Hater

Haters by David Moody is a dark and violent story about society suddenly becoming divided into two types of people. Each type hates the other and simply wants to destroy them before they get a chance to do the same. The division doesn’t go by family ties, friendship, or ethnic background. Some become what is called “Haters” and some do not. Murder and mayhem become the norm. People are advised to stay home and wait for the situation to be controlled.

When people suddenly start attacking others with the intention of killing them, Danny McCoyne has no idea of what is going on. He witnesses several attacks but it takes him, and the rest of the world some time to grasp what is happening. By then he, his wife, Lizzie, their three show more children and father-in-law are sheltering together but who is a Hater and who is not?

David Moody is the author of one of my favorite zombie series and I have had Haters and it’s sequels sitting on my shelf for some time. This is the first of a trilogy and I fully expected to be enthralled by this horror story but instead I was left feeling a little queasy and disappointed. Other than repetitive violence, there didn’t seem to be much story here. We are told over and over how Danny is stuck in a dead end job, doesn’t earn much money, he lives in a sub-par apartment, with his family that he does love, but finds annoying. Personally I found Danny annoying. I hate the fact that I have the next two book of the trilogy but highly doubt that I will ever get the urge to read on. Haters just didn’t work for me. show less

When I dove into Hater blind, it was what I typically expect from books following this theme. The structure was similar, right down to the brief scenes of others being affected, slightly formulaic in fee, but the way in which Moody introduced and described the 'Haters', I felt there was more to be expected.

The third act was a complete mind fuck.

I am now looking forward to reading the rest of the Hater series, but I will say that reading Hater - published in 2010 - in 2023 during the January 6 hearings, while QAnon conspiracy theories are overwhelming the main-stream and "Hate" groups becoming more and more predominant while society's middle ground rapidly shrinks away to a vague line in the sand... it's hard not to feel like Moody saw show more it coming.

“If only it were so simple!” cried Solzenhitsyn from behind the Gulag’s barbed-wire: “If only there were evil people somewhere insidiously committing evil deeds, and it were necessary only to separate them from the rest of us and destroy them. But the line dividing good and evil cuts through the heart of every human being. And who is willing to destroy a piece of his own heart?” show less

I really wanted to like this book. It has a great premise (as far as zombie-ish horror books go). There are a subset of genetically different people, who one day "snap" and become "Haters." They run amok and strike with an amazing amount of violence and relentlessness. The potential for paranoia and fun with epidemiology of violence were there, but it pretty much falls flat on its face.

The main character (I am loathe to use the term "protagonist") is just a slug of a human being. I can't get how his life has really changed or how he is "losing" anything when he spends the vast majority of the book bitching and moaning about his job/wife/kids/money issues/father-in-law/etc. I can't even bring myself to dislike him, I just don't care and show more want him to go away (I read on, hoping something bad would happen to him).

The writing was incredibly monotonous (20 or 30 pages swaths of "my life is awful" followed by a couple of pages of random violence, rinse, repeat) and felt very unpolished (and not in a good way).

Beyond that, the book seems to revel in its violence and bloodshed, so if you are looking for violence porn, it's the way to go. Then again, if you want cohesive plot, some kind of development, good characterization, and something better than what a 12 year old bully would like to read about, just skip it. show less

Moody lays out the basis of his story will spartan precision, documenting the quick fall of ‘civilized’ society with clarity and, yes, dollops of dread. His characters are flawed, relatable beings, reminding us that true terror only arises when you care about the personalities involved. There is an aura of uneasiness to the early scenes that grab you, an uneasiness that only increases as the paranoia and confusion sets in. Moody taps into the random, unfocused fear that appears to have infected western society, with its overarching fear of the ‘other’. Who is this other? What do they want? Yesterday’s fear of the communist agenda was been replaced with terrorism, but the effect is the same; we are all deathly afraid of each show more other, because we simply do not know each other’s thoughts or motives. Much as in the great zombie films of Romero and Fulci, Moody uses the infected in Hater as a metaphor for everything out there on the streets that we fear, including the worst fear of all, that we will somehow become that which we fear. In many ways, Hater is a superior example of the zombie novel, even more effective than Max Brooks’ scattershot yet undeniably effective World War Z.

Read the entire review here. show less

Hater - David Moody *****

Prior to Hater, I had only been acquainted with Moody through his brilliant ‘Autumn’ series. This is where the world has been infected with a disease that kills most of the population, only for them to return to life as zombies after a few days. Hater is in many ways a similar novel, but this time the plot has far more realism.

Hater follows Danny McCoyne, a guy stuck in a seemingly mundane life, he tolerates his job and his family life leaves a lot to be desired. One day he witnesses an extreme act of violence against an elderly lady whilst on his way to work. Although initially shaken up he puts it to the back of his mind and life carries on as normal, but soon this seemingly rare incident is duplicated all show more over the country. Over The next few days the incidents dramatically increase causing a widespread panic, especially as no one knows who is going to turn into a murdering psychopath next and people are attacked by both strangers and family members alike. The killings are totally unrelated with nothing that will link any attack to another, the public are scared and society begins to break down. The people that flip are named ‘Haters’ by the media, and soon this is what they become known as across the country with a divide separating those identified as changed and those perceived as normal. Will Danny be able to save his family or will the disease strike those he loves most?

I really enjoyed Hater, as usual with Moody this is one of those books that you jump into for a bit of easy escapism that isn’t too taxing. The thing I most enjoy though is that he creates tales that happen to the normal people in society, the average Joe and that adds a sense of realism that can be missing from so many other authors. Even with the fairly outlandish plot, you still believe that you could wake up in the world of the Haters and suddenly your life is turned upside down. There are also a number of themes that bubble just below the surface, such as how does society deal with those it deems are different to the status quo, and when both factions decide they have to largest right to survive, does history have an opportunity to repeat itself from our darkest days?

I kind of guessed some of the twists but it didn’t spoil the novel, the pages whizzed by and I really enjoyed Hater. This is apparently the first part of a trilogy, which kind of explains the fairly odd/abrupt ending. I will definitely be seeking the others out. show less

An ordinary workday morning. Hundreds of people mobbing the sidewalks trying to get from here to there. Until one man suddenly stops when he sees the old woman. Some instinct tells him that she's not what she seems, that he must do something and quickly. He rushes her, throws here against a building, and much more before the angry crowd finally manages to stop the terrified man.

At least, he looks terrified to Danny McCoyne, just one of the crowd. He doesn't stop to think about it, running late for a job that he hates and having to return to he wife and three kids after a crappy day at the office. Just like every day. But the world as he knows it is about to change. Dozens of reports spring up on the news about "Haters" -- seemingly show more normal people who suddenly and without warning commit random acts of violence against neighbors, strangers, members of their own families. As the violence increases, Danny, like so many others, begins to wonder who will be the next to change -- the man sitting at the front of the bus who won't make eye contact, his wife Lizzie or one of the children, himself?

David Moody's "Hater" took fear and paranoia, and distorted them into something dark and violent: knowing that at any moment someone could change -- that "you" could change -- into a killing machine and that nothing could stop it. I empathized with Danny McCoyne, the "hero", as he tried to figure out what was going on in order to protect his family, wondering where and when the government was finally going to step in, and felt his fear and distrust grow with each turn of the page when he realized that they were on their own. By the end, I began to question who really were the Haters -- the ones who changed or the ones who didn't.

I didn't want to put this book down once I started, and very easily could have finished it in one sitting. A marvelous first novel and a welcome addition to the horror genre. show less

Hater is a brutal book. It's very graphic and over-the-top in its descriptions of violence/death. It's as if the author watched "Faces of Death" and said..."yeah, I feel inspired!"

The protagonist is unlikeable throughout. If he were someone you'd care about, maybe the last quarter of the book would have been better. I don't think I've ever intentionally put a book down after reading 30 or 40 pages in and that's the only reason I can give for finishing this. I don't feel great about finishing this one. Knowing it was popular enough to be turned into a trilogy and that it's going to be a movie is just a depressing indictment of society.