tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-825351661748594023.post9015663546433730990..comments2024-03-06T11:11:48.095-08:00Comments on Too Much Horror Fiction: Koko by Peter Straub (1988): Born Down in a Dead Man's TownWill Erricksonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16285306262078600804noreply@blogger.comBlogger9125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-825351661748594023.post-13469073481359903572019-07-23T19:18:13.219-07:002019-07-23T19:18:13.219-07:00I've seen DEATHDREAM several times, it's a...I've seen DEATHDREAM several times, it's a fave early '70s horror flick of mine!Will Erricksonhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/16285306262078600804noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-825351661748594023.post-17426921176361886322019-07-23T13:31:48.167-07:002019-07-23T13:31:48.167-07:00If you like your Vietnam & horror mixed togeth...If you like your Vietnam & horror mixed together, the 1974 film Deathdream (aka Dead of Night) is well worth watching; and like the much-later Jacob's Ladder, is ultimately pretty bleak & depressing. (1974 seems like an especially early date to start dealing with the national trauma of Vietnam, so I'm not sure how well this film did upon release...)Swellehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/17552879723914734056noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-825351661748594023.post-51088035221780022592019-07-18T18:11:20.474-07:002019-07-18T18:11:20.474-07:00Iain--I have since read MYSTERY and really liked i...Iain--I have since read MYSTERY and really liked it a lot. Some great characters and situations and Straub's great writing, but it's even less horror than KOKO--that is, it is not a horror novel--so I won't be reviewing it here.<br /><br />nosferatu--Joshi's a weird one. I have THROAT on my shelf and will get to it someday!Will Erricksonhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/16285306262078600804noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-825351661748594023.post-78625540506594196012019-07-18T17:30:57.881-07:002019-07-18T17:30:57.881-07:00I remember that in one of his books (Unutterable H...I remember that in one of his books (Unutterable Horror), S.T. Joshi wrote that he hated Koko, but he named The Throat as one the very best novels of its kind ever written. So , if you liked Koko, maybe you're in for a treat on The Throat. nosferatuhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/04533630372341032940noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-825351661748594023.post-67009525734673758232019-07-15T18:05:01.964-07:002019-07-15T18:05:01.964-07:00You owe it to yourself to read Mystery and The Thr...You owe it to yourself to read Mystery and The Throat. They work as a trilogy and as a kind of exploration of the thriller/mystery genre.Iainhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/16590096751727309820noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-825351661748594023.post-2000698074675754422019-07-14T13:33:11.422-07:002019-07-14T13:33:11.422-07:00Great review! I love the scope if your writing and...Great review! I love the scope if your writing and selective descriptions of the book. Not a huge fan of horror but after stumbling onto your page I'm definitely going to give Koko a go.Charliehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/10509336630030719382noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-825351661748594023.post-41438803919898358962019-07-08T09:56:21.426-07:002019-07-08T09:56:21.426-07:00I'm not afraid of long novels nor of those tha...I'm not afraid of long novels nor of those that tell a story subtly. However, I have tried to read Straub several Times (Julia, Ghost Story) and his oblique style has never gelled with me. His prose just doesn't engage me and yes, he does tend to ramble on and become very boring. I know that many praise him as a "literary" horror novelist but that comes at the price of being Luishttps://www.blogger.com/profile/07631388281199815121noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-825351661748594023.post-88069620296051638402019-07-06T16:30:07.320-07:002019-07-06T16:30:07.320-07:00Very cool that Straub retweeted you! As for KOKO, ...Very cool that Straub retweeted you! As for KOKO, I read this one while I was immersed in my junior year at college when it first came out in paperback. There is a ton of it I've forgotten, but I do remember one of the men is reading The Ambassadors by Henry James in the novel, and "escaping" into it when he can. The Ambassadors is an intensely difficult novel with its lead coming Kurthttps://www.blogger.com/profile/13890931403701897892noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-825351661748594023.post-60857020275576408492019-07-05T16:31:24.027-07:002019-07-05T16:31:24.027-07:00This has been in my TBR for some time now (pretty ...This has been in my TBR for some time now (pretty much . . . years), since Straub is HORROR to me, and there's a big pile. Vietnam is also a current kick of mine (and those movies already watched along with many, many, movies). Thanks for giving this a push.wbogaczhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/18423228121362351027noreply@blogger.com