My Heart is a Chainsaw - Book Review

 

My Heart is a Chainsaw (The Lake Witch Trilogy #1)

by Stephen Graham Jones

What is it about:

In her quickly gentrifying rural lake town Jade sees recent events only her encyclopedic knowledge of horror films could have prepared her for

Jade Daniels is an angry, half-Indian outcast with an abusive father, an absent mother, and an entire town that wants nothing to do with her. She lives in her own world, a world in which protection comes from an unusual source: horror movies…especially the ones where a masked killer seeks revenge on a world that wronged them. And Jade narrates the quirky history of Proofrock as if it is one of those movies. But when blood actually starts to spill into the waters of Indian Lake, she pulls us into her dizzying, encyclopedic mind of blood and masked murderers, and predicts exactly how the plot will unfold.

Yet, even as Jade drags us into her dark fever dream, a surprising and intimate portrait emerges… a portrait of the scared and traumatized little girl beneath the Jason Voorhees mask: angry, yes, but also a girl who easily cries, fiercely loves, and desperately wants a home. A girl whose feelings are too big for her body.

My Heart Is a Chainsaw is her story, her homage to horror and revenge and triumph.

What did I think of it:

I read some short stories by Graham Jones which I really liked, so decided to give this novel a try.

And this is both a really cool and a confusing read.

I liked Jade from the start. She had a hard life and she's a bit of an outsider, but she seems to be making the best of things. As the story unfolds you learn more about her and her past, and my love of her only grew. When she starts projecting her Slasher theories on real life things get weird. Is Jade right in thinking a movie-like killer has come to Proofrock? Is the new girl the one to save the day? Or are there mundane explanations for the things Jade encounters?

I was on the edge of my seat, eager to find out more about Jade, her life, the things happening in Proofrock, and where it all would lead. At times this book was horror, at times a coming of age, at other times it was a total WTF ride.

You bet I'll be reading the next book. It's already in my TBR.

Why should you read it:

It's an emotional rollercoaster ride with cool horror mixed in.