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What are readers saying about The Hellbound Heart: A Novel?
| Reviews of The Hellbound Heart: A Novel - Page 1 of 4 |
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A Reader posted a review at 2008-03-26 11:20:01.
(Language: English)
  
Creepy as creepy getsA short but very entertaining read, with a healthy dose of horror and the evils that the human heart is capable of committing. It's a novella and, as such, the plot and character development are pretty thin--but it is still remarkably good for its length, and gives the reader visuals that are hard to un-see out of their heads. One can only imagine how much better it would have been had Barker expanded on the story of the Cenobites/The Engineer and the perverse tortures upon Frank Cotton and their other victims. A great introduction to Clive Barker, and the horror genre. 
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A Reader posted a review at 2009-07-02 08:20:07.
(Language: English)
Utterly mediocre. I'm definitely lukewarm on splatterpunk overall; I feel that this book failed utterly to accomplish anything other than bathing the reader in blood. It wasn't so much frightening as nauseating.On some level the exploration of pleasure and pain is interesting, but the execution leaves something to be desired.
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A Reader posted a review at 2009-11-11 03:07:14.
(Language: English)
i love this book!
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A Reader posted a review at 2009-04-15 11:31:01.
(Language: English)
The source material for the original "hellraiser" film that scared the living bejeebus out of us in the late 80s. This novella is just as creepy, if not more so, because of it's odd lack of clarity.
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A Reader posted a review at 2010-10-13 04:59:13.
(Language: English)
complex mythology crowning a tale of deep humanity; equal parts base and exploitative and high-minded, sparkling with startling originality and eloquence. I could and would not ask for anything more from contemporary horror, from a true paragon of imagination. Indelibly inspired a generation.
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A Reader posted a review at 2007-07-23 11:30:59.
(Language: English)
Clive Barker is the master of erotic horror. His juxtaposition of the violent and the sensuous plays well with the plot of the story, regarding an ancient relic which can open doors to worlds of pleasure so intense it is indistinguishable from pain. The way that he humanizes characters dealing with such fantastical issues makes the fantastic seem as real as your own skin. It's a short read as well, which gives you no reason not to check it out.
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A Reader posted a review at 2009-01-14 12:53:27.
(Language: English)
This is the first book of Clive Barker's that I've read. I've watched the show "Supernatural" since the pilot episode (it's in it's fourth season now)and have known for quite a while what Barker had said about the show. Finally I said that, "If he thinks the show's that good I should probably check out his books." I'm glad that I did. The descriptions and imagery are very good and gruesome at times. I liked the book a lot.
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Brian posted a review at 2009-11-17 10:15:06.
(Language: English)
A good novella and the basis for the Hellraiser movies. Clive's depth of imagination shows itself well here.
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A Reader posted a review at 2009-07-13 10:13:36.
(Language: English)
Short, sick, twisted. I am now afraid of Rubik's cubes.
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A Reader posted a review at 2010-07-20 03:47:17.
(Language: English)
The Hellraiser classic. If you know it, there's no need to describe, if you don't, there's no way to describe it - you have to read it.
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A Reader posted a review at 2009-05-22 09:26:23.
(Language: English)
The characters are completely single-minded and one-dimensional, and devoid of depth. Their actions, save for what begins of the novel, have little to no consequence on the events that follow them-- things happen because they need to further the events of the story, and nothing plays against expectation or what the characters want. A novel can't be suspenseful if the characters are meaningless- we spend more time with the "bad guys" than the "good guys" in this novel and so it's not too surprising that when the conflict comes to a head at the end it's impossible to care who actually wins/loses/lives/dies. I barely know the good guys and the bad guys are hedonistic murderers. The cenobites are the most interesting part of the story, but because their role is so minimal and unexplored they become more of an excuse to describe horrific things and further work toward the (vastly unexplored) pleasure/pain relationship. They could be replaced by any supernatural force to similar effect. The only real strengths this book has is that it is short, and somehow still readable.
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A Reader posted a review at 2010-08-19 02:16:40.
(Language: English)
I thoroughly enjoyed this macabre and disturbing novella from Clive Barker! It was a quick read -- too quick for me! -- but it kept me on the edge of my seat the entire time I was reading it. I read this in bits during my lunch break, and it kept me looking forward to my break everyday. I almost wish I could forget it all, then read it again for the first time. Excellent! A new favorite!
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A Reader posted a review at 2010-05-07 03:27:44.
(Language: English)
Not so much a novel as a short story with chapter breaks. Read it in less than an hour. The characters were, in the main, distasteful - Julia's "love" for the disgusting Frank was just odd. I vaguely remember the movie Hellraiser (which was apparently based loosely on this book) and I don't remember it being much like this. I suppose when something is this short it's not really feature film material on its own... All the same a decent, if short, read.
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Konnie posted a review at 2010-09-22 02:29:22.
(Language: English)
Excellent and thrilling tale. The basis for the Hellraiser films.
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Dami posted a review at 2009-04-16 07:33:15.
(Language: English)
It was below expectation
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Lidia posted a review at 2010-01-06 09:08:52.
(Language: English)
It was an ok, quick read. Some weird stuff but still kind of anti-climactic and lacked depth
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Michael posted a review at 2011-09-19 09:03:15.
(Language: English)
Arrr 'ya lookin' fer a great short story? Nice quick read wi' all th' elements o' a good classic horror. 't be almost too descriptive fer them wi' a weak stomach!
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A Reader posted a review at 2009-12-18 04:29:30.
(Language: English)
Pinhead does his worst by investing in help from various ghoulish friends. Theres a tussle for a box that has you screaming (literally) for help
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A Reader posted a review at 2009-04-01 05:27:49.
(Language: English)
A highly imaginative, dark tale about a puzzlebox that once solved, unleashes the portal of hell. A lovely set of demons will greet you and off to rip your soul apart. Y'know the kind of peeps you invite to a party. Not the biggest novel in the world, but with a high caliber writing style and an engrossing story with excellent characters, who cares? Geddit.
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Thomas posted a review at 2010-05-03 01:27:23.
(Language: English)
Great read, couldn't put it down. Far scarier than the Hellraiser movies ;)
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A Reader posted a review at 2008-07-10 02:31:58.
(Language: English)
One scary Mother&^%ing book no seriously will scare the living *&^$out of you. Is much much heavier than most horror books. I would put this one up on a pedestal next to Dracula and Frankenstein as far as depth underlying the story. The real monsters here are not from the bowels of hell. They are scary sick people.
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A Reader posted a review at 2009-11-24 03:16:04.
(Language: English)
This is the book that Hellraiser was based on, which follows this book closer than I thought it would. The novel is more gruesome and better paced, though.
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A Reader posted a review at 2008-11-10 06:34:02.
(Language: English)
Clive has still probably never surpassed this little novella with its insane mix of religion, sex and extreme philosophical and physical exploration. A thinking man's horror novel written brilliantly. I don't know if Clive Barker has ever done better than this. Brilliant metaphysical horror that is even more powerful in written language than the screen.
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A Reader posted a review at 2008-08-06 08:17:20.
(Language: English)
Famously the basis for the original Hellraiser movie. Granted, the sequels in that franchise have significantly declined in quality, but the novella itself stands as one of the great works of literary horror.If you liked the movie, it's definitely worth checking out. Especially since the follow up book (titled "The Scarlet Gospels") is due to be released soon. If you've never read Barker before and are looking for a place to start, I can't think of a better introduction than this.
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A Reader posted a review at 2010-03-10 01:41:48.
(Language: English)
When Clive Barker first burst onto the horror scene with his sexually bizzare Books of Blood, he was dubbed as being the next Edgar Allan Poe. Now, there are plenty of reviews claiming that this book is rather empty. It is, it's dark, and cold, and empty. Thats what good horror is. If you don't like it, then go read Twilight. Anyway, this story has so many layers. Opposing antagonists, head-spinning, detailed imagery. It's prose, being approached in some of the most avant-gard of styles since Algernon Blackwood or H.P. Lovecraft. Read this before the Hellraiser remake comes out and before it's sequel arrives, rumored to be later this year. The Harper edition is a shitty bind, so don't buy it. Check it out of the library. Personally, If you ask me, amongst contemporary writers, Mr. Barker has more talent dried to the outside of his zipper than Stephanie Meyer has in her whole entire body.
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| Reviews of The Hellbound Heart: A Novel - Page 1 of 4 |
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