Monstrosity

bio-engineered grotesqueries, nefarious government villains, mini murder mysteries, erotica, haunting interpersonal relationships, and a cute, smart female lead -- this is _Monstrosity_.

i enjoyed this one. Edward Lee, for me, represents the epitome of "hit-or-miss." i'm not a fan of shock-humor touted as "horror" that involves bodily functions and excretions; typically, it's boring and tasteless to me, so i'm always wary of the John Pelan/Edward Lee-type cheap tricks when i pick up a book by one or more of the authors.

while _Monstrosity_ has its share of Lee-type gross-out scenes, they aren't inserted for no reason other than to make you put down your supper. instead, they're deftly interwoven into this taut, interesting, very show more imaginative horror mystery. in other words, they giveth, and not taketh away.

along with the tight and novel plot, i was impressed with Lee's characterizations; everyone was believable, and you ended up rooting for them, or despising them.

if you're looking for a great campfire tale about the evils of fascism, spooky atmosphere, disturbing scenes involving sex and horror, and page-turning suspense, you'll dig this. show less

Oh I love my splatterpunk. Even though there are many accounts of gore and rape the absolute worst part of the book was being naked and covered in bugs that are attracted to "moist" places. Ugh. I actually had a nightmare about that part!
Overall this is one of the best horror books I've read. Gorey, sex, violence, experiments, weird frog human babies. What's not to love?

Since this is only the second Edward Lee book I've read, I can't really say I see a pattern to his novels, but the two I've read had a lot of violence directed at women. And not just as part of the conflict in the novel, but almost gratuitously, with most of the women in this book being victimized even before the story started. What makes me cringe is that the women that he writes seem to accept it as part of their life, as though they deserve it. Poor white trash trailer tramps gettin' wailed on by their meth-addled boyfriends. It bugs me.

This story takes place down in Florida, at a government-sponsored medical clinic supposedly working on a cure for a type of cancer. There were mutant critters, mutant monsters, quicksand and some show more strange flashbacks to an archaeological dig that eventually got tied into the storyline at the end. Also a lot of sex and violence and sexual domination of women.

It was okay, but parts of the novel were trite, and the ending too pat and unbelievable. Lee also left out information in the plot that would have sent red flags up right away if he hadn't been so coy with his readers. show less

Monstrosity gives a new twist on the fears of bioengineering, with a likeable and realistic female lead and a satisfying ending. Highly recommended!

This book's a great, big, poorly written ball of rape by someone who takes, perhaps, just a little too much pleasure from the subject. Not the worst book I've read this year, sadly, but close.

Oh, and the classism really slimed up this book, like no swamp monster ever could. Reading this book compares to having the devil rub his unwashed bum over every inch of your body and then set you on fire.

A miss for Edward Lee, and a very awful tale that had a lot of promise, but very little delivery. A former Air Force officer and now homeless resident of Florida, Clare receives a visit from a man that offers her a job with no strings attached. Following him there, she finds that she will provide security for a group of scientists that is working on a cure for cancer. However, a strange monster has been reported in the area, and its origins may be prehistoric in origin.

I really failed to understand a lot of how the flashbacks to the dig site and the present at the base came together, even though some of it made sense. It was very hard to follow and seemed to almost fulfill a red herring role. The only other Lee book I've read is show more Messenger and that was okay, but this one was just horrendous. show less

I have no idea what Frederick found. But other then that it was a pretty good book. The last 3 or 4 chapters were fast paced and exciting but weird at the same time.