IAN DOWN UNDER VS THE SKIN ROOM

Ian peels back the layers of Carl Bluesy’s The Skin Room and finds more than gore underneath.

TITLE: The Skin Room

AUTHOR: Carl Bluesy

GENRE: Splatterpunk

PAGES: 320

FORMAT: e-book

PRICE: $4.99 e-book, $14.99 paperback

G’day all, I bet you didn’t expect me to post another ARC review so soon, did you? Well, chuck another shrimp on the barbie because I am, and this time I’m wading into splatterpunk territory. It’s not a genre I visit often, but Carl Bluesy’s The Skin Room makes the trip worth it. It’s a book with a message beneath all the death and horrific goings-on between its pages, and it’s a very worthy read.

The central character, Kenneth, is a despicable character from the get-go. He is one of the top salesmen at a luxury car dealership who frequently takes advantage of the position he’s in to lie, cheat, and manipulate his way into commissions. When he is caught out selling a car to the suicidal son of a rich scientist purely to get access to his father — a decision that results in the son’s death — the fallout costs him far more than his job. Someone has also forged his signature to sell his house and belongings, which leaves him with nothing but the suit on his back. The police don’t believe him, the bank won’t help, and suddenly he is forced to begin a life on the streets.

Used to living a life of luxury, the adjustment is brutal. To make matters worse, there is a serial killer on the loose called the Panhandle Peeler who is targeting the homeless and taking their skin. Kenneth falls in with a small group of people he meets, who grudgingly let him into their circle. Kenneth’s self-absorbed attitude hardly endears him to the fellow homeless, but his expertise as a salesman comes in handy when he takes on the job of selling drugs. As the Panhandle Peeler continues to wreak havoc on the community, Kenneth devises what he thinks is a brilliant plan to catch the Peeler, but it backfires spectacularly and he becomes the one captured.

This is where the book takes a turn for the truly bizarre. Kenneth wakes up in a room covered entirely in human skin. Yes, that’s right, you read that correctly. Human. Skin. What’s even freakier is that the skin is alive, complete with veins and blood that streams if the skin is parted. Why has the Peeler kept him alive? What does he want? And why isn’t he skinned like all the others? You’ll have to read the book to find out.

The whole way through the carnage, there is a strong thread of social commentary on the homeless and what they have to deal with. Bluesy doesn’t shy away from their reality — the danger they’re in, the invisibility they face, and the constant struggle to survive in a world that has kicked them to the curb. These people have hit rock bottom, and it could just as easily be any one of us if we were to fall through the cracks under the wrong circumstances.

Some sections do feel a little repetitive, and a tighter edit could have sharpened the pacing, but I didn’t find that detracted much from what is otherwise a really well-done splatterpunk novel. I enjoyed the writing, even the descriptive parts that often turned my stomach, and Kenneth’s story arc stays true to who he is while still allowing room for growth as the story progresses.

Overall, this is a strange, grisly and thoughtful ride that kept me hooked from start to finish. I give it 4.5 flesh-peeling serial killers out of 5.

Ian Gielen is a writer of all things spooky and a horror fanatic. Ian embraces his inner geek with pride, his dedication on display in the intimidating collection of horror novels and video games that threaten to take over his living space. He is mad for all things Alien, Star Wars, and cats; his furry companions are always there to keep him company as he scribbles down his latest ideas. With the sheer number of furry and human companions in his life, it’s a wonder he isn’t a little crazier than he already is.

PLEASE NOTE: The views and opinions of the staff of Memento Mori Ink do not necessarily represent those of Memento Mori Ink or Crystal Lake Publishing. Thank you for understanding.