Heart-Shaped Box (Gollancz S.F.) (Hardcover)

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• This item: Heart-Shaped Box (Gollancz S.F.) by Joe Hill

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• 20th Century Ghosts by Joe Hill

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20th Century Ghosts by Joe Hill 3.8 out of 5 stars (4)  £5.99

Just After Sunset by Stephen King 3.8 out of 5 stars (21)  £9.49

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The Road by Cormac McCarthy 4.3 out of 5 stars (327)  £2.99

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THE BELFAST TELEGRAPH
"Joe Hill certainly makes an impressive entrance. He has successfully woven strands of family drama and road movie with his horror, which combines traditional motifs with images all its own; old fashioned ghost stories with uncanny applications of modern technology. Joe Hill is an important new horror voice."


Review
"A relentlessly scary ghost story." (THE BOOKSELLER )

"Heart-Shaped Box is a horror novel that is scary within ten pages. It takes no time at all to get going after which it holds you in its jaws and doesn't let you go. A brilliantly pitched novel that marks the debut of a major contributor to the field." (John Berlyne SF REVU )

"While the novel's occult elements are horrific enough, the true horror is the very human cycle of abuse, as victim becomes victimiser. And the redemption is achieved without recourse to sentimentality." (Eric Brown GUARDIAN )

"He's successfully woven strands of family drama and American road movie with his horror, and that horror itself combines traditional motifs with images all its own, old-fashioned ghost stories with uncanny applications of modern technology. Joe Hill's debut is certainly the work of an important new horror voice." (Alex Sarll PRESS ASSOCIATION )

"The slick sensory prose, snappy dialogue and a handful of spooky creative touches amount to a well packaged box of tricks. A satisfying box of Black Magic." (Stuart Weightman STARBURST )

"Sexy, scary and modern." (Karen Parsons LINCOLNSHIRE ECHO )

"Disturbing, scary, the morbidly guilty forebodings building to a superbly dark crescendo." (SFX )

"Gory, exhilarating and surprisingly tender stuff. There's fresh blood on the horror scene." (METRO )

"Chilling and disturbing." (SO LONDON )

"There are scenes of great intensity in Heart-Shaped Box, and others of great humor. Jude is a wonderful creation, a fascinating blend of immaturity and world-weariness, lovable because of, not in spite of, his many flaws." (STRANGE HORIZONS )

"Hill's debut novel is as assured a debut novel as I have ever read, regardless of genre. Heart-Shaped Box, itself an entertaining and superb novel, offers hints of a great writing career to come." (SFFWORLD.COM )

"I couldn't put Heart-Shaped Box down until I was good and done. The chracter of the sountern-fried undead dowser and hypnotist Craddock creeped the hell out of me." (Peter Murphy HOT PRESS (Ireland) )

"Joe Hill has gone straight for the jugular with his debut horror story. (He) more than proves his birthright." (Henry Sutton THE MIRROR )

"The King ain't dead yet, but long live the new King. [An] excellent debut novel." (THE DAILY STAR )

"Once you peel the pages of Heart- Shaped Box, the addictive nature of the writing that has made Stephen King among the most famous living writers in the world has clearly been handed down." (THE LIST (Scotland) )

"Stephen King's son turns out to be sexier, smarter and cooler than his dad with this tale about a fading death metal star who buys a aghost over the internet." (THE INDEPENDENT ON SUNDAY )

"A dark fantasy in the great American tradition. Joe Hill is Stephen King's son and a worthy successor in the family business." (Roz Kaveney TIME OUT )

"Hill writes the supernatural stuff with skill and conviction." (THE LONDON PAPER )

"Joe Hill certainly makes an impressive entrance. He has successfully woven strands of family drama and road movie with his horror, which combines traditional motifs with images all its own; old fashioned ghost stories with uncanny applications of modern technology. Joe Hill is an important new horror voice." (THE BELFAST TELEGRAPH )

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42 Reviews 5 star:  (11) 4 star:  (17) 3 star:  (7) 2 star:  (4) 1 star:  (3)           Average Customer Review 3.7 out of 5 stars (42 customer reviews)		Share your thoughts with other customers: Create your own review
Most Helpful Customer Reviews   10 of 11 people found the following review helpful: 4.0 out of 5 stars A definite page-turner., 24 Feb 2008 By  B. "go on, take my advice - you know you want... - See all my reviews (TOP 1000 REVIEWER)    Heart Shaped Box, written by Joe Hill (if you don't recognize the name, google him, he's got a great pedigree), turned out to be a page-turner. I picked up the novel out of sheer curiosity (wanted to see how far the apple fell from the tree) and a real love of the cover art. Not expecting much... after all, Papa casts a long shadow... by the fifth chapter I was hooked. Heart Shaped Box is about an aging death-metal rock rocker with a fondness for collecting items of the macabre. A cannibal's cookbook; a witches signed confession; a used hangman's noose; snuff films, you get the picture. So naturally when he's told about a dead man's suit (ghost included, free of charge!) auctioned on an ebay-esque site, he sees to it he's the highest bidder. But what first appears to be a random act quickly becomes a life-meets-death case of posthumous revenge. Hill does a great job of fleshing out his main character, giving him the hard edge necessary to be believable, yet still finding ways to make us care. And when you consider he's incorporating personalities most people shy away from (think hard-edged lunatic fringe), it's doubly impressive. While I won't say he's a carbon copy of his father, I will say that he's his own unique, interesting, and ultimately readable voice. Wish I could give it 3.5 stars, but in lieu I'm opting for 4. Well worth the investment. Comment Comment | Permalink | Was this review helpful to you? Yes No (Report this)   6 of 7 people found the following review helpful: 4.0 out of 5 stars Heart-Shaped Book?, 19 Dec 2007 By  Niall A. Rough (Menstrie, Scotland) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)    This review is from: Heart-Shaped Box (Paperback) I'll say from the outset that 'Heart-Shaped Box' could be 100 pages shorter and better for it, sure. Let's be honest, though: if it were written by Hill's father, it'd be longer still, and quantity - as the esteemed Mr King has amply proven throughout his career, between gems like 'Rita Hayworth' and 'The Girl Who Loved Tom Gordon' - hardly equates to quality. Thankfully, other than a slightly flabby running time, debut author Joe Hill doesn't repeat the sins of his father in 'Heart-Shaped Box', his first novel. The forthcoming '20th Century Ghosts' collection will perhaps enlighten more inquisitive readers on the evolution of Hill's not inconsiderable talent. As it stands, the few mere missteps contained in this text are hardly indicative of the majority of first novels. The author balances plot, pace and the people that populate his pages with a knack more becoming of a seasoned pro - in fact, by the thrilling conclusion of 'Heart-Shaped Box', it's fair to say that Hill has taken the very peak of King's craft as his foundation, before building upon that high standard until his house is sturdier than even his father's. The inevitable comparisons to King were what worried me most upon picking this book up - it's hardly fair, after all, for one of the world's most popular novelists to be the yardstick by which a bright new voice such as Hill is measured - but with 'Heart-Shaped Box' behind me, I can safely say that Joe Hill has taken his father's place at the top tier of the genre. He waves such an effective tapestry of terrors throughout the novel that his place with the other horror greats - alongside Barker, Gaiman, Simmons and so on - is effortlessly earned. It's already been a few weeks since I finished 'Heart-Shaped Box', but I can still taste my heart in my mouth, tender and coppery. To you, Joe Hill: a warm welcome. I hope you stay for a while. Comment Comment | Permalink | Was this review helpful to you? Yes No (Report this)   5 of 6 people found the following review helpful: 5.0 out of 5 stars Move Over Stephen -- Hill Is On His Way To Being King Of The Mountain!, 31 Aug 2007 By  bobbewig (New Jersey, USA) - See all my reviews With his first novel, Joe Hill, son of Stephen and Tabitha King, has written one of the best ghost/horror books I've read in years. It's the type of nail-biting, continuous tension-building, edge-of-your seat suspense book that Stephen King USED to write. Without going in to detail, Heart-Shaped Box is a story of an aging rock star and collector of the macabre who buys a dead man's suit, which is said to be haunted by a restless spirit. From the moment the suit/ghost arrives, the lives of the main character and his much younger live-in groupie girlfriend are taken over by a series of surprises and supernatural experiences -- often times quite gruesome -- that leave them (and YOU) literally gasping for breath. To really enjoy this book you must be willing to totally suspend disbelief -- after all, it is a ghost story. However, this won't be a problem for you, given Hill's ability to not only make the horrors described seem real, but to make you feel that you are right there with the characters as they are experiencing them. Futher, beyond providng a plot of non-stop excitement, Hill shows a strong ability to develop complex and credible characters to whom you increasingly become emotionally attached. Heart-Shaped Box is one of those books that you don't want to end but, at the same time, can't stop turning the pages fast enough to see what happens next. While it has been a long time since I used to wait impatiently for a new book by Stephen King to come out, I now can't wait for the next book by Joe Hill. For me, Hill is the new King. Comment Comment | Permalink | Was this review helpful to you? Yes No (Report this) Share your thoughts with other customers: Create your own review › See all 42 customer reviews...		Most Recent Customer Reviews 1.0 out of 5 stars Don't bother Joe Hill has a lot to learn about constructing a novel. He can write; that you can't deny, but this book is completely shapeless. Read more Published 10 days ago by Geoff Naylor 5.0 out of 5 stars Disturbing and emotional horror Heart Shaped Box is a ghost story. It's born from a fresh and cutting-edge angle and never stops from the first page to the finale. Read more Published 24 days ago by Mr. G. Battle 4.0 out of 5 stars Buy My Step-Father Judas Coyne is an ageing heavy metal icon with a taste for the macabre. When he receives an e-mail offering to sell him a haunted suit, the offer seems too good to be true. Read more Published 3 months ago by Paul D 5.0 out of 5 stars If I never read another book again, it doesn't matter--this one tops them all! I would like to take this oppotunity to declare my love for Heart Shaped Box and that I pledge to love it forever more. I adore this book, totally. Read more Published 5 months ago by Charlotte J. Caulfield 3.0 out of 5 stars American gothic I'm a big fan of supernatural horror (ie, ghosties!) and when I spotted this as a staff recommendation at my local bookshop I immediately snapped it up and went home to read it... Read more Published 5 months ago by Z. OConnor 4.0 out of 5 stars bit scary... but gripping My husband made me read this book as he thought I would enjoy it. Which I did, different to what I would normaly read, I found it quite scary at times, but was hooked. Read more Published 5 months ago by M. Block 4.0 out of 5 stars Sometimes a book jumps off the shelf and says buy me... ...and that was certainly the case here. The story starts quickly, it's only a matter of a few chapters before the ghost appears and then it all kicks off; from then on the story... Read more Published 7 months ago by edzshed 3.0 out of 5 stars A Bit Too Long I did enjoy this book, but I felt that it was a short story dragged out. I don't think the story had enough premise to be a full novel. Read more Published 10 months ago by George Maven 4.0 out of 5 stars enjoyable read Ok, let's get it out of the way right at the start. Joe Hill is Stephen King's son, if there's anyone out there that didn't know it. Unfair to mention this? Read more Published 11 months ago by time I had some time alone 4.0 out of 5 stars Inventive, charming, gripping and damned scary! Horror (perhaps more than any other genre) has had to change, adapt and reinvent itself though the ages. Read more Published 11 months ago by D. Laurikietis Search Customer Reviews Only search this product's reviews › See all 42 customer reviews...

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