After reading and enjoying Horns, I decided to give Joe Hill’s first novel, Heart-Shaped Box, a read. Not to spoil the review, but I enjoyed Heart-Shaped Box, but still like Horns better. I think Hill is probably one of the better horror writers around right now and I’m excited to read new stories from him. I might check out his Locke and Key series next. So, let’s see what’s in the box.
Judas Coyne used to be a heavy metal legend. Now he’s an aging recluse who tries to avoid his assistant, loves to collect weird artifacts and isn’t sure about the relationship he has with Georgia (his latest twenty something girlfriend). So when a auction site is offering up a ghost for sale, Judas has to have it. But that might be the decision that ends his life.

The ghost is the step father of his last (and late) girlfriend, Florida (he has a thing for nicknaming his twenty something girlfriends by where they were born) and the sale was organized by her sister solely to have the step father use his mesmerization ability from beyond the grave to force Judas to kill Georgia and commit suicide. Judas needs to fight back, but he’s not sure exactly what he needs to do.

The plot of Heart-Shaped Box is fairly thin and silly at times. But the story isn’t about what happens, it’s about who it happens to. Judas is a well drawn character that has his good sides, his foibles and his bad side. Hill goes out of his way to show all sides of Judas and that’s what makes the book enjoyable. I also like the way Hill structures his books. Both books so far start off with a premise (Ig woke up with Horns, Judas bought a ghost) and then rotate the story around that basic premise. You eventually get to see what led up to the premise and what the fall out of it is as well. The only problem I had with the book was the thin plot. I never really felt that Judas would lose the battle with the ghost. It set everything up as a good vs evil book and the good side always wins (at least in these types of books). But the character development is why you should read the book. The secondary characters (mainly Georgia and Florida’s family) aren’t nearly as well drawn. But they are sketched out enough to allow them to aid the story.

Overall I enjoyed the book. It’s a quick, fun read and, while it’s not as polished as Horns, it’s still a wonderful story. Recommended.