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Wetbones

by John Shirley

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1643165,362 (3.5)2
A flesh-and-soul-devouring addiction runs rampant through the dark playground of the Hollywood elite in this tale of horror from a Bram Stoker Award winner.   Welcome to Los Angeles, where every addiction is encouraged. . . .   Struggling Hollywood screenwriter Tom Prentice can hardly believe that the emaciated and mutilated corpse lying on the morgue slab was once his ex-wife. Then his roommate's missing brother turns up in a local hospital having sliced open his own chest and legs for some sick, inexplicable reason. In Oakland, the Reverend Garner, a recovering addict, leaves his ministry in search of his teenage daughter, who was last seen in the company of her ghoulish kidnapper. And the Los Angeles police are meanwhile baffled in their hunt for the elusive "Wetbones" serial killer who leaves nothing of his victims behind except a damp, grisly pile of bones.   Though Tom, the reverend, and the LAPD are on separate quests for answers, they are all being led into the darkest shadows of Hollywood, where the debauchery never ceases and pleasure is a drug that devours human flesh, blood, and sanity. But the true source of the all-consuming addiction is the most horrifying revelation of all, for it is not of this rational Earth.   From International Horror Guild Award-winning author John Shirley, the acclaimed "splatterpunk" classic Wetbones combines the monstrous inventiveness of H. P. Lovecraft with the exquisite excess of Clive Barker. A true masterwork of modern terror, it's decidedly not for the faint of heart.… (more)
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Showing 3 of 3
Well worth the price of admission, which in this case wasn't much since I got a well worn copy from a used book store (still worth full price). Clive Barker meets Lovecraft's From Beyond. Not for the faint hearted - lotsa really explicit grue, perverted sex, sado-masochism; all those things we love in good fiction. Still a good story well told with good characters that we want to see how they might or might not get out of this mess they are in. ( )
  Gumbywan | Jun 24, 2022 |
the portions of this book i enjoyed most were the very violent parts, because Shirley, true to form, came up with some particularly novel ways to kill, maim, torture, and generally wreak havoc. unfortunately, i didn't want to like this book primarily for its gruesomeness; while scenes stick out that are pretty disturbing, the scenes aren't welded together into anything that's greater than the sum of its parts. the characters are mostly wholly unbelievable, and you don't care too much what happens to them. the fairly poor characterizations made the book slow in places, and i wasn't too sad when it ended, although it's only 332 pages long.

the novel, published in the 90s, gets close to capturing the Millennium spirit of paranoia and decadence, with its faddish evil cults comprised of movie stars, and nasty, Bret Easton Ellis-type deaths. however, it doesn't deliver in the way i expect Shirley to deliver.

if you're a Shirley fan, obviously, this isn't to miss. however, i don't suggest this as an intro to Shirley -- he's good, and this work probably won't give you the true "Shirley Feel." ( )
1 vote mel-L-co0l-j | May 2, 2010 |
Not the greatest novel I've ever read. Not the worst either. Some of the book feels like needless filler, but it was still an enjoyable read.

The explanation behind the titular Wetbones was well done and the further investigation behind the people behind the rise of the killer was also interesting. I'd definitely recommend this to any John Shirley fans, though. ( )
1 vote NKSCF | Mar 14, 2010 |
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A flesh-and-soul-devouring addiction runs rampant through the dark playground of the Hollywood elite in this tale of horror from a Bram Stoker Award winner.   Welcome to Los Angeles, where every addiction is encouraged. . . .   Struggling Hollywood screenwriter Tom Prentice can hardly believe that the emaciated and mutilated corpse lying on the morgue slab was once his ex-wife. Then his roommate's missing brother turns up in a local hospital having sliced open his own chest and legs for some sick, inexplicable reason. In Oakland, the Reverend Garner, a recovering addict, leaves his ministry in search of his teenage daughter, who was last seen in the company of her ghoulish kidnapper. And the Los Angeles police are meanwhile baffled in their hunt for the elusive "Wetbones" serial killer who leaves nothing of his victims behind except a damp, grisly pile of bones.   Though Tom, the reverend, and the LAPD are on separate quests for answers, they are all being led into the darkest shadows of Hollywood, where the debauchery never ceases and pleasure is a drug that devours human flesh, blood, and sanity. But the true source of the all-consuming addiction is the most horrifying revelation of all, for it is not of this rational Earth.   From International Horror Guild Award-winning author John Shirley, the acclaimed "splatterpunk" classic Wetbones combines the monstrous inventiveness of H. P. Lovecraft with the exquisite excess of Clive Barker. A true masterwork of modern terror, it's decidedly not for the faint of heart.

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