Crucifax

By: Ray Garton

Narrated by: Seth Michael Donsky

Originally published in 1988, Ray Garton's second novel, after his stunning debut with Live Girls, is regarded as a classic of the "splatterpunk" movement in horror fiction. Garton has a way with teenage boredom, atmospheric small-town isolation, incest, drug abuse and over-the-top violence and he has managed to create a modern re-make of the story of the Pied Piper with a sinister character, Crucifax, appearing on the scene, seducing mixed-up kids with his siren song of pleasure, power and indulgence, all leading to a horrifically unsettling climax of death and destruction. And let's not forget the rat-like things that do the piper's bidding...

©1988 Ray Garton (P)2013 Audible, Inc.

Loved loved loved it!

One of the best books I’ve ever had the pleasure of learning.
It’s so comparable to Edward Lee in a way plus it had me laughing, cussing, & happy to experience.

Pleasantly Surprised

Any additional comments?

I purchased Crucifax just because I wanted to try something different and I had a credit to spare. I usually don't purchase audiobooks that have no reviews, but my research online encouraged me to take a chance on this audiobook.

The Good:

Originally published in 1988 this story did have a bit of a "dated" feel to it BUT I loved it. I was a kid in the 80's (sorry my age is showing) and a few parts of the story made me think of my brother's stories of his 80's high school years. I did occasionally get that "ripped from the headlines" feel meaning parts of the story sensationalized what adults and the media believe teens will do when influenced by the "wrong" things.

The bulk of the story followed teenage siblings who are dealing with their parents divorce, usual teen stress, and (prepare yourself) incest fantasies. The mother of the main characters is also featured as she struggles to support herself and two teenagers with a variety of less than savory jobs. Throughout the book the teens and their peers are seduced by a mysterious man who seems determined to influence as many teenagers as possible.

The Bad:

The narrator is absolutely horrible. I am completely serious. This narrator was so bad I almost gave up on listening to a story that I ended up really enjoying. His attempt to portray female characters came across as annoying most of the time and ludicrous all of the time. It was really, embarrassingly, bad.

In a perfect world a male narrator should be able to handle male characters just fine. Unfortunately, this is not a perfect world. Some of this male characters sounded like whiny fools making it hard to truly listen to the story and get lost in it. Other male characters just sounded ridiculous.

In the end I gave this audiobook a 3 star rating because I was able to power through the audiobook and was happy that I did. The story is a good one even though it is a bit dated and has the after school special feel. If it was rerecorded with a better narrator I think this would be an amazing listen and a solid 4 star listen losing only one star because of the (in my opinion) flaws in the story.

Another good and entertaining novel by Ray Garton

A lot of reviewers say they do not like the narration of this book. What they fail to understand is that the narrator is a staple in the Ray Garton novels. He is quite an effective narrator since he is able to give every character a unique voice. I recommend listening to shackled by Ray Garton and his narrator. After a few books, the narrator voice plays an important part of Garton’s style. He’s not a serious by the book writer of horror, his works are pure fun and excitement. For literary fans, it’s a tragedy that Garten is no longer with us.

Narrator

The narrator for this book made it very hard to listen to. He overly exaggerated every voice he did making the characters not as likable.

Ray deserves better.

This is hands-down, no question, to infinity and beyond the single worst audiobook reader I have ever heard. And that's saying a lot. It's embarrassing and painful. This man must be stopped.