After all these years, I have been blessed with the knowledge that JAMES HAILLER IS A TALKER DURING SEX AND I WILL NEVER GET OVER THIS BECAUSE THAT IS THE MOST JIMMY THING EVER.

And I'm happy, so so happy because (and I'm combining Pacey Witter and Adam Wilde quotes here) the simple act of knowing that he's somewhere out there, alive, is enough for me right now. So I don't care how long it takes for MM to write the full book because I will wait until the end of time (although I'm sure I'll be tweeting otherwise at 1am sometime in the near future).

Also, Shoeboxes was creepy as fuck. Please read In The Skin Of A Monster if you haven't already kthanksbye.

I first picked this book up because it was about a mass shooting. This is not a subject I know a lot about expect that it seems to happen quite a bit in America, so I find it an interesting topic, horrible but interesting. In the Skin of a Monster had an extra element - the shooter was one half of an identical twin, and her sister is still alive. Now that alone intrigued me, this poor girl, having to deal with all the emotions and fall out from the shooting, while looking like the shooter? I'm pretty sure it couldn't get worse.

Well what can I say, this book was nothing like I expected. For one it has a paranormal element which was totally left field. When the paranormal element made an appearance I admit to being rather disappointed, I thought there was enough interesting things going on already without the need to make something supernatural, plus I had my heart set on realistic fiction. Well let me say I'm so glad this was different! Barker did a superb job of creating the world, characters with a perfect blend of complicated emotions, horror and anticipation. I devoured this book, and couldn't make myself put it down once I got started! Watching Alice (MC) struggle to carry all the guilt and shame that should have never been her to begin with, her twisted belief she deserved all her sisters punishment, and seeing how everything unfolded was just incredible. These brave, responsible kids made this book, I loved every moment. If I could rate above 5 stars I would! I kind of wished it never ended.

IMO I can see how some people may be disappointed with this ending, personally I thought it was rather brilliant, if a little sad. Much more realistic than the usual cliched endings, even if for once I was cheering for things to be different.

Life is more than that. It's blissful and rubbish and crappy and kind and infinite worlds of emotion. And you know what? So are people. We've all got good in us and bad in us, and miles of murky greyness. I suppose the difference is what you choose to focus on. Whether it's on the gutter, or on the stars, or just on your miserable self.

 

Man, this is one hell of a book. So strange, but very well done.

Is that what it felt like for you when you put the gun into your mouth? When you turned it on yourself after killing the others? When you brought the death toll up to eight, not that your death ever counted? When you pulled the trigger that time were you still not scared? Was it as dull as jumping the goddamn crevice?

And just like that he’d raised the forbidden subject. Back home, nobody ever talked about what had happened. That day three years ago – it was like this big, deadly elephant in the room. They’d say it with their eyes and their spit and their hate, but never with actual words. Hearing it out loud, I don’t know whether it was a relief or a new kind of torture. Either way, I’m pretty sure that I was shaking.

Just for the record, I didn’t have one of those lame ‘Am I dreaming?’ moments. I didn’t pinch myself or rub my eyes like a cartoon character to see if that would fix it. I don’t know why they even put that crap in movies. Just because you can have a dream and not realise you’re dreaming, that doesn’t mean it works in the reverse. When you’re awake and bad things are happening, deep down you always know that it’s for keeps.