Number 63 - The Dismembered - Jonathan Janz

 

I was sent a preview copy of this by the publishers in exchange for a fair review.

I'd never heard of Jonathan Janz before, but this sounded like good fun.  And by God I was right.

This is a grand guignol gothic novel with a more modern sensibility. Imagine if Edgar Poe hadn't been constrained by the mores of his time and had written a balls-to-the-floor all action-adventure novel packed with gore, gratuitous violence and occasional sex and you're pretty close to this book.

Written in a very good imitation of the gothic style, this tells the story of American writer Arthur Pearce, who encounters a beautiful young woman called Sarah Coyle on a train through rural England. He rescues her from an attempted assault and accepts an invitation to her stately home to assist her further.  Her younger sister, Violet, has been betrothed to a man she believes to be evil and possibly not completely human, and she thinks Arthur is just the man to help break his hold on her innocent younger sister. 

When he accompanies the family, including the third sister, the beguiling Elizabeth, to the castle of the dastardly Count Dunning, the action kicks in and the pace doesn't let up until the end of the book.

There are gruesome murders, shocking twists, surprise betrayals and excessive violence galore for the last two thirds of the book. One more thing that marks this as different to the books it pays tribute to is the fact that the women are not helpless young creatures who need to be saved by the big strong handsome hero. They're strong, independent and just as likely to help save the day as young Arthur.

I don't know if this is Janz's normal style of writing, but it works brilliantly. It genuinely reads like a gothic novel of the era, especially in the first third where the situation is set up. When all hell breaks loose in the last 60 odd percent, it somehow manages to keep the feel of the gothic style, whilst delivering some decidedly modern style violence.

 I've had a great time reading this and will be procuring a real copy when it's properly released. 

This is released in the very near future and can be purchased through the Cemetery dance website.