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The Funhouse
There is a derelict house at the end of the street.
For all but one day of the year, it remains boarded up with strict punishments in place for those foolish enough to trespass. On the one day it is open (Halloween), the nearby neighbours gather outside of its old doors and watch - on large screens - what happens within the crumbling walls.
Inside the maze-like building, a lone survivor - trapped within for entertainment purposes - goes from room to room in a desperate bid to escape, unaware that potential death looms in each and every nook and cranny.
Outside, the viewers cheer and clap as they stuff their faces with cotton candy and hotdogs. They laugh and reminisce about years gone by, and other people who'd tried to find the exit. As the "survivor" fights for his life, they place their bets.
Welcome to the funhouse!
For all but one day of the year, it remains boarded up with strict punishments in place for those foolish enough to trespass. On the one day it is open (Halloween), the nearby neighbours gather outside of its old doors and watch - on large screens - what happens within the crumbling walls.
Inside the maze-like building, a lone survivor - trapped within for entertainment purposes - goes from room to room in a desperate bid to escape, unaware that potential death looms in each and every nook and cranny.
Outside, the viewers cheer and clap as they stuff their faces with cotton candy and hotdogs. They laugh and reminisce about years gone by, and other people who'd tried to find the exit. As the "survivor" fights for his life, they place their bets.
Welcome to the funhouse!
97 pages, Kindle Edition
Published April 29, 2022
174 people are currently reading
838 people want to read
About the author
Matt Shaw
534 books2,216 followersBiography
MATT SHAW was born, quite by accident (his mother tripped, he shot out) September 30th 1980 in Winchester hospital where he was immediately placed on the baby ward and EBay. Some twelve years later (wandering the corridors of the hospital and playing with road kill when he was on day release), the listing closed and he remained unsold, he was booted out of the hospital to start his life as a writer and hobbit – beginning with writing screenplays and short stories for his own amusement before finally getting published when he was twenty-seven years and forty-five seconds old.
Once Published weekly in a lad's magazine with his photography work, Matt Shaw is also a published author and cartoonist. Has to be said, can be a bit of a flirt and definitely, without a shadow of a doubt, somewhat of a klutz.
Favourite books
"Roald Dahl's Collection of Short Stories"
Tim Burton's Melancholy Death of Oyster Boy
Anything, really, written by himself. Because he is that good.
MATT SHAW was born, quite by accident (his mother tripped, he shot out) September 30th 1980 in Winchester hospital where he was immediately placed on the baby ward and EBay. Some twelve years later (wandering the corridors of the hospital and playing with road kill when he was on day release), the listing closed and he remained unsold, he was booted out of the hospital to start his life as a writer and hobbit – beginning with writing screenplays and short stories for his own amusement before finally getting published when he was twenty-seven years and forty-five seconds old.
Once Published weekly in a lad's magazine with his photography work, Matt Shaw is also a published author and cartoonist. Has to be said, can be a bit of a flirt and definitely, without a shadow of a doubt, somewhat of a klutz.
Favourite books
"Roald Dahl's Collection of Short Stories"
Tim Burton's Melancholy Death of Oyster Boy
Anything, really, written by himself. Because he is that good.
Ratings & Reviews
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 137 reviews
June 20, 2022
“Despite all my rage I am still just a rat in a cage” SP
Quick little good Halloween ish read.
The end was somewhat odd/disjointed for me but overall good MS book!
Quick little good Halloween ish read.
The end was somewhat odd/disjointed for me but overall good MS book!
May 30, 2022
This was a really cool premise for a book. I do like that at points it’s gory
May 30, 2022
Unwilling participants are lured into a sick survival game, while those outside the FunHouse take bets on who will survive the longest.
I loved the whole premise of this book. It had Get Out vibes mixed with Ready Or Not and the gamification of Squid Game.
I just struggled with finding an affinity with the characters. If you’ve read it, I’ll likely understand what I mean when I saw I struggled to root gif anyone, despite the idea of wanting people to survive the games.
I loved the whole premise of this book. It had Get Out vibes mixed with Ready Or Not and the gamification of Squid Game.
I just struggled with finding an affinity with the characters. If you’ve read it, I’ll likely understand what I mean when I saw I struggled to root gif anyone, despite the idea of wanting people to survive the games.
September 9, 2022
Packs the MOST disturbing, sick, and revolting Halloween season, violence you will EVER read in just 154 pages!!! Matt Shaw has written an extreme HORROR novella that I will NEVER forget!! LOVED it though it sickened me to my stomach more than once!
So when I had seen that this book was coming out at the end of this summer, I thought:
Okay, i have Still not read any Matt Shaw so I will give this short one a try........
OMFG in just 154 pages, you will discover the sick, and evil and pure horror that lives in the mind(s) of some people that you will NEVER forget!
This book takes place on a street in the U.K. somewhere.....and Halloween is approaching. And this is Erin's most Favorite Day Of The Year! And, what girl would not LOVE to be proposed to on Halloween? What her boyfriend does not know is that Erin has a connection with the most disturbing Halloween 'Funhouse', and let me tell you.......this is NOT that kind of Funhouse!!!
WARNINGS: EXTREME SEXUAL VIOLENCE! SCENES OF GORE THAT WILL STAY WITH YOU FOR A LONG TIME AFTER FINISHING! GRAPHIC SCENES OF SEXUAL MUTILATIONS AND CANNIBALISM
This (if you can stomach parts of it.....) is one book that I would recommend if you liked the 'Hostel' films, and or movies like the original Texas Chainsaw Massacre. Can't say I didn't warn you.
I LOVED it! I know after reading the above, that sounds kina sick....but it was SO cleverly thought out and written.
5 😮🩸🔪🤮😱
So when I had seen that this book was coming out at the end of this summer, I thought:
Okay, i have Still not read any Matt Shaw so I will give this short one a try........
OMFG in just 154 pages, you will discover the sick, and evil and pure horror that lives in the mind(s) of some people that you will NEVER forget!
This book takes place on a street in the U.K. somewhere.....and Halloween is approaching. And this is Erin's most Favorite Day Of The Year! And, what girl would not LOVE to be proposed to on Halloween? What her boyfriend does not know is that Erin has a connection with the most disturbing Halloween 'Funhouse', and let me tell you.......this is NOT that kind of Funhouse!!!
WARNINGS: EXTREME SEXUAL VIOLENCE! SCENES OF GORE THAT WILL STAY WITH YOU FOR A LONG TIME AFTER FINISHING! GRAPHIC SCENES OF SEXUAL MUTILATIONS AND CANNIBALISM
This (if you can stomach parts of it.....) is one book that I would recommend if you liked the 'Hostel' films, and or movies like the original Texas Chainsaw Massacre. Can't say I didn't warn you.
I LOVED it! I know after reading the above, that sounds kina sick....but it was SO cleverly thought out and written.
5 😮🩸🔪🤮😱
December 24, 2022
This book had a twist I didn’t see coming. I won’t be going near any abandoned houses any time soon.
Check trigger warnings before reading.
Check trigger warnings before reading.
January 1, 2025
Shite x
September 6, 2024
This book has been living in my head rent free since the time I read it. I love the versatility of this author's works. I found this one to be very dark and I'm still upset over who doesn't make it, but I'll be reading more by this author.
May 5, 2022
This book is such a great idea. I know it isn't one of Shaws black cover books, but I wonder if it would have been better if it had been..not saying that it's bad the way it is. Its a good read. Its just a lot of story to take in and it gives a nod to Sick Bstards , which is really cool..
One thing I didn't like, that I don't like when any author does. Devote way too much time to a single character, only to kill them, while their contribution to the story is minor. That's a small me thing. A pet peeve of mine.
I still highly recommend this book to be read by anyone who enjoys Shaws work
One thing I didn't like, that I don't like when any author does. Devote way too much time to a single character, only to kill them, while their contribution to the story is minor. That's a small me thing. A pet peeve of mine.
I still highly recommend this book to be read by anyone who enjoys Shaws work
November 17, 2022
Short but sweet?
Really enjoyed The Funhouse, good short story with plenty of gore and a few shocks thrown in - typical Matt Shaw!
If you're not into violence, horror, gore and explicit sex scenes and are easily offended then The Funhouse is definitely not for you.
This book reminds me of early Richard Layman books, yes some of it makes me uncomfortable to read but this is the "new" kind of horror and it's there to shock, which Matt Shaw definitely does well
Really enjoyed The Funhouse, good short story with plenty of gore and a few shocks thrown in - typical Matt Shaw!
If you're not into violence, horror, gore and explicit sex scenes and are easily offended then The Funhouse is definitely not for you.
This book reminds me of early Richard Layman books, yes some of it makes me uncomfortable to read but this is the "new" kind of horror and it's there to shock, which Matt Shaw definitely does well
May 17, 2022
This book is okay. It honestly feels like two different books squished together. The first half follows one person but as soon as you get to the house it switches perspective every chapter and try to become really "shocking" but shocking seems to be just a lot of swearing and sex scenes out of nowhere. We also only spend about 5 pages in the house and rest of the time on exposition. I wish it spent more time in the time in the actual house. Not a bad read but doesn't live up to the potential of the idea.
December 23, 2022
Disappointing. It sounded like a good premise, but the execution wasn't great. The first 40% was a bunch of unnecessary build up, and the last 40% when it should have been building suspense for the climax, it instead gets lost in some weird disjointed back story.
December 24, 2023
Good/ creepy plot but needed to be longer to understand the story. Felt rushed and confusing at the end
February 9, 2024
3.5 to 4 stars. This is a short but sweet horror novel that touches several other stories that are already used in the genre. A clown, a creepy house, people with not as noble intentions as they seem and purge-like annual events. But this isn't spoiling anything, as this book is intended purely to entertain with gore and a twisted plot. It's a quick read (that I needed way more time for due to a busy work schedule) but still it as a very fun read and I thoroughly enjoyed it.
Okay, it leaves you with a few questions, but nothing really that meaningful to bother you in the end. This is horror entertainment for those who love this genre and I will recommend it to others (and am thankful for the person who gifted me this book as a bookfairy.)
So somewhere between 3.5 and 4 stars, but giving it 4 because of the entertainment value.
Okay, it leaves you with a few questions, but nothing really that meaningful to bother you in the end. This is horror entertainment for those who love this genre and I will recommend it to others (and am thankful for the person who gifted me this book as a bookfairy.)
So somewhere between 3.5 and 4 stars, but giving it 4 because of the entertainment value.
November 12, 2022
I first read Matt Shaw’s “Halloween”, which contains a short story about the funhouse. It appears he expanded upon that awesome premise to create this short, gore packed book.
One of the things I would’ve liked to see was more time/participants in the actual funhouse. What the neighbours would’ve done if someone made it out. The explanation for why annual massacre occurs is okkkkk…. Where’d they get the clown from though? How do they avoid the missing persons investigations?
I felt like things weren’t wrapped up, hopefully there will be a Funhouse 2!
One of the things I would’ve liked to see was more time/participants in the actual funhouse. What the neighbours would’ve done if someone made it out. The explanation for why annual massacre occurs is okkkkk…. Where’d they get the clown from though? How do they avoid the missing persons investigations?
I felt like things weren’t wrapped up, hopefully there will be a Funhouse 2!
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
August 11, 2022
Had real potential. More like a low 2.5 rating. Had more details been implemented would have made or a more interesting ready. However taking into account that it is short (less than 100 pages) it was decent and easy to read. The ending does feel as though it is apart of another book.
December 27, 2022
A fast brutal read!
This kept me in the edge of my seat, as I had to know what happened. The fun house creeped me right out. The descriptions were gruesome and on point.
I wish there was a little more answers to the end. But, this was definitely a fast, gross out read
This kept me in the edge of my seat, as I had to know what happened. The fun house creeped me right out. The descriptions were gruesome and on point.
I wish there was a little more answers to the end. But, this was definitely a fast, gross out read
February 2, 2023
Wasn’t as much gore as his other, feel it could have really added to the story. But the premise itself is awesome. Was not expecting it and was pleasantly surprised. Character imagery was spot on. A good read :)
August 8, 2024
This was the stupidest book I’ve ever read. I blame my best friend for making me read this….She knows who she is 😒
September 7, 2024
Nice n short pretty gory, felt like a spooky read
September 23, 2024
2.5 stars
April 27, 2025
The idea is a good one, the execution.. not so much.
Really basic story telling and trying to fit too much lore into such a short book.
Really basic story telling and trying to fit too much lore into such a short book.
February 1, 2026
booktok really pmo with this one
November 19, 2022
Disappointed in this book
I really had high hopes for this book. I loved the twist in the book but the rest did nothing for me. There was lots of errors that had me re-reading sentences just to make some sense out of them.
I really had high hopes for this book. I loved the twist in the book but the rest did nothing for me. There was lots of errors that had me re-reading sentences just to make some sense out of them.
June 7, 2022
Captivating
I do enjoy a Matt Shaw read. This is another author that has that special way of bringing a simple story to life, awakening your imagination as you read along, seeing everything in your minds eye. This read is all about what happens in the 'fun house' though it's not so much fun for those trapped inside. As you progress in the book you learn the secrets and horror history of the house and how it became the fun house from start to present. A great story with some great characters again. Thus keeping you captivated and entertained throughout, from beginning to end. Definitely recommend.
I do enjoy a Matt Shaw read. This is another author that has that special way of bringing a simple story to life, awakening your imagination as you read along, seeing everything in your minds eye. This read is all about what happens in the 'fun house' though it's not so much fun for those trapped inside. As you progress in the book you learn the secrets and horror history of the house and how it became the fun house from start to present. A great story with some great characters again. Thus keeping you captivated and entertained throughout, from beginning to end. Definitely recommend.
February 29, 2024
"Murray smiled. 'Not a problem. You brought yourself! That's enough! Here, come with me... I'll get you a drink! With a hand on Jim's shoulder, Murray marched him towards a table of drinks.
Laura smiled, happy that Murray seemed to like Jim as much as her own family did."
This was my first foray into the world of extreme horror Matt Shaw, and while this is not his best work, it was a very entertaining work at least. Extreme horror has the unfortunate disadvantage of being, well, extreme, so when things get so over the top gross and graphic while taking itself as seriously as a work like The Shining, I can't help but laugh at it (looking at you, Cows). But what I love about Matt Shaw's writing is that he has fun with it and never takes it too seriously (not here, at least, saving the Bastard's trilogy for later). The whole rich neighborhood was hatable and none of the characters were too memorable, but the violence was fun and it was a quick read that didn't drag on for any longer than it needed to.
Laura smiled, happy that Murray seemed to like Jim as much as her own family did."
This was my first foray into the world of extreme horror Matt Shaw, and while this is not his best work, it was a very entertaining work at least. Extreme horror has the unfortunate disadvantage of being, well, extreme, so when things get so over the top gross and graphic while taking itself as seriously as a work like The Shining, I can't help but laugh at it (looking at you, Cows). But what I love about Matt Shaw's writing is that he has fun with it and never takes it too seriously (not here, at least, saving the Bastard's trilogy for later). The whole rich neighborhood was hatable and none of the characters were too memorable, but the violence was fun and it was a quick read that didn't drag on for any longer than it needed to.
October 2, 2022
Wow, I hated this. I got nothing from this book. No fear, no laughs, no one to care about, nothing that gory.... I'm disappointed in myself for picking this for my first October read. The only good thing I have to say is that it wasn't long, so I didn't waste too much time.
February 23, 2023
Interesting concept, but quite a few typos which always leads me to be distracted from the story. The ending also left me more confused than anything.. maybe confusion was the point? Either way, not my favourite book of the year so only getting 2 stars.
July 6, 2022
Awful and dumb. Just happy it was short.
June 28, 2022
This was so fun. I loved how it started and then that twist. I am living for it. I have previously read Matt Shaw and really like his writing style and how he starts his stories.
Displaying 1 - 30 of 137 reviews