It is such a difficult read, but the writing is so incredible. One of the best books of all time. No doubt. The audiobook is also fantastic, read by Jack Ketchum. If you ever decide to do a re-read, I'd recommend it. RED is a great book, but so is ROAD KILL which is also called JOYRIDE. It's one of those books that no one really mentions. They are also both lighter reads. I think you'd like them. Just want to say that your review was great. You sounded a little emotional at times, too. I'm not surprised.
Definitely. I bet Ketchum does a fantastic job narrating it. Thank you so much for the recommendations, I will add them to my TBR. Yep I definitely got a bit emotional filming this!
This, Survivor and Exquisite Corpse are three of the most disturbing books I have ever read and yet only one is based on a true story. Great review, Alex.
I've read Exquisite Corpse but not Survivor yet and it's been on my TBR for a while. Maybe one of these days I'll be brave and pick it up! Thank you :)
This is an excellent review, Alex! It's awesome that you decided to pick this up. This is a book I'll really have to work up to, I think. I really want to read it (and of course enjoyed Off Season as well!) but I just know it's going to ruin me. It's great to hear that his writing is so good. The lines you read at the beginning were chilling.
Thank you, Emily! I had to work up to reading it so I know exactly what you mean. At some point I just knew it was time to pick it up! I think you'll appreciate his writing, even though the content is tough to read.
I just finished reading this and your review is spot on. I don't easily get disturbed by graphic scenes, but this was just something completely different. I had to put the book down several times to work up my courage to continue. I'm glad that I read it, but I would have also been happy if this book was never written in the first place.
Fantastic review, Alex! This is one mother of a novel. Ketchum was second to none when it comes to brutal, honest, deep dark storytelling in fiction; he really made us readers, whether we wanted to or not, run the marathon of human emotion and experience, as ugly and painful and brilliant and short and endless and exhausting as it is. I absolutely admire the hell out of him. And kudos to you for the brave review!! Well done.
Great review. It is a very compelling book but as you did a wonderful job explaining this is NOT for everyone. It was a 5 star read for me as well. Thank you for this review.
Oooo you have a very vintage copy! I haven’t read this one because the movie destroyed me. I will eventually have to read it for Harrowing Horror as it’s on the list. I only learned this morning that Ketchum made up Davey! I’m happy to hear you got through this though. There’s hope for me. Still terrified though.
Isn't it a beauty?! It's a first printing from 1989 that I found in a thrift store for 50 cents! #humblebrag 😂😂😂 If/when you give it a try I'd love to hear what you think.
I really need to read this book. Jack Ketchum is one of my favorite authors and I'm kinda shocked I haven't read it yet. It's kinda hard to find his books. A lot of them online are a lot of money at this point.
That's true, some editions can be harder to track down. I was lucky enough to find this one in a thrift store so it's always worth keeping an eye out :) Hope you can find a copy!
My reading experience was the exact same as yours. This one made me weep. I don’t think I could read it again, but I still gave it 5 stars. Excellent review, Alex!
Hi Alex...that was a great review. I tried to read this book some years ago, but just couldn't stomach it. Like you, I have also read some pretty graphic stories, but this one just takes the cake. A couple of years ago, one of the crime shows on TV did the real-life story about this case, and I remember that by the end of that program , I was sobbing my heart out.....so yeah, this book is definitely not for everyone for sure. 👍
I’ve never read a Jack Ketchum book and this video did NOT make me want to read The Girl Next Door! But it did make me want to check out his other books! Great review!
I like the addition of your reading an excerpt before the video--nice touch! I cannot read this book but have seen it popping up everywhere lately. I would be too traumatized. As always though, you did a great job with the review. :)
Only Child aka Stranglehold is another book by Jack Ketchum that is very disturbing. Like The Girl Next Door it destroyed me. Offspring and The Woman are great sequels to Off Season. Red and The Lost are fantastic standalones and won't leave you as wrecked as The Girl Next Door did. I have read every novel by Jack Ketchum as well as his short story collection Peaceable Kingdom. Hell I recommend everything by him.
Sounds like a really twisted story. I do wanna give this a go hopefully sometime soon. Stories like this imo are important to have around to give an insight of how gruesome people can be. Thanks for the great review
So far the only book (novella) I've read of his is Right to Life. Pretty good. Some harsh stuff. Decent ending. For me though the most disturbing book has been Let's Go Play at the Adams'. Taking a break after reading that one. I do have Girl Next Door on the shelf for when I get back to reading again
Great review Alex. This was such a heart breaking read but, like you, I couldn't put it down either. I also read Let's Go Play at the Adams' by Mendal W. Johnson which is also based on the same events but didn't find that it was as well written as Ketchum's novel.
Just because it’s difficult to read because of its content, doesn’t mean it’s bad. It’s a good book I liked and was horrified off and I don’t recommend it to everyone. I know people will take as pointless shocking content. You need to be familiar with the genre to recommend it. Great video!
I agree, but unfortunately some people don't see the literary merit in books like this. I understand that the content is not something everyone would want to read though. Thank you!
@@TheBookubus you're welcome. By the way The Woman is co-written by Lucky McKee, director of the film adaptation and the super creepy May with Angela Bettis.
Great review! I struggled getting through this book. Not because I didn’t like it, but because of the very disturbing subject matter. The writing really is what carries it. Ketchum’s voice is missed.
When I got my new Kindle almost 2 years ago, I went to my library’s webpage, to their ebooks. I saw this book. I’d heard a little about it, mostly that it was disturbing. I decided to give it a try. It was well-written with great characters. At the time, it was the most disturbing thing I’d read. Since then, I’ve read a few “extreme horror,” but those are just extreme for the sake of being extreme, but this, just the fact that it’s based on reality. I totally agree that it’s a GREAT book, but can’t be “recommended” freely.
I agree, it is definitely in a different category than those stories that are extreme for the sake of it. And it's so strange to know the book is great but not be able to recommend it!
RIP Jack Ketchum (Dallas William Mayr) a hero of splatterpunk and a fellow New Jerseyan. What I tend to do when I want to dip my toe in the water and figure out an author's style and if it gels with me is read a short story collection. This gives an author many chances to wow me and also see how multifaceted they are in their writing. Like for Ketchum, Peaceable Kingdom is what I would suggest to any new reader. Love that edition's cover.
@@TheBookubus Oh, you don't have to listen to my recommendations, ya got PLENTY on your reading plate from the looks of it. And who the hell am I to recommend anything? You know way more about what books you want to read and probably horror fiction in general.
I just finished Off Season and I really enjoyed it. But after how graphic that one was I don't think there is anyway I could read The Girl Next Door. I was on the fence about it already and yeah I just think it would be too much for me lol. Which is crazy because you know I love dark shit. But I do think I'll pick up more of his other work! 🖤🖤 Great review!
I'm glad you enjoyed Off Season! For me that one got pretty crazy but I felt there was at least that separation from it knowing it is fiction so it didn't affect me in the same way The Girl Next Door did. I would say definitely try some of his other work though, I hear great things about all of it!
Did you read the original or the uncut version of off season? Girl Next Door is unputdownable and fascinating. The book that made me love extreme horror. You can also look for Red, the lost (the movies are also good) and She Wakes by Ketchum. And his short story 'the box' is also amazing.
The uncut! Awesome, thank you for the recommendations :) I haven't read The Box but I have seen the adaptation that is part of the horror film anthology XX and it was really good.
I feel so screwed up bc I was never upset watching this. i was always more than interested and I've watched the movie and read the book almost 50 times collectively. I believe I was only about 12 or 13 the first time I came across the movie and I wasn't skittish or distraught in any way🤷🏾♀️ but maybe it just depends...
Sounds really compelling but like most of us here, think it might be too much for me. The cover almost seems playful and joyus compared to what you shared about the story, but great artwork.
If you have it or have read it could you review "let's go play at the Adams" as it is based on this book and case. I finally just got a copy of it as they have been dropping in price finally.
Not an easy book to read considering the subject matter, and definitely not for everyone....I was torn in reviewing this book and chose to do a blog review due to the sensitivity of the subject matter.
@@TheBookubus Dunno if you are just saying that to be polite, but the link to my blog is in my channel links here is a direct link to that review geekpronblog.blogspot.com/2018/02/review-girl-next-door-by-jack-ketchum.html
Makes you think if the author isn't a preverted sicko himself for writing this book. I haven't read it so I don't know how disgusting it is but I don't think I want to find out.
