Back when I used to work th' ole 9-5 (well, actually it was 9.30-1.30) I would take the train into town and because of the train timetable, I would usually end up arriving 30 minutes early. Instead of starting work (after all, who in their right mind would work 30 minutes extra every day?!?) I'd make my way down to WH Smiths and browse the fantasy shelf. Horns is a book I picked up on one of these occasions; I read the blurb, crack the book open at a random page and thought "This book makes no sense..." And I was hooked.

The book follows Ignatius Perrish, known as Ig, son of a somewhat famous jazz musician, brother to a late night TV star and member of one of the richest families in town. However, life isn't all sunshine and rainbows for Ig. For starters he doesn't have his families flair for jazz (you can't play the trumpet when you have asthma) and for another thing, his long time girlfriend, Merrin Williams, is dead. Ig is ostracized by society after his first love, Merrin is found raped and murdered and Ig is without an alibi. Ig is guilty to the public; he always was a bit strange, but is never convicted.
Aptly titled, the novel opens with Ignatius Perrish and a blinding headache; the aftermath of a night spent drowning his sorrows at the loss of his first love, Merrin Williams. Upon further inspection, Ig discovers that his headache is actually the result of the two horns inexplicably growing out of his temples. Unable to remember the night before, Ig concludes that he is merely hallucinating and attempts to return to what life he has left. However life isn't what it was before. The horns grant Ig power over people, a power which causes others to divulge their deepest, darkest secrets to Ig. Repulsed, yet compelled to continue, Ig harnesses his powers and attempts to solve the mystery of Merrin's murder.
As the novel follows Ig as he navigates the unknown waters of revenge, it’s difficult not to root for him, despite the evil deeds he commits for the sake of the truth.
The novel spends a considerable amount of time in flashbacks, dipping into Ig's past in order to explain and enlighten the reader as to how his life’s journey had lead him to the current predicament.
Time is also spent exploring the life of Merrin's killer. An acquaintance of Merrin’s, we follow his interactions with her along with his interpretations of Merrin's actions and words and his eventual conclusion that she is in fact seducing him.
For me, I found this part of the novel very convincingly written, as at times I myself wondered if Merrin made her comments and actions purposefully ambiguous.

The novel draws to a close with Merrin's murder avenged, societies view of Ig changed (though not completely for the better), potential love lines forged and everything tied up rather nicely.

The author of this novel, Joe Hill is actually the son of the dark fantasy front man himself, Stephen King. Whilst I find Hill's work lacking a certain je ne sais quoi that his father's work seems to posses, there's no denying that writing creepy, yet addicting literature is in the genes.

My verdict
The plot was easy to follow; the book was hard to put down. It was chock full of twists, turns, horror, mystery and love. My only criticism is that, whilst the content was strictly for an adult audience (there's  plenty of violence and some pretty lewd confessions), the literary techniques and overall standard of writing was young adult fiction at best.
8/10

Labels: Horns