Horror Movie: A Novel

An eerie horror novel that blues the lines between reality and fiction. We follow a survivor from an indie horror film gone wrong, as he explains what happened and walks the reader through the process of making the reboot film. I’m not always a fan of Tremblay, but I found this one intriguing and eerie. The book is written from the survivor’s perspective intermixed with actual screenplay from the film, melding written and visual media so well! I’d classify this as a horror/thriller that points out the true horrors in life are t monsters but us.

⭐️⭐️ A Fever Dream of a Horror Novel (But Not in a Good Way) The Horror Movie by Paul Tremblay was… a lot. I went in expecting an unsettling, mind-bending horror story, but what I got felt more like a confusing, surreal fever dream that left me more baffled than scared. The writing was undeniably unique—fragmented, disorienting, and intentionally chaotic—but instead of pulling me in, it made the whole reading experience feel like I was trying to put together a puzzle with half the pieces missing. The plot? Honestly, I’m still trying to figure out what actually happened. The book jumps between perspectives, timelines, and storytelling formats in a way that almost works, but instead left me feeling detached from the horror rather than immersed in it. There were moments of genuine unease, but they were overshadowed by a sense of confusion that never really let up. And then there’s the ending. If I thought the rest of the book was strange, the final pages completely caught me off guard—not in a terrifying, shocking way, but more of a wait, that’s it? kind of way. I sat there trying to process it, and the more I thought about it, the less satisfying it felt. I appreciate what Tremblay was going for with the unconventional structure and creeping sense of dread, but this one just didn’t land for me. If you love experimental horror that leans more into psychological disorientation than traditional scares, it might work for you. But for me, reading this book felt like being trapped inside a horror movie where I wasn’t sure what I was supposed to be afraid of—and not in the fun way.

Overall great, the ending saved it for me and made a lot of things I was confused about make sense. The timeline jumping was a little confusing but overall I really enjoyed it!

I love horror novels but I struggled to get through this one. Very confusing, and how it goes between present past and screenplay didn’t help.

I'm speechless...but not in a good way. The ending through me for a whole loop. Not at all what I was expecting. I just knew the build up was leading up to something but that just wasn't it. Kinda wish I could get my time back.