A lot of reviews of The Violators start with the following sentence:
This book isn’t for everyone.
And it’s true. But this applies to a lot of books. So, why making this distinction in this case? Because this book is extremely heavy. It touches on themes of senseless murder and rape, and beyond. It shows depravity at its worst, and a lot of people will be offended by this content.
But trust me, it’s worth it.
This book is about a group of college students committing atrocities to better understand art. That’s it. It’s a basic plot, but written with such depth and craftsmanship, it feels almost like a philosophy book.
But not as boring as a philosophy book, I can tell you that. And this book is incredibly meta fictional.
“Cindy wanted to submit her essay for a Stoker Award, but since it was so poorly written and inaccurate, it merely received a nomination, despite the fact that she wasn’t even a member of the Horror Writers Association”
This is sure to piss people off. And I’m sure the multiple references to small press publishers of Bizarro/Weird Fiction is going to resonate with the ones who know them. I love this book, and will read it again in the near future. This should be taught at writing classes, it should be studied at length.
Vincenzo warns us in the preface that this book does not reflect his personal views, that is a work of fiction. And this warning may even be considered a part of the book itself, due to the self referential nature of it. I need to confess that I also hate this book. And I hate it for a very personal reason: It’s the type of book I strive to someday write. Meta fictional commentary on the craft itself, reflecting on what is real and what is not inside a work of fiction.
But, and I’ll stress this enough: This book isn’t for anyone. In case you are easily offended/shocked, you will not like The Violators. And I don’t know if this is a bad thing. Art is supposed to make you feel things.
If you read this book and don’t feel anything at all, you’re probably dead inside already.
About the author: Pedro Proença writes, plays Magic: The Gathering, is a bassist, and works at an hospital (but try not to remind him of the last one). His first book is BENJAMIN, part of the 2015-16 New Bizarro Author Series from Eraserhead Press. He has been published by Fireside Press and Dynatox Ministries, as well as having stories appearing in Bizarro Central and Flash Forge. He lives in Rio de Janeiro with his girlfriend Sarah Sindorf (who did the cover art for BENJAMIN), his family, and their assorted pets.
Some of the coverage you find on Cultured Vultures contains affiliate links, which provide us with small commissions based on purchases made from visiting our site. We cover gaming news, movie reviews, wrestling and much more.
