23. More by Richard Laymon

I think I have a mild addiction to Richard Laymon books. I've read 2 more since I last posted and just want to keep reading them. They're not getting any better with regards to writing but I find myself on the edge of my seat (or bed, as it were) wanting to keep reading to find out what happens next.

The first book I read was "Funland" which is about a 16 year old boy moving to a seaside town and spending his summer exploring the local theme park. Being a horror, things obviously aren't as easy as this kid spending his summer riding rollercoasters and eating ice cream. Turns out the town has a bit of a problem with homeless people and there's a gang of trollers going around injuring and torturing them. Well, doesn't it turn out that our protagonist falls in with this crowd and gets himself involved in their violence? This isn't what I'd call a horror as we know these kids are the ones causing the violence and while the homeless people are creepy, they're not scary. Like all of his books, everything builds up until the last section where, for want of a better phrase, sh*t goes down. This book was no disappointment in ending, unlike Lonesome October. Definitely one of my favourites so far.

The next one I chose to read was "Island" which was another good one in my opinion. While 3 men and 4 women are having a picnic on a deserted island, their yacht blows up, taking the 4th male with it. Left stranded, things soon start going wrong when the first male is murdered, swiftly followed by the second. I really don't want to give away any of the plot of this one because it was pretty good and definitely kept me reading - I wanted to know why this person was doing what they were doing and how it had all come about. It has Laymon's trademark sickness, with people being raped and brutally tortured and abused but he writes about it in just enough detail for you to be disturbed, but not enough that it comes off as Saw-like torture porn. Island definitely kept me guessing and I'm just hoping the next book I read does the same.