Rating: 
Summary: "The Association"
Review: A good book for passing time and thats it. Story was totally implausible. Are we really supposed to beleive this homeowner sees an armless and legless man in a bloody diaper scooting around in the woods and doesn't try to help? Sees a friend who has disappeared in a zombie state digging a swimming pool for the homeowners association and doesn't question it? Hears a man call his wife an "C- - T" and doesn't let him have it? Ridiculous story. Other books much better than this.
Rating:
Summary: Too much gross out, not enough substance.
Review: While I enjoyed Little's novel "The Store" and thought his short stories in "The Collection" were okay, I was not really impressed with this book.In my opinion, Little goes for the gross out factor far more then he should. It seems like that's all there is to the story and it just becomes too much. I think he's kills off too many of the main character's friends and allies too. Again, too much. There's also a problem with the main character himself. I was halfway thru the book and was still asking myself why I should care what happens to the main character and his wife. Little just didn't do enough to get the reader emotionally invested in the story. Little definitely has skill as a writer and comes up with some original ideas. However, his execution of those ideas still leaves a lot to be desired. "The Store" shows that he's done it well once. It remains to be seen whether he can do it again. He definitely didn't pull it off with this book.
Rating:
Summary: Like a bad B movie
Review: Starts out with potential, but eventually becomes unbelievable, even for fiction.
Rating: 
Summary: Don't Waste Your Time
Review: This was my first Bentley Little novel. In a word, it was not worth my time. The characters are one dimentional, at best, and the plot calls for a suspension of disbelief that simply can't be justified. The main characters, with whom we are supposed to sympathize, come off like helpless twits. Don't waste your time or money on this book.
Rating: 
Summary: More humor from Bentley Little
Review: Bentley Little certainly knows how to create a deft blend of humor, horror, and wackiness. Of the three novels I've read from this particular author, "The Association" continues this tradition, albeit on a slightly lower scale than "The Store" and "The Collection." Little's "The Association" is his scathing indictment of the homeowner associations that are springing up all across America. "The Association" is the story of Barry and Maureen, a wedded couple fleeing from Southern California life. Barry, a horror writer, and Maureen, an accountant, decide to move to a gated community in Corban, Utah. Corban, although it is out in the boonies, promises to be a peaceful, bucolic place to live. The houses are nice and the view is great. What Barry and Mo didn't count on was the homeowner's association. The trouble starts slowly; landscaping the couple plants is mysteriously torn up, a local weirdo accosts Mo, and strange rule violations start appearing in the mailbox. Things go quickly downhill from there. Paranoia sets in, as Barry has no idea which of his neighbors he can trust with his criticisms of the association. By the time some of Barry's friends start to disappear, the stage for a showdown is set. This book contains many of Little's usual themes. The biggest one is the elevation of a mundane activity or organization into something fearful and fascist. Whether it is a discount retail store, the U.S. Postal Service, or gated communities, Little sees much to worry about in our everyday lives. The humor is here as it is in his other novels, but it is nowhere near the level of "The Store." Still, how can you not chuckle about Stumpy or the clipboard toting thugs in "The Association?" It is this kind of black comedy that makes Bentley Little so darn enjoyable. His propensity for "slight exaggeration" makes him more of a humorist than a horror writer. That's not to say there aren't sickening or upsetting incidents in this book, but I think the emphasis on horror ignores an important aspect in his writings. My greatest concern with this novel is some of the threads left untied in the story. One small example is when Barry receives a picture, from the association, of a person being tortured to death. Shortly after, a FBI agent shows up to investigate the disappearance of a few of Barry's friends. Amazingly, NO ONE gives the FBI agent the picture! This doesn't strain belief; it violently breaks it in half and slaps you in the face with it! This, and a few other continuity errors, makes "The Association" a lesser Little work. However, don't lose faith. Little is still one of the great ones out there, and he keeps churning novels out at a quick pace. You have to love a guy that references Jethro Tull, ELP, and Phillip Emmons (Little's own pseudonym) in the same book.
Rating: 
Summary: Overall Disappointment
Review: This is the first of Bentley Little's books that I have ever read. Based on the synopsis and some reviews, I was really looking forward to a good horrific read, but I was disappointed. The first half of the book drags. Much of it could have been edited and the reader would not have missed out on any significant details. The last half of the book is page-turning, but the actions of The Association are outlandish to the point of being ridiculous. True, it is a work of fiction and a horror book at that, but I think the book could have been improved if it was a little more realistic. Also, I found there to be quite a strong undertone of egalitarianism. Several references were made in dialogue to this racist pig or that discriminatory policy. It was very clear on which side of the political spectrum Little resides.
Rating: 
Summary: One of the best I've read...
Review: Let me start off by saying I love horror fiction, and I adore Bentley Little's novels. If you are looking for the horror ride of a lifetime, let Bentley Little do the driving. With a storyline right out of my Home Owner's Association (laugh) it speeds along a rollercoaster track of twists and turns. A warning: Bentley Little is graphic. If you don't enjoy that type of horror, he is probably not the guy for you. He isn't writing deep, thought provoking fiction (though you may not want to live in a planned community after this) but he does write some fantastic, fast paced horror that will leave you breathless at the end.
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Summary: What a great book
Review: I thought this was a great book. He has a great mind for Horror. Although he made up all of these things that happend, I bet across the country some of these have happpend.(the bushes, painting the house) I think that makes it even scarier.
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Summary: I think some are missing the point
Review: As with many other reviewers, at the outset I thought this book was too outrageously "over the top." To say that the events in this book are implausible is the understatement of the year (of course, I realize that we don't really read horror novels for their plausibility, but anyhow. . .) But as the events of the story continued to spiral down into almost laughable disbelief, I realized that what I was reading was SOCIAL SATIRE. In the history of English literature, from Swift to Twain to Waugh, social satire has been--and is intended to be--outrageous, so that the reader sees the deeper point at the same time that he or she is laughing. Which brings me to my actual point. Some readers have expressed dismay at Little's reference to "that jackass William Rehnquist", but those who are offended are missing the fact that this IS social satire and that, whether they agree with his views or not, Little is certainly allowed to take jabs at our society and its institutions. The fact that the Association's board of directors wears robes which closely resemble those of the supreme court IS THE POINT! This book was presumably written during and possibly just after the brouhaha of the 2000 elections and Little is writing commentary on the situation in an entertaining way. So, whether you enjoy the book or not, allow the author his American right to say what he wants. (Or should we, perhaps, add a new rule to our nation's C,C and R's allowing us to fine him or shut him up for his views?)
Rating:
Summary: I couldn't put it down!!!
Review: I throughly enjoyed Bentley Little's "The Association". You wouldn't think a book about a homeowner's association would be so terrifying but it is! It gets off to a scary start with the dead cat stuffed in the mailbox and just keeps on going! The main character, Barry Welch writes horror for a living and finds himself living the worst nightmare of all. You can really identify with the primary characters as they experience the terror of the association, who if anyone tries to cross them or break the rules, come up missing or deformed. I've read this book twice within the last nine months and will definitely read more of Little's work!
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