Slob

Rating:
Summary: Shocking, fantastic and replusive!
Review: "Slob" is a fantastic adventure into the mind of a serial killer. In what is the first of a number of books about Daniel Bunkowski (a.k.a. Chaingang), Rex Miller has created a character that is so grotesque and replusive, that it's hard to imagine anything like him. Hannibal Lecter is tame in comparison. Miller does a great job developing the "Chaingang" character and giving the reader a primer in "how to create a serial killer".

"Slob" is definitely not for the faint of heart. The graphic decriptions of Chaingang's killing sprees border on being too intense. Miller pulls no punches and makes no apologies for his style.

Having actually read one of the sequels to "Slob", ("Savant") about five years ago, I was interested to see how the series started out, so I was pleased to find a copy of this book. (For years it's been out of print and almost impossible to find.)

My only complaint about this book and indeed the whole series, is the unbelievable unfallability that Chaingang has. Here's a 400+ pound giant that moves with the stealth and grace of a cat burgler. His intellectual abilities also appear to be too "godlike" and prescient.

With all of that in mind, this is an extremely "quick" read and one that's hard to put down. If you're a fan of Thomas Harris or James Patterson, then you'll find the works of Rex Miller to your liking.

Rating:
Summary: Shocking, fantastic and replusive!
Review: "Slob" is a fantastic adventure into the mind of a serial killer. In what is the first of a number of books about Daniel Bunkowski (a.k.a. Chaingang), Rex Miller has created a character that is so grotesque and replusive, that it's hard to imagine anything like him. Hannibal Lecter is tame in comparison. Miller does a great job developing the "Chaingang" character and giving the reader a primer in "how to create a serial killer".

"Slob" is definitely not for the faint of heart. The graphic decriptions of Chaingang's killing sprees border on being too intense. Miller pulls no punches and makes no apologies for his style.

Having actually read one of the sequels to "Slob", ("Savant") about five years ago, I was interested to see how the series started out, so I was pleased to find a copy of this book. (For years it's been out of print and almost impossible to find.)

My only complaint about this book and indeed the whole series, is the unbelievable unfallability that Chaingang has. Here's a 400+ pound giant that moves with the stealth and grace of a cat burgler. His intellectual abilities also appear to be too "godlike" and prescient.

With all of that in mind, this is an extremely "quick" read and one that's hard to put down. If you're a fan of Thomas Harris or James Patterson, then you'll find the works of Rex Miller to your liking.

Rating:
Summary: SLOB IS TRULY UNIQUE!
Review: I am not a horror fan reader, but this book accidently fell into my hands and drew me in instantly.
CHAINGANG Butowski is a monster unlike anything I've ever read, including Red Dragon.
The book moved along at a bloody pace with rich background of this huge serial killer that enthralled me. My only complaint was the battle scenes and the ending that left me feeling somewhat flat.
The editing of this book is atrocious too. There are so many mega-overlong sentences that at times it just made this hard to read somewhat.
But Rex Miller's style of writing is mostly compelling and chilling, and is that not what you should expect in a horror, serial killer novel?
I will try the next one in the series, so that says something about it.

Rating:
Summary: the fear...is another thing (la paura ..è un'altra cosa)
Review: I have to tell: I'm not agree with persons which think this book is so full of fear, so terrible. I think it is a good book, because I have wanted to arrive at last page, but I don't feel fear. It's not kind, this yes! Naturally, the idea of a real meeting with Chaingang is not happy, but is not easy to believe that a half-stupid of four Tons can find always the best solution to help himself, or race many minuts to catch you! However the atmosphere is surely hard, and the writing very interesting. Two particular observations : the vietnam background of the serial killer is a little...deja vu, or not? At last, about this no brilliant giant who loves sweet little dogs, doesn't he remember somebody fo you? I think Lenny, "Of mice and men" Devo dissentire da chi dice che questo libro è così spaventoso. Mi sembra un buon libro, cosa che misuro generalmente dalla voglia di arrivare alla fine, ma non fa paura, è piuttosto sgradevole, questo sì. Certo l'ipotesi di incontrare Chaingang non è piacevole, ma è difficile pensare che un semideficiente che pesa quattro tonnellate possa farla franca, e neanche inseguirti a lungo. Ma l'atmosfera è sicuramente intensa, e la scrittura molto interessante. Alcune osservazioni particolari: il background vietnamita del seriale è un po' troppo ricorrente, no? Infine : questo gigante un po' tonto che ama i morbidi cuccioli di cane non vi ricorda qualcuno? Io penso al Lenny di "Uomini e topi".

Rating:
Summary: Whatever happened to this guy?
Review: I read this novel when it first appeared some years ago. Although he produced this great debut novel, the author seems to have faded into obscurity. I rarely even hear his name spoken, these days. Which is sad, for SLOB seemed to signal the arrival of a truly new and unique voice in horror and suspense literature. The book has its flaws, but they are minor ones. It's powerfully written, the lead character is original and quite frightening, and the book draws one in from the first line and holds you to the last. You can't ask for more than that from a genre novel.

Rex Miller, where are you? Certainly you have some new tales to tell?

Rating:
Summary: Whatever Happened to Killer Rex Miller?
Review: Slob is a mystery so violent and revealing that it was tucked away in the horror section. It topped two genres as a result, and spawned a series of sequels that many Miller fans don't know about. After a publishing a small press novella called Haunts way back when (which is an unusual ghost story made up of a report and a transcript), Miller disappeared for a while and then came back with Slob, which hit big as a Signet paperback. He then churned out two a year for a few fast paced years:

Frenzy - a novel of a hitman whose daughter is sold to a smut film producer who is financially backed by the hitman's mob bosses. He begins to pick them off one by one as Detective Jack Eichord (my favorite fictional detective ever rivaled only by newcomer author Heywood Steele's own Dorf Brentson) tries to solve the mystery. This is what the film "8mm" should have been. Gripping, but a bit hurried at the end.

Stone Shadow - another Eichord tale about twin brothers, one of whom is a vicious killer. Beware the "missing page" in the original edition! His next novel, Profane Men, was a Vietnam story that isn't part of the series.

Iceman - Possibly Miller's best, Eichord goes after another murderer, the sickest yet. This book marked a turning point, where Miller took more time developing a satisfying ending instead of a BANG that left you needing to read the next book to put together certain details (such as why is Eichord sometimes engaged and on the wagon while at other times dumped and drunk? This fluxuated, and the woman and girl from the first and third novels seem to fade away without explanation and are not present at all in Frenzy, but anyway...).

Slice - The return of Chaingang, who nursed himself to health in sewers and has a baby, and you won't believe who ends up with it! Another Eichord novel, whose coworkers are all back, marking a well-rounded series. This is perhaps the most violent, and Chaingang is in top form. The only complaint is that Miller spent five or six pages building up pointless characters that Chaingang killed off.

Thrillers - a lesser-known anthology that contained a novella by Miller that told the powerful and haunting story of Eichord and Chaingang's son. It also clears up how Chaingang is able to return in the next novel after Slice and his eventual return to the States. This is well worth tracking down.

Chaingang - The return of Chaingang has him as the central character. It is fast paced and includes some colorful characters. Many people think this is Miller's second book because the other books went out of print while Slob stayed around. It is good, but there is an emptiness in Miller's work without Jack Eichord.

Savant - Another Chaingang, which explores issues of child abuse that Miller always speaks so strongly of. A fast paced story, good book, but still no trace of Eichord, Chaingang's only real foil. Watch out for a story in the "Fear Itself" anthology about Eichord and Chaingang's son. The chronology is a bit off, but at least it's Eichord. There is another Eichord story in the "Stalkers" anthology called Miss December.

Butcher - This is the last of the Daniel Edward Flowers Bunkowski (Chaingang) stories. It introduces Ray Meara, a breathe of fresh air in a series that seemed to be losing steam but still contained prose that fired off the page like hardcore rock and roll. No Eichord, plenty of Chaingang and Meara.

St. Louis Blues - A small press endeavor still available in a pricy slipcased edition. This is one of Miller's best, it took me back to the salad days of Eichord and villains and the thin line that separates the two. It brings back Ray Meara (in a different locale with a different personality and career, but still a great character - "Meara, Meara on the wall") who is a cop who took a slippery slope in his life and didn't catch himself until it was too late. He is partnered up with a young woman hungry to make a career. This one explores issues of penance and redemption. It is shorter than the others, and in many cases better. This is Miller's last known work.

Rex Miller: the Complete Revelations - A small press biography by t. Winter-Damon, who tells the Rex Miller story, all the way back to Killer Rex Miller's radio jock days and brings us up to his mail order collectables business and gives an analysis of the books up to that point, including Miller's two nonfiction guides to collectibles he had published. There are interviews and even a picture of Miller, a must for his fans if you can find it!

Duet For the Devil - by t. Winter-Damon. Read this. It is a fabulous mystery, and so violent that it took a specialty publisher (Necro) to bring it to light. Read this, and read t. Winter-Damon's intro to the Lee and Pelan book Goon, and read the Complete Revelations, and ask yourself one question: Is Killer Rex Miller and t. Winter-Damon the same person? Their rapid-fire styles are the same, and t. Winter-Damon's bio seems a bit unclear about exactly what his published works are. He also goes to extremes to praise Miller. I hope I'm not the first to notice this.

Either way, Miller is a great author who may have burned himself out by churning out such a fast line of books. It has been a while now, since 1996 or so, and maybe he's rested a little and will surprise us with something, maybe with Eichord or Meara or Chaingang. If not, hopefully my review has helped fans of Miller find some pieces they didn't know about, and they can track down those missing stories that will tide them over until this great author finally returns...

Rating:
Summary: Sheer Artistry For Those With Strong Stomachs
Review: There's nothing gentle about Rex Miller's "Slob". Long out of print, Miller's initial novel of his nightmarish Chaingang character is cut from the same vein as the works of Thomas Harris, but their differences couldn't be more stark. Miller's writing is powerful and frenetic, with flairs of jazz and pulp sensibilities throughout. "Slob" flirts with the profane on many occasions, with a sadistic streak that's overwhelming when you first experience it, but make no bones about it, Miller is one of the most powerful writers of horror you'll ever read. "Slob" offers everything that Hannibal Lecter is not -- Chaingang is a killing machine, with few if any social graces, and a more relentless and cruel psychopath you're not likely to find. Be warned -- there's something in this book to offend everyone, but Miller's skill, while not for everyone, makes him required reading -- "Slob" is cutting edge and then some.

Rating:
Summary: Sheer Artistry For Those With Strong Stomachs
Review: There's nothing gentle about Rex Miller's "Slob". Long out of print, Miller's initial novel of his nightmarish Chaingang character is cut from the same vein as the works of Thomas Harris, but their differences couldn't be more stark. Miller's writing is powerful and frenetic, with flairs of jazz and pulp sensibilities throughout. "Slob" flirts with the profane on many occasions, with a sadistic streak that's overwhelming when you first experience it, but make no bones about it, Miller is one of the most powerful writers of horror you'll ever read. "Slob" offers everything that Hannibal Lecter is not -- Chaingang is a killing machine, with few if any social graces, and a more relentless and cruel psychopath you're not likely to find. Be warned -- there's something in this book to offend everyone, but Miller's skill, while not for everyone, makes him required reading -- "Slob" is cutting edge and then some.