K. Edwin Fritz

Unique Horror Story - Absolutely Adored this Story

K. Edwin Fritz has done something amazing! Instead of serial killers run amok or teaming up, or adding paranormal highlights, we have a wholly new type of horror story based on a real world problem that he discusses before and after his story. I was deeply moved by both discussions. They are both relevant and actionable.

There are really two stories here - the story of sexism, and a radical solution to it, and the story of a victim healing, or not, from sexual violence done to them. The stories are two sides of the same coin, and represent the opposing forces in the story who we see through the eyes of our two protagonists.

The first story is embodied by the novel itself, and given the voice of Obe, a prisoner on the island. He is caught in a situation that is completely beyond his control and he is trying to adapt and survive. He is also trying to reclaim his personality and control his environment to the best of his ability.

The second is told through the story of Josie who we first meet as a demure sixteen year old girl. After she is assaulted, her life changes forever and the question becomes one of whether she will turn to violence to solve her problems, or will she truly heal and move forward. If she she does move forward, does that put her life in jeopardy from those on the island.

This is an intense story full of beatings, murder, rape, torture, brainwashing, humiliation and manipulation. It asks the question: Is violence for violence the right path to correct aberrant behaviour in criminal offenders? When do the wardens become like the prisoners when violence is involved? How much is too much? Is torture ever the answer?

There is one horrifying scene that I simply cannot get out of my head that includes a misbehaving man, a woman who is the head of training, and a scalpel. Who needs serial killers when you can have egregiously nasty scenes like these where the trainer slices and dices human flesh, but keeps a calm and honeyed tone in her voice while saying the most outrageous things; explaining exactly what is happening and the reasoning behind it- while resting former body parts on his chest. It gives me chills just thinking about it.

Once you start this book, I hope you don't have plans, because you will not be doing anything other than reading through to the end. No chores will get done. No work will get done. Do not start this book at night unless you plan on staying up until morning. You won't do anything but READ until it is over.

The characters of Obe and Josie are diametrically opposed and yet, as the story goes on, we find parallels between them. By the end of the story, the characters are closer together than at any other time in the story. They trade off as the interwoven voice of the story, along with a few other characters, but primarily Obe and Josie. They are complex, layered and damaged characters, but get stronger over time. I appreciated the emotional development that occurs here in their story arcs that seems to be missing in many stories these days.
In fact, all the characters are quite vivid and are emotionally challenged. I loved the characterization of Dirtie Gertie. Her attitude is reflected in her physical body which is over the top, and her obsessions are absolutely priceless. Prisma colored pencils - such a small thing, but to someone who knows about art supplies, knows they are the best on the market. Says something about Gertie. I would never want to meet her, but as a character she was fascinating. It's the small details about characters that tell you so much about them and K. Edwin Fritz does a masterful job of inserting all those finer details about each character to round them out and set them apart from each other - like those colored pencils.

The Bottom Line: This is a fantastic new horror story that will grab you by the throat and throttle your brain while you are blazing through the pages. The forward and afterward were highly insightful and not to be missed. You will never look at a sex crime the same way again. 5 full stars! Bravo K. Edwin Fritz! Highly Recommended for not just fans of horror.… (meer)