March 2022 Group Read #2 - Man, F*** This House

[Diane]

20% in. It’s a fast paced read so far. It's a decent start, but not a full throttle grabber yet.

[Badseedgirl]

I'm at 32% and I feel bad for Damien. (view spoiler)[He is a smart kid who realizes his Mom does not particularly like or understand him. Although he is a perceptive kid, he is emotionally immature. I can't say I blame him for treating his mom the way he does. He is living up to his Mom's expectations. The character I dislike immensely is the Mom. (hide spoiler)]

[Trustno1]

I read this earlier this year and to be all honest, it wasn´t my book at all and I hated all of the characters xD

[Rachel]

finished! ultimately, i thought it was okay. it was a fun read at least. (view spoiler)[didn't like any of the characters tho. the mom was so terrible! i thought for sure that the house would k.o. her at the end. disappointed when it saved her, lol. (hide spoiler)]

[Krystal]

I'm at 37% and definitely not a fan of (view spoiler)[Damien messing with his mum, and Hal not believing her. The stereotype's just frustrating so far and I want to throw Damien out a window. (hide spoiler)] I am along with others in hoping the house just eats everyone lol or even (view spoiler)[since the house seems to be nurturing Sabrina so far in drawing her baths and making her coffee, maybe the house will be her backup against her lousy family? Wouldn't be so bad to have a haunted house on your side! (hide spoiler)]

[Krystal]

Finished last night, overall it was a bit disappointing for me. I feel like the clever title set the expectation a little too high.

My full review is here: https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...

[Netanella]

Krystal wrote: "Finished last night, overall it was a bit disappointing for me. I feel like the clever title set the expectation a little too high...."

Well said!

[destiny ♡]

I was considering joining in, but the negatives people have mentioned are things that really bug me, so I think I might just lurk here and see what everyone's final thoughts are. 😂 That's one thing I love about this group and why I almost always have notifs turned on for the read-along threads: it's so interesting to see what everyone thinks about each pick!

[Clare]

what the h*ck did I just read?

[Michelle]

I'm at 66%. I feel bad for Michaela. Her mother and brother are both nuts, and her father is clueless. Michaela seems to be the only half-normal family member.

[October]

I just finished this, this morning and it was a fun fast read when I tell you I've never liked a kid more in a book, don't think I'm crazy lol. I could have read a whole book just about Damien.

[Lindsay]

Clare wrote: "what the h*ck did I just read?"

This is exactly how I feel...

[Krystal]

Michelle wrote: "I'm at 66%. I feel bad for Michaela. Her mother and brother are both nuts, and her father is clueless. Michaela seems to be the only half-normal family member."

Totally agree!

[WendyB]

Only barely got started on this but it seems like it's really quirky and will be a fast read.

[Michelle]

I just finished. I'll need a day or so to ruminate on a rating but I did enjoy it. This is my first book by the author and I think I should have checked him out first. He writes bizarro horror, which is exactly what I'd classify this book, not occult or supernatural. Not a big deal, but I would have went into the book with a different frame of mind if I'd known the genre.

[Jade]

Just finished it. 3.5 stars from me! It was a weird but fun and fast read.

[Sara]

Fun read, fairly bizarre.

[Giovanni]

Finished. ok, well,....definitely not what I was expecting... Frankly I don't know how to react to this book. It left me with a bizarre sensation, like I did not have enough of it. I liked it, even if it does not make me cry "wonderful", but it was probably a bit short, somewhat underdevelopped. I mean, short stories are fine, but if they have a shocking turn at the end that makes you shiver. Here, I don't see it.
On the bright side, it is fun and it make itself read fast.
As for the characters, I liked them, even shithead daniel (except Hal, maybe, he was the less interesting one)

[Lindsay]

Michelle wrote: "I just finished. I'll need a day or so to ruminate on a rating but I did enjoy it. This is my first book by the author and I think I should have checked him out first. He writes bizarro horror, whi..."

This comment actually clarified a few things for me. That makes way more sense.
(view spoiler)[ When the house stands up and starts walking I almost shouted. I was like WHAT ON EARTH??? (hide spoiler)] I didn't look into him at all either and just figured the title was funny.

[Thomas]

I'm so mad I can't participate in this. No store here has it and I can't buy it online atm

[Badseedgirl]

I finished the book. Does it make me a bad person that (view spoiler)[I hope the house got away and found an owner who loved as much as it wanted to be loved. (hide spoiler)]

I enjoyed the story, and although I have not written my review as yet, I'm going to give it 4 stars.

[Jade]

I would like to know everyone’s thoughts on the ending, particularly Zephyr, lol.

[JasonA]

Well, I can easily say the best thing about this book is the title. Really wish the book would have matched the tone of the title.

Did anyone else hear Stewie Griffin from Family Guy in their head for Damien's voice?

Not sure what to make of the very end.

[Clare]

Jade wrote: "I would like to know everyone’s thoughts on the ending, particularly Zephyr, lol."

I was with them until (view spoiler)[the house stood up.
That took me out of the book entirely. It just felt too silly and ruined any build-up for me. (hide spoiler)]

[Krystal]

Badseedgirl wrote: "I finished the book. Does it make me a bad person that [spoilers removed]

I enjoyed the story, and although I have not written my review as yet, I'm going to give it 4 stars."

Did you catch the Epilogue? I almost missed it, since it's after the author info. I think it's kind of optional reading but might cheer you up a little lol

[Lindsay]

Thomas wrote: "I'm so mad I can't participate in this. No store here has it and I can't buy it online atm"

It's available on Kindle Unlimited on Amazon. You can do a month free trial :)

[Anja]

just finished this story, and I loved it! so funny and fast paced!
misspelling and grammatical errors are definitely to be found, but as I was warned beforehand I didn't mind it, and everyone should remember indie authors often have less ressources to put in the editing compartment.

I swear Damien is an older Stewie (Family Guy)!!! Lmao.

[Anja]

jasonA omg yes, just wrote something similar about Damien being an older Stewie lol. But I loved the story though

[Badseedgirl]

Krystal wrote: "Badseedgirl wrote: "I finished the book. Does it make me a bad person that [spoilers removed]

I enjoyed the story, and although I have not written my review as yet, I'm going to give it 4 stars."
..."

I just read it. Thank you for pointing it out. I DO feel better!

[Suki]

I thought this book was a fast, fun read and I enjoyed the (view spoiler)[ Bizarro Baba Yaga (hide spoiler)] spin. I ended up despising all the human characters in the book (except Zephyr), but loving the house. The Epilogue made me smile. 4☆

[Philip]

Not too far in and I dig the author's sense of humor and completely identify with Damien, but wow, the editor in me wants to just cover this in red ink. Proves very quickly that a good copy edit is non-optional.

[Philip]

Philip wrote: "Not too far in and I dig the author's sense of humor and completely identify with Damien, but wow, the editor in me wants to just cover this in red ink. Proves very quickly that a good copy edit is..."

And by not too far in I mean really only up to "Tuesday" (page 43).

[Rachel]

Philip wrote: "Proves very quickly that a good copy edit is non-optional."

oh my gosh, yes! i try not to let grammar/spelling mistakes take me out of the story, but sometimes it's just so egregious.

[JasonA]

Krystal wrote: "Did you catch the Epilogue?."
..."

I completely missed it, so thanks for pointing it out.

[Ana]

Picked up and my Asman read. Super nice guy!! I’m excitided!!!

[WendyB]

I'm kinda liking this so far. It's weird.

[Jacqueline]

I just started but I really like the humor so far.

[Jacqueline]

Just finished! I really enjoyed this one a lot. I liked all the characters and I really feel for Sabrina. There were a lot of elements and phrasing that made me believe that maybe this was about sabrinas depressive psychosis.

[Jacqueline]

Also I loved the epilogue and almost missed it!

[Joseph]

I read this a few days into March, but I was new to the group and decided to post on some other threads first. I feel like everything that can be said about this book has already been said, but here's my two cents:

I didn't like it.

I feel like the author was trying to show us characters who were suburban cliches, and in a way he did, but I think he still missed the mark somehow. I have lived most of my life in suburbia, and yes it is a very cookie-cutter world, but people simply aren't as dimwitted and one dimensional as they are in this novel. I feel like the entire characterization of the book can be summed up by the fact that the father is caught reading a David Baldacci novel. I wish he had been reading any other popular fiction writer but this one.

A book with such a title could have gone in many different directions. This is obviously small press and isn't going to sell a lot of copies solely for the F word being on the front cover. A lot more liberties could have taken. This should have been a game of truth or dare. Instead we were fed off-brand aspirin.

Good to know I wasn't alone in my dislike of this story. I think the writing was clear and focused, so I wouldn't entirely rule out reading something else written by Asman, but he isn't on my TBR, if you know what I mean.

[Ana]

Oh my this book just enthralled me! I was sucked in from the start. I have been wanting to read Brian Asman for so long and I’m finally glad I did!

[Trista]

I had to DNF this book. Both the writing and the characterization were so poor that I couldn’t hang at all. I’m actually kind of shocked that this book is so highly regarded. I admit, because I didn’t finish it I’m probably missing out on an interesting story, but if I had stuck with it I definitely would have been miserable.

Asman’s writing style isn’t for me and that’s okay.

[Anja]

I think it's fair to suggest the story is written in a satirical style i.e. the characters are supposed to be mostly one dimensional and caricaturish

[Holli]

Hopping in on this for my first buddy read with this group since it's shorter and available on KU. I'm nervous because of the mixed (but mostly disappointed) reviews here.

Help a n00b out, what makes something bizarro horror?

[Anja]

holli - I'm not expert in bizarro as it's a subgenre I'm pretty new to too, but in the matter of this story, a review said something I find very fitting: it's like a Goosebumps for adults :D

I really liked the story; I think it's a good think to be prepared to get some bizarro and satire before diving into it.

[destiny ♡]

Holli wrote: "Hopping in on this for my first buddy read with this group since it's shorter and available on KU. I'm nervous because of the mixed (but mostly disappointed) reviews here.

Help a n00b out, what m..."

Sam Knight wrote this for the Colorado Horror Writers Association and I think it sums it up well:

"Bizarro is the genre of the weird, strange, grotesque, and bizarre, and it generally makes readers think, what the heck? (Though usually said in much stronger language.) While some authors write weird for the sake of being weird, most fans of Bizarro don’t consider those stories to be true Bizarro. They expect stories that make sense, at least within the story’s own set of rules, and resonate with the subversive, satiric, and absurd. That said, there really are no rules to the Bizarro genre."

[Holli]

Hmm, definitely matches this story then. I just finished it. Not awful, but nothing special either. I'm mostly glad it was at least short.

[Patrick]

The tone of this book is perfect for me as I am a big fan of bizarre and 'fun' horror stories. This was a very enjoyable short and funny read and although it never really surprised it was still entertaining throughout.

None of the main characters were likeable although in a story like this it actually added to my enjoyment. The final 'Thursday' chapter was great fun, full of gory bizarre happenings that reminded me of great horror comedy films of the past and the book left me wanting more.

[LTJ]

I've had my eye on this novel ever since I saw the metal-inspired title! LoL I'm starting this today and can't wait to discuss it with you all :-)

[Kasia]

I'm going to read it too but might be in April, I have two chunky books going on right now (640 and 740 pg fantasy that Im reading at the same time) and my brain is too small at the moment to squeeze this in lol.