Properly Awry

So, I gave in and bought a book Stephen King said was great and was truly disappointed by it. The Mad Cook of Pymatuning by Christopher Lehmann-Haupt is described on the publisher’s website as a “no-holds-barred story of terror” and “a wicked, suspenseful, and deeply original tale”, this description combined with King’s recommendation convinced me to buy it (in hardcover even, though I did have a giftcard burning a hole in my purse). The book drags on, is not suspenseful by any sense of the word, and certainly the word terror does not apply. I expected a higher-brow Richard Laymon style of horror - blood, guts, and the sense of what the fuck else could happen to these poor saps - but instead was ripped off. This book does not have “undertones reminiscent of Lord of the Flies” - Lord is a far superior book and if you are at the store holding a hardcover copy of Mad Cook in your hands, put it down and pick up a nice cheap softcover copy of Lord of the Flies instead.