Gone to See the River Man

I cannot believe how much I liked this.

This is my first “splatterpunk” or “extreme horror” book and I’m worried that I might have started with the best of the best.

I heard that this genre was full of the edgiest, lamest attempts at shock value for the sake of shock value. This was anything but.

Most of the horror her is purely psychological. It’s a family drama at heart. Very similar to Hereditary, in that we focus on a family crumbling through the vessel of a demonic tale. Don’t tell anyone I said this, but this book handles that concept WAY better.

This book is unrelenting. It will indeed go there, but it never feels undeserved. The reason this book works so well is because it earns its depravity. It’s not just a series of increasingly vile events, it very slowly builds to a revelation.

They pull the rug out from under you right when you start to sympathize with Lori. She is a bad person and the book slowly reveals that in some of the best usage of flashbacks Ive seen in writing.

The violence is definitely extreme, but it’s rare. A majority of this film’s horror comes from its analysis of what people are capable of. Lori is pure evil, but not in a villainous way. In a purely desperate and depressing way.

I think that’s the main reason this worked. It’s not two people being tortured in a forest. It’s two people uncovering their true selves. and that’s truly terrifying.

Disturbing and extremely messed up, this book is extreme horror. I do not recommend it to anyone with a weak stomach, and anyone who is not able to handle messed up topics, however, it did have me hooked.
Gone to See the River Man, is a book written from the perspective of one of the most messed up, screwed-up protagonists I've ever read (though I do not read this genre of extreme horror particularly often, so I cannot vouch if this is a more extreme example for this genre). The protagonist has a disabled sister that she does awful things to, and a brother that she directly caused the death of. She is disgusting, and vile, but THAT is what hooks you in.
I will warn you before you read this book, I felt like I was going to throw up almost the entire time I was reading it. It is not for the faint of heart, and I don't think I will be reading anything like it particularly soon.

This is what I call a quick and kinda straight to the point horror read. This is what HORROR is all about people, so please expect that.

This is actually my first Kristopher Triana, and it did not disappoint!

At first, I was thinking, "This is going to be another long and drawn out storyline and character development bid." BUT after a little while, my ears and eyes started to perk up, and they never perked back down, HAHA!

This is, in a way, a quest story....

Lori is a lonely woman who is caring for her disabled older sister, Abby. Abby was not always disabled, but that story will come out in the book, don't you worry. Lori has been conversing with a serial killer who is behind bars. She gives off a very starstruck, hopeless, obsessive, "groupie" vibe (as the killer called his fans). Edmund, the inmate/serial killer, has tasked Lori with finding a key and to go on this trek in search of "The River Man". Lori, due to strong protests from Abby, reluctantly takes her along on the journey. Again, Abby is disabled from a prior traumatic brain injury. Sounds like a bad idea, right?

The rest of the book takes you on this mind-bending journey over the river and through the woods, but we aren't going to visit "Grandmother", it's to see The River Man. But what are we getting from The River Man? I'd bet you wanna know!

Here are some good reasons as to why I recommend this book:

-the plot is somewhat original

-the characters are relatable in a way, despite the wickedness

-the imagery makes you feel like you are the one on this journey

-the details are not long and drawn out, nor is the dialogue (which makes a lot of sense for the characters and book setting)

-at the end, you aren't left lost, dazed, naked, and afraid (HAHA)

I believe there is a really great concept here. However, the main character, Lori, is naive, has a weird desire for love in all the wrong ways and places, she isn't completely oblivious, but she might have a tad bit of saw dust for a brain. She has clearly been mislead in life one way or another.....you will see.

I don't want to get too deep or put out too many spoilers, but this story does take several dark turns. There are LOTS of trigger warnings, so do your research before getting into this one! There isn't a huge amount of blood and gore or action, but it is definitely disturbing nonetheless.

There is a sequel to this one, so I will be continuing the story because the ending was.....WOW.

-XOXO, @therealnursebrook

Please please look for trigger warning before you read this book.

These types of books are always hard to rate, it was written well, and is successful in what it sets out to do. It is gruesome, and disgusting, and is truely extreme horror in my opinion. I can't fully say I enjoyed it because I don't think the content is enjoyable but it is still a good book. I think this is def not for first time readers of extreme/more violent horror. However if you are someone who “enjoys” this genre then this is the perfect book for you.

I feel icky that I read this book, I couldn't put it down though. 5 stars.

I was so engaged with this one for the first 50% but after that it just lost me and it became very slow and whatever happend after that wasn't my favorite I would say. I just didn't like the reveal of what it actually was I think the end was a bit better but still it was just ok for me

No.

The writing itself is wonderful. The horror elements were well done. Multiple times I was nauseaus or grossed out. Good imagery.

The story? Ick.

Nopenopenope.

Still not entirely sure how I feel about this one but I was a fan of the folk horror aspect. That was about it.

Rating: 2.09 leaves out of 5-Characters: 3/5 -Cover: 3/5-Story: 2.75/5-Writing: 4/5Genre: Horror, Mystery, Thriller, Splatterpunk-Horror: 1/5-Thriller: 0/5-Mystery: 1/5-Splatterpunk: 2/5Type: AudiobookWorth?: MehHated Disliked Meh It Was Okay Liked LovedI am so disappointed. I saw all the hype and had it sitting on the fence until I saw Kristopher was coming out with a second book and it is coming out on the 1st so I thought it would be splendid to finish this and pick the second one right up. Ugh, I am just... over half the book is just... boring. Little to nothing happens and then rest it hits you. I was sick and I felt bad for the victims. The ending though, I don't know. I want to say I am happy? Kinda but at the same time it was just... flat. Will I be picking up the second book? Eeehhh maybe? Probably.I do advise you to go look up the trigger warnings for this, as I will say you should ALWAYS do for horror.

sigh i have thoughts and not one of them is good. if i could give it 0 stars, i would. if you have to write in incest and rape to JUST to say that your book is disturbing then maybe you should put the book down. Obviously, rape is disgusting and disturbing but to only use it for shock factor is just not it. Lori was INSUFFERABLE and i wish i was lying when i said the book gave me a migraine when i finished. it took me so long to finish because i would get so annoyed that i had to put it down. so upset that i won't be getting my time back.

Extremely disturbing book and i don't think the mere existence of a character in a book has been this disturbing for me. Lori was deranged, but in a very confusing way. She felt a lot of feelings yet she was detached. Her character is so well done.
And yes, you are supposed to hate her. That's the whole point. She is unlikeable as hell and difficult to follow and relate to and that's what makes this so beautifully complicated. 

The best part of this book for me is the fabulous imagery at the river. I still have it imprinted in my mind like i watched a movie. The vibe setting was so good.

The ending will definitely stay with me for a long time too 

Overall, definitely worth the read in my opinion. 

3.75 - so twisted and dark ! Was not expecting it to be like that!

5/5 - Extremely disturbing novel about Lori's obsession with a serial killer and how far she will go in order to prove her love for him. This book made me feel numb through and through, Lori is one of the most unlikeable and truly nasty characters that I have come across, there was nothing redeemable about her. Even though I found this book challenging to get through due to some of it's subject matters I would was unable to put it down, I needed to know how it ended and how Lori's story was going to play out. Even though by a certain point you can perhaps see how this book is going to end, it does not make the ending any it any less satisfying when novel concludes.

2.5

finishing this book felt like when u hav a dream in which u did something awful and went to jail and then u wake up and you are so happy it was just a dream. thats how i feel now.

Very dark and disturbing. It had me hooked all the way through, even though at times it made me feel disgusting. The imagery of the woods was done beautifully!

this made me cringe and i feel so uncomfortable. i liked it.

This book was really interesting and I honestly loved the combination of serial killers with something more out of this world. There was one line put in here that was racist and just a thought of the main character that wasn't necessary at all and it really rubbed me the wrong way but I loved everything else.