Psuedo Book Review: Psycho II By Robert Bloch

After years of incarceration and intense rehabilitation, Norman Bates quickly resumes his murderous ways, hence proving all that tax payer money was wasted.

Psycho II is a breezy read featuring lots of twists and turns to keep you guessing. Much of the book takes place in Hollywood where, coincidentally, a movie about Norman’s life is being filmed. I really dug the movie within a novel aspect and have a feeling the plot for Scream II was lifted from this book.

Psycho II is much more graphic than previous novels written by Bloch. He definitely seems to be critiquing the spaltter/slasher craze that was prevalent in horror movies at the time. Maybe he felt responsible since you could argue Norman Bates was the very first Slasher.

Although they share the same name, Psycho II the novel and Psycho II the movie are two totally different stuffed birds. In fact, I’ve heard Universal hated Bloch’s book and didn’t want it published it. I personally like both (Psycho II the movie is a pretty underrated little thriller).

I really enjoyed this return trip to the Bates Motel (well, technically we don’t actually go back to the Bates Motel since in the book it’s been destroyed, but you get my meaning). If you’re looking for more fun with Norman Bates, check out Bloch’s second Psycho sequel, Psycho House. Now if you’ll excuse me, I’m gonna go jump in the shower…

Pseudo Book Review: Off Season by Jack Ketchum

A group of City folk vacationing in the back woods of Maine runs afoul of some cave dwelling cannibals in Jack Ketchum’s Off Season. Blood, guts, and a recipe for human sausages (swear to God) ensue!

How I only recently discovered a book about cannibalistic savages written by Jack Ketchum will forever be an unsolved mystery (hopefully like Ashton Kutcher’s murder). However, thanks to the miracle of mega book stores, I found this gritty little tale and was glad I did.

The book certainly doesn’t break new ground; especially if you’re an avid viewer of 70’s survivalist horror flicks like The Texas Chainsaw Massacre and The Hills Have Eyes. Stories of City Dwellers trekking too deep in the woods and running across its unfriendly inhabitants have been seen before. Still, even with the familiarity, there are several particularly vicious moments in the book that had this grizzled horror veteran squirming ever so slightly.

As is the norm in the Survivalist Horror sub-genre, the so called “civilized” characters resort to decidedly un-civilized behavior to survive. There is a scene during the novel’s climax in particular that hammers this point home. The book definitely doesn’t have a Steven Spielberg type ending, that’s for sure.

Unlike my first experience with Uncle Lou, my first experience with Jack Ketchum was a good one. It’s got Violence, suspense and Cannibals all written in a style that never had me wanting to put the damn thing down. If you can’t read, learn how and pick up Off Season.

FYI: The version of the book I read was sort of a “Director’s cut.” It includes several scenes not included before and a completely different ending. Ketchum was forced to make several cuts to the book by the original publishers. If you’ve read Off Season before, you may want to check out this un-cut version.