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    Scowler
    Scowler
    Scowler
    Audiobook11 hours

    Scowler

    Written by Daniel Kraus

    Narrated by Kirby Heyborne

    3.5/5

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    About this audiobook

    From the New York Times bestselling author of Whalefall, The Shape of Water with Guillermo del Toro, Rotters, and more, comes this equal parts haunting and horrifying horror novel that gves readers insight into the mind of a controlling homicidal man and the son who must stop him. 

    "Marvin Burke is one of the great monsters of literature, a figure of immense, credible terror and savagery."--Cory Doctorow, author of Little Children and coeditor of Boing Boing

    Imagine your father is a monster. Would that mean there are monsters inside you, too?
    Nineteen-year-old Ry Burke, his mother, and little sister eke out a living on their dying family farm. Ry wishes for anything to distract him from the grim memories of his father’s physical and emotional abuse. Then a meteorite falls from the sky, bringing with it not only a fragment from another world but also the arrival of a ruthless man intent on destroying the entire family. Soon Ry is forced to defend himself by resurrecting a trio of imaginary childhood protectors: kindly Mr. Furrington, wise Jesus, and the bloodthirsty Scowler.
    LanguageEnglish
    PublisherPenguin Random House Audio Publishing Group
    Release dateMar 12, 2013
    ISBN9780385368360
    Author

    Daniel Kraus

    Daniel Kraus is the author of numerous novels, including Rotters, The Death and Life of Zebulon Finch duology, Bent Heavens, and the Teddies Saga. With Guillermo del Toro, he wrote the New York Times-bestselling The Shape of Water and Trollhunters (the inspiration for the Netflix series). His novels have been Odyssey Award winners, Library Guild selections, YALSA Best Fiction for Young Adults picks, Parent’s Choice Gold Award winners, Bram Stoker finalists, and more. He lives with his wife in Chicago.

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    Reviews for Scowler

    3.5/5

    50 ratings8 reviews

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    • 5/5
      Listened to the audiobook. The narrator was the amazingly talented Kirby Heyborne, who did a truly remarkable job bringing these characters to life. The way he vocalized each individual's distinctive personality--from the deep gritty sound of Marvin Burke, to Sarah's soft, slurry tenor and the exaggerated voices of Ry's toys--added a masterful layer to a story already rife with physical and psychological trauma.

      That said, while I certainly applaud the merits of the audio performance and the novel's extraordinary writing, Scowler was not a story I enjoyed, and had I been reading it rather than listening to the audiobook, this is one book I would have put down early on. The fact that it's on the YALSA reading list was my main reason for selecting it. I was also looking for something outside my comfort zone and Scowler definitely fit that bill. I am not a horror fan and to Daniel Kraus' credit, his writing was so descriptive and chilling that at times, I felt ill. Really, I could only listen to this in small increments because the story had me so rattled.

      There are some very dark places the author explores in the psychotic mind of a father and the rapidly deteriorating sanity of a son. A stranger's appearance outside their home foreshadows the vise of terror that will grip 19 year old Ry Burke, his mother, JoBeth and sister, Sarah. Shortly thereafter, the explosive crash of a meteorite on the family farm lends a surreal, otherworldly quality to all the events that follow. The countdowns, both before and after the impact, begin each chapter and add to the suspense. Ry's memories of the suffering he and JoBeth endured, and the events that led to his father Marvin's incarceration, are horrific and only heighten the panic of their current situation.

      This is not a book for marshmallows like me, and I would recommend it for true horror fans only--those of you who can read Stephen King and shrug. But what can I say about the power of spoken words? Scowler may prove to be more frightening as an audiobook. The sounds and voices that narrate this story are scarier than anything you’ll imagine in your head.
    • 3/5
      This is one of the grossest books I have ever read, and that's saying much since I do not get grossed out easily. A frightening blend of psychological and physical horror, Scowler brings the possible consequences of a mental breakdown to the forefront. The ending was a bit confusing since it's told from the viewpoint of Ry, who has gone crazy by that point.
    • 2/5
      I will admit to feeling a sinking feeling of dread when I noticed the small appended note under the author's name: "Daniel Kraus, author of Rotters." Rotters earned the dubious distinction as being one of two books that I absolutely could not finish. I made it 250 pages in before the repetitiveness, gross-out horror, and sheer tedium of the writing made me abandon it to the "never to be read" pile.

      However, the summary made this one seem intriguing, and I decided to give Kraus another shot.

      Scowler tells the story of Ry, a young farm boy who grew up with an extremely abusive father, Marvin. The trauma of the abuse left him with three imaginary friends: a kind British teddy bear named Mr. Furrington, a Gumby-like Jesus Christ who dispenses words of wisdom and forgiveness, and a grotesque handmade figurine named Scowler.

      When his father returns on the same day as a meteorite strike, Ry's old friends come back - including bloodthirsty Scowler.

      First thing, this is not a tense, biting-your-nails type of horror. There are some parts that come close, but Kraus relies more on gross-out horror. I consider myself pretty hard to shock, but even I recoiled when the full extent of Marvin's abuse is revealed.

      The meteorite angle of the story never full coalesced for me, and seemed more fantastic than was needed to keep the story grounded. Even the Scowler moments weren't as horrifying as what Marvin did to his wife - the unrealistic ended up detracting from the horror more than adding to it. It also was a tad bit confusing what was real and what wasn't - and not in a good way.

      As a whole, it wasn't bad. It had some provoking moments, and Marvin's refrain of "hmmm hm hm hmmm" became a genuinely frightening motif. For a truly scary book, however, the ending just seemed too muddled to make it a lasting read.
    • 1/5
      I really did not like this book. It is very violent and hard to follow.
    • 4/5
      A well written book of horror. Although the content matter is hard to stomach at times and leaves the reader with anxious energy Scowler is really a story of survival and strength.
    • 4/5
      Daniel Kraus is a worthy successor to Stephen King. This book was horror from page one. What starts as a tragic story of a family with an abusive father escalates into prison breaks, murder, and general mayhem like falling meteorites and talking dolls.

      This is not a light or light-hearted read, this is a well crafted work which requires more attention than the usual YA fare but it is definitely worth the effort.
    • 4/5
      Ry Burke, along with his mother and sister, is trying to rebuild his life on his family farm after his abusive father is sent off to jail for a long time. But a meteor shower changes everything. Suspenseful horror that's just out there enough to be intriguing, without being too visceral.
    • 4/5
      I really enjoyed the writing style and the fantasy aspects of this book. At times the gore level was really high and was hard to read. I will say that the author's ability to make you visually see this gore was really good because it made me a bit queezy at times! The character development and the unusual plot twists made it a very unique read!