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Haunted

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Haunted

By: Chuck Palahniuk
Narrated by: Scott Brick, Marc Cashman, Erik Davies, Kimberly Farr
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About this listen

 Haunted by Chuck Palahniuk is a novel made up of stories: 23 of them, to be precise. Twenty-three of the most horrifying, hilarious, mind-blowing, stomach-churning tales you'll ever encounter, sometimes all at once. They are told by people who have answered an ad headlined "Writers' Retreat: Abandon Your Life for Three Months", and who are led to believe that here they will leave behind all the distractions of "real life" that are keeping them from creating the masterpiece that is in them. But "here" turns out to be a cavernous and ornate old theater where they are utterly isolated from the outside world, and where heat and power and, most important, food are in increasingly short supply. And the more desperate the circumstances become, the more extreme the stories they tell, and the more devious their machinations become to make themselves the hero of the inevitable play/movie/nonfiction blockbuster that will surely be made from their plight.

Haunted is on one level a satire of reality television: The Real World meets Alive. It draws from a great literary tradition, The Canterbury Tales, The Decameron, the English storytellers in the Villa Diodati who produced, among other works, Frankenstein, to tell an utterly contemporary tale of people desperate that their story be told at any cost. Appallingly entertaining, Haunted is Chuck Palahniuk at his finest, which means his most extreme and his most provocative.

©2005 Chuck Palahniuk (P)2005 Random House, Inc. Random House Audio, a division of Random House, Inc. Anthologies & Short Stories Dark Humour Fiction Ghosts Horror Literature & Fiction Satire Short Stories Haunted Scary Comedy Witty

Critic Reviews

"[The stories] consistently, powerfully transcend their macabre premises to showcase the heart beating beneath the horrors." (Publishers Weekly)
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I had no idea just how bat shit crazy this book would be. I've had many audio books where I have had to back track a little because I missed something due to being pre-occupied with something else. This though, I think was the first time I've back tracked multiple times due to legitimate WTF moments...

I initially thought this was a collection of short stories only based on it being mentioned in passing on a podcast I listened to, so when I started listening without reading the blurb I was pleasantly surprised to understand it being a collection of short stories and poetry about and 'written by' the characters within the over arching story - what a great idea!

Now as bizarre, insane and grotesque as the short stories were (and they really are), the over arching story takes you to places you wouldn't think a human could imagine. My only criticism (and its not really a criticism), is that it is so weird and astoundingly peculiar that I couldn't connect with any of the characters or the situations they found themselves in. It was so far removed from reality that I couldn't really understand from a human level how what was happening was actually happening.

I thoroughly enjoyed it though, even the moments I didn't because they were so brutal and disgusting, even then I powered through with a look on my face like I had just smelled rotten milk. Fight Club it is not, never will this be made for TV or film, but it is well worth a shot if you want something so odd you begin to question Palahniuk's state of mind whilst he wrote this.

Terrifyingly grotesque and overall, bizarre

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This was the rarest of the rare... a short story compilation where every story was good!!! I think this is actually the first book of short stories ever, that I have enjoyed every single story.

Yes it is gory, yes there are some very unpleasant scenarios mentioned, and yes the darker side of human nature is showcased in almost every story.

But it was entertaining! Even the frame of the story was very good.

If you have a weak stomach or are easily offended then this probably won’t be for you. But as a hardened horror reader I found this pretty tame and only had 2 “yikes” moments...

This is the third book by Chuck Palahniuk I have read (the first two being Survivor and Invisible Monsters), and I think this was superior.

All I can say is give it a try! You can always request a refund if you don’t like it.

Marvellous

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first review I've written after listening to over 100 books. thought it was definitely worth me writing one. absolutely loved it. every story 'within' the story had me hooked. This book takes you on a journey through the darkest depravities of human nature. 5 stars

amazing

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Made me laugh and gasp in the first chapter! Definitely recommend if you like odd short stories.

Wierd and Wonderful

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Another amazing book from the mind of Chuck Palahniuk. I love his writing as I never know what is coming next. This style of shorts stories and poems within an overarching tale is a brilliant idea. The amount of characters totally had me confused but in the end I realized I needed to not focus so much on who was doing what but just go with the flow and take this crazy ride for where it went. Palahniuk really brings out the worst in humanity while keeping things just within the realm of possibility. A book that needs to be discussed so make sure you have someone willing to listen to the weird and wonderful thoughts this provokes.

Can someone check Chuck Palahniuk is ok?

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Gore for the sake of gore. Don't bother. Save money. Save time. Do whatever, just don't bother with this piece of junk.

Worse than bad - just boring

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