Monday, June 16, 2008

Poison Ink by Chris Golden - NO


Golden, Chris Poison Ink, 288 p. Delacorte (Random House) July 2008.

NOT RECOMMENDED

Late one night, five best friends hatch a crazy plan to cement their bond by getting matching tattoos. Being underage, they have to find someone willing to ink them without their parents' approval. At the last minute, one of the friends chickens out. Now she watches in horror as her former friends start behaving more and more outrageously and dangerously. She is stunned by their brutal behavior towards her and the community until she sees that the original tattoo itself has grown and evolved and Sammi begins to think that the impossible may be actually possible. Someone is controlling her friends trough the tattoos.

From at interesting idea to a very faulty execution. Usually I can just lay back and enjoy the ride, but this all I could think was - what's the motivation??? The details about Sammi and her friends are all there and the over-described enactments of her friend's descents are there, including the brutal fights and slutty actions, but we learn virtually nothing about the puppetmaster and his part in the whole thing, making the book, for me, very flat and unappealing. Call this a potential horror book gone bad. Oh and the overdescribed sexiness and violence, too. Toss in a few swears.

CINDY

2 comments:

Little Willow said...

I love Christopher Golden's books (including Poison Ink) so I hope that you give him another try with another book. :)

Cindy Mitchell said...

I have read Force Majuere and remember liking it, but you are right - I haven't read anything else by Golden. Thanks.