The Association

Rating:
Summary: Bentley has a political axe to grind
Review: I hate it when an author injects his political opinions into a work of fiction. Little refers to "that jackass William Rehnquist" and attacks him for his clothing style. What does this have to do with the horror novel? To the reader, it jerks him out of the passage of the novel, and back into the contemporary, real world, and for me the purpose of reading novels is to *escape* the real world, not have to antagonize with people of different political persuasions.
I have all the rest of his novels, and I'd give them a 4 or 5, but this one starts real slow, and kind of boring (although that could be me because I have to deal with 2 neighborhood associations, and to me it's not fiction, but reality). Nothing out of the ordinary (that I've haven't comparably already seen in my own Association) happens in the first 2/3 of the book.
The last part of the book is good, but like I said, I don't like fiction authors who wait until the book is well along, then stick their political opinions in it

Rating:
Summary: Highly-recommended
Review: Little is in wonderful form in this thriller about a young couples experience with a sinister home owners association. The characters are well-drawn out; although the plot flows and ebbs, it is, indeed, a gripping page-turner. Wonderfully subversive and full of thrills and chills. This is perhaps, Little's most realized novel - and his best work to date. Highly-recommended!!

Rating:
Summary: good poopin' book
Review: Fans of Bentley Little previous works will undoubtedly enjoy The Association. Little's uncanny knack for taking the mundane and creating an atmosphere of terror with a great helping of absurdity is present throughout. The Book deals with a couple who find the "perfect" house within a gated community. Things seem great on the surface but after a few weeks of living in the snotty development things take a turn for the worse in typical B. Little fashion. Without giving away any spoilers, Weird [stuff] starts happening. Although the novel does seem a bit ridiculous in points, it never lacks in entertainment value. There is of course your fair share of perversions which should be noted to anyone who hasn't read Mr. Little's work before. Although in many ways this does add to the entertainment factor of the book for shock value alone. I actually found myself chuckling at many parts, while also reading on to find out what insane acts The Association were going to pull off next. (Stumpy was my personal favorite) very funny in a sick way indeed.
I would recommend this book to anyone looking for a quick, darkly intelligent read. There were many similarities to The Store, but being a big fan of that work, that did not deter my interest. Bentley Little is A fantastic writer, albeit a little crazy I think, but nonetheless extremely readable. There are many allusions to the plight of contemporary society as well as the separation of classes, which when looked upon and understood truly make this a fantastic book...

Rating:
Summary: Possibly Bentley's Best
Review: So far in 2001, horror fans have been treated to some great books (Douglas Clegg's NAOMI and Simon Clark's DARKNESS DEMANDS being in the forefront). However, Bentley Little's latest offering may possibly be his greatest tale yet. Despite some similarities with his book THE STORE, THE ASSOCIATION pulls the reader into Little's brand of the macabre quickly and never lets go. Few, if any authors out there can take such a mundane thing as a homeowner's association and completely put a sinister twist to it as does Little. A quarter into the story and you'll want to jump in and help main character Barry Welch fight this bizarre group. Plenty of chills, action, strange characters, and great underlying social commentary makes this a must read for horror fans. Little lives up to and surpases all the hype printed on the covers of his books. He is simply the best. Add two pluses here for a great ending and one of the best (and funniest) opening dedications I've ever seen in a novel!

Rating:
Summary: ONE OF THE MOST BIZZAREST NOVELS I'VE EVER READ!
Review: I think that "The Association" was one of Bentley Little's most exciting and interesting novels yet. I also feel that "The Association" was one of the most bizzare novels of Little's too. Most people who live in gated communities are hard-working, affluent individuals who can afford the luxury of having a security gate or a sturdy cement wall surrounding their community. These people live in places like this because they feel safe and happy, right? Well, not exactly.
Enter horror novelist, Barry and his wife, Maureen. They decided to move to escape the crowded and bustling way of life of Los Angeles and move to a little mountain town about one hundred miles away from Salt Lake City. When Barry & Maureen see this nice house with a great view, in the pristine mountains, they are immediately in love with it. It is located in the Bonita Vista (Pretty View) Association. They get the house for an EXTREMELY good price and they move right in with help from their friends from LA. They also get a large book named "The Bonita Vista CC & R's." Things start out real nice and friendly until they find a dead cat in their mailbox. Next comes the pink slips from the association warning them that there can be no plants planted without approvement from the association and no yard sales permitted at all. Soon after, a notice arrives along with fines saying there are no pets allowed, no bringing in of friends from outside Bonita Vista, no family pictures displayed around the house, no couples that are not married can live together, no cooking of Asian foods, no working out of your home, and other ridiculous rules that would drive a person right out of this psychotic place. Barry and Maureen vow not to let this push them out of their house. They try and get information from neighbors, but the majority of the neighbors are lunatics who like this dictatorship way of living. They can not be trusted. Barry decides to call the police but is shocked to realize from the neighbors that the police do not have jurisdiction in the homeowners associations. They have their own sheriff, SHERIFF HITMAN. (Interesting name, huh?). As time moves on, Barry and Maureen notice that their sane neighbors who had problems with the association start dying horrible deaths. Barry vows to hunt down the leaders of the association and terminate this freaks. This novels just keeps on going and going with bizarre confrontations and messages. The ending is the only thing I didn't like about this novel. I felt it was a little odd with the inside of the house turning into a coliseum and the quick ending. In my opinion, Bentley Little is not just the master of horror, HE IS ONE OF THE MASTERS OF PSYCHOLOGICAL SUSPENSE!

Rating:
Summary: True and Terrifying
Review: Bentley Little has turned into the master chronicler of the horror of modern life. With THE IGNORED he took on conformity and the depersonalization of society, with THE STORE he addressed the death of main streets in this Wall Street driven world. Now, with THE ASSOCIATION, he takes on gated communities and homeowners' associations, and the result is a brilliant skewering of contemporary neighborhood life. It's sharply satiric, but it's also scary as hell, and Mr. Little has woven together these strands in a page-turning manner. Hopefully, this will catapault Bentley Little into Stephen King/John Grisham territory and give him the bestseller status he so richly deserves.

Rating:
Summary: Scary Stuff!
Review: I have never read this author before, and I only bought this book because the cover caught my attention in the bookstore, and after reading the back cover I was interested. I was hooked from start to finish. I am in the process of ordering more books by this author. I am really glad I found him. His style reminded me of Steven King, but better. I really enjoyed this book and would suggest it to others.

Rating:
Summary: Never a dull moment
Review: Edge of your seat, can't put down read. Little fans will love it.

Rating:
Summary: Laughing out loud!
Review: This is one of the silliest books I have ever read! If the author was going for horror, he's really missed the mark. The dialogue is laughable. There is barely any tension in the plot. If they made a movie out of this book, the audience would think it was a comedy. Good concept, but unfortunate results.

Rating:
Summary: I Like Horror... But This One...
Review: Lately I've found few novels worth finishing. 'The Association' caught my interest early and held it for a good long time. But then, somewhere along the way, the latter third, Little seemed to lose his way and invent a stupid ending and stupid reason for the whole story.

That was disappointing. It's my opinion that horror writers in general (King is an excellent example) are good at inventing a promising premise but then can't deliver an ending that makes the journey satisfying.