremely fast read so I finished it.
I only have one word to describe this book: CRAZY. Wait, I need two words. My other word would be WEIRD. I think it's supposed to be a horror, but it's not really. Actually it feels like a story from the Twilight zone - though not as good.
Jackie's is the first story that we read. Ja More...
I only have one word to describe this book: CRAZY. Wait, I need two words. My other word would be WEIRD. I think it's supposed to be a horror, but it's not really. Actually it feels like a story from the Twilight zone - though not as good.
Jackie's is the first story that we read. Ja More...
Jul 01, 2010
If I could only say one word about this book it would be DISTURBING! I read this in just a few hours and I couldn't put it down (so that's something). When I finished it my first thought was "what an awful book." However, now days later I keep thinking about it and telling people they should read it. I know, confusing right? I'm still not sure I liked it but I can't really say I didn't like it anymore either. I think I want other people to read it so I will have someone to talk to abou
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Jun 13, 2010
Mina
rated it:
This book promised me a story about teen lesbians and zombies and ghosts and this book was a story about teen lesbians and zombies and ghosts.
Except for how it wasn't.
It was a story about love, and how awkward it makes us feel, how at that point when we're falling in love, we realize how deeply disconnected we are from others, how unable we are to truly express what we feel, how unlikely it is that we'll convey the right message and that we'll understand correctly what is More...
Except for how it wasn't.
It was a story about love, and how awkward it makes us feel, how at that point when we're falling in love, we realize how deeply disconnected we are from others, how unable we are to truly express what we feel, how unlikely it is that we'll convey the right message and that we'll understand correctly what is More...
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(3 people liked it)
Feb 07, 2011
Snail in Danger (Sid)
rated it:
Joey Comeau? The Softer World guy? Sign me up! Within 24 hours, the publisher let me know via NetGalley that the digital galley was available to me. (Which means that yes, I did receive a free time-limited PDF to review.)
But enough about that. This is a story with ghosts and zombies. But mostly it's a story about growing up in a difficult world, where people die or leave you behind in other ways, but you still have to grow up, and grow old, and simply go on.
I'm half More...
But enough about that. This is a story with ghosts and zombies. But mostly it's a story about growing up in a difficult world, where people die or leave you behind in other ways, but you still have to grow up, and grow old, and simply go on.
I'm half More...
Apr 14, 2010
Scott
rated it:
I received a copy of this book directly from the publisher (ECW Press) thanks to me being a member of their "Shelf Monkey" team. These are people that the publisher sends books to asking them to review them and post them everywhere. In case you were wondering, the name came from the novel of the same name by Corey Redekop, which was published by ECW Press.
From the Publishers Weekly review via Amazon.Com, here is a rundown:
From the Publishers Weekly review via Amazon.Com, here is a rundown:
Canadian author Joey Comeau, best knowMore...
Sep 07, 2010
Shelleyrae
rated it:
*Reviewed for NetGalley*
One Bloody Thing After Another is an untraditional horror novel. It's format is spare and the language stark. This establishes the tone for the odd premise that combines three stories that veer from normalcy to the bizzare. The characters are simply drawn yet strangely engaging, particularly Jackie as a disturbed, yearning teen.
The flow felt uncomfortable, perhaps that was the authors intent, but it made it difficult for me to settle into it, particularl More...
One Bloody Thing After Another is an untraditional horror novel. It's format is spare and the language stark. This establishes the tone for the odd premise that combines three stories that veer from normalcy to the bizzare. The characters are simply drawn yet strangely engaging, particularly Jackie as a disturbed, yearning teen.
The flow felt uncomfortable, perhaps that was the authors intent, but it made it difficult for me to settle into it, particularl More...
Apr 28, 2010
Joemmama
rated it:
Joey Comeau has written a funny, sad, and often gross horror novel, which while maybe not for everyone, was right up my alley.
Ann and Jackie are teenagers with the usual the usual angst going on. Charlie is an old man with a dumber than dumb dog named Mitchie, who are an integral part of the book.
Jackie has a crush on Ann, but Ann and her sister have a bigger problem....their Mom is a live flesh, eating monster. Nothing dead for her, no sir. As Ann and her sister struggle More...
Ann and Jackie are teenagers with the usual the usual angst going on. Charlie is an old man with a dumber than dumb dog named Mitchie, who are an integral part of the book.
Jackie has a crush on Ann, but Ann and her sister have a bigger problem....their Mom is a live flesh, eating monster. Nothing dead for her, no sir. As Ann and her sister struggle More...
Jul 21, 2010
Caleb J.
rated it:
Joey Comeau has a true talent for transmutation. His stories never end how they start, and they're never about what they seem to be about. One Bloody Thing is a fantastic example of this talent. A horror story, with ghosts and monsters and horny teenagers, is actually a story about family and longing and what it feels like to be alone. It sounds like Friday the 13th and it feels like P. T. Anderson.
Comeau doesn't waste words. He uses precise, evocative language for entirely utilitari More...
Comeau doesn't waste words. He uses precise, evocative language for entirely utilitari More...
May 07, 2010
Julia
rated it:
I planned on reading this book over several days, but was unable to put it down after the prologue. One Bloody Thing After Another tells the tales of two sisters, caring for their flesh-eating mother, a teenaged girl in love with her best friend, and a cranky older man who lives with his bone-headed dog.
As Comeau describes the lives of his characters, you feel as if you know them personally... or know someone very much like them. They could live in your neighborhood or go to your s More...
As Comeau describes the lives of his characters, you feel as if you know them personally... or know someone very much like them. They could live in your neighborhood or go to your s More...
Dec 06, 2010
Bill
rated it:
This is quite possibly the most bizarre and frequently disturbing books ever... also in a twisted way one of the most delightful. I'm not sure how to describe it other than to say it follows 3 different stories, each featuring a mother/daughter element with varying degrees of perverseness. Each is also, at least on some level, totally surreal. Although I've never read the series that actually bears the name, I would also venture to say this one is probably more deserving of the title A Series of
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Sep 04, 2011
Ruth
rated it:
Have to shelve this one mentally as being in the genre-busting category, part horror, part YA fiction, with ghosts, carnivore-cannibals, teen sexual angst and some perfectly ordinary people thrown into the mix. Found it a quick and compelling read and it certainly makes me curious about some of Joey Comeau's other work. Still, there's something 'irreverently skimming the surface of some really serious subject matter' about this book in which Jackie, the main character, is dealing with her mother
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Jan 17, 2012
Nordstrom
rated it:
I was glad that this book was short, not because it wasn't well written, but because it was so disturbing. In such a short space the author is able to really convey the tragedy of these character's situations - dealing with a mother's death and coming to terms with being a lesbian, doing whatever it takes to care for your family, the loss of your best friend. Then the reality of these characters are juxtaposed with headless ghosts and kitten eating zombies. The writing pulls down your defense
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Jan 06, 2012
Mojgan
rated it:
I was a heavy heart to carry.
I'll be okay, just not today. That's how I woke up.
I woke up with a mongrel heart and I reached for scotch. Single Malt. But then instead I listened to the #rdio playlist Single Malt http://rd.io/x/QVn51TNYTYE. I listened to Single Malt and I reached for red lipstick. Because with red lips you can face anything, you know? But I skipped the red lips. I reached for One Bloody Thing After Another.
I read One Bloody Thing After Another and More...
I'll be okay, just not today. That's how I woke up.
I woke up with a mongrel heart and I reached for scotch. Single Malt. But then instead I listened to the #rdio playlist Single Malt http://rd.io/x/QVn51TNYTYE. I listened to Single Malt and I reached for red lipstick. Because with red lips you can face anything, you know? But I skipped the red lips. I reached for One Bloody Thing After Another.
I read One Bloody Thing After Another and More...
Jan 22, 2011
Rowena
rated it:
i looove joey comeau. i began to love this at the line "he can joke because none of the blood landed on him". i usually cannot pinpoint/memorize the exact sentence where my love begins but this book is just exceptionally well done. i loved the way it ended. it sort of made me cringe, happily? it really couldn't have ended any other way. the characters were adorable or pitiable or loveable (or some combination). the only problem i have is that i would really not call this a horror novel
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Oct 04, 2010
Josh
rated it:
It's pretty rare that I can read an entire book in a day, these days. This little gem compelled me to do it however. Joey Comeau has got to be one of the sickest, most creative writers out there.
The book comes on strong and doesn't pull any punches. Each character is an amalgam of confusion and pain and bliss and fear. It's extremely intense from the beginning, and then picks up speed. It is utterly bizarre and I loved every page of it.
Recommended for readers who love zom More...
The book comes on strong and doesn't pull any punches. Each character is an amalgam of confusion and pain and bliss and fear. It's extremely intense from the beginning, and then picks up speed. It is utterly bizarre and I loved every page of it.
Recommended for readers who love zom More...
Oct 04, 2011
Corey
rated it:
Like Andrew Kaufman's similar (in tone) All My Friends Are Superheroes, Bloody is a sneaky beast, content to let the reader parse out the story from glimpses and hints. Comeau is not out to write a horror novel per se. He's far more interested in presenting little snippets of tales, letting his unique voice weave his fables together in a method designed to subtly dislodge the reader from the limitations of conventional storytelling and simply let Comeau's mix of sly humour and genuine unease co-
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May 18, 2010
So I've only owned this book a day and I can't stop holding it up to the light and watching the title flash at me. SHINY!
Joey Comeau is one of my favourite living writers today and One Bloody Thing After Another is my favourite of all of his books. I didn't think anything was going to displace Lockpick Pornography but I was wrong. This is amaaaazing. Wait it doesn't feel right to type that not in capitals. This is AMAAAZING. It's got zombies! Ghosts! Death! Sexuality! And co More...
Joey Comeau is one of my favourite living writers today and One Bloody Thing After Another is my favourite of all of his books. I didn't think anything was going to displace Lockpick Pornography but I was wrong. This is amaaaazing. Wait it doesn't feel right to type that not in capitals. This is AMAAAZING. It's got zombies! Ghosts! Death! Sexuality! And co More...
Jun 23, 2010
Laura
rated it:
What a beautifully twisted, delightfully disturbing little novel! This book made my skin crawl, physically cringe, laugh a little at the absurdity of the novel, and a little sad for some of the characters.
Jackie and Ann are best friends, but Ann has a terrible secret she must keep. Jackie's discovered that her first kiss tree has been cut down and we watch her slowly unravel as a result.
Though Ann starts out as a fairly normal and grounded teenager, the trauma she's exper More...
Jackie and Ann are best friends, but Ann has a terrible secret she must keep. Jackie's discovered that her first kiss tree has been cut down and we watch her slowly unravel as a result.
Though Ann starts out as a fairly normal and grounded teenager, the trauma she's exper More...
Aug 23, 2011
Teagan
rated it:
This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers.
To view it, click here
Aug 31, 2010
Paul
rated it:
I really liked this odd little book of interlocking weird characters and their stories. In the first two sections there are genuine moments of humor, pathos, and, yeah, even chill inducing creeps. The third section (a dreamlike recounting of previous events) didn't quite work for me, particularly given the work put in to create such cool characters, but the fourth section picked up the threads nicely.
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Aug 03, 2011
Sarah
rated it:
A creepy, fun read. No, really, both creepy AND fun. Reading the eBook is not the best in the world, however-- there were a few times I wanted to flip back and forth between actual pages to get a better idea of the underlying narrative. Just when you think the book is about to get all maudlin and sad, Comeau switches the point of view, from the living to the dead to keep the light comedic tone-- it reminds me of Shaun of the Dead.
